172 - Mark Campbell - CEO - DBM Vircon

Arete Podcast with Richard Triggs

My guest today has had an interesting and varied career, starting with the UK Navy, where he flew helicopters among other duties, and working through a range of roles in Australia and New Zealand, before settling into his current role as CEO of DBM Vircon. DBM Vircon is a global 3D modeling steel and concrete detailing company with sister and parent companies in the USA. Listening to Mark speak, you realise it’s one of those niche businesses that we don’t give much thought to, then realise how critical this work is in so many fields. My takeaway from the discussion with Mark is that a senior career in the military can produce a valuable leadership foundation that can take you down many paths. Episode Highlights: DBM Vircon is a global 3D modeling steel and concrete detailing company The business has about 850 staff and operates in India, The Philippines, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada and the UK Head office is in Brisbane The business specialises in ‘steel detailing’, taking the original design from the engineer and providing all the detail that allows the fabricators to produce the finished product The business is owned by US-based DBM Global, which in turn is owned by NYSE-listed HC2 Holding Inc DBM also owns two steel fabrication and erection businesses in the US, and a construction and maintenance business in southern USA Scope of work for DBM Vircon can include 3D modeling, BIM coordination, digital twin and federated models, steel detailing and concrete and rebar detailing for fabricators and contractors Mark was born in Germany while his father was serving there for the UK military Spent a couple of years in his childhood in Africa Spent 16 years in the Royal Navy where he flew helicopters and completed a civil engineering degree His time in the Navy included stints in combat zones Mark met his Australian wife in the UK and he moved to Australia 13 years later after leaving the Navy His first role in Australia was with Calibre and Brown Consulting, working in business development, ISO certification, mergers and acquisitions, and due diligence His stint included three and a half years in New Zealand turning around a newly-purchased subsidiary After returning to Brisbane, Mark took on a few roles before starting with DBM Vircon The recruitment process was unusual as it was just as Covid lockdown restrictions were coming into place and so they had to be mostly conducted online The current focus is integration with sister businesses and business development Mark’s priority is to get his teams working back in the office again as the nature of the work makes it difficult to do from home offices, especially for those working in The Philippines and India Mark says Australia is at the leading edge of technology use in the construction sector 3D modelling of new and old buildings is allowing virtual walk-throughs of sites and improving construction and maintenance Mark Campbell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-campbell-69138330/ DBM Vircon Website: https://www.dbmvircon.com/ Richard Triggs LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardtriggs/ Arete Website: https://www.areteexecutive.com.au/