 |
DCK International
 an Bonde Nielsen created one of the world's largest flower growing groups based in Europe and Kenya in the period from the 1960s until 1974. The group operated under the name of DCK International and employed the most modern agricultural techniques known in the world at the time. With the full support of the Kenyan government, DCK had more than five million sqm of land under cultivation and 7,000 people employed.
From this venture a whole new industry developed in Kenya which is now the country's largest foreign exchange earner.
During the same period Jan Bonde Nielsen was involved in a number of publicly quoted companies as a non executive director, such as Sadolin & Holmblad A/S, Kemisk Vaerk Koege A/S and Dannebrog Shipping Company. In the two latter companies he was chairman for a number of years. He was further a board member of the Confederation of Danish Industries, the World Wildlife Fund as well as chairman of the Horticultural Employers Association.
In 1975, as a result of his increasing involvement in the affairs of Burmeister & Wain - see below - Jan Bonde Nielsen passed on the management of DCK to Bruce McKenzie, the former Agriculture Minister of Kenya, and subsequently the ownership to an investor group led by Bruce McKenzie. Ultimately, DCK was merged with the Kenyan activities of a Unilever subsidiary in Kenya.
Burmeister & Wain
In 1974 Jan Bonde Nielsen together with a group of family and financial investors bought 51% of the shares in Burmeister & Wain.
Burmeister & Wain was one of the oldest industrial companies in Denmark centrally located in Copenhagen and consisting of various industrial activities including a shipyard and a marine diesel engine manufacturing company.
Many leading industrial figures in Denmark had over the years tried to manage the company but without success. The general belief was that the business had no future. Similarly the mood of the board, the workers unions and management reflected a negative view of the future. The company had not been profitable for many years.
Jan Bonde Nielsen totally reorganised and restructured the company and it made a profit from the second year in operation. The equity which was DKK 100.0 million at the time of acquisition in 1974 had risen to DKK 650.0 million by the end of 1978.
This turnaround was achieved through a combination of initiatives which included streamlining production by producing fewer types of ships and instituting a best practice programme which was developed by studying other companies, primarily in the Far East. Similarly, with the active support of the workers union, efficiency was improved dramatically. Unlike the previous 20 years, no strikes occurred after Jan Bonde Nielsen took control.
Jan Bonde Nielsen became involved in a major legal battle with the Danish Government beginning in 1978 and only ending in 1986 with a verdict overwhelmingly in his favour. However, during this same period as a result of the battle the Burmeister & Wain activities had to be liquidated, but with no loss for any bank or other creditors. Jan Bonde Nielsen wrote two best selling books about this period of his life. |
|
post