From small family business to integrated group counting 5 construction companies.
Introduction
Democo Group is a cluster of 5 vertically integrated companies with all the necessary knowledge and expertise on board to develop, build, finish and maintain building projects from A to Z. In 40 years’ time we have developed ourselves into a genuine reference in the Belgian market.
Democo Group originated from contracting company Democo, which expanded as technical companies as well as finishing and development businesses started to join the family. For our clients, this means that we are able to offer the complete range of services required to tackle their construction projects from start to finish. We focus on larger, more complex construction ventures across all sectors.
For our companies, the presence of the group context means that they can focus 100% on their field of expertise, within the safety of a framework that offers support, reliability and economies of scale. Centralised services strengthen their operational capabilities and they benefit from the synergy between them and their fellow enterprises. The sister companies’ collaboration goes far beyond a traditional contractor-subcontractor relationship: our businesses actively work together from the get-go, and therefore fully grasp how they can best complement each other, without losing valuable information or time.
Founder Cyriel Demot
Cyriel Demot was 56 when, in 1977, he was dismissed from his role as CEO at a construction company following a dispute within management. All 800 workers, most of whom Cyriel knew by name, stood by his side and spontaneously put down their tools – to no avail.
As a father to 3 young children, Cyriel did not lose courage: he sold off his apartment by the seaside for seed capital and together with Frans Houben and Mario Longhi started his own construction company: Democo. Cyriel’s loyalty, integrity and respect for customers and workers paid off: no more than a year later, the company had a headcount of 80 employees and a considerable number of former clients had followed. In the next years, Democo continued to show rapid growth: Cyriel was a strong believer in vertical integration and was keen to work as one company as much as possible. Thanks to this approach, many construction partners became colleagues and the company gathered further expertise in the areas of finishing, technical services and project development.
People & planet
At Democo Group, we’re building for the future of people and environment. We are aware of the great responsibility this entails and continuously invest in the growth of our employees, our techniques and our processes.
We move and evolve with the world in which we build, looking for sustainable added value in our projects – for today and tomorrow. We build and work ethically and with respect for each other, our customers, our society and our planet. Integrity and humanity are always our first priority.
With a clear strategy for sustainability, we continue to challenge ourselves and our techniques, focusing on the well-being of society and the environment, progressive personnel policies and integrity of management.
Engagement
As a group of companies, we have a responsibility not only to our employees and their families, but also to the wider society.
In line with our mission “All experts, stronger together”, we also support external organizations and charities that are directly committed to people, society and the planet. Through these experts, we convert our commitment into a strong social impact.
We support selected organizations on a long-term basis with services, efforts or resources. The commitment of our employees is extremely important, as they are committed to these causes just like us. That is why we can honestly say: these organizations are Valued by Democo Group!
You can read more about it on our sponsor page.