Cambodia’s Construction Innovator

• 31 December 2015
• Association Focus
• 1700 Views

Construction & Property Magazine had the opportunity to catch up with Varheng Dawuth, Managing Director of Camcona Group, and one of the nation’s leading innovators in the construction sector.

46-year-old Varheng Dawuth has been striving since his teenage years to help develop the nation’s construction landscape. Back in 1995, Dawuth had graduated with an Architecture major and continued his studies in Engineering in Vietnam. He returned back to Cambodia with a product barely-known here but which had revolutionised 2D and 3D design worldwide; AutoCAD.

Cambodian engineering students during the 1990s are likely to remember Dawuth very well for that reason. “It makes me proud to have been the first teacher to train Cambodian students in AutoCAD here,” he said.

As an architect and AutoCAD trainer in 1995, Dawuth began doing small projects on Cambodian homes for alternative income. “It was my dream to be an engineer and to immerse my life in my nation’s construction sector.”

“I am inspired by our construction sector and want to learn as well as to get experiences from this sector. For me, working in construction is not just about designing homes for clients but to work and manage more stuff across the construction sector,” he said.

Not limiting himself just to design, Dawuth has also recognised a lot of business opportunities around the sector. A few years after gaining success with his architecture business, he got married with Kimsrun Elida and started a family.

Following his dream, he had successfully transformed his business from a design company to a construction company in just a few years and has completed many projects since. “I see construction as a business that has to be improved every day and to be improved for the long term,” explained Dawuth.

Dawuth and his wife have now transformed their construction company into the renowned trading brand Camcona Trading (Cambodia) Co., Ltd which supplies construction equipment and materials throughout the country.

An active member of the Cambodian Constructors Association (CCA), Camcona BMS (Building Material Supplies) is the exclusive distributor for an extensive, comprehensive range of the highest quality equipment. These include; Italian construction equipment brand IMER (concrete mixers, floor saws, hoists, mortar mixers, mortar sprayers power floats, and tile/masonry saws); German outdoor lighting brand Ligmann; Belgian laminate flooring brand Pergo; and Japanese water heater brand Rinnai (commercial and residential water heaters, pool heaters and shower systems).

“Having been working in this sector, I have met a lot of customers and worked for them. I am satisfied and proud of the way that I have transformed all of my customers to become my friends because the good service and quality we provide makes them feel satisfied and respect us,” he said. Time and again, their many customers comment on the excellent customer service they enjoy at Camcona which, combined with the high quality products, makes for a unique experience.

However, Dawuth acknowledges that the construction sector in Cambodia still faces many challenges including construction techniques and a skilled workforce. As part of his long-term plan, Dawuth wants to establish a research institution that underpins the production of construction materials here in Cambodia. His dream is to improve the ease of investing in the construction sector and to reduce the cost of materials.

“It has been my dream for about 10 years now, but I have not been able to achieve it yet due to a lack of funds. However, I am still trying to find financial and technical partners to help me in order to make this institution a reality in Cambodia as soon as possible,” he said.

There is certainly no doubt that Varheng Dawuth will continue to be one of Cambodia’s major construction innovators for many years to come.