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Creativity and the spirit of service come together in a transforming encounter
INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
# 155 vol. XXXVIII July/August 2011 English Edition
“People show their creativity by proving to be capable of viewing reality from
different angles and taking pleasure in playing
with ideas”
TEO [Odebrecht Entrepreneurial Technology]
ph
oto
: ric
ar
do t
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s
022_OI155_Capa_ING.indd 1 8/1/11 2:21 PM
Founded in 1944, ODEbrECHT is a Brazilian organization made up of diversified businesses with global operations and world-class standards of quality. Its 140,000 members are present in the Americas, the Caribbean, Africa, Asia and Europe.
Next issue:Communities
rESPONSIbLE FOr COrPOrATE COMMUNICATION AT CONSTrUTOrA NOrbErTO ODEbrECHT S.A. Márcio Polidoro
rESPONSIbLE FOr PUbLICATIONS PrOGrAMS AT CONSTrUTOrA NOrbErTO ODEbrECHT S.A. Karolina Gutiez
bUSINESS ArEA COOrDINATOrS Nelson Letaif Chemicals & Petrochemicals | Andressa Saurin Ethanol & Sugar | Bárbara Nitto Oil & Gas | Daelcio Freitas Environmental Engineering | Sergio Kertész Real Estate Developments | Coordinator at Odebrecht Foundation Vivian Barbosa
EDITOrIAL COOrDINATION Versal Editores Editor-in-Chief José Enrique BarreiroExecutive Editor Cláudio Lovato Filho English Translation by H. Sabrina GledhillArt/Graphic Production Rogério NunesGraphic Design and Illustrations Rico LinsPhoto Editor Holanda Cavalcanti Electronic Publishing Maria Celia Olivieri
Printing 1,600 copies | Pre-Press and Printing Pancrom
EDITOrIAL OFFICES Rio de Janeiro +55 21 2239-1778 | São Paulo + 55 11 3641- 4743email: [email protected] Originally published in Portuguese. Also available in Spanish.
022_OI155_Capa_ING.indd 2 8/1/11 9:52 AM
1INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 1 8/3/11 5:20 PM
Online edition Online archive Innovations Video reports Blog
> In Angola, the theater is
one way to inform people
and raise awareness on
Health, Workplace Safety
and Environment
> Check out Odebrecht’s
innovative Shared Services
Center
> Clean Water Project takes
Brazilian state of Espírito
Santo to a new level in
terms of sanitation (water
and sewer)
>Salgueiro: community
relations and a major
project in the backlands
of northeastern Brazil
> Special features that make
the iTower offi ce tower
project unique
> Follow Odebrecht Informa
on Twitter and get the
latest news in real time
@odbinforma
> Comment on blog entries
and participate by sending
suggestions to the editors
> Read posts on the
Odebrecht Informa
blog by the magazine’s
reporters and editors,
including Cláudio Lovato
Filho, Fabiana Cabral,
José Enrique Barreiro,
Karolina Gutiez, Renata
Meyer, Rodrigo Vilar,
Thereza Martins, Zaccaria
Júnior and collaborators.
> P-59 platform is the center of attraction
in a fi rst for the global oil industry
> Antonio Cardilli launches the
Savvy – Folks Who’ve Learned from
Work and Life Project
> At Quintas Private Residences,
sharing a dream makes
it come true
SAFEGUARDING SUSTAINABILITY
Cetrel ensures environmental protection in
the Camaçari Complex’s sphere of infl uence
> Access all back issues of Odebrecht
Informa since no. 1, and download
full issues in PDF
> Odebrecht Annual Reports since 2002
> Special publications (Special Issue on Social
Programs, 60 years of the Odebrecht Group,
40 Years of the Odebrecht Foundation and
10 Years of Odeprev)
> You can view
this entire issue
in HTML
and PDF
www.odebrechtonline.com.brRead Odebrecht Informa on your iPad and smartphone.
Features, articles, videos, photos, animations and infographics.
The achievements of the Odebrecht Organization on your tablet and smartphone.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 2 8/3/11 5:20 PM
3INFORMA
#155
Innovation & technology
Cover photo by Nilton Souza
PH
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RIC
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CAPA
Ilustração de Rico Lins
&PEOPLENEWS
6
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66687072767778
Quintas Private makes luxury homes accessible through fractional ownership
New Orleans is working at top speed to protect itself from natural disasters
Pioneering engineering solutions score winning goals at the Fonte Nova Arena works
Railways are coming to make life easier in Pernambuco and Rio Grande do Sul
Luiz Roberto Chagas: innovation is the engine that drives an organization’s competitiveness and growth
A program that encourages teams to pursue innovative solutions and recognizes their creativity
Innovation: the result of a joint and daily quest by Braskem and its clients
Using precast pieces ensures more speed and safety when building the Santo Antônio hydroelectric plant
In a global fi rst, a jack-up platform is launched from another fl oating vessel
Platform Norbe VI arrives in Brazil, introducing major innovations for offshore oil exploration and production
Twenty years ago, the contract was signed to build platform P-18, a milestone for the offshore industry
Technology is becoming a competitive edge for the sugar and ethanol industry
A long-held Brazilian dream is coming true in Itaguaí, Rio de Janeiro: building submarines
Odebrecht medics discuss the role of technology in improving health and quality of life
For family farmers in northeastern Brazil, the middleman is becoming a thing of the past
Luis Fernando Cassinelli writes about Braskem’s unfl agging drive to introduce new solutions
SAFETY
PERU
PROFILE
COLOMBIA
PEOPLE DEVELOPMENT
FOLKS
SAVVY
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 3 8/3/11 5:20 PM
4 INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 4 8/3/11 5:20 PM
5INFORMA
EDITORIAL
The spirit of service never rests
t happened in Bahia, at the São Roque do Paraguaçu shipyard, in June: for
the first time in the world, a jack-up platform was launched from another
floating structure, in this case, a barge. This innovation has already become a
benchmark for the oil and gas industry. From the Brazilian Northeast to the US
South: in New Orleans, the city where jazz was born, which was devastated by
Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the levee system is the target of an extensive restructur-
ing project with the help of some innovative engineering solutions. There is also the
pioneering use of thermoplastic resins in oil exploration and farming projects, and
the installation of concrete sleeper and form factories at railway construction sites
(one of those factories, located in Salgueiro, Pernambuco, Brazil, is the largest in
the world). And then there is the first-ever implosion of a Brazilian soccer stadium
and the technological revolution that is getting underway in that nation’s ethanol and
sugar industry.
You’ll read all about these stories and more in this issue of Odebrecht Informa.
Besides covering Innovation and Technology, this number of the magazine discuss-
es creativity and how vital it is for anyone working in an entrepreneurial organiza-
tion to have a constantly dissatisfied and restless spirit. Through the expertise and
continued dissatisfaction of its members, Odebrecht since its inception in 1944 has
sought to provide the communities in which it operates with innovative solutions that
break established standards, shatter paradigms and reach new heights of produc-
tivity while moving in a very clear direction: making everything that inventiveness and
the accumulation of knowledge and business experience can provide more advan-
tageous for the community. Through the simplicity and humility of people endowed
with the spirit of service, this capacity for invention and creation becomes the link
between each client’s dream and its fulfillment - with expertise and passion - by this
Organization’s members.
This way of seeing life and work has certainly contributed to making Odebrecht one
of the 10 organizations that won the Young People’s Dream Company award, spon-
sored by the Cia. de Talentos recruitment and selection consultancy. This achieve-
ment means that most of the 50,000 Brazilian college graduates surveyed spontane-
ously stated that they would like to start their professional careers at Odebrecht.
Good reading.
“Through the expertise and the constant dissatisfaction of its members, Odebrecht since its inception in 1944 has sought to provide the communities in which it operates with innovative solutions that break established standards”
I
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 5 8/3/11 5:20 PM
6 INFORMA
written by LEONARDO MAIA
photos by JÚLIO BITTENCOURT
happSHARING
If many people share a dream, it has a better chance of coming true.
That’s the case in Sauípe, Brazil
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 6 8/3/11 5:20 PM
7INFORMA
Fábio: aos 32 anos,
liderando a atuação
da Odebrecht em
um projeto de alta
piness
Home in Quintas Private
Residences: fully furnished
and equipped with appliances
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 7 8/3/11 5:20 PM
8 INFORMA
magine arriving at your beach house and always
fi nding everything spic and span and in perfect
working order. All that without hiring a caretaker,
pool attendant or housekeeper. You just show up
and enjoy the private swimming pool, the gour-
met area and other exclusive amenities, along with up
to eight people, including relatives and guests. Magic?
On the North Coast of the northeastern Brazilian state
of Bahia, more precisely in Sauípe, this became a reality
a year ago, thanks to the innovative shared use system
known as fractional ownership.
This is the system used for Quintas Private Residenc-
es, part of the Quintas de Sauípe Grande Laguna gated
community, which also includes conventional home-
owners. Clients who opt for the fractional ownership
system can buy one of 12 fractions of a house, or even
more if they prefer. Each fraction entitles the buyer to
use the house for four weeks per year, with up to eight
people staying in four en-suite bedrooms. They can also
swap one or more weeks for foreign vacations using
a portfolio of more than 100 residential ventures and
thousands of upscale hotels belonging to The Registry
Collection, the luxury club that is part of the American
RCI group.
Completely furnished and equipped with appliances,
all top-of-the-line, each house is fully outfi tted (with
towels, bed linen, cutlery, crockery) and comes with air
conditioning, cable TV and Wi-Fi. It also has a service
area, including servant’s quarters and storage and laun-
dry facilities. All that plus regular maintenance for 100
years, the duration of the contract with each user. In case
of death, the owner’s heirs can inherit the fraction.
“We’ve introduced a concept in this market that
breaks away from the conventional model and refl ects
consumers’ needs. Recent surveys show that fi ve years
after purchase of a beach or country house, the owner
uses it for just one month per year on average. At Quin-
tas Private, you only pay for what you actually use. We’re
offering a new vacation concept,” explains Franklin Mira,
the Director Responsible for the Sauípe Destination.
Spending too much on hotels
Those consumers are people like Rodrigo and Kaline
Cavalcanti, a young couple with three children, aged 6,
3 and 2. “We bought this at just the right time. We were
spending too much on hotels. Every trip, we needed at
least two hotel rooms. Thanks to this system, we can enjoy
100% of the assets invested,” says Rodrigo, 32, a physician
from Feira de Santana, Bahia. His wife, Kaline, agrees,
adding: “The best thing is getting there and fi nding the
house neat and clean, with all the modern conveniences.
You don’t even have to tidy up when it’s time to leave.” Dur-
ing their stay, clients are entitled to housekeeping servic-
es three times a week and two changes of bed linen. They
can also enjoy pay-per-use services, including daily maid
service, a masseuse, breakfast at home, grocery deliver-
ies and various types of special buffets, such as barbecue.
Convenience and return on investment were compel-
ling reasons for the couple’s decision, but they were not
the only ones. For them, wellbeing is even more impor-
tant. “Buying this fraction has changed my life. My stress
levels have fallen dramatically and I’m much less impa-
tient and restless. Not only that, but it’s wonderful to be
able to plan your vacation and book your holiday up to a
I
INFORMA8
Quintas Private, part of the Quintas Grande Laguna gated
community; on the next page, Rodrigo and Kaline with their kids:
the family was spending too much on hotels
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 8 8/3/11 5:20 PM
9INFORMA
José Eduardo:
aprendizados
precisam se
converter em
year in advance. I always want to spend time with my fam-
ily,” says Rodrigo.
In addition to the facilities that Quintas Private offers to
fractional ownership clients (a restaurant, movie theater,
gym, sports court, cyber café, kids room, spa and private
access to the beach, among others), they can also enjoy the
amenities at the Costa de Sauípe resort and get a 15% dis-
count on paid services at the complex of hotels and inns.
Attractions abound. “A system like this injects more vitality
into the entire area. Twelve owners make the most of each
home and give a tremendous boost to the destination’s so-
cial and economic dynamics,” observes Franklin Mira.
Smart rotation
The choice of the weeks when each house will be used
is based on the smart rotation system. Introduced over
20 years ago in the US and Europe, it enables users to
enjoy the house for at least one week during a high sea-
son. Users can select their four weeks up front, choose
different weeks throughout the year or deposit them in
The Registry Collection, which offers more than 100 des-
tinations in countries such as Italy, Mexico, the UAE and
Thailand. “The potential for exchange is fantastic. The
family can vacation anywhere. You can deposit your week
and forget about who will occupy the house. Internation-
alization creates an interesting fl exibility,” says Franklin
Mira. Besides the options already mentioned, the owner
of the fraction can resell it at any time or rent out a week
they cannot use.
Quintas Private has the highest rating in the RCI
group’s portfolio. For example, a client can use the
points for one week at Sauípe to spend two weeks at
a Disney resort or up to four weeks at a boutique hotel
in northeastern Brazil. Alejandro Moreno, Director of
RCI Brazil, explains: “Quintas Private’s prime location,
with an ocean view and a lagoon, is truly amazing. The
houses are tastefully decorated and fi t into our concept
perfectly. Moreover, the more popular a destination is
with our clients, the more credits it gets in The Registry
Collection.”
Already a familiar concept in other countries, fractional
ownership is making a successful debut in Brazil. Today,
in addition to Quintas Private, there are two other residen-
tial ventures in operation in that country and three under
construction. Not to mention that hotels are yet another
option for the system’s users. The current challenge is to
publicize the system as widely as possible. “Our biggest
challenge is breaking a paradigm and providing a product
that is undersold in Brazil. When they ‘test drive’ this inno-
vation, people will immediately see the advantages. It’s no
coincidence that 40% of our clients come from personal
recommendations,” says Franklin.
Rodrigo and Kaline are the front runners when it
come to recommendations. They like Quintas Private
so much that they have recommended it to 20 friends,
and 12 have purchased a fraction. “Everyone who could
buy one now owns one. By recommending it to friends,
we’ve also helped create a friendly environment. We al-
ready feel at home. I love to cook, so I bring my season-
ings with me and use the gourmet area in the house. We
always invite friends to join us. That’s one of the advan-
tages of having four en-suite bedrooms at our disposal,”
says Rodrigo.
9INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 9 8/3/11 5:20 PM
10 INFORMA
new orleansMARATHON IN
compare the situation experienced after Ka-
trina to different types of racing competitions.
Shortly after that tragedy, it was like a 100-me-
ter dash. At the local, state and federal levels
we had to provide a rapid emergency response
to help hurricane victims. Once emergency issues
were resolved, we started to rebuild the protection sys-
tem we had before the tornado: a 10-km race. Today,
we are running a marathon, which means completing
the system, which was unfi nished, and making it more
effi cient to avert the risk of disasters like the one in
2005. We haven’t reached the fi nish line yet, but we’re
getting close.”
With this analogy, Jeff Bedey, the retired US Army
Corps of Engineers (Corps) Colonel who spearheaded
the creation of an organization responsible for re-
building the levee system, raising levees and repair-
ing the pumping stations, sums up the stages the
State of Louisiana, and especially the City of New Or-
leans have gone through since that hurricane with a
Iwoman’s name destroyed everything in its wake. “Ka-
trina brought me here. I’d never been to New Orleans
before,” refl ects the retired soldier from the state of
Montana, with slightly halting speech.
Odebrecht has participated in the 10-km race and
is now running the marathon at the head of two of the
53 projects that comprise the system to protect the city
against hurricanes and fl ooding of the Mississippi Riv-
er, the most important waterway in the United States
(which, together with its main tributary, the Missouri,
is also the nation’s largest river – 6,270 km long), and
Lake Pontchartrain, the second-largest salt-water
lake in the country. Odebrecht is working under con-
tract to the Corps, whose client is the Levee District.
Protection system
New Orleans, which is located on the south shore
of the lake, and the surrounding parishes (counties)
that form Greater New Orleans, are completely sur-
rounded by walls and levees. “The protection system
is innovative because it has different structures: re-
taining walls built on metal piles (with “T” and “L”
shapes), frontal reinforcement for the pumping sta-
written by KAROLINA GUTIEZ photos by LIA LUBAMBO
The US city is working hard to prevent disasters like the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina
“
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 10 8/3/11 5:20 PM
11INFORMA
tions, and various types of gates for vehicles, trains and ships, main-
taining a steady fl ow of traffi c on the roads, railways and waterway.
The aim is to protect the city and its inhabitants while keeping access
routes open, which is vital to the local economy,” explains Gustavo Sil-
veira, the Project Manager for one of Odebrecht’s contracts, known as
LPV-9.2.
The Corps’ initial challenge was designing an integrated system of
structures that would protect the city and could be built on time and
within the budget approved by Congress - USD 14 billion. The study
used information from past events in the region and, through simu-
lations, the Corps established the necessary parameters: the system
will protect Greater New Orleans from 100-year hurricanes and fl oods
(with a 1% statistical probability of occurring every year). Katrina had
the intensity of a 496-year event.
In the case of the pumping stations, the Corps has also developed
and built an innovative type of structure, called a safe house, next to
each station. Safe houses monitor and operate the pumps remotely
in extreme wind and rain. These structures are designed to withstand
winds up to 400 km/hour and provide operators with a shelter 10 m
above ground, ensuring continuous operations during an emergency.
The Corps has also built an integrated Command Center that man-
ages the entire system and houses 58 people, with a supply of natural
gas and electricity that will keep it self-suffi cient for up to two weeks
if a Category 5 hurricane should hit the region – an extreme situation.
Pumping plant works and, opposite page,
Colonel Jeff Bedey: “We haven’t reached the
fi nish line yet. But we’re getting close”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 11 8/3/11 5:20 PM
INFORMA12
The entire building is reinforced to withstand strong
winds, and has a kitchen, laundry, six televisions con-
nected to surveillance cameras, news and weather
channels, and a small factory to make sand bags,
which help contain water in emergencies in case of
minor system failures. The Command Center also
monitors the daily fl ow of shipping on the Mississippi.
That is where Giuseppe Miserendino, Director of
the West Jefferson Levee District, keeps track of each
vessel on the river in real time, using a projector in
front of his desk, which visualizes critical points such
as areas near the banks, in tight spots where boats
might hit the levees. When the Odebrecht Informa
team paid him a visit, Giuseppe had been sleeping at
the Command Center for four weeks in a room inside
his offi ce, due to the critical level of the river dur-
ing one of the worst fl oods in 100 years. His family
had come to visit him often during that period. “It’s a
delicate and extremely important matter. They know
that if a hurricane comes, they have to leave town im-
mediately.”
“Born and raised in New Orleans,” Giuseppe says:
“Katrina gave us the possibility of improving the pro-
tection system we already had, which was incom-
plete. After that, we’ve made progress toward having
a safe house in operation at each pumping station,
ensuring that they keep working, which is critical
during a fl ood.” Jeff Bedey argues that no natural di-
saster that impacts the community is a good thing.
However, he recognizes that: “In the midst of tragedy,
the lessons we learn are very important. We have to
move on and try to make decisions and do whatever
is necessary to reduce the chances of something like
that ever happening again.”
Working near operational stations
The LPV-9.2 project that Odebrecht is carrying out
on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain includes building
walls that will serve to strengthen and protect four wa-
ter pumping stations damaged by Katrina. The walls,
which are designed with a fi nal elevation of 5.80 m above
the level of the lake, are a continuation of the levees next
to the stations. When the hurricane hit the city, the un-
protected system could only pump at 45% capacity.
The main challenge of this project is the require-
ment that pumping stations cannot be shut down dur-
ing construction. At any time, if necessary, the area
where the workers are building the walls could be
fl ooded so the pumps can start pushing water from
the canals into the lake.
The stations play a key role in the city, which is
mostly below sea level. Because they link the net-
work of drainage canals in New Orleans, these sta-
tions are often used, sometimes when it isn’t raining.
Every time this happens, Odebrecht’s workers get 15
minutes’ warning. That is all the time they have to re-
move their equipment and leave the area. “Over the
past four months, we’ve been fl ooded 14 times,” says
Gustavo Silveira.
Given these the challenges, and in compliance with
technical and contractual requirements, Odebrecht
has developed a unique system of temporary cof-
ferdams or caissons, which contain valves and mini-
spillways. These structures allow the work area to
dry out, creating an obstacle for the pumping station
that does not exceed the elevation of 0.25 m above the
lake. The valves are automated so that operators at
the plant can control them remotely when they need
to fl ood the system.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 12 8/3/11 5:21 PM
13INFORMA
“This idea is widely used in dam construction, but
it had never been used quite this way. When a dam is
being built, cofferdams dry out the area of operations.
Unlike our situation here, it is almost never necessary
to fl ood that area during construction,” says Gustavo.
“This solution has brought signifi cant savings to the
project,” says Rudy Armenta, Odebrecht’s Project Di-
rector in Louisiana.
Valued at USD 175 million, the LPV-9.2 project is
being built near a residential district. To protect the
neighborhood from noise pollution, the Odebrecht
team has implemented three solutions that jointly
dampen the noise of the construction work. The
fi rst is the installation of two curtains that are au-
tomatically raised and lowered. The second, which
cost nothing at all, was changing the route for the
concrete trucks. The third was using a Giken Pile
Press. Unlike conventional pile drivers, the machine
noiselessly presses the piles into the ground. It also
improves quality, because it corrects their alignment
and plumb.
The other project, LPV-3.2, is a USD 85-million con-
tract that involves the construction of a retaining wall,
also built on metal piles in a fl ooded area. The 4,800-m
long structure will replace the one built in the 1980s.
The new protection system is built on one bank of a
canal that is directly linked to Lake Pontchartrain, and
therefore affected by its water levels. “If the water is
high, it’s hard to get the work done. When it’s low, it
interferes with the delivery of materials, which is all
done through the canal. So in our case we are con-
stantly battling with the water levels, just like the city
itself,” says Rami Nassar, the Project Manager for the
contract.
Because the barges that deliver materials are too
big to enter the canal where the wall is being built, it
was necessary to excavate the slopes on the banks.
The excavation limit is 2.75 m, but a much larger
area would have had to be excavated to make room.
In the end, Odebrecht’s teams only excavated 1.5 m,
so the amount of earthmoving was smaller, and all
deliveries of materials are being done with small
boats that transfer them from a barge anchored at
the canal entrance. This solution has reduced the
dredging operation by 45% (about 240,000 m³), and
only removed what was needed for smaller boats to
reach the jobsite. “The savings we got through this
logistics solution helped us win the contract,” says
Rudy Armenta.
Another innovation was replacing the solder used
in the 3,500 connectors attached to the I-piles, which
help anchor the base of the wall. Instead of being
welded, the connectors were screwed in place. That
move not only reduced the cost of the job but the time
required to do it without affecting quality or changing
the original design.
“We are working on behalf of the entire city, which
has been keeping a close eye on the project as a
whole because it is a very sensitive matter, especially
at a time when the Mississippi River is so high,” says
Rudy Armenta, who is now a member of the commu-
nity affected by this issue. “I’m fully committed to this
project. I’ve bought a house and moved here with my
family from Miami. I’m not only aware of the public’s
concerns about storms and fl oods but share and face
the same situation. And that motivates me in my work
and our quest for innovation, with a focus on produc-
tivity and quality.”
The temporary caisson
built in the fl ooded area,
and Giuseppe Miserendino:
sleeping in a room inside
his offi ce for four weeks
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 13 8/3/11 5:21 PM
14 INFORMA
written by LUIZ CARLOS RAMOS
photos by MÁRCIO LIMA
arenaFOR INNOVATION
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 14 8/3/11 5:21 PM
15INFORMA
Gilson: “Já estou me
preparando para
outros desafi os”
The teams building the Fonte Nova Arena in Salvador, Bahia, a future venue of the 2014 World Cup, are introducing pioneering engineering solutions
occer is one of Brazil’s greatest passions, and
in the near future, attending matches will
become a happier, safer and more comfort-
able experience for fans in the State of Bahia.
Completion of the Fonte Nova Arena in the next
eighteen months will ensure that the City of Salvador can host
the Confederations Cup games in 2013, a group from the 2014
World Cup, and more. Vital to the future of the sport in Bahia,
the arena will be more than a stadium: seating up to 50,000
people, it can also be the venue for great performances by sing-
ers and bands from Brazil and around the globe.
The future Fonte Nova Arena will not result from the re-
modeling of the former Octávio Mangabeira Stadium (popularly
known as “Fonte Nova”) , which opened 60 years ago and was
shut down in 2007. Instead it will be a brand-new modern facil-
ity built with innovative technologies. Now, a year after the old
structure and its blue concrete bleachers were demolished by
an implosion that was a fi rst in the history of Brazilian stadiums,
workers and machines are steadily transforming the area next
to Dique do Tororó lake with every passing day.
Consórcio Arena Salvador 2014, a joint venture of Odebrecht
and OAS, is building the facility. The companies will also run
Fonte Nova Arena after it offi cially opens, which is scheduled for
early 2013. Dênio Cidreira, president of Fonte Nova Negócios e
Participações, the company created to devise the best use of
the arena, explains: “The big news is that we will not just build
a stadium, but a multipurpose arena that will be important for
soccer and for the arts and culture in Bahia, because it will also
host major shows, conferences and events of all sizes. It will
certainly be a new destination for business and entertainment
that will be available to the public all year round.”
Alexandre Chiavegatto, from Odebrecht Infraestrutura, the
Project Director for the joint-venture contractor, says that the
implosion of the old Fonte Nova stadium on August 29 was an
excellent start. “That operation has made an important contri-
bution to the technology of the construction sector in this coun-
try. This was the fi rst time it had been done with a stadium – and
a stadium the size of Fonte Nova, in a densely populated area
in a big city,” says Chiavegatto. Until then, implosions in Brazil
had only been done with residential buildings and similar urban
structures, such as commercial and offi ce buildings.
The challenge of fi ghting against the weather will be hon-
ored, says Benedicto Barbosa da Silva Júnior, Entrepreneurial
Leader (CEO) of Odebrecht Infraestrutura – the company that,
along with Odebrecht Participações e Investimentos (OPI), is
responsible for the Organization’s participation in this venture:
“The project is right on schedule. The Fonte Nova Arena will be
S
15INFORMA
Building the Fonte Nova
Arena and the implosion of
the old stadium, step by step:
contribution to Brazilian
engineering
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 15 8/3/11 5:21 PM
an important legacy for the State of Bahia, because it will
be a watershed for the creation of new businesses and ur-
ban renewal. It will boost property values in the city center.”
Felipe Jens, the Investment Leader (CEO) of OPI, un-
derscores that the State of Bahia has partnered up with the
private sector to carry out this project: “Investments in the
Fonte Nova Arena are being made on the basis of a public-
private partnership (PPP) contract and concessions.” Ode-
brecht is not only involved in the construction of arenas but
also in their future operations.
Odebrecht, which is also working on three other stadi-
ums for the World Cup – building the Pernambuco Arena,
in the Recife metropolitan area, and the Corinthians sta-
dium in São Paulo, and remodeling Maracanã in Rio – has
plenty of experience in that area. It has remodeled Mara-
canã Stadium once before, and completed Engenhão, both
for the 2007 Pan American Games. In the United States, it
has built the American Airlines Arena and a football sta-
dium for Florida International University.
Odebrecht Informa visited the jobsite in Salvador in June.
Spectacular implosion
“For safety’s sake, local residents were removed from
the area beforehand. During the implosion, the material
fell within the area around the stadium, without harming
the public or their heritage,” recalls Alexandre Chiavegatto.
The resulting 77,000 tonnes of concrete have been recycled
to produce crushed stone for the future arena and other
infrastructure works, with the advantage of avoiding the
inconvenience of numerous truck trips. It also protects the
environment by eliminating the amount of carbon dioxide
those vehicles would have emitted.
The implosion took place on a Sunday, broadcast live
around the country. It was the fi rst concrete step towards
building stadiums for the 2014 World Cup. Bahian en-
gineer Diana Paes, 26, who joined Odebrecht four years
ago, helped coordinate the operation, and describes the
general feeling: “We were all moved when the bleachers
fell.” Diana took part in the advance work done to raise lo-
cal residents’ safety awareness. She gave talks explaining
details of the project, which were also set forth in a booklet
that featured a photomontage of a scale model of the arena
on the cover and the surrounding area of the city with the
following appeal: “We need your help to build this dream.”
A communications system including TV and radio spots
and newspaper advertorials helped answer the local com-
munity’s questions.
The demolition of the lower ring of bleachers at Fonte
Nova, Antonio Balbino gym and the swimming pools had
already been done with bulldozers and jackhammers in
the fi rst half of 2010. But the main part of the structure
was still standing. Imploding it was the safest and most
economical option, according to Chiavegatto. A company
specializing in implosions, Arcoenge, was hired to take
care of the technical details, placing explosives inside the
stadium structure and detonating them once the area had
been cleared.
”It went off without a hitch,” says Alexandre Chiavegatto.
The operation involved innovative solutions: the protection
of the pillars, the test blast and the crushing of the demol-
ished concrete.
Youth participation
”It all ended well, and lots of people wept with emo-
tion,” recalls Diana Paes, who joined Odebrecht in 2007
as an intern. Now a full-fl edged member, she is a role
model for the 786 workers who are building the project
– 535 in production and 251 in administration. “I was the
girl at the implosion,” Diana admits, smiling. “Now I’m
the girl at the jobsite.”
For the 22 interns working at Fonte Nova, Diana is also
an example of dedication and success, explains Thiago
Gomes Cunha, who has a business degree and seven
years’ experience at Odebrecht. He has worked at Fonte
Nova since March as the Developing Interns Program co-
ordinator: “Young people should always aim for growth.
Each intern has their individual leader and undergoes as-
sessments. Dialogue is fundamental.”
One of those interns, Vinicius do Lago Maio, 26, a
fourth-year business student at Jorge Amado University, is
thrilled to be there: “I’ve always dreamed of working here.
Now I can exchange ideas with experienced professionals
on a daily basis.”
Technological challenge
The transformation of Fonte Nova has also involved
other steps, such as using scaffolding on fl atbed trucks
to shore up the structure next to the facility that cur-
rently serves as the administrative building for the site
and will be maintained for future use. The coordinator,
Mário Sérgio Cardoso Marques, says that this step was
completed in four months, from October of last year to
January of this year, thanks to a dose of creativity: “The
truck moved forward as we worked so we didn’t need
INFORMA16
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 16 8/3/11 5:21 PM
17INFORMA
Daniel: “Esta é
uma empresa que
continua me dando
oportunidades”
to set up more scaffolding. As a result, we saved time
and money.”
In the area where the new stadium is being built, earth-
moving has been completed and the piles are in place. The
soccer fi eld is starting to take shape. Soon the stands will
be going up, in the style of modern arenas built in recent
years in Europe, the US and Japan. Then the roof will be
installed to protect the spectators.
According to the design, the arena will be horseshoe
shaped, affording a splendid view of Dique do Tororó, one
of the most scenic spots in the city. The project is keep-
ing strictly to schedule to ensure that Salvador is on the
list of cities hosting Confederations Cup matches in 2013,
and Consórcio Salvador Arena has developed a plan of at-
tack including two work fronts, starting at both ends of the
horseshoe.
Alexandre Chiavegatto explains: “We will use six fi xed
cranes outside and two mobile cranes inside the arena to
cover the entire length of the area to be built. This solution
will save time while averting the risk of injury or fi nancial
loss.” The grass will have perfect drainage so games will
never be rained out. Ramps and public access corridors
are spacious and safe.
Rivalry and unity
The future Arena will also include a parking garage,
shops, restaurants and a cultural space that tells the story
of soccer and classic Bahia vs. Vitória (Ba-Vi) games, as
well as music and other local cultural expressions. The
fi rst national champion, the Bahia soccer club won the
Brazil Cup in 1959 and the Brazilian title in 1988. The of-
fi cial attendance record was set at Fonte Nova when Bahia
beat Fluminense of Rio 2-1 during the Brazilian semi-fi nal
of 1988, before 110,438 paying fans. Vitória, the state’s oth-
er main club, was Brazil’s vice-champion in 1993 and also
won second place in the 2010 Brazil Cup.
During construction of Fonte Nova, the relaxed atmo-
sphere among the workers does not keep the rivalry be-
tween the Bahia and Vitória fan clubs from bubbling to the
surface. One of the most ardent Bahia fans at the jobsite
is safety technician Paulo Henrique Souza dos Santos, 22,
who unbuttons his uniform to reveal his club’s red, white
and blue jersey: “We are in the Brazilian A Series (fi rst divi-
sion) again,” he says, beaming with pride. Standing beside
him is carpenter Fidelfi no Machado dos Santos, 42, and the
shirt he displays is the red and black of Vitória. “Our team is
in the B Series (second division), but soon it will rise again
and play at Fonte Nova,” he predicts.
Not all the materials resulting from the implosion have
been recycled. Chunks of concrete from the old Fonte Nova
stadium are still on the site. The workers have collected
bits of the bleachers, still painted blue, and saved them as
relics. Two thousand other pieces have been encased in
clear acrylic boxes and donated to the Sister Dulce Social
Works (OSID) charity. OSID is selling them at BRL 35.00
apiece, and the BRL 70,000 they hope to raise will be used
to support the religious mission begun by the recently be-
atifi ed nun, bringing hope to the needy in Salvador.
17INFORMA
Paulo Henrique and
Fidelfi no: soccer
rivalry at the jobsite
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 17 8/3/11 5:21 PM
18 INFORMA
Roger e sua equipe:
“Existe aqui a possi-
bilidade de termos
muitos líderes, que
nos ajudam no auto-
desenvolvimento”
written by THEREZA MARTINS
photos by ÉLVIO LUIZ AND MATHIAS CRAEMER
Plants set up at the jobsites are speeding up construction of the Transnordestina Railway and the Porto Alegre Metro in Brazil
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 18 8/3/11 5:21 PM
19INFORMA
n the Northeast and South of Brazil, Odebrecht
Infrastructure teams are combining creativity, in-
novation and technology to build two projects in
the transportation sector with major economic
and social impacts: the Transnordestina (Trans-
Northeastern) Railway in Pernambuco and the exten-
sion of Line 1 of the Trensurb (Empresa de Trens Ur-
banos de Porto Alegre) Metro in Rio Grande do Sul.
Industrial jobsites set up specifi cally for that purpose
are working virtually non-stop to support these two
projects. Using cutting-edge technology, innovative so-
lutions and expert teams, the pace of work is moving
forward in line with the clients’ expectations and needs.
From the backlands to the coast
A venture of Transnordestina Logística (TLSA), a
subsidiary of Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN),
construction of the Transnordestina Railway is already
changing the landscape of the region where its freight
trains will be running. The 1,728-km railway line will
connect the city of Eliseu Martins, Piauí, to the port of
Suape in Pernambuco, with a trunk line linking Sal-
gueiro, Pernambuco, to the Port of Pecém in Ceará.
Working as an alliance, TLSA and Odebrecht Infraestru-
tura are building a 1,218-km section of the project. Con-
struction began in 2010, with completion scheduled for
the end of 2012.
The Transnordestina-Odebrecht alliance is re-
sponsible for the Eliseu Martins-Suape section, which
crosses through the arid hinterland of the Brazilian
Northeast, traversing rural Pernambuco and the forest
area on its way to the coast. Almost halfway along the
line lies Salgueiro, a town whose economy is based on
commerce, services and small family farms. Located
on the BR-116 highway linking Brazil from Ceará to Rio
Grande do Sul, that is where Odebrecht Infraestrutura
has built the main jobsite for the project.
“Salgueiro is the central hub for all the
resources used to build the railroad,”
says Júlia Fadul, the engineer re-
sponsible for the industrial job-
Isite. She explains that its geographic location – the same
distance from Eliseu Martins, Suape and Pecém – is stra-
tegic for keeping up the pace of the workfronts, which are
moving ahead almost simultaneously. “Not only that, but
the soil in Salgueiro has the ideal hardness and strength
for the production of crushed stone used as track ballast.
And we use the byproducts of crushed rock to make con-
crete sleepers, at no additional cost.”
The world’s largest sleeper plant
To meet the contract deadlines, two engineers,
Rodrigo Borges, responsible for the Transnordestina
sleeper plant, and Isaac Lacerda Tannus, manager of
the railway superstructure, traveled to Italy in 2009 to
visit manufacturers there. They found the technology
and equipment required to produce up to 4,800 concrete
sleepers per day, which will be used as rail supports.
“Right now, this is the largest railway sleeper fac-
tory in the world in terms of production capacity,” says
Rodrigo. “Because it’s covered, it can work around the
clock, non-stop, including nights and on rainy days,
until it produces the 3-million-plus railroad ties this
project requires.”
Rodrigo emphasizes that the productivity they are
getting is down to a combination of several innovations.
They include the design of the factory, with three identi-
cal interconnected units that work simultaneously while
preventing a total shutdown if one stops operating for
any reason; the possibility of producing broad-gauge
and dual-gauge sleepers with the same forms, with mi-
nor adjustments; the process of steam-curing concrete,
reducing its maturation time to a few hours; and vacu-
um equipment that can remove the forms and position
up to eight 370-kg concrete sleepers for storage.
These methods and resources are all available on
the market, but combining them on a single project has
given the work a major effi ciency boost. “Planning and
technology are what sets us apart,” said Isaac Tan-
nus. Referring to the industrial jobsite, he men-
tions that logistics and planning ensured the
optimum scale and location of the facilities
and plants, which are side-by-side to help
drive the project’s supply chain.
Installing a precast piece for the
Trensurb Project: with help from
the “mammoth” and its “tusks”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 19 8/3/11 5:22 PM
INFORMA20 INFORMA20
From the top of the quarry where the material
is extracted to produce 4,500 cu.m of crushed rock
daily for track ballast, you can see the sleeper plant,
the rock crushing plant, the storage facility for rail-
way tracks and other materials, the welding bay,
warehouse, maintenance workshops and the access
tracks from where the gantry cranes set off to dis-
tribute rails and sleepers along the bed of the Trans-
nordestina. “Producing the materials we need on the
spot saves time and money, with guaranteed quality,”
says Isaac.
In June, when the Odebrecht Informa team visited
Salgueiro, the industrial jobsite was operating at full
steam, building up a stockpile of sleepers, welded rails
and other materials. Nine smaller jobsites were also
hard at work in Pernambuco, Piauí and Ceará, provid-
ing support for earthmoving services.
Sharing knowledge
Transnordestina is not just transforming the
landscape of the region through which it runs. It is
also broadening the horizons of students at tech-
nical and engineering schools, bringing them new
knowledge, experience and learnings. The Federal
Technical School at Salgueiro is grooming profes-
sionals for the railroad. And at the jobsite next to the
sleeper plant, a visitor service center is being built
with a capacity for 30 people, equipped for video
presentations and lectures.
“This project is generating a tremendous amount
of interest due to its technical and innovative aspects,
as well as the economic impact that it represents,”
says Isaac Tannus. He adds: “There are plenty of
good reasons for that. Investments in rail transport
in Brazil stood still for nearly three decades. Trans-
nordestina will bring new business opportunities and
sources of income to the Northeast. This will be the
main outlet for the wealth produced in this region.”
From Porto Alegre to Novo Hamburgo
We now go from the Northeast to the South of
Brazil. Plans for the expansion of Line 1 of Tren-
surb date back some time. Subway service already
includes the cities of Porto Alegre, Canoas, Esteio,
Sapucaia do Sul and São Leopoldo. In 2002, a ten-
der was held for construction of the 9.31 km stretch
required to reach Novo Hamburgo, but by 2007 the
contract was still under review and the approval
never came.
City residents sent a petition to the State Govern-
ment with 60,000 signatures in favor of expanding the
Metro line, and in 2008, the state gave the project the
green light, with a four-year deadline for completion.
But money was tight, and Nova Via, the joint-venture
contractor led by Odebrecht Infraestrutura, limited its
activities to planning and developing the detailed engi-
neering design.
“The civil engineering works began in 2009, when
the project was included in the Federal Government’s
Growth Acceleration Program (PAC),” says Project Di-
rector Nilton Coelho. “Our fi rst major challenge was
keeping to schedule, while building a four-year project
in three,” he observes.
The pace of construction is speeding up on the 9.31-
km elevated tracks where the subway trains will run,
along with four stations and two bridges with 90-m
spans across the Sinos River, one for the subway and
another for vehicles. “We are working ahead of schedule,
and will deliver the fi rst 4.5 km stretch by July, includ-
ing Rio dos Sinos Station in São Leopoldo, and Liberdade
Station in Novo Hamburgo,” says Nilton.
Isaac Tannus at the
Transnordestina
works: “Planning
and technology
are what set us
apart”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 20 8/3/11 5:22 PM
21INFORMA 21INFORMA
Plants at the jobsite
The construction teams are meeting the challeng-
ing deadline by using precast beams and slabs for
the superstructure and metal formwork for pillars
and beams cast at the jobsite. “We built two precast-
ing plants near Liberdade Station, working 24 hours
a day. During that period we have produced three
beams weighing 58 tonnes each and 20 slabs,” says
Rodrigo Lacerda, the project’s Engineering and Plan-
ning Manager.
Rodrigo explains that the main benefi ts of using
metal forms instead of wood include complying with the
design specs, optimizing use of resources and boosting
productivity. The teams are using a steam curing sys-
tem for concrete beams, which also makes the work go
faster. The choice of equipment was also based on the
pursuit of productivity combined with quality.
Speedy mammoth
Like the animal that went extinct thousands of years
ago, the “mammoth” developed by the Odebrecht In-
fraestrutura team for the Metro in Rio Grande do Sul
uses its “tusks” to lift the plates that form the elevated
track sidewalls. The “mammoth” is a gantry crane set
on rollers to move it along the tracks. It is replacing
the use of conventional cranes in this operation, and
doing it handily.
“The elevated tracks follow the route of the main
streets and heavily traveled roads, which would have
had to be blocked off if we used regular cranes, re-
sulting in delays in the work and inconvenience for the
public,” says Rodrigo. Comparing the use of the “mam-
moth” and conventional cranes, the fi rst represents a
time savings of around 33%, and in terms of costs, a
signifi cant savings of 65%.
Among the materials and construction methods
used on this project, the highlights are the preference
for glass blocks instead of masonry walls for the sta-
tions, and using rubber from chopped-up tires to make
the sidewall sections. Placed on the surface of the
concrete plates, the rubber deadens noise caused by
the friction of train wheels on metal tracks, and glass
blocks allow natural light into the stations, saving en-
ergy, ensuring comfortable temperatures and giving a
lighter look to the visual design.
The experience Odebrecht Infraestrutura’s teams
have gained on the Trensurb project is described in
three papers submitted for the 2009 and 2010 editions
of the Odebrecht Highlight Awards in the Innovation,
Knowledge Reuse and Young Partner categories.
Trensurb expects that this expansion project will
add 30,000 new users per day as soon as the new sec-
tion of Line 1 of the Metro offi cially opens. “The high-
way linking Porto Alegre to Novo Hamburgo is fully
saturated. The expectation is that the subway will si-
phon off some of that traffi c,” says Trensurb Project
Manager Lino Sérgio Fantuzzi, the General Supervisor
for the expansion works. He adds: “One of the new sta-
tions, Fenac, in Novo Hamburgo, will be linked to an
intermodal transport platform connected to local and
intercity bus lines.”
Trensurb CEO Humberto Kasper, who took offi ce on
June 1, emphasizes that the benefi ts of this project go
beyond mobility. “It’s part of the urban renewal project
being carried out along the route of the elevated tracks.
The urban space will be improved with parks, bike
paths, schools and police stations,” he says. He also
points out another social benefi t: nearly 800 families
who lived near the elevated tracks have moved into brick
and mortar houses in an area with the infrastructure of
roads, water, power and sewer systems.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 21 8/3/11 5:22 PM
22 INFORMA
INTERVIEW
Luiz Roberto:
“It’s important to
distinguish between
innovation and invention”
kn
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 22 8/3/11 5:22 PM
23INFORMA
When a major engineering chal-
lenge arises on Odebrecht con-
tracts anywhere in the world,
Luiz Roberto Batista Chagas
knows it’s time to pack and trav-
el. A 43-year veteran of the Organization and a gradu-
ate of the Federal University at Bahia (UFBA) Poly-
technic, the civil engineer provides support for highly
complex projects in Brazil and around the globe. The
solid experience he has built up over the years resulted
in the publication of his fi rst book in 2008: Construction
Engineering – Major Works. Two years later, Luiz Ro-
berto received the Engineers’ Union of São Paulo Tech-
nology Personality Award in the Internationalization of
Brazilian Engineering category. In this interview, he
explains how innovative ideas can make the difference
when it comes to the success of a project and winning
a new business.
OI – How do you prepare yourself to provide
support for highly complex projects?
LUIZ ROBERTO – For me, engineering is a passion. I’ve al-
ways liked to study, and I think it’s important for any
professional to stay up to date. Even outside of work,
I read about various topics related to that area in my
spare time. Over the years, this habit has been very
important because it has given me the fundamentals
for working in various different fi elds of engineering.
Today, I’m dealing with a wide range of challenges.
Before contributing to the engineering solutions of a
given project, I try to get as much information as I can
about the project in general and the specifi c challenge
at hand. Then, I do some research and assess the need
to get other professionals involved, whether from in-
side or outside the Organization. Solutions and decision
making always result from discussions with the proj-
ect’s teams. It’s never an individual endeavor.
CAN-DO
knowledgewritten by RENATA MEYER PHOTOS BY ARTUR IKISHIMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 23 8/3/11 5:22 PM
24 INFORMA
OI – What sort of challenges are you used to
dealing with?
LUIZ ROBERTO – Each project has its own peculiarities, and
challenges can involve several fi elds of engineering at
once. Usually they have to do with excavations, founda-
tions, structures and fi nishing for construction works,
taking into account the natural, logistical and economic
aspects and cultural contexts of the places where they
will be carried out. One example is the construction of
Braskem’s ethylene plant in Mexico (the Ethylene XXI
project, in the state of Veracruz). The land where the proj-
ect will be built is composed of an expansive type of soil
called lutita (shale or lutite), which will require fi nding a
way to restrict its de-
formations to accept-
able levels in order to
avoid future problems
in the project’s founda-
tions. There are several
technologies available
for this. The challenge
is to fi nd the best tech-
nical solution for this
situation that is also the
most economical.
OI – In your view,
what does it mean
to innovate?
LUIZ ROBERTO – Inno-
vating means renew-
ing to get things done
with fewer resources
and thereby obtain effi ciency gains, whether it’s in
production processes, administration and fi nance,
or services. Innovation drives growth and com-
petitiveness in any organization. It is the result of
the constant pursuit of excellence. It is the com-
mitment that people undertake to always being
on the lookout for opportunities to improve their
work processes. However, it is also important to
distinguish innovation from invention. I consider
innovation to be everything a company does for the
fi rst time in order to achieve greater effi ciency and
effectiveness in its projects. It could be a tool, sys-
tem or process that already exists in the market.
Inventing something entirely new is another thing
altogether. To be worthy of the name, an invention
must go through several degrees of maturation in
a slow process that involves extensive research,
testing, certifi cation and patents.
OI – How does Odebrecht address the theme
of innovation?
LUIZ ROBERTO – Innovation is part of our core entrepreneur-
ial culture. The philosophical concepts of the Odebrecht
Entrepreneurial Technology (TEO) present a very strong
challenge: engaging in the constant pursuit of excellence
and winning over clients, which can only be achieved
through innovation and continued dissatisfaction with pre-
viously achieved results.
For this reason, the
company always en-
courages its members
to seek improvements
in their work processes,
not only in engineering
but also in administra-
tion, fi nance and gen-
eral support. One im-
portant initiative in this
regard was the creation
of the Highlight Awards,
which provide a strong
incentive to foster in-
novative ideas in all the
various environments of
the Organization.
OI – What role does
innovation play in engineering?
LUIZ ROBERTO – Innovation is the basis for the ad-
vancement of engineering. When carrying out a
project, planning is the exercise that leads to the
pursuit of innovation. So it must be dynamic in or-
der to allow for course corrections. Sometimes,
teams looking for solutions to tough situations
must surpass themselves in the search for viable
alternatives to overcome those challenges. That’s
why it’s important for people to be constantly alert
to possibilities for innovation. Ideally, teams should
be able to anticipate problems, seeking practical
solutions that are appropriate for each situation
from the very start.
“Ideally, teams should be able
to anticipate problems, seeking practical solutions that are
appropriate for each situation from the
very start”
INFORMA24
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 24 8/3/11 5:22 PM
25INFORMA
OI – How does innovation impact the Organi-
zation’s competitiveness?
LUIZ ROBERTO – By implementing innovative ideas,
you can increase the efficiency and effective-
ness of processes, reduce operating costs, solve
technical challenges and thereby gain competi-
tiveness. But it is important to remember that
innovation is only meaningful when it brings
practical results. As much as you may want to
innovate, you mustn’t view each project like a
laboratory. Our top priority must always be to
honor our commitments to our clients and en-
sure the safety and quality of our services.
OI – How do different
areas of the Organi-
zation share their in-
novative ideas?
LUIZ ROBERTO – Despite
the decentralized na-
ture of the Organization,
the transfer of knowl-
edge between different
environments is strongly
encouraged. To that end,
the company has cre-
ated Knowledge Com-
munities, which bring
together members with
common interests who
want to share their
know-how and inno-
vations. Today these
communities include segments such as Highways,
Dams and Power Plants, Subways, Real Estate
Ventures, Ports and Equipment, among others.
The leaders of these groups are professionals
with extensive experience in their fields. Often,
community participants are invited to share their
experiences with teams working on several of the
Organization’s projects. This can be done before
the start of each project, through meetings of the
Action Program’s (PA) engineering modules, or
even during construction. The project director for
the contract in question always takes the initiative
and lead, and makes decisions regarding these
meetings.
OI – How do leaders help groom innovators?
LUIZ ROBERTO – A leader must always encour-
age their team members to seek what is best.
Sometimes the solution to a particular chal-
lenge is right there, and people don’t realize
because they are too involved in their daily
routines. But when the challenge is set, in-
novations tend to arise naturally. However, for
this to happen, leaders must be imbued with
the company’s philosophy, devoting their time,
presence, experience and example, and giving
all the support the individual needs to grow and
develop.
OI – What is the main
challenge for innova-
tion today?
LUIZ ROBERTO – The main
challenge lies in profes-
sional education; in its
ability to keep up with
the rapid advance of
technology. Today’s uni-
versities must teach stu-
dents to engage in self-
development. Engineers
must be entrepreneurs,
first and foremost, so
they can respond posi-
tively to the challenges
of the market. The col-
lege curriculum is the
main reference tool for
that sort of learning. In my view, an engineer’s education
must be based on three pillars: basic knowledge,
encompassing core disciplines such as Math-
ematics, Physics and Chemistry; professional
knowledge, which focuses on more specific as-
pects of the engineer’s academic training, such
as building bridges, roads, ports and structures;
and business knowledge, which involves the sub-
jects of Leadership, Business Management and
Contract Administration, among others. When an
interactive team that is motivated to overcome
previous results is equipped with this range of
knowledge, these are key ingredients for innova-
tion in engineering.
“Innovation is only
meaningful when it
brings practical results.
As much as you may
want to innovate, you
mustn’t view each
project like a laboratory”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 25 8/3/11 5:22 PM
26 INFORMA
written by EDILSON LIMA
photos by RICARDO TELES
Participantes do
Acreditar Angola:
protagonistas de
uma nova era
no país
VALUABA case where
a country provides real incentives for
entrepreneurial creativity
Santo Antônio
Hydroelectric
Plant: an
exemplary case
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 26 8/3/11 5:22 PM
27INFORMA
f the hot topic at the construction site is technologi-
cal innovation, it’ll just be a matter of time before it
gets a visit from the Odebrecht Innovation Research
Program (POIT) team. Created in 2008, this program
aims to identify solutions devised at the jobsites and
encourage creativity among the project’s teams. The Ode-
brecht Organization is already getting visible results, both
in garnering tax incentives (Law no. 11.196/2005 introduced
tax breaks for companies that develop technological inno-
vations) and managing new knowledge.
Step by step, the process goes like this: once an inno-
vative project has been identifi ed at a jobsite, a team from
Pieracciani, a consulting fi rm for the POIT, goes out to the
site, performs an inventory, organizes the necessary docu-
mentation and assists the teams based on the criteria es-
tablished by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MCT)
and current fi scal and tax laws. Every year, the POIT sends
a report to the MCT covering all the innovative projects
produced during that period, including Research, Devel-
opment & Innovation (R, D & I) activities and the benefi ts
obtained. “Part of our job is to produce evidence that the
project in question is truly innovative,” says Alfonso Abrami,
the consulting fi rm’s Technical Director.
The POIT is run by a committee representing Odebrecht
Engineering & Construction companies, Construtora Nor-
berto Odebrecht’s Tax Planning area and Pieracciani. Peri-
odically, its members meet to review and approve the proj-
ects that have what it takes to be included in the program.
Essal was one of the fi rst projects included in the POIT. It
involves equipment used for geological studies of the marine
subsoil developed during the project to extend moles in the
Port of Rio Grande, in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do
Sul. The construction of this equipment to survey the subsoil
saved money on imports, since it didn’t exist in Brazil.
Dante Venturini, the offi cer Responsible for Func-
tional Support for Engineering at Odebrecht Infraestru-
tura, underscores the importance of systemizing knowl-
edge: “The POIT makes us appreciate the creativity and
knowledge produced at the jobsites, which many people
discard once the work is done. That’s not the way to do
it. All knowledge we obtain must be organized so it can
be shared and used in the future, while always seeking
gains in productivity,” he emphasizes.
Another success story is the work being done during
construction of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric power
plant in the state of Rondônia. The team there has de-
veloped motorized equipment to remove core samples
from depths of up to 5 meters. The samples are taken
from the sites where the foundations for transmission
line towers will be built. The equipment speeds up the
collection of samples, providing technical information
that is used to design the foundations.
“The biggest benefi t of the POIT is saving time, be-
cause innovations are recorded. The next time around,
we can avoid repeating previous mistakes or imple-
menting new procedures. There’s no need to reinvent
the wheel,” says José Roberto Brandão, the offi cer
Responsible for providing Engineering Support for
Augusto Roque, CEO for Generation in Brazil at Ode-
brecht Energia.
Water reuse
Aquapolo Ambiental, a subsidiary of Foz do Brasil,
will apply a new water reuse process technology for
the fi rst time in Brazil. Jointly developed by Constru-
tora Norberto Odebrecht and Foz do Brasil, it involves
using ultrafi ltration membranes and reverse osmosis
methods that will allow compliance with the water
quality requirements of the Capuava Petrochemical
Complex in São Paulo State, where the treated water
will be used.
The POIT is one of several initiatives in the fi eld of
knowledge production, management and sharing at
Odebrecht, such as the Highlight Awards. The program
fosters innovative practices through partnerships with
universities and research institutes, as well as the Or-
ganization’s clients and suppliers, encouraging innova-
tion throughout the supply chain.
Since the POIT was created, leaders have been en-
couraged to seek new achievements in technological
innovation all the time. “Bit by bit, the culture of inno-
vation and knowledge sharing is spreading throughout
the Organization’s businesses. Our members are start-
ing to realize how important this is to the quality of our
services, as well as adding value to the Organization’s
brand,” explains Alfonso Abrami.
I
27INFORMA
ideiasABLE
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 27 8/3/11 5:22 PM
28 INFORMA
rivalWITHOUT
Braskem
polypropylene:
focusing on each
client’s individual
needs
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 28 8/3/11 5:22 PM
29INFORMA
written by LUCIANA MÓGLIA
photos by RICARDO CHAVES
Providing outstanding products and services are Braskem’s priority in its pursuit of increased competitiveness
ecause we are working in a highly
competitive global marketplace where
innovation is a key factor for success,
we must be very focused on provid-
ing outstanding products, developing
new applications for our clients and the continued pur-
suit of cost competitiveness so that we are our client’s
choice due to excellence in products and services,” ob-
serves Patrick Teyssonneyre, Director of Innovation and
Technology at the Braskem Polymers Business Unit
(UNPOL). In 2010, UNPOL’S Innovation and Technology
teams launched 41 projects, representing USD 180 mil-
lion in potential returns in fi ve years. Expectations are
that in 2011 they will launch about 80 projects with a po-
tential return of USD 290 million.
At Braskem, innovation serves the client’s best in-
terests. In practice, this means that the company’s in-
novation and technology laboratories and pilot plants
are always working on the creation of new resins that
meet the needs of plastic processing companies, getting
ahead of trends, improving the performance of existing
products and seeking sustainable solutions.
“At Braskem, researchers go into the fi eld together
with members of the commercial area to anticipate
trends, identify new potential applications and study
the markets to determine whether ideas are feasible or
not,” explains Teyssonneyere.
Looking to develop new markets, Braskem is now
supplying polypropylene resins that Bredero Shaw uses
to insulate and rust-proof steel pipelines that transport
oil from offshore, as well as the polypropylene that Nova
Plast uses to make coffee sacks for export.
Offshore pipelines
In the middle of the last decade, Braskem spot-
ted an opportunity to work in the market for pipelines
used in deep-water oil and natural gas exploration
– and it is already getting results. Petrobras alone is
expected to build at least another 15 offshore rigs by
2017, including 8 to 10 platforms for exploration of the
pre-salt layer, which signals a promising market. “We
found that polypropylene is widely used for that appli-
cation, but all the resin was imported,” says Braskem
PP (Polypropylene) Product Development Manager
Alessandro Cauduro Lima.
To become a supplier to the oil industry, Braskem
sought out Bredero Shaw, which saw advantages in the
B
29INFORMA
“
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 29 8/3/11 5:22 PM
30 INFORMA
company’s proposal, such as a continuous supply of
product and local technical service, which suppliers
from outside Brazil could not provide. The challenge
was to produce a plastic resin that met higher thermal
requirements, since the main function of coating poly-
propylene piping and offshore steel pipelines used to
transport oil is to act as a thermal insulator, preserving
the input’s original properties.
The development of resins for this application, be-
gun in May 2008, was completed by the end of 2010.
“During that period, the product was subjected to the
rigorous approval process established by Petrobras,”
says Alessandro Lima.
The fi rst time this application was used was for
Petrobras’s P-55 platform. The pipelines that offl oad
oil and gas from that rig are a total of over 80 km long,
which should require almost 3,000 tonnes of PCD 0140
and PCD 0140BR. Expectations are that consumption
will total 6,000 t/year in 2011 and more than 10,000 t/
year by 2013.
Replacing asbestos with PVC
The international market is an endless source of
ideas for new applications that can be very well-re-
ceived by Brazilian clients. That was the case with Pre-
con, a roof tile manufacturer based in Minas Gerais,
which partnered up with Braskem to launch a product
made with PVC instead of asbestos in 2011. Another
partner is Acinplas, a pioneer in Brazilian production
of silobags (plastic silos for grain storage) for farmers,
which teamed up with Braskem to fi nd the best tech-
nology, analyze market viability and develop the raw
material.
Thanks to the creation of PVC roof tiles, the Bra-
zilian market in March was introduced to a pioneering
alternative to tiles made with asbestos or aluminum. It
all started in mid-2009, when a shareholder of Precon,
another Braskem client, introduced the idea in Brazil
after it had been tested and approved in the Northern
Hemisphere. From the start, it had potential sales of
100,000 t/year – about 20% of the domestic roof tile
market.
The fi rst step was developing the formula for the
compound used to make the tiles, which have specifi c
requirements such as resistance to weathering and
processing. In China, members of the Braskem Market
Development team and Precon found a roofi ng model
that does not require a large investment and has tech-
nical performance suited to the Brazilian market.
That partnership was not limited to production. “We
worked together to build the business model for putting
the product on the market, since the client was already
INFORMA30
Innovation and Technology Center team members: creating new plastic resins while paying special attention to sustainable solutions
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 30 8/3/11 5:22 PM
31INFORMA
active in the roofi ng business and could use their exist-
ing sales channel,” says Antônio Rodolfo, the Braskem
Manager for Application Engineering and Market De-
velopment. “Braskem has been a terrifi c partner in this
product launch, contributing to development, technolo-
gy and marketing,” observes Décio Gomes, CEO of Pre-
con. The company has a production capacity of 12,000
t/year of PVC roof tiles and is investing in expansion to
reach 16,000 tonnes by the end of the year.
Coffee packaging
Another joint evaluation of the applications of that
raw material confi rmed the idea, shared by Braskem
and Nova Plast, that plastic could be a good alterna-
tive for manufacturing coffee packaging for export.
“Caffè Dóro issued a report some time ago, indicating
that polypropylene sacking is the best way of preserv-
ing the quality of coffee based on parameters such as
aroma, cleanliness, sweetness, fl avor and bitterness.
That was the fi nal factor that made Nova Plast, a man-
ufacturer of screens, sacking and other polypropylene
products, decide to invest in factories to produce poly-
propylene fi ber sacks,” says Roberto Samartim, the
owner of Nova Plast.
The product was launched on the market in 2010
and, according to Samartim, sales are meeting ex-
pectations. By 2011, the company had sold 290 tonnes
of polypropylene for that application. According to
Braskem Application Engineering and Polypropylene
Market Development Manager Mônica Evangelista, the
market for coffee packed in jute sacks is estimated at
12 to 15 million units. “The same products made from
polypropylene could potentially replace 40% of that
market,” she says.
Grain storage
Some time ago, Acinplas, a national leader in the
production of plastic packaging for fruits and vegeta-
bles based in Estância Velha, Rio Grande do Sul, was
thinking of facilitating production of silobags in Brazil
as an alternative for farmers. The company contacted
Braskem, which already supplied it with polyethylene
used to make plastic bags, and they worked together to
fi nd a way to produce silobags in Brazil and introduce
an alternative grain storage culture in that country.
The product is already a success in Argentina,
whose farmers consumes about 150,000 units/year.
Consumption in Brazil was low – just 5,000 units, at
best. “Once we found a machine manufacturer in Chi-
na, Braskem immediately sent Linear PE (polyethyl-
ene) resin there for testing. After making the necessary
adjustments, we developed a durable and economical
product,” explains Acinplas Commercial Director Gus-
tavo Bazzano.
Acinplas has invested BRL 10 million in setting
up its silobag factory in Sapiranga, RS, called Paci-
fi l Brasil, which began operations in early 2011. The
unit has an annual production capacity of 60,000 si-
lobags, consuming up to 6,000 tonnes of polyethyl-
ene per year. Pursuant to the agreement between
the two companies, Braskem will be the exclusive
supplier for eight years. According to Bazzano, Paci-
fi l already plans to expand production capacity next
year with a projected investment of BRL 7 million.
“We are amazed by the demand, especially from
grain producers in the Midwest. We have sold 10,000
units this year,” says Bazzano. Braskem Account
Manager Carlos Carlucci underscores the sustain-
able nature of this initiative: “Pacifi l is prepared to
receive and recycle 10% of the silos sold,” he says.
In other words, Brazil and Argentina may be soccer
rivals, but in the case of silobags, they are playing on
the same team.
31INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 31 8/3/11 5:22 PM
32 INFORMA
written by FABIANA CABRAL
photos by RICARDO TELES producIN THE MOLD OF
ike pieces of a Lego set with various geo-
metric shapes and sizes and volumes.
This is a simple defi nition for the precast
pieces used in civil construction. But on
this particular project, precast pieces
mean fl exibility, quality and safety.
These pieces were fi rst used in some countries dur-
ing post-World War II reconstruction. They became
popular in Brazil in the 1950s, when businesses began
to streamline and industrialize processes. More than
60 years later, the presence of precast pieces in large
projects is growing steadily, and their applications are
becoming more and more challenging.
Odebrecht Energia is building one of the largest hy-
droelectric projects in the country in the Brazilian state
of Rondônia: the Santo Antônio plant, which will have 44
turbines and generate 3,150 MW of energy. According to
the construction master plan, developing new precast
pieces is key for optimizing the work, the safety of the
company’s members and the preservation of the envi-
ronment. “In construction, the industrialization of some
processes boosts the quantity and quality of activities
while ensuring people’s safety and quick results,” ex-
plains Project Director Mário Lúcio Pinheiro.
The precast pieces are manufactured by 240 pro-
fessionals in two yards near the site where they will be
used. “We produce 400 units per month, weighing from
5 to 28 tonnes apiece, and we plan to increase produc-
tion by 100 units over the next six months,” says Yards
Manager André Lima.
The project involves 827 different types of precast
pieces and more than 11,400 have already been installed.
“Precast pieces involve more assembly and less casting.
The more we reduce the casts used for these structures,
L
32
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 32 8/3/11 5:22 PM
33INFORMA
uctivityPrecast pieces help put construction of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric plant ahead of schedule
Santo Antônio hydroelectric
plant in Rondônia: precast
pieces (lower right) also
improve workers’ safety
conditions and environmental
preservation
the faster the work goes,” says Technical and Engineer-
ing Manager Fernando Dias Resende. He adds that the
pieces are used as needed, based on feasibility. “Precast
pieces for the gallery [providing access for technicians
and equipment used for turbine maintenance], the par-
apet walls and jersey barriers are widely used in large
projects. Our challenge is to create original items, and
we have already developed a few,” he explains.
Combining new solutions
One of the new pieces specially designed for the plant
is a precast suction tube (a cone-shaped hydraulic de-
vice located at the turbine exit). The idea came up after
using the conventional method – wood concrete forms –
for Generator Group (GG) 1, on the right bank of the Ma-
deira River. “Wood forms need repairs and, moreover,
their reuse rate is poor,” says Fernando Resende.
The Engineering and Production teams got together
with the designers to make the idea a reality, and af-
ter six months of discussions and drafts, the precast
piece was created with a metal form. The teams de-
signed shapes weighing 11 to 21 tonnes according to
the crane’s available lifting capacity.
The new pieces are already being installed in the
suction pipes for Generator Group 2 and will also be ap-
plied to Generator Groups 3 and 4, all on the left bank.
Each pipe consists of 20 pieces, and a total of 36 tur-
bines will be installed using 720 precast pieces of dif-
ferent shapes and weights. To facilitate transport, the
largest precast pieces in the design are made right next
to the site where they will be used.
“We have reduced the execution time for the layer
from 60 to 45 days and increased productivity, safety
and environmental conservation,” says Rodrigo Galli,
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 33 8/3/11 5:22 PM
INFORMA34
Production Manager for Power House 2. He explains
that, as a result, members are less exposed to the
risk of accidents, and 948 m3 of timber and 2,800 m3
of falsework (steel structures for bracing and securing
reinforced concrete) per unit are no longer required.
When precast pieces cannot be used, the process
is industrialized by assembling rebars in advance. “In-
stead of taking hundreds of rebars to be assembled at
heights of dozens of meters, we assemble the structure
on the ground and a crane positions it for concreting,”
says Rodrigo Galli.
These methods also keep the work fronts clean and
organized and contribute to the quality of the struc-
ture’s fi nishing. “The pieces don’t need touch-ups, be-
cause they are ready for use, minimizing rework. Each
structure is fully fi nished,” says Quality Control Man-
ager Almir Chieregato.
Key part of river diversion
Another precast piece developed for this project was
the trunnion beam used to support the main spillway,
which is essential to the civil and electromechanical in-
“The pieces do not need touch-ups, because they are ready for use, minimizing rework”
Almir ChieregatoMaking precast
pieces at the
plant’s jobsite
terface of the project. The trunnion beam supports the
arm of the sluice gate, which controls the level of the
plant’s reservoir. Using the conventional method, the
beam would be made by installing lateral bracing sup-
ported by a concrete pillar. Rodrigo Galli explains that
the precast piece has reduced the amount of work done
at height – the beams are 30 meters off the ground –
because they used cranes to install the parts. He ob-
serves that this solution has slashed costs by 50% and
reduced the work schedule by 20%, from 35 to 25 days.
“We have ensured that we will fi nish the civil engineer-
ing works on schedule so we can begin the electrome-
chanical activities and start diverting the river.”
The diversion of the Madeira River offi cially began
on July 5, in the presence of Brazilian President Dilma
Rousseff, Mines and Energy Minister Edison Lobão, and
local and federal authorities, along with Marcelo Ode-
brecht, President and CEO of Odebrecht S.A., Henrique
Valladares, Entrepreneurial Leader (CEO) of Odebrecht
Energia, Eduardo de Melo Pinto, President of Santo An-
tônio Energia, and other leaders.
President Rousseff triggered the device that opened
the spillway fl oodgates, allowing water to fl ow through
the structure. “Santo Antônio represents a commit-
ment to the Brazilian environment and sustainable de-
velopment,” she said.
Mário Lúcio Pinheiro observes that this event
marked the beginning of a new phase of the project.
“The ideas conceived and lessons learned on the right
bank will be applied on the left. We will work hard to
ensure that the fi rst turbine starts generating power by
December 2011, and the other 43 are operating by the
end of 2015,” he adds.
According to Rodrigo Galli, teams from the compa-
ny’s other projects have visited the jobsite to familiar-
ize themselves with these new ideas so they can apply
them in the future.
Accompanied by Eduardo de Melo Pinto (left), Minister Edison Lobão, Rondônia Governor Confúcio de Moura, and Marcelo Odebrecht, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff triggers the device that opens the spillway fl oodgates: diversion of the Madeira River begins
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 34 8/3/11 5:23 PM
35INFORMA 333355555555555555IINFNFORMORMRMORMO AAA
Health and Safety at Work
Environment Community Relations
Young Par tner Utilization of the Knowledge
Innovation
BECOME A PART OF THIS HISTORY
DON’T MISS OUT ON PARTICIPATING IN THIS COMMEMORATIVE EDITION
SIGN UP AND SUBMIT YOUR PROJECT UNTIL SEPTEMBER 30, 2011
HTTPS://WWW.PREMIODESTAQUE.COM
TWENTY YEARS OF DISTINGUISHED CREATIVITY, INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION
For more information on the Destaque Award, please contact Ciaden ([email protected]).
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 35 8/3/11 5:23 PM
36 INFORMA
hiFOURTEEN SECO
The platform
on the BGL-2
barge: Brazilian
innovation
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 36 8/3/11 5:23 PM
37INFORMA
written by EMANUELLA SOMBRA
photos by ARTUR IKISHIMA
historyONDS THAT MADE
P-59 is the fi rst jack-up platform in the world to be launched from another fl oating platform
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 37 8/3/11 5:23 PM
rom the top of P-59 platform’s control
tower, we hear the fi rst in a series of
three alarms that will trigger the re-
lease of the 7,700-tonne giant, care-
fully positioned on Petrobras’s BGL-2
barge. Four tugs are waiting for the operation to
start, which is expected to happen at noon on a gray
and rainy Friday. The excitement is growing every
minute as the countdown goes on. We are awaiting
the moment when P-59 will fall into the brackish
waters of the Paraguaçu River, close to its mouth.
Mário Moura and Jacques Raigorodsky – respec-
tively, the offi cer Responsible for Field Engineering
and the Corporate Engineering Manager – are wait-
ing on the BGL-2, where a team of about 50 people
are starting to move quickly to the stern of the ves-
sel, considered the safest place to be when the rig
shoves off. The operation is expected to take two
minutes early, but, providentially, the rain stops.
The third whistle blows at 11:45 am.
Then, Moura and Raigorodsky give the green
light for the launch: the activation of the hold-down
system (something like a thousand-tonne slingshot)
releases P-59 from the barge, which is gently slop-
ing down at about fi ve degrees. Gravity starts to do
its part and the rig slides across the BGL-2 with
near-zero friction. The operation has been calculat-
ed to take place on the calm and sheltered waters of
the Paraguaçu, Anyone watching the operation from
afar will have the impression of seeing a huge toy
skimming on the water, making giant waves until it
fi nally sails smoothly and stabilizes with the help of
the tugboats.
Two and a half years of work
The launch operation took less than a minute
– more precisely, 14 seconds – after two and a half
years of work by nearly 2,000 people from Consór-
cio Rio Paraguaçu (a joint venture of Odebrecht En-
genharia Industrial, Construtora Queiroz Galvao S/A
and UTC Engenharia), and represented an unprec-
edented feat in offshore engineering. This was the
fi rst time in the world that a jack-up (self-elevating)
oil rig had been launched from another fl oating ves-
sel, in this case Petrobras’s BGL-2 barge.
The critical moment of the operation took place
in June, as a result of hard work done at the ship-
F
yard in São Roque do Paraguaçu, a district of the
town of Maragogipe, 133 km from the state capi-
tal, Salvador, Bahia. It all began in 2007, when the
tender for the construction of platforms P-59 and
P-60 called for the completion of the project in a
place that was not adapted for launching offshore
platforms. One of Petrobras’s conditions was
that the rigs had to be built in the municipality of
São Roque, whose shipyard was not equipped to
launch those rigs.
“The choice of São Roque was a way of continu-
ing a process that already existed in the region –
the tradition of building jackets for oil rigs in the
1980s,” explains Odebrecht Project Director José
Luís Coutinho. “Not to mention that the São Roque
shipyard had recently been mobilized to build top-
sides [process modules and utilities] for the PRA-1
platform.” To fufi ll the client’s requirements, the
joint-venture contractor evaluated all of the al-
ternatives available in the offshore industry. The
problem was that none of them was fi nancially vi-
able or logistically feasible.
“The challenge was to fi nd the most innovative
methods that we could propose to become more
competitive and win the tender,” recalls Jacques
Raigorodsky, the engineer in charge of devising a
INFORMA38
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 38 8/3/11 5:23 PM
39INFORMA
solution. One option would be to create a dry dock
where P-59 and P-60 would be built. But it wasn’t
even entertained for a simple reason: the high cost
of its implementation.
Another alternative was to build a launch ramp
similar to those used in conventional shipyards, but
that solution was also discarded because it would
also have had a substantial impact on the budget,
and it required the modifi cation of the yard’s original
layout. “After that procedure, we would have had to
dismantle everything and leave the place as it was
before.” The third and last technology evaluated –
loading the rigs onto a submersible barge that is
made to sink like a submarine – would have cost
about USD 5 million per operation. That solution
would require importing barges that might not even
be available.
Brazilian method
Then the light bulb of creativity lit up. In Jacques
Raigorodsky’s mind, a fourth alternative seemed
entirely possible – a barge normally used to launch
jackets (steel towers used in the extraction of oil
and gas) could also be used to launch a structure
with a hull. “It was a way to use a Brazilian method
that is owned by Petrobras, and which the company
could offer during the tender, but I had to convince
the guys that this was feasible. At fi rst, everyone
said it couldn’t be done,” the consultant recalls.
Gaining the confi dence of the client and his
own colleagues was just the fi rst battle to be won.
Once that hurdle was overcome, the joint-venture
contractor presented this proposal in the bid. It
won the tender, largely due to the competitiveness
generated by that innovative method for launch-
ing the rigs. After signing the contract, the team’s
challenge was to prove in practice that the launch
method would actually work. How? By using a
1:50 scale model and developing specifi c software
for the operation – in other words, a model and a
computer program to do all the calculations for
the simulation.
The solution was to use the testing tanks at the
Lab Oceano, in Rio de Janeiro, where every possible
launch option was thoroughly tested. The model
helped determine how the platform and the barge
would behave during the launch, which helped them
arrive at a launch angle that could overcome the
friction of inertia without making the rig pivot about
on the deck. The effect of pivoting would make the
platform rear up, causing the hull to come to rest on
a single point of the barge deck, which would dam-
Getting ready
for the launch
in São Roque
do Paraguaçu:
operation
involved over
1,700 workers
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 39 8/3/11 5:23 PM
40 INFORMA
Worker at the yard and P-59:
new horizons for the Brazilian
oil industry
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 40 8/3/11 5:23 PM
41INFORMA
age one or both of the structures. During that trial
and error stage, the team used 23 launch settings,
and 92 simulations were required to determine the
safest angle: 5.46 degrees. After that, the next step
would be to fi nd a material that would create the
least possible friction between the surface of the
barge and the hulls of P-59 and P-60.
The most appropriate combination was familiar
to old salts, and Odebrecht’s own engineers had
been testing it for decades. “It’s a nearly century-
old method: applying mutton tallow to the skids,
which, in our case, are made of steel on top and
wood on the bottom,” says Mário Moura. “And to
complete the process we coated the concrete and
steel ramp with Tefl on, so when these surfaces
come into contact, they produce very low friction,
about 2%.” Since the initial tests began, he worked
in partnership with Raigorodsky to develop the
method, taking charge of everything from coordi-
nating the teams to supervising every step to en-
sure that the operation went smoothly.
Leveling the barge with the pier
Moura watched the launch of P-59 in the Para-
guaçu River from the best place to feel the impact
of displacement: the barge itself. Three days ear-
lier, he also was responsible for every detail of the
load-out – the transfer of the rig from dry land to
the BGL-2, using a system of hydraulic jacks and
ramps built at the yard. “The load-out operation
was nothing new. Odebrecht’s technical team had
done it several times. But this kind of operation is
extremely delicate and requires the greatest pos-
sible care, because we needed to ensure that the
barge and the dock were at the same level through-
out the procedure. And that is very hard to do.”
In this case, “delicate” can mean painstaking and
slow. While the launch of P-59 lasted just 14 sec-
onds, the load-out took about 15 hours, inching for-
ward to the point where, to the naked eye, the rig did
not seem to be moving at all. “It involved three years
of dedication to make an event like this happen in
less than a day, and then, in less than a minute. But
one thing I’ve learned from Jacques and Coutinho is
this: for an operation to succeed, it takes planning
and very detailed procedures. Thorough prepara-
tion for the operation is essential. The rest is the
outcome of all that work,” says Moura, before giv-
ing his next instructions by radio. Standing close to
the river bank, he is still orchestrating the legion
of workers who are striving to continue the success
achieved in the previous month.
Now that the team has met the main challenge
of revolutionizing offshore engineering by making
it possible to use a new technology to launch jack-
up platforms, São Roque do Paraguaçu is getting
ready to repeat the same procedure with P-60. It
may seem simple, but it’s not. This is because Ode-
brecht and its joint-venture partners shared the
effort to complete P-59, which was towed back to
shore at the yard after the launch, where it under-
went the procedure of jacking the legs (when the
basic support structures are stabilized at the bot-
tom of the river).
It will take about six months to fi nish building
the rig. Another load-out procedure will be required
to install the drill fl oor before it can set out to sea
and start drilling offshore. Both P-59 and P-60 are
designed to operate in areas near the coast, at wa-
ter depths of up to 110 m water. Their drilling ca-
pacity is abyssal: out in the ocean, they will be able
to drill up to 10,000 m deep, which means they will
reach the oil deposits in the pre-salt layer.
“We’ve established a milestone for the offshore
industry, and this has been a fantastic learning ex-
perience for all the professionals involved in both the
simulations and in structural studies of scale models
and naval operations,” says Fernando Barbosa, CEO
of Odebrecht Engenharia Industrial, who closely fol-
lowed the fi nal moments of the fi rst stage. “The main
legacy from this entire operation is that it will always
be part of the Organization’s experience and knowl-
edge in its future projects, which will make us even
more competitive.”
Based on the results of this initial effort, the use
of this new technology promises to create fresh ho-
rizons for the Brazilian oil industry. “Because this
type of barge is readily available, we will be able
to build fl oating structures in other locations. We
now have a new launch method,” says Nilo Victor
de Oliveira, Petrobras’s Sectoral Manager for Jack-
Up Platform Construction. In São Roque do Para-
guaçu, the construction teams are still doing their
part. Bring on P-60!
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 41 8/3/11 5:23 PM
42 INFORMA
written by RUBENY GOULART photos by GERALDO PESTALOZZI
steady AND VERSATILE
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 42 8/3/11 5:23 PM
43INFORMA
The Norbe VI rig’s systems keep it in position over offshore oil wells in all weathers and reduce drilling time
Norbe VI in Rio de
Janeiro: the rig will
operate in the
pre-salt layer fi elds
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 43 8/3/11 5:23 PM
INFORMA44
he semi-submersible drilling plat-
form Norbe VI arrived in Brazil in
March. In the coming weeks, as soon
as drilling starts for the fi rst oil wells
in Brazil’s pre-salt layer fi elds, it will
go into operation with the hallmark of innovation.
Operated by Odebrecht Oil & Gas (OOG), the drill
rig is equipped with a system known as “parallel
activity,” which substantially reduces the amount
of time spent drilling the wells and can generate
savings of up to USD 1 million per day for the cli-
ent – in this case, Petrobras. Another stand-out
feature for this unit, a steel colossus that is 240-m
long and as tall as a 14-story building, is dynamic
positioning. This technology allows the drilling
unit to be positioned the over the wells under the
harshest conditions, especially strong waves and
currents.
Also used by other international oil rig opera-
tors, adapting the parallel activity system Norbe
VI was an initiative of OOG engineers Herculano
Barbosa and José Pitta, with the support of the
Dutch design and engineering firm SBM, the
same company that managed the rig’s construc-
tion. The project took four years to complete, and
the version developed in-house came in cheaper
than its international counterparts. Even so, it
has all the advantages of the conventional sys-
tem, especially saving time and improving pro-
ductivity during drilling operations. The second
tower, which is installed next to the main one, is
lower and allows independent management. With
some adaptations, it can also be installed on con-
ventional rigs.
Drilling an oil well is done in stages, using col-
umns tipped with drills that can reach water depths
of up to 10,000 m. At the end of each stage, the
drill assembly is removed so a metal tube – the lin-
ing – can be lowered to protect the section drilled,
stabilizing the well and preventing the sides from
collapsing. This lining is fi xed in place with cement
paste. During the next stage, another column drills
even deeper and repeats the sequence, removing
the drill assembly and installing more tubes, until
the fi nal section of the well is reached. The inno-
vation on Norbe VI is reducing the time spent on
sequential up-and-down-column drilling.
Using the conventional operating system with
a single tower, it takes 40 days to reach a depth
of 5,000 meters below the surface. But paral-
lel activity drastically reduces that timeframe.
“You can save an average of eight days per well
drilled,” says Herculano Barbosa, based on the
experience of someone who has participated in
major offshore projects on rigs operated by OOG
and its predecessor, Odebrecht Perfurações
Ltda. (OPL). According to Herculano, it takes
about 12 hours to lower and remove each of the
six columns used in drilling with the conventional
system, but the twin towers cut that time almost
in half. “While one column is drilling, the other is
on its way down,” explains Herculano. “It saves
time, money and effort.”
T
Norbe VI’s parallel activity
towers: less time spent raising
and lowering drilling columns
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 44 8/3/11 5:23 PM
45INFORMA
Designed to operate at water depths of up to
2,400 m and drilling depths of up to 9,000 m, Norbe
VI is a semi-submersible rig that is self-propelled
and therefore does not need to be towed from one
exploration site to another. OOG commissioned it
from the Dutch fi rm SBM, a company with global
operations in that sector, and it was built at the
GPC Gulf Piping shipyard in Abu Dhabi, United
Arab Emirates, after carefully selecting suppliers
from several countries.
Along with Norbe VIII, another recent arrival in
Rio de Janeiro; Norbe IX, which is on its way to
Brazil; ODN I and ODN II, which are in fi nal stages
of construction in South Korea, and the ODN Tay,
OOG’s latest acquisition, Norbe VI forms part of
a state-of-the-art fl eet of deepwater drilling rigs
that OOG will soon be operating. Norbe IX is ex-
pected to arrive in Brazil in July 2011.
More technologically advanced than her sisters,
Norbe VI is anchored outside Guanabara Bay, near
Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, where it is undergoing the
fi nal phase of testing. In the coming weeks, it will
head out for the production area. This unit has ac-
commodations for up to 140 people. Its dynamic
positioning system works with eight underwater
propellers, as well as GPS and radio positioning,
which capture satellite signals to accurately re-
align the rig over the wellhead.
Odebrecht invested 20% of the total required to
build Norbe VI, and the remaining 80% was raised
through project fi nancing – fi nancial engineering in-
volving the contractor, builder and manager of the rig.
The contract that OOG signed with Petrobras provides
for chartering and operating the rig for 10 years.
Conceived in 2006
Norbe VI was fi rst conceived in 2006, the year
OOG was created. A group of OOG professionals
traveled to the US city of Houston, Texas, in June
of that year to work on the engineering design. By
mid-2007, an OOG team was closely monitoring
construction of the rig.
An iconic achievement, Norbe VI marks Ode-
brecht’s return to drilling offshore oil wells after
a six-year absence. Until 2000, the company oper-
ated in that area through OPL, established in 1979
when Odebrecht acquired the Norbe I platform in
Singapore to drill off the coast of Sergipe, Brazil.
In the 1980s, in the wake of Petrobras’s invest-
ments in deep-water exploration, OPL acquired
the Norbe II, III, IV and V and Asterie rigs. By the
end of that decade, it owned one of the largest pri-
vate fl eets of offshore oil rigs in Brazil.
All told, OOG is investing about USD 3.5 billion
in its spheres of operations, including its fl eet of
deep-water drilling rigs. The operations of Norbe
VI and Norbe VIII, in addition to delivery of Norbe
IX in less than two months, will reposition OOG
as one of the largest private Brazilian operators
of deepwater drilling rigs. This is happening at a
time when Brazil is becoming one of the world’s
largest oil producing nations, which is a two-fold
reason to celebrate.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 45 8/3/11 5:23 PM
46 INFORMA
ship
Built in the early 90s in Singapore and Brazil, P-18 produced know-how that the companies participating in the project still use to this day
MEMORY
P-18 under construction
in Singapore: almost
20 years since the signing
of the contract for the
rig’s construction
AC
ER
VO O
DE
BR
EC
HT
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 46 8/3/11 5:24 PM
47INFORMA
written by CLÁUDIO LOVATO FILHO
ip shapeTHE LADY IS
ts stature, as always, is expressed in its titles:
the largest semi-submersible platform in the
world at the time of construction; the fi rst of
its kind to produce oil in Brazil; the fi rst to op-
erate at a water depth of one thousand feet
in that country, where it once held the record for oil
production: 100,000 barrels per day; the focus of
Petrobras’s fi rst major international tender; the Bra-
zilian oil company’s fi rst platform built abroad from
scratch, that is, an entirely new rig, not a conver-
sion of an existing vessel. But aside from these many
labels that give it a permanent place in the history
of the Brazilian oil industry, P-18 was a watershed
in the history of Petrobras, Odebrecht’s operations
in the offshore sector, and relations between Brazil
and Singapore, the country where part of the plat-
form was built. P-18 came into the world under the
sign of pioneer spirit to fulfi ll a revolutionary destiny
at the Marlim oil fi eld in Campos Basin, off the coast
of Rio de Janeiro State.
“Much of what Petrobras is doing today in deep-wa-
ter drilling, including operations in the pre-salt layer,
is down to the P-18 platform,” says Arnaldo Arcadier,
Executive Manager of Petrobas’s Fleet Modernization
and Expansion Program (Promef). “It was a fl agship
project due to its pioneering work and innovation, a
project that has created confi dence in the progress of
oil exploration.” Arnaldo was the Project Manager for
P-18. He lived in Singapore from June 1991 to April
1993. Along with 11 Petrobras colleagues and their
families, he arrived in that country in the months fol-
lowing the signing of the contract between Petrobras,
Odebrecht (represented by Tenenge) and FELS – Far
East Levingston Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of the Kep-
pel Corporation of Singapore, and one of the world’s
top builders of rigs for the oil industry.
Therefore, it is almost 20 years since the signing
of the contract for the construction of P-18, the result
of an international tender whose bidders included a
Finnish contractor and another Brazilian engineer-
ing and construction company, in addition to the Te-
nenge-FELS consortium. On June 3, 2011, Arnaldo
welcomed the co-workers with whom he shared the
experience of living and working in Singapore in the
early 90s to his home in Rio de Janeiro’s Leblon dis-
trict. They recalled their experiences, watched home
videos, spoke of the passing of time, their work yes-
terday and today, and advances in technology, and
laughed when they remembered that when they were
going home to rest, the company’s people in Brazil
were just getting to work.
A globally innovative project
“To build P-18, Petrobras studied the best avail-
able in terms of semisubmersible platform design
worldwide. It had experience of using these plat-
forms for drilling, but not production. P-18’s design
was thus globally innovative, and, moreover, would
have to be built as an EPC (Engineering, Procure-
ment and Construction) project, which was brand
new at the time, and, consequently, a challenge that
was also a learning experience for the company,”
says Arnaldo. Under an EPC contract, the builder is
responsible for all phases of the project, with near-
ly all activities concentrated at the jobsite – in this
case, the shipyard.
I
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 47 8/3/11 5:24 PM
48 INFORMA
Building the platform in Singapore gave Petrobras
its fi rst experience of sharing the execution of a proj-
ect with a foreign shipbuilder, FELS. It was also a fi rst
for the Singapore company. Odebrecht’s prior famil-
iarity with FELS and vice versa made an important
contribution to the success of their relationship, es-
pecially at the beginning. In the late 80s, the two com-
panies had worked together in India: Odebrecht had
contracted FELS to extend the legs of fi xed platform
Norbe V. It was the beginning of a relationship that
led them to form the consortium that bid for the P-18
project. Having won the tender, it was time to begin
sharing the daily life of the FELS shipyard in Singa-
pore, which lasted almost two years until the platform
departed for Paranaguá, Brazil, where the project was
completed.
“We put all our concerns on the table,” recalls Jeff
Chow, General Manager (Legal) of Keppel Offshore
& Marine, who was a major participant in the for-
mation of the consortium between Odebrecht and
FELS. “We talked frankly, clearly establishing every-
one’s responsibilities on the project. What followed
was the emergence of trust of the highest quality. I
established friendships with Brazilians from Petro-
bras and Odebrecht that I maintain to this day. All
of us, people from FELS, Petrobras and Odebrecht,
bonded and became a family, and that was essential
to achieving our common goals the way they were
achieved,” he adds.
Jeff Chow’s statements are key to getting a good
idea of what happened in Singapore and Brazil during
the P-18 project. All three companies were experienc-
ing challenges that were entirely new to them (and in
some cases, to the world) while working on a project
that would become a benchmark for the oil industry.
Unity, cohesion and synergy refl ected their common
focus.
“Personal relationships are the fi rst and main key
to opening doors,” says Wai Seng Yeong of FELS, who
was the Engineering Manager on the P-18 project and
is currently Vice President Special Projects at Keppel
Offshore & Marine. Wai Seng lived in Rio de Janeiro
for two years. “Everything was new for us,” he recalls.
“We had an excellent design from Petrobras, really
sophisticated. There was a record to beat – 100,000
barrels per day. We had to understand each other very
well. The construction of the hull and installation of
equipment in Singapore and the hook-up operation
in Paranaguá were challenges we overcame, most of
all through a good working environment and the feel-
ing that we were all on the same team.” The hook-up
stage is the completion of the platform, including the
installation of processing modules and piping, wiring,
assembly of instruments, the security system and ac-
commodations.
“P-18 was a milestone for us,” says Choo Chiau
Beng, CEO of the Keppel Corporation and Chairman of
Keppel Offshore & Marine. “It was our fi rst project for
Petrobras. It was a tremendous learning experience
for us, and we put our best team on the project. As a
builder of semisubmersible drill rigs and accommo-
dations, Keppel FELS could contribute its expertise to
building a platform like P-18 on time with the requisite
quality. The unity of the Odebrecht, Keppel FELS and
Petrobras teams, acting with cohesion, synergy and
friendship, led to the success of that project.” He adds:
“Without a doubt, P-18 brought Brazil and Singapore
much closer together.”
INFORMA48
JÔ
NIO
MA
CH
AD
O /
PE
TR
OB
RA
S I
MA
GE B
AN
K
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 48 8/3/11 5:24 PM
49INFORMA
World’s largest fl oating oil
production plant
Odebrecht’s team in Singapore was led by Project
Manager Fernando Barbosa, now CEO of Odebrecht
Engenharia Industrial. Fernando was 35 when he
undertook responsibility for leading the project. The
young professional had a 36,000-tonne challenge on
his hands that would represent a decisive step toward
achieving much-desired oil self-suffi ciency for Bra-
zil. Fernando, who joined the Organization in 1985
and had previously participated in offshore projects in
Bahia for another company and later for Odebrecht,
fi rst went to Singapore in February 1990. He spent
two and a half years there and one year in Paranaguá.
Regarding the time he worked in the Southeast Asian
city-state, he recalls: “There was an 11-hour differ-
ence in the time zone and no Internet, only faxes! It
was an extraordinary experience. Forming a team and
a culture of procedures to run an innovative project,
and living in the East was impressive and inspiring.”
In addition to Fernando, nine Odebrecht members
and their families went to Singapore to work on that
project.
Fernando points out that FELS had never built a pro-
duction platform before – just drill rigs. The construction
of a production platform is much more complex. It is an
industrial unit designed to operate in high seas. P-18 be-
came the largest fl oating oil production plant in the world.
The know-how that Odebrecht and Petrobras teams
gained regarding this type of structure was an important
factor. “P-18 was a major source of learnings for every-
one,” says Fernando, adding: “In those days, Odebrecht
was focused on the ‘Brazilian content,’ which led to the
decision to build part of the project in Singapore and com-
plete it in Brazil, at the Paranaguá yard.”
After the P-18 experience, he returned to Singa-
pore and lived there for over a year and a half, this time
as an Odebrecht DPA (Country Director). “I matured
a lot professionally in Singapore. It was a pleasure to
spend four years there.”
Arnaldo Arcadier feels much the same way. “We de-
veloped some procedures in Singapore that Petrobras
has consolidated and still uses today, especially with re-
gard to project management.” In his offi ce in the Petro-
bras building on Presidente Vargas Avenue in downtown
Rio de Janeiro, he says, with a refl ective tone: “P-18
gave a major boost to Petrobras’s oil production proj-
ects. When I joined the company in 1978, we produced a
total of 160,000 barrels per day. Since 1994, P-18 alone
has produced as much as 100,000 barrels per day.”
The work done in Singapore went on from June
1991 to April 1993, when the platform was shipped out
to Paranaguá. The voyage was made possible by a so-
phisticated transportation system known as dry-tow: the
Transhelf, registered under the Russian fl ag and owned
by the Wjsmuller company, was partially submerged so
the platform could be fl oated onto its deck. The voyage to
Brazil lasted 34 days.
In the Paranaguá Basin, the dry-tow operation was
performed in reverse before tugboats pulled P-18 to the
dock. In March 1994, P-18 arrived in the Campos Ba-
sin. On June 15, it got “fi rst oil.” By January 1997 it had
reached the milestone of 100,000 barrels/day. Currently,
it produces 30,000 barrels per day. Unable to hide the
emotion in his words, Arnaldo Arcadier explains: “The
life of a platform like P-18 is 25 years. After 17 years of
oil production in rough seas, we can say that she is now
a mature lady.”
49INFORMA
The platform operating today
in the Marlim Field in the Santos
Basin: a leading role in record-
breaking production
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 49 8/3/11 5:24 PM
50 INFORMA
he fi rst sugarcane seedlings arrived in
Brazil in 1533, introduced by the Portu-
guese. Its choice of that unpretentious
crop was due to Portugal’s need to oc-
cupy the newly discovered territory. To-
day, Brazil is the second-largest producer of ethanol and
the number-one sugar producer, using the Portuguese
“experiment” as raw material. The ethanol and sugar
industry provides direct employment opportunities for
more than a million people with a turnover of BRL 50
billion per year.
However, the next bioenergy revolutions will not take
so long. “Investment in technology will be a major com-
petitive advantage in the coming years,” said Carlos
Calmanovici, the ETH Bioenergy offi cer Responsible for
Innovation and Technology, an area connected directly
to the company’s CEO. “Technology advances at an in-
credible speed, so there are numerous opportunities
out there.”
Development opportunities can be found through-
out the ethanol and biomass electricity production pro-
cess, with results expected in both the short and long
term. “We will generate biomass energy with more
speed and quality using new cane varieties, transgenic
or not, that are better adapted to different types of soils
and drought and pest resistant, with higher sugar and
fi ber content,” explains Calmanovici. In the industrial
area, one priority for researchers is pursuit of higher
yields through the fermentation process.
Industrial identity
In the next decade, new applications for ethanol
and the next generations of biodiesel will already be
a reality. “The plans in the pipeline are confi dential,
but we can say that we are constantly seeking syner-
gies with other Odebrecht companies, and ETH will
play an important role in this sector by 2020,” says
Calmanovici.
Despite the “strategic secrecy” about the compa-
ny’s plans, the path to achieving excellence is simple:
partnering up with the leading knowledge producers
in Brazil. Today, ETH has agreements in place to de-
velop new technologies in partnership with academic
institutions such as the Federal University at São Car-
los (UFSCar) and the State University at Campinas
(Unicamp), among others.
T
Bio-revolut
Unicamp Professor
Gonçalo Pereira: the
industry is looking
to the future
written by GUILHERME OLIVEIRA photos by BRUNA ROMARO
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 50 8/3/11 5:24 PM
INFORMA
Technology investments will be the ethanol and sugar industry’s main competitive edge in coming years
Professor Gonçalo Pereira, Head of the Depart-
ment of Genetics, Evolution and Biogenetics at Uni-
camp, is in charge of the partnership project with
ETH. He explains the focus of the study: “The trans-
formation of sugar into alcohol is done with natural
wild yeast. We are studying its genetic structure to
produce industrial types of yeast, which obtain higher
productivity in the conversion process.”
He observes that academia has the knowledge,
but it is ETH that is making innovations. “The attitude
of being constantly dissatisfi ed with the technologies
available and looking to the future is unprecedented
in this sector, and ETH is at the forefront of that drive.
It is a young company that makes innovation a pillar
of its operations.”
Gonçalo Pereira predicts that the company and
academia will have a successful relationship. “Univer-
sities are on the lookout for partnerships like these.
Brazil has a culture of using money to do science.
In this win-win scenario, we’ll use science to make
money.” ETH’s Calmanovici agrees: “We see a lot of
expertise in academia and need to maximize the use
of that knowledge to add value to our products. ETH’s
growth target is ambitious, and overcoming that chal-
lenge depends on the proper use of new technologies
with support from our partners. The ability to innovate
is the path to leadership.”
utions
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 51 8/3/11 5:24 PM
52 INFORMA
surfaceA DREAM COMES T
Worker at the
UFEM construction
site, part of the
project underway
in Itaguái: a bold
and decisive step
for the Brazilian Navy
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 52 8/3/11 5:24 PM
53INFORMA
fter over 30 years, the dream is fi nally coming
true. In the near future, Brazil will have its fi rst
nuclear-powered submarine. It will be built in
Brazil through the Brazilian Navy’s Subma-
rine Development – Shipyard and Naval Base
Program (Prosub-EBN). Having a nuclear submarine will bol-
ster the Navy’s operations in deep waters far from shore. It will
also mark Brazil’s entry into the select group of countries that
have the technology, which currently includes the United States,
France, Britain, Russia and China.
For this reason, Brazil signed technology transfer agree-
ments with France in 2008 that enabled the start of construction
of a shipyard, a naval base, four conventional Scorpene subma-
rines and a nuclear-powered sub. The French state-owned fi rm
DCNS (Direction des Constructions Navales et Services) is re-
sponsible for overseeing the process of transferring the tech-
nology to the Brazilian Navy and Odebrecht.
Choosing French technology
Traditionally, the countries that have nuclear submarines
developed their designs on the basis of several stages of the de-
velopment of their conventional submarines. Many took years to
develop that technology. Today, just two countries produce both
conventional and nuclear subs: France and Russia. The Brazil-
ian Navy visited both countries, studied their designs, surveyed
their clients worldwide, and concluded that France was the
most solid partner for Brazil.
In the fi rst place, this is because France was willing to trans-
fer technology for both the design of a nuclear-powered sub-
marine – in this case, internal structures and systems (except
for the nuclear reactor, which was developed by the Navy itself)
– and conventional Scorpene subs.
In the second place, the conventional Scorpene sub is dif-
ferent from other conventional models because it includes
security concepts similar to those used in its nuclear coun-
terpart (such as sensor, combat and motor cooling systems,
etc.). This is because the design is derived from the Rubis/Am-
ethyste, another French nuclear submarine. Brazil’s participa-
tion in the construction of the fi rst the four Scorpene subma-
rines will begin in 2011. That vessel will be completed by 2015.
Training in France and Brazil
At the moment, Odebrecht Infraestrutura and Odebrecht
Engenharia Industrial teams are hard at work at the jobsite in
Itaguaí, Rio de Janeiro, building the Metal Structures Manufac-
turing Units (UFEM), where the metal parts of the submarines
will be made – that is, sections of the hull and internal struc-
written by EDILSON LIMA
photos by ANDRÉ VALENTIM
eS TO THE
Brazil starts fulfi lling a long-held plan: building submarines, including a nuclear-powered sub
A
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 53 8/3/11 5:24 PM
tures – as well as the Shipyard and Naval Base (EBN).
Expectations are that the UFEM will open in 2012, and
the EBN should be up and running by 2015. The sub-
marines will be built in stages during the second part
of the program. The fi nal unit will be delivered by 2025,
when the nuclear-powered submarine will go into op-
eration. Odebrecht will participate in the construction
of the subs through Itaguaí Construções Navais, a joint
venture with DCNS.
Members of the Brazilian Navy and Odebrecht
receive training from the DCNS team in France and
Brazil. In the case of the EBN, knowledge is trans-
ferred through the Technical Information Package,
which comes from France and is delivered to the Navy
and then to Odebrecht, following the Navy’s analysis
and approval. The information is absorbed and ap-
plied to the basic and detailed design. “The lessons
learned from this project will make Odebrecht the
fi rst Brazilian company with the know-how to design
and build shipyards for conventional and nuclear
submarines,” says the Director Responsible for the
Shipyard and Naval Base, Fabio Gandolfo, from Ode-
brecht Infraestrutura.
The French state-owned fi rm’s choice of Ode-
brecht as a partner was based on the Organiza-
tion’s expertise in major projects, including nuclear
technology (the Angra dos Reis power plants in Rio
de Janeiro State), and its operations in the offshore
market, including construction of several oil rigs in
Brazil and other countries. “DCNS saw Odebrecht
as a Brazilian company with the characteristics
needed to absorb the French technology and carry
out the Prosub program,” says Fernando Barbosa,
CEO of Odebrecht Engenharia Industrial, the com-
pany responsible for building the conventional and
nuclear subs.
Shipbuilding industry gains steam
The relationship between Brazil and submarines
and their technology dates back to the early 20th cen-
tury, when the country acquired its fi rst conventional
sub. But it was only in 1993 that it launched the fi rst
submarine built on Brazilian soil, at the Naval Arsenal
in Rio de Janeiro: the S Tamoio (S-31), using German
technology. That step marked the beginning of the na-
tion’s pursuit of technological independence. In 1979,
the Navy Nuclear Program (PNM) was created to de-
velop a Brazilian nuclear submarine.
Despite making important advances in nuclear propul-
sion, the PNM suffered doldrums, particularly in the 1990s.
Then, in early 2000, the Brazilian Government decided to
invest in the shipbuilding industry and encourage the par-
ticipation of the private sector to give it a boost and gen-
erate work opportunities. Those incentives were further
bolstered by the discovery of oil in the pre-salt layer. About
90% of the country’s exports and imports pass through ap-
proximately 560 km of its coastline. The Navy is responsible
for protecting that area. In this context, the need emerged
to reinvest in building submarines, because the Navy’s cur-
rent fl eet only includes fi ve units.
According to Admiral Alan Arthou, who is directing the
Shipyard and Naval Base project for the Navy, joining the
group of countries that own the technology to build nucle-
ar submarines is a source of national pride: “Prosub will
mean that Brazil has achieved technological independence
in the fi eld of shipbuilding and nuclear submarines. This
will be good for the Navy and for businesses because of the
technological expertise it will bring, as well as enabling us
to defend our national sovereignty.”
Dredging Sepetiba Bay
A dredging operation is underway to remove soft
soil from the bottom of Sepetiba Bay to make the
INFORMA54
Dredging
Sepetiba Bay:
environmental
preservation
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 54 8/3/11 5:24 PM
55INFORMA
area ready for construction and lay the foundations
for the structures included in the EBN project. Af-
ter that operation is completed, rockfi ll containment
walls will be built to reclaim land from the sea. Then,
the wharf, piers, industrial and administrative facili-
ties and other supplementary units will be built.
The Shipyard and the Naval Base will face each
another, like two arms reaching out to sea on the
shores of Sepetiba Bay. Those arms will encom-
pass the Dársena (submarine berthing areas on
both sides that will provide access to two dry-docks,
which are included in the project for submarine
maintenance and fuel replacement), the harbor ba-
sin and the access channel, areas where the sub-
marines will maneuver to enter the EBN’s facilities.
All these areas will have a 12-meter draft.
Based on previous studies, the materials to be
removed during dredging will include pockets of
sediments contaminated with heavy metals (cad-
mium, nickel, lead and zinc), resulting from years
of pollution by factories previously installed there
that have been shut down. All told, these pockets
amount to 300,000 cu.m. The materials that are
not chemically contaminated will be dredged and
dumped in the sea in a site authorized by IBAMA
(the Brazilian environmental agency) outside of
Sepetiba Bay, 56 km from the construction site. In
the case of contaminated materials, the solution is
using Geotube® bags, which are 65 m long, 18 m
wide and 2.4 m high.
The bags are placed in the Chemical Contaminants
Decanting Unit (UDCQ) in a specially built basin, 13 m
deep, 255 m long and 130 m wide, fully protected by an
HDPE (high-density polyethylene) lining and a layer of
gravel. The process goes like this: the dredged mate-
rial is suctioned and discharged from the seabed and
pumped via a pipeline onto the shore, where it goes
through a treatment unit. To start out the treatment
process, a polymer is injected through ionization in or-
der to “fl occulate” the dredged material and allow it to
be fi ltered. Then the material will go through a pipeline
and be released into the bags.
“These bags retain heavy metals, allowing the
treated effl uent to pour through the fabric so it can
return to the sea free of contaminants,” says Sérgio
Pinheiro, Odebrecht’s Director for Maritime Projects.
Finally, the bags will be covered with a layer of soil for
protection to prevent contaminants from polluting the
environment.
The Prosub-EBN project will also make an impor-
tant contribution to the professional education of local
workers. Currently, 3,000 people are working on the
construction project. More than 2,000 people will have
learned new job skills through the Ongoing Professional
Education Program – Acreditar (Believe) by the time the
Shipyard and Naval Base are completed in 2015.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 55 8/3/11 5:24 PM
56
t the invitation of Odebrecht Informa,
three of the Organization’s medics –
Gilberto Ururahy, Mayanse Boulos
and Sebastião Loureiro – got togeth-
er to answer questions about innova-
tion and technology in the fi eld of health. For them,
technology is welcome, but must always be used
appropriately. The focus should be on health promo-
tion, disease prevention and early diagnosis, helping
their clients live a long, independent life. This strat-
egy reduces the risks of disease and, consequently,
the costs of health care and hospitalizations. Here is
what they think about various subjects and the main
challenges the Odebrecht Organization is facing in the
fi eld of Health.
written by JOSÉ ENRIQUE BARREIRO
healtINNOVATIVELY
A
Sebastião Loureiro (left) and Gilberto Ururahy
The impact of technology on
performance in medicine
For Gilberto, Mayanse and Sebastião, improving life
expectancy and reduced health damage are partly due to
the use of new technologies, including vaccines and an-
tibiotics. Life expectancy worldwide has risen from 76.4
years in 1980 to 81.01 in 2010. Humanity is well on its way
to 100-year lifespans. Therefore, innovations in health are
welcome, and improve the performance of medicine.
New technologies and increased
health care costs
The three doctors mentioned some procedures that
have a high impact on the cost of medical care, includ-
ing diagnostic imaging and tests, prostheses that replace
or enhance body parts, and implants to restore biological
functions. The central issue for them is striking a balance
between demand and consumption, avoiding indiscrimi-
nate and excessive spending. In 1999, the world spent
USD 473 per person/year on health care; in 2010, that
fi gure rose to USD 771. However, technology is producing
medicine, equipment and diagnoses that are more accu-
rate and less invasive, and because of that, health profes-
sionals must continuously update their knowledge.
The Organization’s medics talk about health and technology
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 56 8/3/11 5:24 PM
Alternatives to the high cost of
health care
Gilberto, Mayanse and Sebastião recommend preven-
tive care, which, although little explored and undervalued,
can have effective results and be less costly for people,
businesses and society. They believe the focus should
be on health promotion, disease prevention and early di-
agnosis. This strategy reduces the risks of disease and,
consequently, the costs of treatment and hospitalization.
The issue of health in the business
world
The three Odebrecht medics understand that the
business world is experiencing the same situation as
society in general: the predominant view of medicine is
based on technological innovations in equipment and low
investment in disease prevention and health promotion
incentives, information and practices. To change that,
companies must get to know the health profi les of their
members and their consumption habits when it comes
to health services and technologies to establish risk
groups and focus preventive care and health promotion
on those individuals in order to reduce damage to their
health. A prevention program should include information
and incentives to induce them to change their habits. It
should also establish goals and biological indicators for
satisfaction, cost assessment and accident reduction.
Health care innovation and
technology at Odebrecht
The doctors explain that the focus of the Odebrecht
Health Policy is on health promotion and disease pre-
vention. Because of that, they take into consideration
the member’s lifestyle, family history and the environ-
ment in which they are located. When a health problem
arises, they take an active role in the management of
the patient’s health using the technologies available.
Those technologies include the Internet, through which
lthy
57INFORMA
Mayanse Boulos
doctors can speed up the exchange of information, in-
teracting with partners and providing medical records
online for strategic members whose health data is on
fi le so it can be analyzed by medical support teams
wherever the company member may be.
Main health care challenges for the
Odebrecht Organization
The main challenge, they say, is increasingly con-
solidating the entire Organization with its Health, Work-
place Safety and Environment teams. We must also
make progress in harmonizing the decentralization of
operations with the need for consolidated health care
information in order to reuse acquired knowledge, gain
more fl exibility in the treatment of diseases and lower
costs. As a result, the more than 100 physicians at Ode-
brecht will be better able to coordinate the care of the
Organization’s 140,000 members.
Message to young doctors joining
the Organization
Actively manage your client’s health. Get to know them
thoroughly. Always focus on prevention. Do everything you
can to prevent your patient from getting sick. Chronic dis-
eases such as hypertension, diabetes and obesity, which
originate from poor lifestyle choices, cause tremendous
suffering in the long term and have a very high cost for
society. A disease is a signal that must be interpreted and
understood before it is fought. Gain a thorough mastery
of your business, engage in networking in your area, and
keep up to date. Culture is the biggest barrier in the glo-
balized world. Remember what Mr. Norberto Odebrecht
says: “People are the beginning and end of all activities in
society, and their work is the primary means of ensuring
the survival, growth and perpetuity of the species. Health
is the basis for their full development.” Theoretically, we
are born healthy, but sometimes we neglect our health, a
delicate matter and our greatest asset.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 57 8/3/11 5:25 PM
58 INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 58 8/3/11 5:25 PM
59INFORMA
prosperity
FAIRER TIMES AND DAYS OF MORE
In the Southern Bahia Lowlands in Northeastern Brazil, cooperatives ensure better incomes for small family farmers
written by GABRIELA VASCONCELLOS
photos by BEG FIGUEIREDO
Balbino dos Santos
with his children on
the family farm: direct
link with conscious
consumers
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 59 8/3/11 5:25 PM
INFORMA60
armer Balbino Santos, 55, and his fam-
ily have put down roots on the same land
where his father and grandfather lived. He
has always wanted to stay in the country-
side, and that desire has grown along with
his community’s development. Planted on his 8-hect-
are farm, Balbino’s crops – bitter and sweet cassava,
pineapples and plantains – now have a guaranteed
outlet: the Presidente Tancredo Neves Rural Produc-
ers Cooperative (Coopatan), located in the Southern
Bahia Lowlands. This hasn’t always been the case.
“Life’s been hard. The buyers used to set the price –
when we had any buyers,” says the farmer, a resident
of Riachão da Serra county in Valença, Bahia.
Balbino and his wife and children belong to the
Cassava Cooperative Alliance. According to this
model, farmers are organized in cooperatives that
use the services of a processing plant – which gives
products more value added – and merchants, who
make room for them on their shelves in the spirit
of partnership and solidarity. This creates a direct
link with conscious consumers, ensuring that family
farmers always get a fair price for their produce. The
contributions of all the actors involved help strength-
en this win-win game. In this case, Rural Family
Houses also provide education, which is an integral
and essential part of grooming the next generation of
cooperative members.
The Cooperative Alliance’s innovative model is
helping change lives in the Southern Bahia Lowlands
– a micro-region in Northeastern Brazil formed by 11
counties that are home to more than 285,000 people.
The Odebrecht Foundation has introduced the con-
cept there and supports the Program for the Inte-
grated and Sustainable Development of the Mosaic
of Environmental Protection Areas in the Southern
Bahia Lowlands (PDIS). This social technology was
created to foster productive inclusion, eradicate pov-
erty and reduce inequalities.
“Between 1998 and 1999, cassava farmers were
experiencing a crisis in Presidente Tancredo Neves
and the surrounding area. At that time, a kilo of cas-
sava sold for three to fi ve cents. It wasn’t profi table
and didn’t bring in a fair income,” recalls Juscelino
Macedo, the current leader of the Cassava Coopera-
tive Alliance and one of the people who helped create
Coopatan 11 years ago.
As a result, the community got organized and decided
to cut out the middleman, selling their produce directly
to major retail chains. The price of cassava quadrupled.
Balbino remembers it well. “Now we have the right
outlets for our production. We don’t lose our crops and
there’s no downside,” he says. Thanks to the cooperative,
producers now have access to farming methods that en-
sure higher quality and productivity: the average harvest
has risen from 9 tonnes to 21 tonnes of cassava per hect-
are, a fi gure that reaches up to 68 t/ha on some farms.
Part of the Cassava Cooperative Alliance – which
includes a cassava fl our mill, Presidente Tancredo
Neves Rural Family House (CFR-PTN), social partners
and conscious consumers – Coopatan is changing the
lives of 187 families. Recently, its members also started
selling fruits and vegetables, which has given a further
boost to the producers’ incomes.
“We are helping ensure that people stay in the
countryside and enjoy quality of life. Even small
farmers can earn an income compatible with their
needs and become the protagonists of their own de-
velopment,” says Fábio Sento Sé, Social Responsi-
bility Manager at GBarbosa (Brazil’s fourth-largest
supermarket chain) and Director of the GBarbosa
Institute. In addition to marketing the cooperative’s
products, this social partner has chosen to use Coo-
patan’s cassava fl our as its own brand. Coopatan’s
partners also include Walmart, Pão de Açúcar and
Empresa Baiana de Alimentos (EBAL).
Synergy
Acting in line with Coopatan, the CFR-PTN seeks
to provide high-quality professional education to young
people, encouraging them to stay in the countryside
and work on their family farms. The method used is
the Pedagogy of Alternation, which allows students to
spend a week at the school as boarders, with lessons in
the classroom and in the fi eld, and two weeks on their
properties to apply what they have learned. Benefi cia-
ries of the institution who have completed three years of
schooling receive a high school diploma and a technical
certifi cate in Agriculture.
Cooperative members go to the Family House once
a week, taking part in classes and encouraging stu-
dents to join their ranks. Currently, four Coopatan
technicians are CFR-PTN alumni and 13 youths have
joined the cooperative.
F
INFORMA60
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 60 8/3/11 5:25 PM
61INFORMA 61INFORMA
Balbino’s children are also actively tak-
ing part in the CFR-PTN. Abinael dos San-
tos, 17, graduated in 2010 and now works
in the school’s fi nancial department. “This
is another learning experience for me. I
want to buy a bigger property and make
it sustainable,” says the young man, who
divides his time between that experience
and farm work.
Balbino’s youngest child, Ubiratam dos
Santos, 15, used to think about taking off
for the big city. However, his big brother’s example
not only made him give up that idea but made him
fall in love with farming. He has followed in Abinael’s
footsteps and now studies at the CFR-PTN. “Ten
years from now I’ll have my own farm, producing
high-yield crops as a member of Coopatan,” says
Ubiratam.
Abinael and Ubiratam are transferring all the
knowledge they have acquired in practical and theo-
retical classes at the CFR-PTN to their family farm.
Balbino stresses that these new methods are mak-
ing their farm more productive. “When they go home,
they talk about what they studied that week, and we
go out into the fi elds to see what we’re doing wrong.
Today we can see that it’s made a difference,” says
their father. Antonia dos Santos, Balbino’s wife and
the young men’s mother, wants to see her children
fulfi ll their dreams and ambitions. “For me, peace
of mind is having my family here with
me on the farm.”
The path to sustainability
Balbino’s family is on its way to a
future that is already the present for
farmer Genival de Melo, 39. This rural
producer is also a Coopatan member,
and he is celebrating a major achieve-
ment. “Used to be, I had no place to
live. I got married and went to live with
my mother-in-law. Today we’ve managed to build our
own home. We bought a new car, got a truck and are
buying another piece of land,” says the resident of the
Ouro Preto community, in Presidente Tancredo Neves.
Like Balbino, Genival has been a cooperative mem-
ber since Coopatan’s inception. “Anybody who left
here around that time and came back today wouldn’t
recognize the place. You couldn’t make a living in the
countryside back then. I thought about leaving lots of
times, but I believed in farming,” he says.
Five more cooperative alliances are also helping
transform the Southern Bahia Lowlands: Piassava
Straw, Hearts-of-Palm, Fish Farming, Construction
and Starch. Together, they are contributing to the
sustainable development of over a thousand fami-
lies. “I’m proud to say that, nowadays, folks who live
in the countryside have a good life,” emphasizes
Genival.
Cassava fl our factory: one of
the highlights of the Cassava
Cooperative Alliance
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 61 8/3/11 5:25 PM
62 INFORMA
ACHIEVEMENTS FOR BRAZIL
Joint efforts focused on innovation will help drive the nation’s growth
ARGUMENT
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 62 8/3/11 5:25 PM
63INFORMA
Luis Fernando Cassinelliis Responsible for Research & Development at Braskem
preading the culture of innovation is an
important way of adding value to com-
panies’ products and services, making
them more competitive. But innovation
does not just happen when developing
new products and processes. It’s everywhere.
The drive to innovate is linked to the need to cre-
ate new procedures that will make an activity more
competitive, profi table and attractive to clients, and
it is most intense when people take charge of their
businesses with a strong sense of ownership.
Created in 2002, Braskem has inherited a wide
range of assets used for technological development.
According to the concept of the time, they originally
focused on providing technical assistance, improv-
ing processes acquired from third parties, enhanc-
ing products, customizing products for the Brazilian
market and developing markets in conjunction with
clients.
These assets, which include pilot plants, lab fa-
cilities, R&D (Research & Development) teams and
activities related to the process of innovation man-
agement, have garnered recognition from the mar-
ket and research funding agencies and have been
used as an example to encourage other companies
to invest in innovation and technology.
Keenly aware of the importance of innovation
and technology to national development, improv-
ing income distribution and the competitiveness of
our exports, the Brazilian Government, based on
Law no. 11,196 of 2005 (the “good law”) has begun
granting tax breaks to innovative companies, and
this issue has since become an integral part of the
national agenda.
In 2008, Braskem decided to expand the strate-
gic focus of its research and development model
from fast follower to developer of original ideas. To
do so, we created a Corporate Innovation and Tech-
nology area focused on medium- and long-term
development.
A movement led by the CNI (National Confeder-
ation of Industry) in 2009 launched the MEI (Busi-
ness Movement for Innovation), involving the top
companies operating in Brazil. This forum holds
regular meetings to discuss the national agen-
da for innovation, with the active participation of
Braskem.
The company’s Corporate Innovation and Tech-
nology area has begun a systematic assessment of
opportunities for diversifi cation in areas that syner-
gize with Braskem’s current businesses. It is keep-
ing a close eye on the situation of intellectual prop-
erty in areas of interest, harmonizing best practices
in innovation at the corporate unit and business
units and actively managing knowledge.
Projects currently in the pipeline include renew-
able raw materials, catalysts and production pro-
cesses for plastic resins developed with proprietary
technology that will drive Braskem’s autonomous
growth at a lower cost, without interference from
technology suppliers. Expectations are that these
projects will start coming to fruition in 2013.
In its corporate area and business units, Braskem
has more than 420 patents fi led, 300 researchers,
two units of the Center for Innovation and Technol-
ogy (in Triunfo, RS, in Brazil, and Pittsburgh, PA, in
the USA), a laboratory at the LNBio (National Bio-
technology Laboratory) in Campinas, São Paulo,
linked to the Brazilian MCT (Ministry of Science and
Technology), and a pilot plant for the manufacture of
high-performance fi ber in Bahia, totaling USD 400
million in assets.
Located in Bahia, the pilot plant for high molecu-
lar-weight polyethylene fi ber will make it possible to
generate new solutions for the exploration of the pre-
salt oil fi elds and anchoring of deep-water platforms.
It is also important for the area of defense (used to
make armored vehicles and helmets) and the manu-
facture of special clothing, fi shing lines, safety gloves
and auxiliary sails for oil ships, used to save fuel.
All these results, which are down to the combined
efforts of the private sector, academia, research cen-
ters and government, are the achievements of Bra-
zil and Brazilians. They will help drive our country’s
economic growth and boost the wellbeing of the Bra-
zilian people.
S
63INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 63 8/3/11 5:25 PM
64 INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 64 8/3/11 5:25 PM
65INFORMA
66
68
70
72
76
77
78
Reports about the recent achievements of the Odebrecht Organization’s teams in Brazil and worldwide, and features on the daily lives of our subsidiaries’ members
OOG and DSME shipyard members celebrate workplace
safety record in South Korea
Construction of the Chaglla hydroelectric plant refl ects
the power of Peruvian investments in energy generation
Jairo Brito recalls the people who have shaped his way of
working and seeing the world
Ruta del Sol, in Colombia, is one of the most important
infrastructure projects built in Latin America in recent years
A program underway in Peru is based on the concept of
alternate practices
Folks: the interests and achievements of Wilson Lozano,
Camila Guerbas and Carlos Gabos
Antonio Cardilli’s video interview launches the
Savvy – Folks who’ve Learned from Work and Life project
&PEOPLENEWS
Ruta del Sol
concession company
member at a toll
plaza in Colombia
PH
OT
O:
MA
RC
EL
O P
IZZ
AT
O
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 65 8/3/11 5:25 PM
INFORMAINFINFNNFNFNFINFINNINFNFNNIINNNIINFNNNFINFNNFNNNNFFFFFFIINNNNNNFFFFFFFFIINNNNNFNFNFFFFFFFFIINNNNNFFFFFININFNNFNNFNFFINFINFNNFFFFINFINNNFFINFNNNFFFFINFNNN ORMORMORORMORMORMORMRMMMOOORMRMORMMORMMOORRRMRMRRRORMMMMMOOOOORMORRRRRRMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOORORRRMORMMMMMRMMORMORMMOOOOOOOORRRRRMORMRMORMMMMRMOOOOOORORMMMMMMMMOOOORORMORRRORMRMORMRORMMORMMRMMMOORORMRMMMMMMRRORRMMMORMORMMMOORMORRMORMMORMORRRMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
pril 18 was a red-letter day at
the DSME shipyard in South
Korea, where the Norbe VIII
and Norbe IX drill ships were built,
and work continues on two other
drilling rigs, ODN I and ODN II. On
that date, the teams building those
rigs celebrated eight million man/
hours worked between January 2010
and April of this year without a sin-
gle lost-time accident. This means
that during that period, all the 2,500
shipyard workers performed their
tasks with absolute safety, working
12 hours a day without harming their
health or productivity. “This victori-
ous milestone is a win for everyone,
but it was only made possible by the
unity of all the companies participat-
ing in these projects, who ensured
strict compliance with safety stan-
dards,” says OOG Project Director
Pedro Mathias.
A consensus on that issue among
the over 10 companies participating
in the project – a joint venture led
by Odebrecht Oil & Gas (OOG) and
DSME – was the starting point for
ensuring the workplace safety lev-
els achieved so far. Accidents also
happen due to lack of planning,
so the leaders of OOG and DSME
got together to formulate a plan in
which they agreed to pay periodic
visits to the yard to inspect the fa-
cilities and working conditions.
They agreed that no violation of the
rules would be tolerated, and de-
viations would be immediately cor-
rected. “The next step was to share
our obsession with safety with the
workers,” says Mathias, who joined
A certain feelingHarsh weather conditions and high risks don’t stop teams at a shipyard in South Korea from setting a zero-accident safety record
SAFETY
written by RUBENY GOULART
A
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 66 8/3/11 5:25 PM
67INFORMA
CBPO as an intern in 1981, and
worked at Odebrecht Perfurações
Ltda. (OPL) until 1997. He returned
in 2009 to join the Odebrecht Organi-
zation through OOG.
Working on the same page, the
companies’ leaders spread the cul-
ture of safety throughout the work-
place. Whenever a new stage of work
began, production was halted for an
hour-long meeting with the work-
ers, who attended talks on safety
and received explanatory materials
on accident prevention. Other sim-
ple but highly symbolic initiatives
rewarded the people who showed
outstanding compliance with safety
standards and, accordingly, exer-
cised leadership in relation to their
peers. In gestures highly valued in
Asian culture, the company’s lead-
ers publicly presented the workers
with gifts, certifi cates, their compa-
nies’ caps and shirts, and even res-
taurant coupons so they could dine
out with their families.
The role of
communication
The leaders of OOG and the
shipyard realized that, to prevent
accidents, they needed an effi cient
communication system that went
beyond giving lectures and putting
up posters throughout the manu-
facturing area. To this end, they
formed a group of leaders whose
main job was to disseminate safety
rules and culture among the work-
ers. However, the language barrier
was a major challenge. The leaders
spoke in English, which was trans-
lated into Korean, but at fi rst, be-
cause of differences that were more
cultural than linguistic, the mes-
sage was slightly garbled. Thanks
to the leaders’ missionary zeal,
that obstacle was eventually over-
come. “We made it very clear that
our goal was not to build ships at
the expense of hurting people, and
they realized that the safety require-
ments ensured that everyone was
protected,” explains Mathias.
To infl uence the workers, the
group of leaders relied on various
tools. One of them was cameras.
Any anomalies that presented risks,
from a bare wire to oil spilled on the
fl oor, was photographed for educa-
tional purposes and posted on the
factory’s bulletin boards. “Pictures
send a powerful message,” said
Mathias, who has been in Korea
since 2009 and oversees all of OOG’s
projects at the DSME yard.
The milestone of 8 million man/
hours worked without a single lost-
time accident is even more signifi -
cant considering the risks inherent
to operating a shipyard. What’s
more, at the peak of the projects,
DSME worked with more than 800
people, often in adverse condi-
tions, exposed to rain, snow and
wind. Worker turnover was another
challenge, as many profession-
als joining the workforce had to be
trained in accident prevention from
scratch.
In an environment like that, even
the slightest precaution makes all
the difference. The drill ships aver-
age 240 m in length and 107 m in
height, from the keel to the top of
the tower, which is equivalent to a
26-story building. Many workers
operate in tight spaces where the
air is thin, and in high temperatures
caused by hot welding, which is
widely used, not to mention that they
are constantly exposed to fl ammable
liquids like paints and solvents. Dan-
gers exist, but the OOG and DSME
teams have proved that achieving the
mark of 8 million man/hours was, in
itself, a well-deserved reward for ev-
eryone.
Drill ship Norbe IX
in South Korea: a
central role in setting
a workplace safety
record
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 67 8/3/11 5:25 PM
68 INFORMA
rom Wednesdays to Sundays,
the fountains in the city of Lima’s
Parque de las Aguas put on a
sparkling light show. A few miles away,
in Larcomar, Peruvians and tourists
stroll along the well-lit beachfront bou-
levard. “The country has 6,300 MW of
installed power. If we continue to grow
like we have in recent years, we will need
more than 12,000 MW by 2020,” says Er-
lon Arfelli, President of Empresa Gen-
eradora Huallaga (EGH), a subsidiary of
Odebrecht Energia.
EGH is responsible for the con-
cession for the Chaglla hydroelectric
plant, which is under construction in
the Department of Huanuco, 420 km
from Lima. This is the fi rst time that
Odebrecht has participated in a pow-
er concession outside of Brazil. As in
1979, when the Organization won its
fi rst contract outside Brazil, for the
Charcani V hydroelectric plant, also
in Peru, this challenge is an impor-
tant milestone. “We will change our
profi le in this country, running the
entire supply chain, and it has been
a gratifying experience,” says Erlon.
The “entire supply chain” means that
Odebrecht Peru is also responsible
for building the plant, a USD 1.2-bil-
lion project that will add 406 MW to
the national system when completed
by 2015.
The river brings the futureThe Chaglla hydroelectric plant will give a key boost to energy generation in Peru and transform a region with major growth potential
PERU
written by JÚLIO CÉSAR SOARES photos by GUILHERME AFONSO
Chaglla hydroelectric plant
construction site and, opposite, a local
merchant: fresh expectations
for residents of a once-isolated region
F
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 68 8/3/11 5:25 PM
69INFORMA
Chaglla will be built in a densely for-
ested area in the Peruvian Amazon. “In
2011, we are building the infrastructure
for the project,” says Project Director
Sergio Panicali. That stage of the proj-
ect involves building 40 km of roads on
the left bank of the Huallaga River, in
addition to rehabilitating the dirt road
that already runs along the right bank.
The plant’s design is different from
conventional hydros. The powerhouse,
which is usually located near the dam,
will be built 15 km away. “To get the
water to the plant so it can generate
power, we will build a tunnel that will
take advantage of the falls in the river
between the dam and powerhouse,”
explains Sergio. Also, the spillway will
not be an integral part of the dam. In-
stead, it will be on the left bank of the
river. “We will have three 1-km spillway
tunnels for the reservoir,” he explains.
A fourth tunnel will run alongside
the spillway tunnels to supply the 6 MW
Small Hydropower Plant (SHP), which
will also be built as part of this project.
“We decided to use an SHP to harness
the energy from the dam’s mandatory
instream fl ow,” says Sergio. The “in-
stream fl ow” is the amount of water re-
quired to ensure that the stretch of river
between the dam and the powerhouse
does not go dry.
Future tourist attraction
Before ground is even broken for the
construction of the plant, residents of
Chaglla will already enjoy the benefi ts
of the project, according to Mayor Mi-
chaela Tolentino. “The roadworks will
improve access to communities near
Chaglla, which are on the right bank of
the Huallaga and cut off from neighbor-
ing provinces,” she says.
In addition, the project’s Sustain-
ability Program plans to turn the region
into a tourist destination. “We have plans
in place to make the dam’s reservoir a
pleasant spot for tourists to visit for rest
and relaxation. The other side of the
river, toward the dam, will be focused on
adventure tourism,” says Paola Nacca-
rato, the project’s offi cer Responsible for
Sustainability. Because it fl ows through
a canyon in the rain forest, the Huallaga
River is surrounded by beautiful scenery
and rock formations.
Paola explains that her program’s
activities are not limited to tourism.
“Huánuco produces some of Peru’s
fi nest coffee, as well as cocoa and po-
tatoes. We want to enable producers
to manage the entire supply chain,”
she says.
The project that is having the biggest
impact on the community, however, is
the Creer Program, the Peruvian version
of the Acreditar (Believe) program, which
was created during construction of the
Santo Antônio hydroelectric plant in
Rondônia, Brazil. “We came here a year
before the cornerstone was laid for this
project to groom skilled workers,” says
Gonzalo Bussalleu, the offi cer Respon-
sible for Institutional Relations. “The fi rst
edition, held in April 2010, trained and
certifi ed 863 people from this region,” he
recalls. “During the fi rst two months of
construction, 88 of our current members
participated in the Creer program and
are now working on the service fronts as
well as in administrative areas.”
A native of Chaglla, Cleni Climer
Claudio Cudeño, a driver who acquired
his professional skills through Creer,
says the program has changed his life.
“We learned about the environment
and everyone’s individual responsibility.
I think the program will not only help
those who got a job on this project but
everyone who takes part in it,” he ob-
serves.
In July, the program began accepting
applicants from communities near the
project for the next edition. “Our goal is to
have 800 more students and steadily ex-
pand the number of members trained by
Creer, who are all local residents. To do
so, we will work with mobile classrooms
to reach as many people as possible,”
says Gilda Cespedes, Responsible for
the Creer Program. She expects to have
2,500 applicants this time around.
Chaglla is a dream that is com-
ing true for the Huanuqueño people,
according to the President of the Re-
gional Government of Huánuco, Luis
Raúl Picón. “For over 50 years, there’s
been talk of building a plant on the
Huallaga, and that is what the local
community wants. That dream is be-
coming reality and will bring a variety
of investments to this Department, as
well as directly creating about 2,000
jobs and indirectly generating another
10,000 opportunities.”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 69 8/3/11 5:25 PM
70 INFORMA
The luck of the plucky
His passion for challenges has resulted in transforming experiences for Jairo, both in work and life
PROFILE: Jairo Brito Gomes
written by ANA CECÍLIA AMERICANO photo by LÍVIA AQUINO
“Working with Sister Dulce was an up-close and personal experience of someone who truly lives to serve”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 70 8/3/11 5:25 PM
71INFORMA
Jairo Brito Gomes considers
himself a lucky man. Lady
Luck has helped him many
times in life, he says, to guide and
shape his career at Odebrecht. An
economist who graduated from the
Federal University at Bahia (UFBA),
he has had unique opportunities and
been a witness to history in the vari-
ous countries where he has worked.
For him, life has been generous
in the challenges it presents, as well
as enabling him to work with sev-
eral leaders who showed him how
to make the most of every situation.
The father of three, Jairo admits to
being in love with Odebrecht. “I go
where the company sends me and I
stay there as long as it takes.”
His passion for the Organization
was born 33 years ago, when he
embarked on his fi rst Action Pro-
gram as an intern, and has grown
ever since. He says that being hired
in 1978 by Marcos Lima, who was
then Responsible for Audits at Con-
strutora Norberto Odebrecht’s (CNO)
Salvador headquarters (he is now
Responsible for Odebrecht Admi-
nistradora e Corretora de Seguros
– OCS, the Organization’s captive
broker), was one of his fi rst lucky
breaks.
“By a stroke of luck, it happened
in 1981,” he says. That year, Jairo
went to work at a construction site.
“I was working on a project that Mr.
Norberto Odebrecht himself was
personally supervising on Satur-
days, and he was interested in ev-
ery detail,” he recalls.
For the young Head of Adminis-
tration, that experience was even
more rewarding because he was
gifted with Sister Dulce as a client.
Known for her social work for the
poor and sick, the tireless nun was
building a project that became a
landmark in Salvador: Santo Anto-
nio Hospital.
According to Jairo, one of his
jobs was managing stores of mate-
rials. Therefore, it was not unusual
for him and Sister Dulce to set out
together in a truck to collect dona-
tions around the city. “It was an up-
close and personal experience of
someone who truly lives to serve,”
he says. The nun’s goodness trans-
formed his world view and had a di-
rect impact on his career. “It made
me want to refocus my work on
dealing more with people.”
A few years later, the same kind
of luck that accompanied him in
Bahia took him across the Atlan-
tic to Portugal, to work at the Ode-
brecht subsidiary Bento Pedroso
Construções (BPC), where his lead-
ers were Paulo César Fonseca and
Hilberto Silva, both in the Financial
area. “For me, they were my com-
pass,” says Jairo. While there, his
mission would be to train local pro-
fessionals and spread the Odebrecht
Entrepreneurial Technology (TEO).
On his return from Portugal,
Jairo went to Salvador, Bahia, to
work as the Administrative-Finan-
cial Manager of the Organization’s
Headquarters. There, he once again
had the opportunity to interact with
the Organization’s founder, Norber-
to Odebrecht. “Every encounter with
him was a lesson learned,” recalls
Jairo. “Even when demands were
being made, the observations were
made quietly, without any hurry.”
Jairo says he also learned a lot
during the time he spent in Angola
and Mozambique. In those coun-
tries, he experienced the challenges
facing the peoples of Africa. In An-
gola, during the period of armed
confl ict in that country, there were
tense situations at some of the Ode-
brecht construction sites, and they
needed the protection of the Ango-
lan armed forces. In one of the most
emotional moments of his career, it
fell to Jairo to manage the evacua-
tion of the team that worked on the
construction of the Capanda hydro-
electric plant on the Kwanza River
in Malange province in 1996. “When
the plane took off, a colleague start-
ed singing the national anthem,” he
says. The memory gives him goose
bumps. “We all sang arm in arm,
with tears in our eyes.” For Jairo,
Lady Luck played a major role in
that episode, too. “We all got out of
there safely,” he recalls.
Today, after having lived in São
Paulo, where he worked with Faus-
to Aquino, the offi cer Responsible
for Administration and Finance at
Odebrecht Engenharia Industrial,
Jairo is in Venezuela. He’s the Ad-
ministrative and Financial Manager
of Converpro, a joint venture of
Odebrecht and the state oil com-
pany PDVSA (Petroleos de Venezu-
ela S.A.), under the leadership of
Project Director Paulo Sá. Based
in Caracas, he is carrying on with
his mission of spreading TEO. “We
have lots of new people here, and
we need to communicate our val-
ues,” he says.
Jairo is very close to his family.
His second wife, Jane, and his third
child, Caique, 8, have joined him in
Caracas. The economist who once
worked alongside Sister Dulce on
a daily basis is happy and increas-
ingly motivated, both personally
and professionally. About his role
at Odebrecht today in Venezuela, he
emphasizes: “Nothing is better than
working with people.”
71INFORMA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 71 8/3/11 5:25 PM
INFORMA72
Approachroute The symbol of resumed operations in
Colombia is the construction of one of the most important infrastructure projects in Latin America
COLOMBIA
written by ZACCARIA JUNIOR photo by MARCELO PIZZATO
W e’ve never left Colom-
bia. We’ve been here for
19 years.” That obser-
vation from Luiz Antonio Bueno
Jr., CEO of Odebrecht Colombia,
sums up a history that dates back
to 1992. That year, the company
became responsible for the con-
struction of oil pumping stations
for British Petroleum for the next
two years. After that, from 1994 to
1995, it took charge of the Port of
Drummond project. In later years,
it added the La Loma-Santa Marta
Railroad to its track record, a proj-
ect that resulted in the reconstruc-
tion of 223 km of the national rail
network, including design, fabri-
cation, assembly and operation of
the entire superstructure, as well
as construction of a thermal pow-
er plant, a sewage treatment plant
and, fi nally, the Miel I hydroelec-
tric plant (375 MW) in Caldas, built
with roller-compacted concrete,
and still considered the world’s
highest RCC dam: 192 m high and
354 m long.
Having completed those con-
tracts in 2003, Odebrecht stayed in
Colombia to look for new business
opportunities until, in 2009, it won
the contract for the Ruta del Sol
Highway – one of Latin America’s
most important infrastructure and
engineering works in recent years
– and the Tunjuelo-Canoas inter-
ceptor, a sanitation (water and
sewer) project in Bogota.
“The resumption of the Orga-
nization’s activities in Colombian
territory is explained by the fact
that the country has achieved good
political, economic and social con-
ditions that will ensure its sustain-
able development,” says Bueno
Junior. Emphasizing that his mis-
sion is to restructure the Organi-
“
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 72 8/3/11 5:25 PM
73INFORMA
zation’s presence in that country
and make the most of opportuni-
ties and businesses, both quantita-
tively and qualitatively, he says that
the way forward is promising, sup-
ported by an environment where the
rule of law prevails. “Odebrecht is
positioning itself in this country in
two ways: as a contractor and as a
company that invests in infrastruc-
ture, because in the next few years
the Government will be developing
large engineering projects struc-
tured as PPPs (public-private part-
nerships) and public works con-
cessions, which foster a long-term
relationship and a commitment to
the development of this country,”
he explains.
Bueno Junior’s observations
are based on truly attractive facts
and fi gures. The country has a GDP
of USD 250 billion/year, a popula-
tion of 44 million people, major oil
reserves, and the fourth-largest
coal reserves on the planet. It was
recently rated “investment grade”
(a rating agency risk category con-
ferred on a country or company
to demonstrate its ability to meet
fi nancial commitments) and has a
relatively stable economy, demon-
strating that it has what it takes to
encourage the march of growth.
Resuming operations
In 2009, Odebrecht Colombia
won the contract to build the Tun-
juelo-Canoas interceptor. Led by
Colombian Project Director Jorge
Barragán, it involves building 11
km of tunnels, each about 5 m in
diameter, which will convey sewage
from Bogota to the future Canoas
Treatment Plant. The USD 120-mil-
lion project is divided into stages,
starting with the sewer pipe and
Ruta del Sol: improving transport
infrastructure. Below,
Jorge Barragán in one of the
tunnels of the Tunjuelo-Canoas
Interceptor: the nation is
investing in sanitation
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 73 8/3/11 5:26 PM
INFORMA74
construction of the tunnel leading
to the treatment plant, as well as
a power tunnel at the treatment
plant. In line with the partnerships
with Colombian companies that
Bueno Junior mentioned, Ode-
brecht has formed a joint venture
with Cass Constructores to build
the project.
The Ruta del Sol Highway is a
project of a completely different
magnitude. It is the most important
route in a country with some of the
fewest paved roads in Latin Ameri-
ca. The 1,071-km highway involves
a USD 2.5-billion investment and
will be divided into three sectors.
Ruta del Sol SAS, a concessionaire
led by Odebrecht (62.1%), with two
Colombian partners, Corfi colom-
biana (33%) and Solarte (4.99%),
is responsible for Sector 2, which
represents an investment of ap-
proximately USD 1 billion.
Considered the largest and
most important section of the
Ruta del Sol, Sector 2 is 528 km
in length. It begins in Puerto
Salgar and ends in San Roque,
connecting the capital, Bogota,
to the Caribbean Sea. Odebrecht
is also responsible for the con-
struction of this section. Ground
was broken in May 2011 and the
roadworks will completed in fi ve
years. The concession period,
which includes operation and
maintenance, is 20 years.
The Ruta del Sol project also
includes the expansion and con-
struction of a stretch in rural Co-
lombia, beginning in the town of
Villeta (80 km northwest of Bo-
gota) and running through eight
departments and 39 counties, an
area representing 26.1% of na-
tional GDP and 30% of the popu-
lation. This venture will make
Colombia more competitive in the
international market and help im-
prove access roads to the ports of
Cartagena, Santa Marta and Bar-
ranquilla, which account for 52%
of the country’s port traffi c.
Community outreach
Eder Ferracuti, President of
the Ruta del Sol concessionaire,
observes that since operations of
the highway began in April 2010,
the need to work with the local
community has gained promi-
nence and resulted in the creation
of nine Community Service Cen-
ters as bases for running the Ba-
sic Social Plan. That plan offers
support programs for the com-
munities impacted by the project,
including the User Program (that
ensures constant communication
between the highway’s users and
the concessionaire), the Safe Mo-
bility Program (taking measures
to improve safety on the road) and
the Communicate and Neighbors
Program (a place where the local
community can go to make sug-
gestions and complaints about
the project); the Initiatives Pro-
gram (which supports productive
projects in the sphere of infl uence
of Sector 2 of the highway); and
Ruta del Sol toll plaza: a
special period for the nation’s
investments in transport
infrastructure
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 74 8/3/11 5:26 PM
75INFORMA
the Reinhabit Program (which
seeks to mitigate the impacts on
communities directly affected by
the project). “It’s a huge respon-
sibility and a very special time.
This is the longest highway in
the country, and we are respon-
sible for the longest stretch. So
far, there have been no exam-
ples of complete success in the
history of road concessions in
Colombia,” says Eder.
The factors that set this new
era of concessions apart are
clear. As soon as they entered
the concessionaire’s center of
operations, the Odebrecht Infor-
ma team saw attendants trained
to communicate information to
users, and a large-screen moni-
tor that displays images from
cameras already installed along
the route. The people working in
that room can also determine the
exact location of each of the 70
support vehicles the conces-
sionaire uses to operate the
concession, including vans,
tow trucks and cranes. To
ensure the safety of that
528-km stretch of Sector 2, the
concessionaire has signed a Co-
operation Agreement with the
Colombian Highway Police cov-
ering more than 3,000 items,
including 56 high-powered mo-
torcycles, dozens of cell phones
and computers and hundreds of
traffi c cones, which should help
the police patrol the area.
In addition to operation and
maintenance, under Eder Fer-
racuti’s leadership Ruta del Sol’s
operations also include building a
further 528 km and widening the
existing roadway. This is an exam-
ple of the Odebrecht Organization’s
investment arm giving way to the
construction arm. Manuel Ricardo
Cabral Ximenes, Project Director
of Consorcio Constructor Ruta del
Sol (Consol), the joint-venture con-
tractor formed by Odebrecht and
Colombian contracting fi rms Cor-
fi colombiana and CSS Constructo-
res S.A., explains that they are us-
ing sophisticated heavy equipment,
350 units of which were acquired
directly by Consol out of the total of
820 that will be used along the entire
length of Sector 2. When describ-
ing the project, Manuel high-
lights the use of three Shuttle
Buggies for the fi rst time on an
Odebrecht project – equipment
used to keep the layer of asphalt
smooth. “Thanks to these ma-
chines, we can keep trucks and
pavers from bumping into each
other, maintaining constant
speed in the execution of the
asphalt layer so it isn’t wavy,”
observes Manuel, who will de-
liver the project by 2016, with
the help of a workforce of 5,000
people.
Manuel Ximenes:
project uses 820
pieces of heavy
equipment
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 75 8/3/11 5:26 PM
INFORMA76
quick tour of Lima, Peru,
reveals a growing city. Real
estate and road projects
are multiplying and changing the
landscape. These days, investment
in workers’ training and qualifi ca-
tions is crucial for the Peruvian capi-
tal. “This is a major challenge: young
people are absorbed into the labor
market in the last year of college,
and generally speaking, businesses
don’t have a vision of joint educa-
tion combining theory and practice,
which hurts the students’ grades,”
says the Dean of the Pontifi cal Cath-
olic University of Peru (PUCP), Daniel
Torrealva. Implemented in October of
last year, Odebrecht Peru’s Alternate
E-Pr@ctices Program can help turn
that situation around.
Fifteen of the 359 civil engineer-
ing students at the National Univer-
sity of Engineering (UNI) and PUCP
who applied for the program’s se-
lection process are already on their
way to helping meet the challenge.
The Alternate E-Pr@ctices Program
gives students an opportunity to ex-
perience the daily life of a construc-
tion site, learn the entire process
of carrying out a project, and come
into contact with the Odebrecht Cul-
ture. “The course has two stages:
face-to-face, during the holiday
period, from January to March and
in July and August, and online, on a
daily basis,” said Liliana Vertiz, the
offi cer Responsible for People and
Organization at Odebrecht Peru.
While taking the course, students
are offi cially Odebrecht interns until
they complete the program in their
senior year. “After that, their leader
will assess them and decide which
project these young people will be
working on, according to each indi-
vidual’s background,” says Liliana.
She says the selection process
was very challenging. “There was
huge interest among students when
we introduced the program. At the
end of the fi rst stage of testing – sim-
ilar to the Young Partner Program –
53 candidates passed and we needed
to reduce that number.” To do so, the
program team introduced a new ac-
tivity based on improvisation. “It was
important to know the ‘emotional’
side of each of the participants and
identify who, in some way, was best
suited to our culture,” says Liliana.
Raul Rojas, 21, a student at UNI,
was quick to adapt. “The Odebrecht
Entrepreneurial Technology (TEO)
is a philosophy of life,” he says.
“It’s different, because it shows
that it’s not enough to just do a job.
You have to build a project with the
desire to serve and satisfy the cli-
ent.” Dennis Sanchez, 22, a PUCP
student, notes that TEO “shows the
importance of being more than a
good engineer. It is also important
to be a good person.”
Because most of the classes
are taught online, the program
does not interfere with partici-
pants’ studies. “In the case of the
Alternate E-Pr@ctices Program,
as the name implies, theory and
practice go hand in hand,” says
Daniel Torrealva.
The Dean of the UNI, Javier Pi-
qué, points out that participating
in this program will enrich young
people’s careers. “In college, they
receive basic instruction, so it is es-
sential for them to experience the
practical side of the profession.”
Piqué also highlights the program’s
benefi ts for Peruvian engineer-
ing and national development. “We
will have professionals who do their
jobs confi dently, and since I believe
that Odebrecht wants to establish
deeper roots in this country, it is
important that we have this identity,
that the company’s workforce be
Peruvian.”
written by JÚLIO CÉSAR SOARES
photo by GUILHERME AFONSO
Students have a chance to experience the daily life of a construction site
Theory and practice
PEOPLE DEVELOMENT
From left, Raul Rojas, Julia
Alva, Alfredo Alfaro and
Dennis Sanchez, participants
in the Alternate E-Pr@tices
Program: complete view of
the professionA
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 76 8/3/11 5:26 PM
77INFORMA
From countryside
to seaside
A native of Conchal, São Paulo, Wilson Mario Fadel Lo-
zano, 34, graduated in Civil Engineering in Bauru, also
in São Paulo State, and has three graduate degrees – in Logis-
tics, Administration and Project Management. He plays guitar,
and his favorite style is sertanejo (Brazilian country). He loves
life in the countryside and being in close contact with people.
However, he has lived and worked in the Port of Santos for the
last six years. He is accustomed to life on the coast and mar-
ried to a local resident. He has even started enjoying the ocean
more and going on boat rides. He likes Santos, but is still a
loyal Corinthians fan – it never occurred to him to celebrate
when the city’s soccer club won the Liberators of the Americas
Cup. He took the helm of the engineering area for the port ter-
minals company Embraport (Empresa Brasileira de Terminais
Portuários) in late 2009, and has overseen construction of the
Embraport Terminal from start to fi nish. “I’ll celebrate when
the fi rst ship docks there!”
The ocean has become part of his life
C amila Guerbas grew up on her grandfather’s farm in
Mato Grosso do Sul. Since she was a girl, she has ob-
served plants and animals, and it was no surprise when
she decided to study Biology in college. She joined ETH
Bioenergy, at the Santa Luzia Unit, three years ago. To-
day, at the age of 25, she represents the company on the
HSE (Health, Workplace Safety and Environment) Com-
mittee of the Social Energy Project in Nova Alvorada do
Sul, Mato Grosso do Sul, a town she knows very well. Her
favorite pastime is fi shing with her grandfather on the
river that runs through the farm where she was raised.
“We only catch what we can eat,” she explains. At work,
her goal is to combine eco-friendly practices with eco-
nomic development and production. Camila also takes
part in environmental education events at local schools.
“We must learn the principles of sustainability from
childhood,” she says.
Nature lover
at work and play
Born in Jaú, São Paulo, Carlos Gabos has always loved machines. He
got a technical diploma and went on to study Mechanical Engineering
in college, when he was married with three small children. Today, all of
his children are engineers, married and living on their own. Carlos, 55, has
developed a liking for orchids, woodwork and cooking. On weekends, he
cooks for friends and relatives, and devotes himself to fertilizing and repot-
ting his orchids. “It’s a hobby that involves hard work and dedication, but the
beauty of the fl owers makes it all worthwhile,” he says. After three years in
AFEQ (Functional Equipment Support), he is now an Equipment Manager.
He also teaches. Overcoming his shyness, he gives lectures and develops
programs to groom and certify key professionals for engineering and con-
struction projects. “I believe that knowledge should be shared,” he says.
Multiple
interests
An engineer who cooks, grows fl owers, teaches and more
She took an early interest in the environment
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0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 77 8/3/11 5:26 PM
INFORMA78
Looking for wisdom and knowledge
SAVVY
T he fi rst member to tell his
own story is Antonio Car-
dilli, who joined the Or-
ganization in 1979. Cardilli is the
creator of Acreditar, the Continu-
ing Professional Education Pro-
gram, which began in Brazil on
the Santo Antônio hydroelectric
plant project in Rondônia, and
has been replicated at other Ode-
brecht projects in other states and
countries.
In a video statement given to
reporter Valber Carvalho, he de-
scribes, among other things, how
the Acreditar program got started,
his relationship with indigenous
peoples and the thrill of seeing
a worker return his Family Grant
card. Cardilli describes himself as
a man who likes people and works
for their good – a “peopologist.”
Here are some excerpts from
Cardilli’s statement. The full video
version (16 minutes) can be viewed
at Odebrecht Informa’s website
(www.odebrechtonline.com.br).
Arriving in the Amazon
I joined the Madeira Project in
2005, and soon started to attend
meetings with the communities
that were affected by construction
of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric
plant.
I took part in 64 participatory
meetings, from Calama, near
the Amazon region, to Abunã, on
Bolivian border. I visited commu-
nities I never dreamed existed.
There was one called Ramal dos
Arrependidos (Branch of the Re-
pentant), consisting of six or sev-
en families who lived in the heart
of the rain forest.
The real Brazilians are the ones
out there in the Amazon, sticking
to the land and giving it its proper
value. We were the newcomers,
and why had we come? To move
them away. We would have to re-
settle them because progress was
coming. How could we go about
it? We began to hold meetings
with them so they could partici-
pate in decisions. In the past, not
long ago, two or three technicians
would fl y over an area in a plane,
take a look at a community and
say: “That one there, we’ll give it a
school; that one will get a hospital;
and we’ll build a road over there,”
but that was not always what they
needed. We did things differently.
We wanted them to build accord-
ing to their needs, and it worked.
Today we don’t have any problems
with the resettled communities.
Learning from
indigenous people
I learned a lot from the Indians.
Indians have no sense of time or
schedules. They do things when
they feel like it. A funny thing hap-
pened. We scheduled a meeting
in an indigenous community for
9 am. The fi rst Indian arrived at
5 pm. Their clock is biological,
not one that tells time like ours,
and we have to understand that to
work with them in harmony.
Missing skills
If you look back at the history of
Rondônia, you’ll see that extrac-
tion has always been part of the
region’s economic life: in the 18th
century there was a rubber boom,
and then came the cycle of con-
struction of the Madeira-Mamoré
Railway, in the late 19th, early
20th centuries. The last boom was
In this issue, Odebrecht Informa is introducing Savvy: Folks who’ve Learned from Work and Life, a series of reports, stories and memories from, by and about Odebrecht Organization members
Personal account by Antonio Cardilli, given to Valber Carvalho
Edited for Odebrecht Informa by Alice Galeffi
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 78 8/3/11 5:26 PM
79INFORMA
s
the mining period, which was the
most predatory of all, and lasted
for years. And there was a nag-
ging question in my mind: “What
can we do to change this situa-
tion?”
Then we conducted a survey
in the region and found that al-
though there were 30,000 unem-
ployed people in Porto Velho, if
we had started the project that
day, we could only count on 30%
of the local population at most,
given the lack of job skills there.
The rest would have to come from
elsewhere. That is, we would have
to bring in about 8,000 or more
people, which would aggravate
the social problems in region,
such as poor sanitation (water
and sewer), education, health,
public safety, etc.
Inspiration for
Acreditar
That’s when the light bulb lit
up: “We have to change this story.
We can’t build this project the way
we’ve always done.”
There was only one way to do
that, which was trying to provide
the local people with the neces-
sary skills. We looked for a gov-
ernment or private entity that had
already done something similar
on that scale. (At the time we
were thinking of grooming 10,000
eligible people.) We looked all
over Brazil and couldn’t fi nd one.
We just found bits and pieces that
didn’t suit our needs. That’s when
I decided to put this program to-
gether and call it Acreditar – “Be-
lieve.”
I have to believe that society
will get on board with this pro-
gram; that there will be students
Antonio Cardilli giving
a talk in Rondônia: “Are you
a ‘peoplogist’?”
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 79 8/3/11 5:27 PM
INFORMA80
to educate and train. And I believe
we can provide them excellent job
skills and hire them to build this
project.
Beginning of Acreditar
I arrived here in Porto Velho on
January 14, 2008, along with part
of the team to start up the pro-
gram.
We went through the neighbor-
hoods to tell people about the pro-
gram: we visited churches, com-
munity associations, soccer fi elds
and bars. Wherever there were
more than four people in a bar we
would stop, open the van and ex-
plain the program. It worked – in
one week, I had 5,000 applicants.
We began teaching people job
skills six months before break-
ing ground for the plant. They
graduated and went out into the
job market. One day someone
said, “You’re just like a baker.” I
said: “A baker?” “You’re kneading
bread for someone else to eat.”
I told him I didn’t care. This was
an opportunity to get to know the
workers, and they were getting
to know my company, my orga-
nization. What I wanted was for
them to have lots of job offers in
the future, and for us to be their
fi rst choice. You can see the re-
sult: 85% of our workforce are lo-
cal people. And that makes a big
difference.
Worker returns Family
Grant card
Given the success of Acreditar,
we got a visit from President Lula
last year, which was overwhelm-
ing, not only for me but for the
whole team there.
One of our workers handed his
Family Grant card to the president,
telling him: “I don’t need this any-
more. Thank you for your help,
but now I can walk on my own two
legs. I’m a citizen. I’m a fi rst-class
citizen. I’m just as worthy as any
other.” It was incredibly moving.
If you ask me if I cried, I’m not
ashamed to say I did. I really did.
Are you a
“peopologist”?
Here’s what I say: liking people
doesn’t mean you’re their friend.
I’m not those people’s friend. I
don’t have a close relationship
with them, but I work for their
good. All my decisions are based
on helping people.
I use the term “peopologist.”
When a recent graduate or train-
ee comes to work with me, the
fi rst thing I ask the kid is: “Do you
like people?” “Yes, I do,” he says.
“Are you a ‘peopologist’?” “What’s
that?” A ‘peopologist’ is someone
who likes people. Does the strong
smell of workers make you sick to
your stomach? If it does you should
leave. If the stench of people’s
sweat disgusts you, you should go,
because you’re in the wrong place.
Lessons from his
grandfather
Someone else who taught me
to like people was my grandfather.
He took good care of his livestock,
the horses and donkeys that
worked for him, and when those
animals reached a certain age,
when they didn’t have the strength
to work on the farm, my grandfa-
ther didn’t sell them off like most
of his neighbors, who sold them to
the abattoirs.
Not him. My grandfather put
those animals out to pasture and
let them die of old age. He’d say:
“Son, that animal worked for me
and helped me, so now I’m going
to take care of him.” He’d take
corn out to feed the livestock ev-
ery day and I’d go with him. That
had a big infl uence on my child-
hood and I think that it infl uenced
my personality as well. It made
me come to like people, because
a person who treats animals that
way – well, I don’t even need to say
how well he treated people.
0022_OI155_Rio_OK_INGLES.indd 80 8/3/11 5:27 PM
Founded in 1944, ODEbrECHT is a Brazilian organization made up of diversified businesses with global operations and world-class standards of quality. Its 140,000 members are present in the Americas, the Caribbean, Africa, Asia and Europe.
Next issue:Communities
rESPONSIbLE FOr COrPOrATE COMMUNICATION AT CONSTrUTOrA NOrbErTO ODEbrECHT S.A. Márcio Polidoro
rESPONSIbLE FOr PUbLICATIONS PrOGrAMS AT CONSTrUTOrA NOrbErTO ODEbrECHT S.A. Karolina Gutiez
bUSINESS ArEA COOrDINATOrS Nelson Letaif Chemicals & Petrochemicals | Andressa Saurin Ethanol & Sugar | Bárbara Nitto Oil & Gas | Daelcio Freitas Environmental Engineering | Sergio Kertész Real Estate Developments | Coordinator at Odebrecht Foundation Vivian Barbosa
EDITOrIAL COOrDINATION Versal Editores Editor-in-Chief José Enrique BarreiroExecutive Editor Cláudio Lovato Filho English Translation by H. Sabrina GledhillArt/Graphic Production Rogério NunesGraphic Design and Illustrations Rico LinsPhoto Editor Holanda Cavalcanti Electronic Publishing Maria Celia Olivieri
Printing 1,600 copies | Pre-Press and Printing Pancrom
EDITOrIAL OFFICES Rio de Janeiro +55 21 2239-1778 | São Paulo + 55 11 3641- 4743email: [email protected] Originally published in Portuguese. Also available in Spanish.
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Creativity and the spirit of service come together in a transforming encounter
INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
# 155 vol. XXXVIII July/August 2011 English Edition
“People show their creativity by proving to be capable of viewing reality from
different angles and taking pleasure in playing
with ideas”
TEO [Odebrecht Entrepreneurial Technology]
ph
oto
: ric
ar
do t
elle
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022_OI155_Capa_ING.indd 1 8/1/11 2:21 PM
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