BSBG HCMC staff fly into Dubai to work on crucial projects

Words by BSBG Media Team, Tuesday 25 September 2018

Two architects from BSBG Vietnam recently travelled to Dubai to join up with the architectural teams at the Headquarters, making important contributions to key projects; some of which are moving through the detailed design phases, and others in varying stages of construction. The move comes as part of BSBG’s international standards drive, its commitment to personal development across the group, and also, according to BSBG Associate and Technical Manager, Chris Brown, “because of the talent and drive displayed by both Thanh Ho and Hong Nguyen, which we knew would make them a real asset to the teams on some demanding projects while they were here.”

During the visit, both Thanh and Hong were involved in project workshops, meetings and also site visits, on projects that range from Festival Plaza, to a confidential brand new 5-star hotel currently at an advanced stage of construction. “BSBG is a global team,” Chris says. “And so although we continue to pursue projects in Vietnam and Asia, we work very much as a single unit, and we will bring in talented individuals from our different international offices to work with us here in Dubai as and when a project demands it - and vice-versa.”

During the course of the last 12 months, BSBG’s senior management have worked to determine where individuals in the global teams are in terms of development, goals and capabilities. Chris says: “We want to develop the talents we have and help each of our staff to improve, for their benefit and for the benefit of the group. We have multiple large scale projects currently ongoing and on the horizon, and when these projects reach key moments, we need everyone across disciplines and offices to be capable of reaching the high standards we demand. We try to help them achieve their own aspirations and develop their skills.”

International Standards - Vietnam staff in Dubai

Site exposure

The purpose of the visit this time around was to give Thanh and Hong, two of Vietnam’s promising architects, their first exposure to how BSBG operates from its headquarters in Dubai, where over the course of more than 40 years the office has grown to employ more than 150 people, and is working on multiple highly complex projects at the same time. Chris continues: “BSBG Vietnam is still a relatively new office, and although there are projects in the pipeline for us in Asia, one of the things that many architects want is site exposure, and none of our current projects are far enough advanced to offer that yet to our Vietnam staff. The teams there are all very familiar and involved with some of our key projects here in the Middle East and the UK, and when they see how we work from office to site, we feel this will be a valuable experience to take back to Vietnam.”

Chris Brown

Director

"The Vietnam office has some of the most dynamic talent I’ve seen, from a creative design and technical design perspective"

“It’s about being exposed to the daily workings of our office, which is varied in terms of tasks and projects. They’ve been involved in project workshops and meetings, they’ve worked with the teams on one of our key projects to meet some very aggressive milestone deadlines. They’ve had exposure to the fast paced nature of a big project, and the need for real focus and attention to detail. The objective is that we want them to be able to take the lead in replicating the methodology and working practices we’ve established in Dubai, on their projects in Vietnam."

For Chris, visits such as these are fundamental to extracting the maximum potential from the talent in the BSBG Vietnam office. “The Vietnam office has some of the most dynamic talent I’ve seen, from a creative design and technical design perspective,” he remarks. “It’s my job to really get the best out of that potential. The level they’re working at has exceeded our expectations. The understanding of BIM and the way in which they utilise Revit is at the highest level we’ve seen anywhere. They are very talented, they are very enthusiastic. Always keen to get involved, to contribute and even to discover new software they feel could add value to the global group.”

International Standards - Vietnam staff As Thanh and Hong returned to Vietnam, Senior Architect Phuong Le touched down in Dubai to begin a four-week stint working alongside the Dubai teams on different aspects of senior level architecture. “She will take involvement in the coordination of sub-consultants, and will spend some time on the site,” Chris says. “She’ll be involved in reviewing submittals, and shop drawings for the 5-star hotel project. She will understand the processes a lot more and will be able to take the lead on Vietnam projects, executing those to the international BSBG standards moving forward.”

BSBG’s presence in Asia has started to gain traction, in what is a long term objective to contribute to raising the standards of full scope architecture from design to delivery across the region. But such ambition won’t be achieved overnight; something that Chris is acutely aware of. “Our challenge in Vietnam has been spreading awareness of what it is we can provide. I’m not sure there are many other organisations that are offering the kinds of multi-disciplinary design/delivery solutions that we can, but one thing’s for certain, it’s definitely required. How do we get that message out there? It’s a process, and things don’t happen straight away. The momentum is building, and I expect there to be an exciting project announcement in due course. The market in Vietnam is booming, and we’re really happy with the office. For me, we’re fantastically positioned to achieve our vision for Vietnam and Asia, contributing to one of the most exciting and promising architectural landscapes in the world…”

BSBG Media Team

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