Rudolf Fredrik Berg (31 May 1846 – 8 December 1907), also known as R.F. Berg and Fritz Berg, was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

engineer, industrialist and politician. He also founded the Swedish construction and development company

Skanska Skanska AB () is a multinational construction and development company based in Sweden. Skanska is the fifth-largest construction company in the world according to ''Construction Global'' magazine. Notable Skanska projects include renovation of t ...

Career

Between 1865 and 1868, Berg attended Teknologiska Institutet. In 1873, he became the

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especiall ...

of Skånska Cement AB (now Cementa ementation. Berg made significant contributions to the cement industry and its development. In 1887, he founded the entrepreneurial company AB Skånska Cementgjuteriet, later known as Skanska. He led a number of other companies, such as Malmö-Limhamns Railroads and AB Stranden. He was a council member in

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal popul ...

from 1892 and vice president in 1907. Berg had a strong social commitment and was popular amongst the working class and fisher population in

Limhamn Limhamn () is, in an administrative sense, the southern district of Malmö Municipality in Sweden. Before 1915, Limhamn was (briefly) a town of its own. The population of Limhamn-Bunkeflo (including suburbs) is 31,000, of which 7,000 live in th ...

, Sweden. Berg also founded the lecture society Malmö föreläsarförning that expanded to Malmö's library and lecture society in 1882. Berg was the founder and creator of the Betel church at Lugnet in Malmö, which was first opened in 1886. With Anders Antonsson and Thure Petrén, he took the initiative to start the first employment office in Malmö which opened in 1905. Berg was a member of the board of the Swedish employment association during the last years of his life, worked for a fair work bill and supported Gustav Möller, who was one of Berg's employers and later a politician in the Swedish government. A supporter of equal rights for workers and owners, Berg is considered the founder of the "Svenska modellen" (the Swedish model).

Death

Berg died on 8 December 1907, the same day

King Oscar II Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death in 1907 and King of Norway from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of King Oscar I and Queen Josephine. He inherited the Swedish and Norwe ...

died. Berg's brother was the king's medical doctor, and had to attend at the king's deathbed, preventing him from reaching his own brother to help him. Berg's funeral in Limhamn in December 1907 was attended by about 700 people, including many workers and fishermen. A statue of Berg was erected in Limhamn and many locations in the city are named for him, such as R.F. Bergsgatan, Bergaskolan and R.F. Bergs kindergarten.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berg, Rudolf Fredrik 1846 births 1907 deaths Swedish engineers Swedish business executives Swedish politicians KTH Royal Institute of Technology alumni