The evolving landscape of defense infrastructure
Defense infrastructure is under new pressure across the Nordic region.
Clients need to build faster, expand capacity, and adapt facilities to new operational demands - often after years of underinvestment. Johan Holmberg, AFRY’s Head of Defense for Public & Commercial Places Sweden, shares his view on what is changing, where the risks lie, and what clients now need from projects and partners.
The new reality: Accelerating under pressure
"Time, or rather the lack of it, is the biggest challenge," says Johan. Clients in the defense sector have traditionally worked in steady cycles, but today they are under pressure to deliver faster and at a much larger scale while still meeting the same, or higher, requirements.
Across the Nordic region, the evolving security landscape has introduced new demands for defense infrastructure. Recent developments, including the need to align with NATO standards, have added further complexity to projects, particularly for Sweden and Finland in areas such as mobility, logistics, protection, and infrastructure planning.
Many defense property owners and public authorities are now rebuilding after years of underinvestment. Aging facilities need urgent refurbishment to meet modern threats, while new infrastructure must work in both everyday operations and crisis situations. The task is no longer incremental improvement, but large-scale refurbishment, reconstruction, and expansion.
What sets defense projects apart
Defense infrastructure projects are fundamentally different from other public construction efforts. "Failure here has operational and security consequences, not just financial ones," Johan explains. These projects must function under extreme conditions, often with classified constraints, and prioritize long-term operational readiness over short-term efficiency.
This focus on resilience and assurance shapes every design decision. "Security, robustness, and long lifecycles shift design from optimization to assurance," Johan notes. That means choosing proven solutions, building in redundancy, and prioritizing adaptability over the lowest initial cost.
Early-phase decisions, long-term consequences
One of the biggest risks in defense projects lies in the early phases. "Fixing scope, cost, or risk allocation before fully understanding requirements and operational realities often leads to expensive downstream problems," Johan warns. Early optimism and unclear assumptions can quickly turn into issues that are costly to fix later.
Logistics and infrastructure: the backbone of operational readiness
Logistics and infrastructure are central to readiness and resilience. Roads, railways, ports, and airfields are not just transport assets - they are what allow people, equipment, fuel, and supplies to move where they are needed, when they are needed. For Johan, that makes them a core part of defense capability. They must work reliably in day-to-day operations, but also during crisis and under extreme conditions.
Similarly, critical infrastructure like factories, hospitals, bridges, and energy infrastructure plays an important role in maintaining functionality and readiness. Together, these elements form a broader infrastructure backbone for preparedness, mobility, and continuity.
Five priorities for defense infrastructure
According to Johan, clients need solutions that support readiness over time and hold up under pressure. In practice, that means prioritizing:
- Operational readiness – facilities that support long-term readiness and can adapt to changing needs
- Resilience – robust, redundant designs that can function under extreme conditions
- Integration – strong coordination between buildings, infrastructure, and technical systems
- Speed and scalability – solutions that can be delivered quickly and expanded as needs grow
- Expertise – partners able to provide military-grade solutions tailored to operational requirements
A long-term perspective
That means working with partners who understand both the technical demands and the operational reality, and who can design for readiness, resilience, and adaptability from the start. In a more uncertain security landscape, that will be essential as countries rebuild capacity at scale.
