ARCADIS And Aqumen Launch New Facility Management Venture

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Business & Technology Editors

ARCADIS And Aqumen Launch New Facility Management Venture

EUROPE, NETHERLANDS, ARNHEM, Sep. 23 -/E-Wire/Business Wire/-- ARCADIS (NASDAQ: ARCAF; Euronext: ARCAD), the international knowledge based services provider in infrastructure, buildings, environment and communications, and Aqumen, one of the UK's leading suppliers of facilities management and support services, today announced that they are joining forces to create a new Joint Venture (JV), ARCADIS AQUMEN FM.

Based at Arnhem in Holland, ARCADIS AQUMEN FM will initially operate in the Netherlands, but it is envisaged that the company will develop a pan-European presence for its services in the next couple of years. ARCADIS AQUMEN FM will be unique combination in the Dutch market in delivering a total facility management solution for its clients.

The two joint venture partners have complementary skills that make for an extremely good fit. ARCADIS has a strong blue-chip client base in the Netherlands where it provides multi-disciplinary project management capabilities. Aqumen has a proven track record in delivering high quality facility management services to a wide range of public and private sector clients in the UK.

ARCADIS AQUMEN FM's principal offering will enable clients to enhance their performance and reduce costs - most notably in their non-core property holdings - through partnership. The new company will particularly address the needs of firms seeking trans-national facilities management solutions.

ARCADIS AQUMEN FM offers a range of delivery options: Total Facility Management, whereby ARCADIS AQUMEN FM contracts directly with the client to deliver a comprehensive range of services; Managing Agent, in which some or all of the client's existing service providers are managed; Partnering, where ARCADIS AQUMEN FM provides its own managers at various levels within the client's FM structure; and Consultancy, on a short or long-term basis.

Commenting on the launch of the new JV, Jack McGrory, Aqumen Managing Director said: "ARCADIS AQUMEN FM not only becomes the leading facility management provider in the Netherlands, but also a major player on the wider European facility management scene. The joint venture brings particular expertise in the delivery of Total Facility Management packages that not only relieve the client of the day-to-day demands of running their own support services, but also ensure that those services are fully integrated and consistent with core business objectives."

-- ARCADIS AQUMEN FM is backed by two very substantial Groups with a wealth of relevant experience:

ARCADIS is a leading global, knowledge-driven service provider able to offer project and program management skills from concept to completion for both public and private sector clients. Quoted on the NASDAQ, as well as the Amsterdam stock exchange, ARCADIS has annual revenues of EUR 850 million and employs 8,500 people.

Aqumen, part of the larger Mowlem Group, is one of the UK's leading providers of practical facilities management solutions in both private and public sectors and across the full range of market sectors - eg, financial services, retail, defence, etc. It also has a substantial direct service delivery capability - principally in cleaning, security and mechanical & electrical (M&E;) installation/maintenance. Aqumen employs 15,000 staff and has annual revenues of EUR 800 million. (Mowlem is quoted on the London stock exchange, has an annual turnover of more than EUR 3 billion and employs over 20,000 people.)

-- Both companies place a premium on professionalism, innovation and openness with their clients.

-- The joint venture has been given a flexible structure to allow for expansion once the company gets into its stride. A small joint board has been drawn form the two partners. Executive management will be provided initially by John Platt (Aqumen) and Don Hardy (ARCADIS), under the supervision of Jan Zijlstra (ARCADIS) and Jack McGrory (Aqumen).

-- At the outset, the administrative team will comprise secondees from the two partners and will be based at Arnhem in Holland. It is intended that ARCADIS's existing facility management activities will be integrated into the joint venture, giving it around 40 employees and a turnover of EUR 20 million by the end of 2002.

Joost Slooten, +31 (0) 26 3778604

[REDACTED-EMAIL]

Brian O''Neill, +44 (0) [REDACTED-PHONE]

brian.o''[REDACTED-EMAIL]

Don Hardy, +31(0) 263778281

[REDACTED-EMAIL]

http://www.arcadis-global.com

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