Olaf Kier, CBE (c.1899 - 1986) was the founder of Kier Group, one of the United Kingdom's largest construction businesses.
Career
Born and educated in Denmark as Olaf Kiaer, Olaf graduated with a honours degree in Engineering from the University of Copenhagen. He then moved to England to pursue his career, and initially worked for Christiani & Nielsen.
Together with Jorgen Lotz, he founded Lotz & Kier, a construction business, in 1928. The business name was changed to J.L. Kier & Co Ltd a few years later, after Lotz withdrew from the company.
In 1941 he acquired the Lexham Hall Estate near Litcham in Norfolk but, in 1945, when he saw the condition that the Army had left it in, decided to put it back on the market. He instead acquired the Cokenach Estate near Barkway in Hertfordshire. In 1965 he established the Olaf Kier Danish Charity.
He was a member of the Danish Club at 62 Knightsbridge and was awarded made CBE for industrial and social services in 1970. He died in a motor accident in May 1986 aged 87.
References
- ^ Ove Arup: masterbuilder of the twentieth century By Peter Jones Yale University Press, 2006, ISBN 978-0-300-11296-2, Page 54
- "Heritage". Team BFK. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
- ^ "People and Places I remember when..." (PDF). Kier Link. 1 April 2004. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2011.
- Cottam, D. (1985). "Architectural principles in an age of functionalism: A study of the architect-engineer in British architecture of the inter-war period" (PDF). University of Liverpool. p. 256. doi:10.17638/03175391.
- "J. L. Kier and Co". Grace's Guide. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
- "Lexham Estate". Parks and Gardens. Archived from the original on 26 February 2012.
- ^ "History: The Later Years". Cokenach Cricket Club. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012.
- "Olaf Kier Danish Charity". Archived from the original on 28 September 2011.
- "No. 45117". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 April 1918. p. 6373.
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