MCBAINS COOPER TO USE ATHENS HUB FOR EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN GROWTH.

MCBAINS COOPER


PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANCY

PRESS RELEASE



March 18, 2010.



MCBAINS COOPER TO USE ATHENS HUB FOR EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN GROWTH.



Property and construction consultancy McBains Cooper, which has opened offices in Greece, is to develop its Athens base as a hub serving businesses across North Africa, the eastern Mediterranean and eastern Europe.



Anthony Coumidis, managing director of McBains Cooper Hellas Technical Consulting, heads a multi-lingual inter-disciplinary team acquired from an international professional consultancy which has recently exited Greece after the completion of a major contract.



McBains Cooper will expand on the expertise and experience of the acquired team – which has a background in petro-chemical and related sectors – and introduce consultancy services as diverse as life-cycle costing, energy surveys, facilities management (FM) professional services, consultancy services to banks involved in management of investment, as well as sustainable design and energy reduction solutions.



“In terms of professional and technical services related to property and facilities management in the eastern Mediterranean, McBains Cooper is a very big and long-established player, and can considerably expand the range and level of consultancy expertise available in the region,” said Anthony.



“We will bring in professional consultancy expertise based on experience and practices well-established in the UK and elsewhere, and introduce a vast array of businesses and organisations to new and enormously more efficient approaches.



“Athens is currently being seen as a low-cost base and gateway not just for Greek contracts and projects but also for the entire region of southern and central Europe – a point that has not been lost on financial and management consultancy organisations who are now also moving strongly into the area.



“However, we are perhaps in a particularly strong position, because a combination of circumstances including low set-up costs arising from current economic conditions, and the certainty of income from existing relationships with international clients, leads us to believe this is a wise investment.



“The consultancy - whose team we have brought into McBains Cooper – was working with BP Group which sold its ground fuel operations in Greece to the Hellenic Petroleum Group. This means we now provide professional services relating to a considerable number of petrol stations, distribution facilities, aviation fuel and related businesses across Greece. But given that we are fully-licenced to operate in petrol-chemical and fire protection fields, we will also be making the service available to other businesses in the same and similar sectors.



“Looking further afield - and further ahead - by utilising world-renowned British engineering and construction resource, but operating at local levels in local languages and with strong contacts at every level of government, business and finance, McBains Cooper is bringing the next generation of consultancy to the entire eastern Med.



“Our approach is termed ‘inter-disciplinary’ – it is distinct from the multi-disciplinary approach in that ‘inter’ involves a single seamless team operating across all construction-related professional disciplines, as opposed to the ‘multi-disciplinary’ approach which brings together unrelated organisations.



“These unrelated organisations have different agendas and find clashes of culture, differing levels of pace and urgency, different systems and demands upon budget inevitably extend the cost and duration of projects, an unacceptable situation in a growing business culture of speed and efficiency



“We are also very well placed to assist contractors bidding for project or ongoing work, and provide expert technical advice to lenders and governments involved in supporting Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) projects.



“UK companies are considered to be expert, fair, balanced and independent of local influence when it comes to involvement in bidding processes, which can prove to be a massive advantage when governments and private finance mix - particularly so in a highly-sensitive economy such as that incumbent in Greece.”



Ends



Further information:

Iain Macauley / Chris Fowler

07788 978800 / 07719 172225

im@pressrelations.co.uk / cf@pressrelations.co.uk www.mcbainscooper.com



Notes.

McBains Cooper

McBains Cooper is an inter-discipline consultancy, specialising in property, infrastructure and construction, offering a wide range of consulting and design services including architectural, aesthetic or technical design, problem solving, budget management, facilities management, health and safety, sustainability consultancy and on-the-ground civil engineering. Driving and supporting projects ranging from minor works to major contracts worth more than £100 million, McBains Cooper operates across a variety of sectors throughout the UK, Europe and Latin America. McBains Cooper is committed to environmental, social and economic sustainable development and their integrated approach means they deliver effective, award-winning solutions to their clients. The Group employs 150 people. McBains Cooper has regional headquarters in London (head office), Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Manchester, Oxford, Windsor, Lima (Peru) and Mexico City, with associate offices in Belfast and Dublin. www.mcbainscooper.com