Verkís Consulting Engineers is the oldest

consulting firm A consulting firm or simply consultancy is a professional service firm that provides expertise and specialised labour for a fee, through the use of consultants. Consulting firms may have one employee or thousands; they may consult in a broad ra ...

in Iceland and is one of the largest engineering firms in Iceland with around 350 employees. Verkís is a multidisciplinary consulting firm, providing services in all fields of engineering and related professional disciplines of consulting. Verkís offers

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, consulting, management, operational and EPCM services. Core disciplines include

geothermal Geothermal is related to energy and may refer to: * Geothermal energy, useful energy generated and stored in the Earth * Geothermal activity, the range of natural phenomena at or near the surface, associated with release of the Earth's internal he ...

and

hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

and Verkís has participated in nearly all geothermal and hydroelectric projects in

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

as well as in several projects abroad. Other core disciplines include geothermal

district heating District heating (also known as heat networks) is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location through a system of insulated pipes for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heater, space heating and w ...

power transmission Power transmission is the movement of energy from its place of generation to a location where it is applied to perform useful Mechanical work, work. Power (physics), Power is defined formally as units of energy per unit time. In SI units: :\text ...

, buildings, transport,

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...

and industry. Ever since the early 1930s, Verkís has participated in the

of most of Iceland's biggest and most prominent construction projects, covering disciplines such as

civil Civil may refer to: *Civility, orderly behavior and politeness *Civic virtue, the cultivation of habits important for the success of a society *Civil (journalism) ''The Colorado Sun'' is an online news outlet based in Denver, Colorado. It lau ...

and structural design,

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

, electrical HV, MV, and LV engineering,

systems engineering Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their Enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering uti ...

, automation and control. Egill Viðarsson is the CEO and Snæbjörn Jónsson is the chairman of the board. The headquarters are in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

but in addition there are eleven branches around

History

Verkís traces its origin back to 1932, making it the oldest consulting company in Iceland, and has a firm background in the energy- and construction industry both in Iceland and abroad. Verkís was formed in 2008 by the merger of five well established Icelandic engineering consulting firms:

VST - Verkfræðistofa Sigurðar Thoroddsen

VST was established in 1932 and has over the years provided a wide range of services. Consultancy services in the building industry, energy and infrastructure has been the main area of activity and VST took part in most hydropower projects in Iceland. In recent years, VST has offered a variety of other services, especially within the aluminium industry, and also in the fields of project management, construction, safety and environmental management.

Rafteikning

Rafteikning was established in 1965 and has been one of the leading electrical consulting service firms in Iceland. The main focus of activity has been on power and

control engineering Control engineering, also known as control systems engineering and, in some European countries, automation engineering, is an engineering discipline that deals with control systems, applying control theory to design equipment and systems with d ...

and the firm has participated in the electrical design of several

hydropower Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...

and geothermal power plants.

Fjarhitun

Fjarhitun was established in 1962 and has been a leader in designing district heating systems, utilizing the geothermal hot water in Iceland and has also participated in the design of many geothermal power plants. Fjarhitun has provided a wide range of services in other fields of

Fjölhönnun

Fjölhönnun was established in 1970 and has been active in the design of roads, bridges and similar structures and the structural design of buildings. The firm has also participated in many projects, providing supervision and project management.

RT-Rafagnatækni

RT Rafagnatækni was established in 1961 and has specialized in the planning, design and programming of control systems for power plants and other systems in the field of automation, measurements and communication. RT has also been providing services in field of electronics.

Almenna Consulting Engineers (Almenna verkfræðistofan hf.)

On 17 April 2013 Almenna Consulting teamed up with Verkís. Almenna Consulting Engineers Ltd. was founded in 1941 as "Almenna byggingarfélagið", it played an important role in modernising the infrastructure of the country as it took part in developing the country's first large hydroelectric power plants in the 1960s. In 1971, the company was reorganized as Almenna Consulting Engineers Ltd.

Management and Organisation

Verkís is divided into seven divisions, five of which are business segment divisions. In addition to the business segment divisions, there is an office support division and a branch office division. Each business segment division is split into discipline sections. The management team consist of the CEO and seven division managers. The board represents the owners of the company and has five members and two alternate members.

Services

Verkís provides consultancy services in most fields of engineering and related disciplines. The services offered includes:

Project Management Project management is the process of supervising the work of a Project team, team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project initiation documentation, project documentation, crea ...

and EPCM, Cost Estimation and Planning, Engineering and Design, Project Controls, Feasibility studies, Inspection services,

Procurement Procurement is the process of locating and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. The term may also refer to a contractual ...

, and Commissioning. Support functions such as

Risk Assessment Risk assessment is a process for identifying hazards, potential (future) events which may negatively impact on individuals, assets, and/or the environment because of those hazards, their likelihood and consequences, and actions which can mitigate ...

Quality Management Total quality management, Total Quality management (TQM), ensures that an organization, product, or service consistently performs as intended, as opposed to Quality Management, which focuses on work process and procedure standards. It has four mai ...

, Health Safety and Environment, and the development of Environmental Impact Assessments are also an integral part of the services.

Project Examples

Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Plant Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Plant ( ), officially called Fljótsdalur Power Station ( ) is a hydroelectric power plant in Fljótsdalshérað municipality in eastern Iceland, designed to produce annually for Alcoa's Fjarðaál Aluminium smelting, alu ...

Qorlortorsuaq Dam Qorlortorsuaq Dam is a hydroelectric dam near Qorlortorsuaq in the Nanortalik district of the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. It has a capacity of 7.6 MW and it generates power for the neighbouring towns of Qaqortoq and Narsaq. ...

* Ilulissat Hydro Electric Project *

Hellisheiði Power Station The Hellisheiði Power Station (, ) is the eighth-largest geothermal power station in the world and largest in Iceland. The facility is located in Hengill, southwest Iceland, from the Nesjavellir Geothermal Power Station. The plant has a cap ...

Harpa Concert Hall Harpa (, English: Harp) is a concert hall and conference centre in Reykjavík, Iceland. The opening concert was held on 4 May 2011. The building features a distinctive colored glass façade inspired by the basalt landscape of Iceland. History ...

* Reykjanesbraut Highway Project * The University of Iceland * Laugardalur Sports Centre * Harpa Reykjavík Concert Hall and Conference Centre * Hvalfjordur Tunnel

Branches

Akureyri Akureyri (, ) is a town in northern Iceland, the country's fifth most populous Municipalities of Iceland, municipality (under the official name of Akureyrarbær , 'town of Akureyri') and the largest outside the Capital Region (Iceland), Capital R ...

Akranes Akranes () is a port town and municipality on the west coast of Iceland, around north of the capital Reykjavík. The area where Akranes is located was settled in the 9th century; however, it did not receive a municipal charter until 1942. His ...

Blönduós Blönduós () is a town and former municipality in the north of Iceland with a population of 895 in 2018. Like many towns and villages around Iceland, Blönduós did not emerge as a village until the late 19th century. The town is situated on Rou ...

Borgarnes Borgarnes () is a town located on a peninsula at the shore of Borgarfjörður in Iceland and is the largest town in the Borgarbyggð municipality with a population of about 3800 residents. It is a main junction in Iceland and the gateway to the ...

Egilsstaðir Egilsstaðir () is a town in east Iceland on the banks of the Lagarfljót river. It is part of the municipality of Múlaþing and the largest settlement of the Eastern Region (Iceland), Eastern Region with, as of 2024, a population of 2,632 inha ...

* Hvamstangi *

Húsavík Húsavík () is a town in Norðurþing municipality on the northeast coast of Iceland on the shores of Skjálfandi bay with 2,485 inhabitants. The most famous landmark of the town is the wooden church Húsavíkurkirkja, built in 1907. Húsav� ...

Ísafjörður Ísafjörður (pronounced , meaning ''ice fjord'', literally ''fjord of ices'') is a town in the northwest of Iceland. The oldest part of Ísafjörður with the town centre is located on a spit of sand, or ''eyri'', in Skutulsfjörður, a fjord ...

Reykjanesbær Reykjanesbær () is a municipality on the Southern Peninsula (''Suðurnes'') in Iceland, though the name is also used by locals to refer to the suburban region of Keflavík and Njarðvík which have grown together over the years. The municipality ...

* Sauðarkrókur *

Selfoss Selfoss may refer to: *Selfoss (town), Iceland *UMF Selfoss, a football club based in Selfoss **Selfoss men's football **Selfoss women's football *Selfoss (waterfall), Iceland *Selfoss Airport Selfoss Airport is an airport serving Selfoss, a to ...

Subsidiaries

* OPVC Norway * Verkís Greenland * Verkís Polska

Affiliated companies

* HRV Engineering, Iceland * GeoThermHydro, Chile * Raförninn, Iceland * Verkfræðistofa Suðurnesja, Iceland

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Verkis Engineering companies of Iceland Consulting firms established in 1932 Engineering consulting firms 1932 establishments in Iceland