Team Approach

In 1885, Charles William Bovis acquired a modest building business located in London, which later grew into the internationally renowned construction and project management company known today as Bovis Lend Lease.

Today, Bovis Lend Lease operates in more than 20 countries, including Russia. Experience in implementing high-rise projects was accumulated by working in the U.S., UK, Australia, Southeast Asia and Continental Europe. Among the most significant implemented projects worth to be mentioned Olympic Village in Sydney, Trump Tower in Chicago, Canary Wharf comprehensive development in London, Blue Water shopping mall in Great Britain, and the Petronas Towers in Malaysia. Daniil Afremov, Bovis Lend Lease Business Development Director for Russia, told us about their unique working experience. In what countries Bovis Lend Lease is the leader and what’s the rationale base behind this?

The most powerful position Bovis Lend Lease has in the UK, Australia and the USA. Our leading position in the UK can be explained due to the fact that the company Bovis was one of the first general contractors that started to operate on the British market. Our strong position on the Australian and Pacific markets associated with long operating experience of the Lend Lease Corporation in the region and many technically challenging projects implemented earlier.

What distinguishes the company’s operating on Russian market from doing business in other countries? Are there any special features in local regulatory framework and cooperation with contractors and designers? One of the key differences is a range of providing services. Unlike our main markets, where Bovis Lend Lease (BLL) usually acts as general contractor, in Russia it specializes in construction project management. In addition, our parent company Lend Lease is not currently investing in development projects within the Russian Federation. At the same time it should be noted that over 19 years of operating in Russia BLL managed to implement more than 70 projects of various complexity.

Among these projects are Sheremetyevo-3 airport terminal, float glass factory for Pilkington, mixed-use business and retail centers “Metropolis” and “Lotte Plaza”. The requirements for quality management and work organization, adherence to safety rules on construction sites are the same as in Russia, as in all countries wherever our company operates. Among the special work features I would mention the duration and scope of approvals, poor attention paid by contractors to safety and environmental protection, as well as significant amount of speculative projects without a clear financial model which we had seen before the 2008 financial crisis.

Despite the differences in design stages and the legal framework used in Russia and abroad, tendering and selection of contractors/designers are very similar. In Russia, we use the same tender requirements and contract forms that in our overseas projects.

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SERGEI SHELESHNEV text,
photo company Bovis Lend Lease