At WBHO, we follow a culture of safety, quality and reliability. The driving force behind WBHO is a core of dedicated, hands-on management professionals whose experience spans decades of major construction projects across Africa and the United Kingdom.
Our activities cover the full construction spectrum and are divided into three main operating divisions – Building Construction, Civil Engineering and Roads and Earthworks.
WBHO’s offices are strategically located in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth in South Africa and Gaborone, Accra and Maputo in Botswana, Ghana and Mozambique respectively.
In the UK, the Byrne Group is based in London, while Russell-WBHO operates from Manchester.
Rated The Most Empowered Company on the JSE in 2019, we pride ourselves on being a company that strives to empower as many stakeholders as possible throughout the construction value chain.
Leaving a lasting legacy along our roads and through our buildings
To be the leading construction company wherever WBHO operates, always striving to be “a pleasure to do business with” by delivering quality solutions in a professional and collaborative manner, every time. WBHO is adaptable enough to “go where the work is”, even when conditions are challenging, without compromising its standards. The group navigates competitive market conditions by being flexible and hard-working, focusing on nurturing strong client relationships by being approachable and dependable. We stand firmly behind our motto of “Rely On Our Ability”.
“Whatever good things we build, end up building us.” Jim Rohn
In 1970 John Wilson and Brian Holmes formed a construction company known as Wilson-Holmes (Pty) Ltd. A number of mergers and many projects later the name changed to Wilson Bayly Holmes (Pty) Ltd and finally in 1996 became WBHO Construction.
Today we are one of the largest construction companies in Southern Africa and listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
In 2017, WBHO entered the UK construction market following the acquisition of an interest in the Byrne Group from the Byrne family which subsequently increased to a majority shareholding in 2018. The Byrne Group delivers construction services through its two subsidiaries; Byrne Bros and Ellmer Construction.
In 2018, WBHO expanded its footprint in the UK into the northern regions through the acquisition of a majority shareholding in Russell Construction. Russell-WBHO, as the business is now known, is a Manchester-based building contractor that continues to be managed by the founding brothers Gareth and Andrew Russell.
At WBHO, we forge partnerships that go the distance. Our subsidiaries and associates practice the very same culture of quality and safety that is so important to us.
Byrne Bros. is one of the UK’s premier concrete frame contractors with over 50 years’ experience in the construction of concrete sub and superstructures. Byrne Bros. operates within the commercial, residential, retail, aviation, stadia, transport infrastructure and scientific sectors for both public and private clients. The company applies innovative uses of technology to provide engineering solutions for complex sub and superstructure packages.
Ellmer Construction delivers high quality new-build, refurbishment and fit-out contracts within the commercial, hotels, leisure & hospitality, light industrial, residential and retail sectors. Clients include commercial property companies, investors, hotel operators, renowned retailers, residential developers and estate owners such as The Crown, Grosvenor and Cadogan.
O’Keefe are a leading civil engineering business specialising in demolition, enabling works, soil remediation and groundworks construction services to public, private and residential customers.
With over 50 experience in the industry, O’Keefe have grown to become an integrated engineering business.
Russell WBHO is a comprehensive, full service main contractor. It operates across all sectors and provides expert advice on land acquisition, as well as consulting on design, through to the construction phase and completion of the project. The company has a portfolio of clients spanning the commercial, industrial, logistics, manufacturing, retail, leisure, residential, hotel, healthcare and student accommodation sectors.
Roadspan (Pty) Ltd was established in 2008 and is a leading roads surfacing, and rehabilitation contractor as well as an asphalt supplier in South Africa. The company has centrally located static plants and mobile plants which can be moved to any region as needed. The Johannesburg-based head office includes a laboratory that is equipped with all the necessary equipment to test aggregates and do asphalt mix designs.
Kalcon (Pty) Ltd is a Botswana registered company based in Gaborone, active mainly in the disciplines of roads and earthworks, infrastructure and civil engineering. Kalcon is in a position to call on resources and expertise from the WBHO group as required for specific projects.
Reinforcing & Mesh Solutions has grown to become a market leader since its inception in 2002 and is one of the largest suppliers of reinforcing steel and welded mesh in the Southern African region.
VSL Construction Solutions uses the world renowned VSL systems and components for its post-tensioning, retained earth and heavy lifting works. With a local team of specialized engineers and experts, combined with readily available international expertise, VSL Construction Solutions carry out complex and innovative engineering projects throughout Africa and the Indian Ocean islands.
iKusasa Rail is an industry leader in rail track construction, rehabilitation, electrification and maintenance. iKusasa Rail has been in the rail track infrastructure business for over 60 years. Target entities are mines, private siding owners, state-owned companies (SOCs) and rail and port authorities as well as local and international entities responsible for building and maintaining rail transport infrastructure. The business has recently extended its service offerings to include the supply of certain perway and OHTE materials as well as offering mechanised maintenance solutions with specialist on track equipment. The iKusasa Rail group is currently contracting in South Africa, Ghana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Botswana and is targeting various opportunities throughout the rest of Africa.
The Gigajoule Group invests in, develops and operates clean energy projects. It employs a team of professionals with extensive knowledge in the design, construction, operations and management of natural gas systems.
If you are reading this, you are probably already part of the success that is WBHO. You will know that a big part of what makes our organisation special is that we have retained our culture and our values — our core sense of who we are — over the years.
These shared values have guided and shaped us and the big things we achieve at WBHO are a direct result of the small acts of kindness, respect and compassion we show each other every day.
As a member of WBHO, you are an important part of our collective success. Without you and the people around you, we would not be able to achieve the great things we have.
Known collectively as the ‘WBHO Way’, these principles include:
We have a positive, ‘can do’ attitude and always ‘go the extra mile’ for our clients. We always strive to be flexible, dependable, hard-working and a ‘pleasure to do business with’.
These shared values have guided and shaped us and the big things that we achieve at WBHO are a direct result of the many small acts of consideration, respect and kindness that we show each other every day. As a member of WBHO, you are an important part of our collective success.
Without you, and the people around you, we would not be able to achieve the great things we have.
Our reputation is one of our greatest assets. We actively work to build a reputation of reliability through excellence in our people, systems and products. When our actions in any way contravene our shared values of teamwork, communication, integrity and excellence, it can adversely impact on our positive reputation.
We are a team. We succeed together. When we can help our colleagues, we do. When we need help, we ask. We do not ignore a colleague who needs our assistance, even if they have not asked for our help. We are also willing to participate in activities and projects that promote WBHO.
At WBHO safety is our first priority and a daily conversation. It is intertwined into every element of the “WBHO Way”. A safe site is a productive site and thus safety forms an integral part of our way of doing business. Every employee pledges not to consciously perform an unsafe act, nor to allow unsafe conditions, practices or behaviour go unreported. We will never compromise our own safety or the safety of others in order to “get the job done”. We will uphold and adhere to all safety regulations, procedures and practices of WBHO with the primary aim of achieving Zero Harm on every project.
Quality is of utmost importance to the group and both management and employees must pursue this at all times. Performance of duties should be at the expected level of skill, knowledge, experience and judgement.
Management and employees have a responsibility to consider efficiencies where possible, such as value engineering, cost management and any other methods that provide our stakeholders with quality structures within set budgets. This responsibility extends to include exercising due care, avoiding waste and preventing the misuse or abuse of company assets.
