NIBULON is a vertically integrated Ukrainian company and a leader in the domestic agrarian market. It is one of the largest agricultural commodity producers, investors, and exporters. On December 5, 2021, the company will celebrate its 30th anniversary. Established in 1991, when Ukraine declared independence, NIBULON, together with the country, continues to improve and become stronger.The company has also managed to achieve success in capital construction. Since it was established, the company has never stopped building, and its capability to construct tens of modern high-tech elevator complexes within 100 days impresses even highly qualified builders. NIBULON has built and reconstructed thousands of other facilities across Ukraine – buildings, roads, hospitals, power lines, and water pipelines. The country celebrated Builders’ Day on August 8 and Serhiy Besedin, a Laureate of the Ukrainian State Prize for Architecture, NIBULON’s Deputy General Director of Construction, celebrated its 60th Anniversary. NIBULON and the Agroprofi newspaper congratulate Serhiy Besedin. An interview with S. Besedin about the company’s construction activity is for your attention. – Mr. Serhiy Besedin, how did the construction department come to appear in the agrarian company? Was it developed together with the company? – Building is a driving force behind a human progress. If we had not learnt to build, we would have lived in caves. Building is one of the oldest professions, requiring not only knowledge and experience, but also the ability to create. A business is doomed without development. Oleksiy Vadaturskyy, NIBULON’s General Director, always stresses this. Thus, NIBULON started to build since it was established and does not stop building even during difficult economic, political or pandemic conditions. The company has built and repaired thousands of facilities.At the beginning, NIBULON’s capital construction department was small. We had a well-coordinated team of more than 30 specialists (design group, technological group, estimators, contractors, technical supervision) and builders. No tasks are impossible for us; there are tasks requiring the accurate study and finding unique solutions. We are not afraid of doing things that have never been done before. Having been put into operation, all our facilities continue to develop. The world technologies are improved constantly. Techniques which were modern 10 years ago are now outdated. Thus, we constantly renew equipment – transport and aspiration equipment, etc. We have created a well-developed infrastructure of grain storage and logistics; the company has 27 modern elevator complexes, including the transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv which is one of the largest and up-to-date facilities in Europe. During 2017-2020, as part of the construction and putting new terminals into operation, we have actually built another elevator complex of almost 80 thousand tons without using additional land and constructing a new facility, having increased the capacities at the branches. For example the capacity of Kremenchutska branchhas been increased by 20 thousand tons, Kozatska branch by 16 thousand tons, and Voznesenska branch by almost 22 thousand tons. Last year the company increased the capacity at Holoprystanska branch by almost 22 thousand tons. – You were awarded the State Prize for Architecture after constructing the company’s transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv? What made the terminal so unique?- NIBULON’s transshipment terminal for grain and oilseeds shipment in Mykolaiv was the first facility built using modern technologies. At that time the company reconstructed and built its own elevators (Starobilskyi, Vradiyivskyi, and Kolosivskyi elevators) and worked as a contractor at Kolosivskyi elevator in 2002. At the beginning I worked as a contractor when the transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv was built. In 2004, Oleksiy Vadaturskyy invited me to head the capital construction department. Since 2006, I have held the position of Deputy General Director of Construction. Please note that the transshipment terminal is a unique facility in Ukraine. I am talking about the technologies to store grain as well as the construction technologies. We built the largest grain domes in Europe, each with the capacity of 50 thousand tons of grain and a diameter of 65 m. These domes are the largest hemispherical structures in Europe and the world’s largest grain silos. The surfaces of hemispherical structures are covered with insulated polyurethane coatings and foam, thus protecting grain from outdoor temperature fluctuations based on a thermos principle, and the dome structure preventing condensation inside. We built domes using French technique in cooperation with Canada. None of us had any experience in using this technology. Firstly, we raised a dome, inflated it, applied pressure, and waited for the material to be covered with concrete. Materials, equipment and lifting machinery were sourced across Ukraine. When the facility was ready outside, people and machinery worked inside and conducted construction works. The terminal is located on sandy soils on a half island surrounded by water on three sides. To build a bucket elevator pit, we had to use a caisson (a metal jacket of 12х12 m and a wall thickness of 400 mm) that was gradually lowered to 7-m depth from the soil surface and 4 m below water level in the Southern Buh. It was complicated, as we were pioneers in this activity, but extremely cool. We gained experience, implemented new modern technologies, and developed the independent Ukraine.In June 2008, by the Decree of the President of Ukraine No 569/2008 “On the State Prize for Architecture 2008”, NIBULON’s team headed by Oleksiy Vadaturskyy was awarded the State Prize for Architecture.Although it was built in 2002, meeting modern technologies at that time, the terminal is constantly modernized. In May 2008, we put into operation 6 silos, having increased the total capacity to 172.6 thousand tons, and reconstructed the cargo berth, having lengthened it from 104 m to 222 m. At present the berth’s total length is almost 800 m at the terminal, meaning that up to 5 vessels can be loaded simultaneously. The terminal is unique not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. I doubt that anyone will build a similar facility in the near future. It has 300 routes to transport products, which is a lot for such a facility.- Who makes the decision about the construction and location of facilities? – Construction is usually performed according to the approved strategy of the company’s development. When considering an elevator complex, the company’s trading department acts as the customer. The site is chosen in areas with large volumes of grain production to reduce the transport distance from a field to an elevator. Frankly speaking, the construction itself is just the tip of an iceberg, as it represents only a third part of the effort and time required to complete the entire complex of works. The construction process is started from land allotment and completed by putting a facility into operation. Considering that land legislation is not logical, the process of land allotment can take many years. The transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv is without doubt the most impressive facility. It was interesting to build it and to see the results of our work at the end. It is hard to count all the facilities built. We have built 26 elevator complexes in addition to production branches constructed, repaired, and modernized by NIBULON. Reshetylivska branch, built in 2006 in Poltava region, was the first fully automated and mechanized elevator complex for grain storage and shipment by road and railway transport. This facility was built and put into operation in less than three months. Ukraine considerably increased its grain production volumes and required modern facilities to store and ship grain. Thus, we started to build quickly. In 2006, NIBULON celebrated its 15th Anniversary, having reached many achievements. We were sure of our success. This year the company’s team will celebrate its 30th Anniversary, and the capital construction department has also made efforts to make NIBULON successful. – There are huge differences between the project and the construction process. Have you had any force major when constructing facilities? – Normal construction sites are rare. I mean areas where it is possible to walk. We had such a site while constructing the first Vitove branch river terminal in Cherkasy region (2009), the construction of which marked the start of NIBULON’s large-scale investment project to revive the Dnipro and the Southern Buh as navigable transport arteries. Most land plots terrified even experienced builders. In 2010, we put 5 transshipment terminals into operation simultaneously, namely 3 river terminals along the Dnipro – Kamianka-Dniprovska branch in Zaporizhzhia region (April), Gradyzk branch (June) and Kremenchutska branch (December) in Poltava region, as well as 2 linear elevator complexes – Skorokhodivska branch (June) and Marianivska branch (October). When digging foundations at Smotrych branch in Kamianets-Podilsk town in 2008 (Khmelnytskyi region) and at Marianivska branch in 2010 in Poltava region, excavators found anti-tank missiles from the World War II. We had to call the State Emergency Service of Ukraine to eliminate dangerous weapons. I also remember the construction of the Novoodeska branch river terminal in Mykolaiv region. This facility symbolizes the beginning of the Southern Buh revival. Probably, we do not associate the south of Ukraine with swamps, but when we saw the site in autumn 2010, it was a real swamp. We had to drive 3 thousand piles and deposited 200 thousand cubic meters of soil. Thus, the terminal’s site floor was raised by more than 2.5 m above the Southern Buh water level. Much work had to be done. The facility is valuable, as experience and knowledge gained enabled us to overcome all the obstacles. In 2012, the Kozatska branch transshipment terminal in Kozatske village (Kherson region) was a complicated facility. There used to be several facilities at the site, in particular a concrete product plant and asphalt-concrete plant. The site was located on rocky soil, which is not typical for our areas. Hydrogeological conditions were also complicated, as the level of subsoil water was higher than the water level in the Dnipro. Having conducted all the expertise and research works before the construction of Ternivska branch in Zaporizhzhia region in 2019, we realized that piles had been driven in quicksand during the construction. We had to perform work to strengthen the foundation. Zelenodolska branch is the first and most modern fully automated agrarian facility to receive, store and treat agricultural commodities in Dnipropetrovsk region and the 10th such facility on the Dnipro. It is a model of the best engineering ideas and human possibilities. In 2020, the facility was constructed according to schedule and at NIBULON’s pace of construction during the strict quarantine restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. From several hundreds to 1,500 builders worked in the complicated lockdown conditions, without leaving the site. We ensured safety measures to avoid getting thick. During those difficult times, when the entire country faced difficulties, we managed to build this terminal. Every new facility is a new challenge. We had a team of professionals, knowledge, experience, and persistence. We believe there are no limits for creative ideas. – The pace of construction is known as NIBULON’s standard. How do you manage to build such a high-tech facility in 100 days (three times faster than standard construction terms)? Doesn’t it impact the quality? – We really construct facilities in three months, which others would build in nine months. How do we manage to do it? Firstly, the construction process is organized precisely. Our team and contractors have already gained huge experience, working with the company. The rhythmical and well-coordinated work of all the organizations enables the company to reduce the period of construction. We do not have any delays; people perform their duties on time. NIBULON’s employees are responsible for timely performance of all the construction works at each of our facilities. We do not have general contractors, as this prolongs the time to make decisions. In order to ensure efficient and well-coordinated work among contractors (about 150 organizations), the company arranges meetings at the site every week, headed by the General Director or by me with the obligatory participation of the regional directors and the company’s specialists, and representatives of contractors. These meetings enable the company to follow the construction progress and to solve all the urgent issues. Quality is the first requirement. Thus, the construction technology is adhered to. – Why is it necessary to build so quickly? – NIBULON is an agrarian company. We realize that if the elevator is not ready to receive products at the beginning of the marketing year and harvesting, it will be empty during the entire year. This is unacceptable!The builders work very efficiently at our facilities; labour performance is probably 120%. Works are conducted 24 hours per day and seven days per week. It does not mean that people work without days off or vacations. Our contractors have enough resources to make employees’ rotation. Certainly, it is impossible for a human to work for 12 hours without taking days off. Tiredness influences the work quality, and the risk of accidents can be increased. I can proudly say that the accident rate is low at the sites. I would like to stress that this pace of construction is the ordinary rhythm of work, rather than an acceleration, for NIBULON. – Tens of contractors and thousands of employees work at the construction site simultaneously. How do you manage to organize well-coordinated work? Do you have constant partners, or do you involve local specialists? – We have established good relations with our partners. Some companies have been working with us since 2002. Many contractors have been working with NIBULON since the beginning of the investment project, when we built several elevator complexes per year, together with social infrastructure facilities for local communities. We develop a complex infrastructure of production and social facilities. Consequently, our task is to involve building organizations in those regions where NIBULON’s facilities operate. Certainly, we try to involve local people and observe whether they can follow our requirements. Our working conditions are quite simple, namely quality, terms, and price. As you can see, we require nothing supernatural. Highly qualified people can ensure quality and terms, and the price must be competitive. The company and contractors work towards a common goal. The purchase of construction services is conducted transparently, by tender; all the information is posted on the website. Anyone can file an application to participate in tenders. Firstly, the company checks a company, its material and technical base, facilities built by this company, and NIBULON then makes its decision. Professionals, as a rule, remain with NIBULON. Those who cannot keep up with our construction pace stop working with NIBULON. During many years of operation, the key personnel have been formed. Concerning local companies, it is clear that they cannot keep up with our construction pace at the beginning. We try to teach them, to assist, and to prompt. Thus, the team is formed, and the quality level is increased in the regions. We started to build the facility in Kozatske village (Kherson region), where no one had built any facility on the territory of Beryslav district since Ukraine’s independence. Thus, the building sector was in a terrible condition there. – The company builds not only modern high-tech facilities for agricultural commodity production needs, but also helps local communities to solve social issues, to renew and to develop their infrastructure. What is the amount of such assistance? – Prior to constructing our facilities, we clean natural or anthropogenic debris at the sites and around them. Every new facility surpasses the previous one in many characteristics. Thus, we implement modern technologies, as well as create workplaces and new production standards. We breathe new life not only in local communities, but also in the entire regions, contributing to the development of other economic sectors and businesses. We do business transparently and in compliance with legislation. State budgets receive revenues from taxes paid. We organize excursions for children at NIBULON’s facilities to show how to build and to work in Ukraine. It is very important to train conscious people. Children must learn beautiful things and live surrounded by beauty to become patriotic citizens. It has become a good tradition for NIBULON to repair a school, a kindergarten, a medical and obstetric center, a club or a museum in a settlement where we build an elevator. We repair roads and renovate streetlights, lay water pipelines, and build stadia. We often build social facilities first and then construct our elevator afterwords. For example, the company firstly repaired a school, built a stadium and only then constructed the Denykhivska branch transshipment terminal in Denykhivka village (Kyiv region). NIBULON constructed water treatment facilities of 2 thousand cubic meters per day in Bilenke village (Zaporizhzhia region), for which the local citizens had been waited for 20 years and the absence of which could cause an environmental disaster in the region. Considering that the construction of Khortysia branch was complicated there, the company built a stadium with a natural grass surface together with an irrigation system, repaired and equipped a modern computer classroom at a local school. The scope of our activities is much wider than the requirements of the current legislation. Investing in social development is our primary duty, rather than representing inevitable expenses for construction. It is Oleksiy Vadaturskyy’s principle position. In addition to the construction facilities, the company invests tens of millions of hryvnas annually in various social projects. We reconstruct educational institutions, because we care about children who will work at our facilities in the future. We want them to grow up in decent conditions and to use modern equipment. Consequently, we have created the proper aesthetics at our facilities. Certainly, it is not obligatory to have a fountain and rose flowerbeds at the elevators. We want to create comfortable working conditions for our employees. In addition, our partners visit NIBULON’s facilities. It is pleasant to observe flowerbeds and fountains, rather than black asphalt. As a result, a person’s mood is improved after visiting the company’s facilities. Flowerbeds and fountains require considerable expense, but they are worth it. – NIBULON’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic resulted in complete reconstruction and modernization of three hospitals in Mykolaiv. How did you reconstruct these facilities? Is there any difference in building a new terminal and a hospital? – The coronavirus pandemic is a worldwide disaster which shocked the country. Neither experienced doctors nor authorities and local citizens knew how to fight it. Thousands of people were infected. Unfortunately, the number of dead people also terrified. The world, as well as Ukraine, announced a lockdown; businesses started to face considerable losses. Most Ukrainian medical institutions were not ready for this challenge. Thus, NIBULON, headed by Oleksiy Vadaturskyy, started to act immediately, reasonably, and efficiently. We started to completely reconstruct and equip Mykolaiv Regional Center of Infectious Disease Treatment in compliance with the world standards. At that time the hospital looked like a ruin among mountains of rubbish and impenetrable bushes. Oleksiy Vadaturskyy decided to help this hospital voluntarily, by his own initiative. He is used to facing danger and overcoming it efficiently. Every day he was at the site, conducting negotiations, facilitating the delivery of building materials and equipment, as well as supporting builders and doctors. The participation of our employees was voluntary, but nobody refused. We took the maximum safety measures, so none of the builders caught COVID-19. It was very complicated, as contractors refused to work in the hospital, being afraid of catching the virus, despite being offered a significant amount of money by the company. We started to clean the site and remove tons of various rubbish. The builders then started to reconstruct the hospital. Since March 2020, we have in 6 months turned the hospital into a modern center to fight the coronavirus and other infectious diseases.The company spent UAH 36.4 million to modernize this facility. NIBULON spent a total of about UAH 100 million to fight the coronavirus pandemic in Mykolaiv and across Ukraine. On November 19, 2020, NIBULON equipped and reconstructed Mykolaiv City Children’s Hospital No.2. Mykolaiv City Hospital No.1 was next in turn. Our lives consist of challenges and the desire to succeed. NIBULON develops not only its own infrastructure, but also the whole of Ukraine. We are proud of our company, working for NIBULON and achieving new heights together with Oleksiy Vadaturskyy. In 30 years of operation, we have learnt not only to survive, but also to become leaders in the activities in which we are engaged, including construction. We look to the future with optimism. http://www.agroprofi.com.ua/statti/1977-serhiy-besedin-nibulon-rozbudovnyk-ne-lyshe-vlasnoyi-kompleksnoyi-infrastruktury-a-y-usiyeyi-ukrayiny