COUNTRY FOCUS

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Established in 1961, BDP has grown to become Europe’s largest design organisation, with 1,000 staff in studios across the UK, Ireland and further afi eld. The company has always considered international work to be an important part of its portfolio, although for years this was on a ‘nice-to-have’ basis. “The projects we secured were high

profi le, representing a good opportunity for us to produce quality, innovative design solutions,” explains international development director David Cash. “These were invariably delivered from

our UK studios using the ‘suitcase model’. However, in 2008 international expansion became a central element of our development plan. We acquired a Dutch practice to further strengthen our leading European position alongside 11 existing studios in the UK and Ireland. “The second phase recognised that

in order to win and execute serious projects in more distant places it was essential to have a local presence. In April 2010, BDP studios opened in New Delhi and Abu Dhabi. Looking forward, we envisage that both China and India

are going to be major markets for BDP. In China, particularly, we are greatly encouraged by the signifi cant number of large regeneration projects that we are involved in, across a wide range of sectors. Sustainability is also a much sought-after area of expertise and we offer cutting-edge eco-friendly design.” During its investment into the region, BDP used the services of UK Trade & Investment and the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) for support and to accelerate its growth – services the company found extremely useful.

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