Dive Brief:
- Skanska USA announced Wednesday that President and CEO Richard Cavallaro will step down from his current position and return to his former role as the president of Skanska USA Civil effective June 1.
- Skanska Executive Vice President Anders Danielsson, who currently leads the company's infrastructure and U.K. divisions, will replace Cavallaro as president and CEO of Skanska USA.
- Skanska said the leadership shakeup aims to improve the operational results of its civil division, which Cavallaro led from 2009 to 2014. He will replace Michael Cobelli, the current head of Skanska USA Civil, who will stay on as a strategic advisor.
Dive Insight:
The move reflects Skanska's ongoing push to expand in the U.S. market, which accounts for approximately a third of the Sweden-based company's total revenue.
In an interview with Construction Dive last year, Cavallaro — who also serves as chair of the New York Building Congress — discussed Skanska's commitment to safety and ethics and said the industry must overcome its "terrible reputation" in those areas in order to improve the public's perception of construction.
Despite success with some divisions in the U.S., Skanska's civil division has seen some difficult projects. In one of the most high-profile instances, in late 2015, the company was removed — along with partner contractors — from the Boston Green Line extension project amid cost overruns and delays.
Skanska USA has some major projects underway right now, both infrastructure-related and otherwise.
As part of LaGuardia Gateway Partners, the company said construction of the $4 billion terminal at LaGuardia Airport in New York City marks its biggest project ever. That job is being performed as a public-private partnership (P3) with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and construction should be complete by 2021.
Skanska is also leading a P3 group that is currently reconstructing a 21-mile portion of highway through Orlando, FL, as part of a contract with the Florida Department of Transportation. The Interstate 4 Ultimate Improvement Project will provide 15 rebuilt interchanges, the widening of 13 bridges, 74 replacement bridges, 53 new bridges and a minimum of two pedestrian walkways over traffic. The Skanska-led I-4 Mobility Partners will also operate and maintain the project for 40 years.
In January, the I-4 Ultimate project achieved Envision Platinum status with the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure in recognition of its dedication to sustainability and its positive social, economic and environmental impact.
