The EFFC has appointed Fabrizio Leoni as its new president, succeeding Serge Borel, who now takes on the role of Immediate Past President. Fabrizio is the Officer of the Italian federation, AIF, and works for Trevi as their In his first address, Leoni stressed the importance of unity during what he anticipates to be a challenging period for the industry.

“The market looks difficult over the next few years,” said President Leoni, “but it is more important than ever that we work together to support each other.”

He reflected on his 30 years in the industry and wondered whether Karl Terzaghi, Pierre Bachy, Johann Keller and Davide Trevisani had foreseen how big the market would become and that it should need a federation to serve it.

He emphasised the continued need for a pragmatic approach, focused on people and the successful delivery of projects and stated these are the pillars of and basis of our duty to the industry.

He noted that the AGM had worked to set a mission and purpose for the EFFC that fit the new era and looked forward to the next step of agreeing a set of priorities for our Federations to collaborate on over the next four years.

He emphasised that the need for sustainability permeates all aspects of society and is a key topic for the EFFC. The challenge of attracting talent to the industry is also a critical issue for all specialist contractors. Mr Leoni also highlighted the importance of addressing emerging trends like digitalisation and artificial intelligence, which he noted would be a key topic of discussion at the EFFC Executive Meeting in March. He ended his speech by stressing the need to strengthen links with national federations, ensuring that the EFFC’s work benefits contractors of all sizes, particularly smaller firms.