Alexey Pesoshin: ‘You make decisions that reduce the estimated cost of facilities several times’

“Without high-quality inspection, it is impossible to implement the tasks that have been set for us”

“In recent years, we have held many meetings, conferences, and conferences devoted to the development of the industry strategy,” said Deputy Minister of Construction, Architecture, Housing and Utilities of the Russian Federation Konstantin Mikhailik in his opening speech. “You all know very well that the Russian Federation is currently undergoing a very important process of forming a new system of national and federal projects, and construction is given enormous attention in them. And today we understand that without high-quality inspection, without high-quality design, it is no longer possible to implement the large-scale tasks that have been set for us.”

According to him, the technological complexity of the facilities suggests that the final solutions should be fully laid down at the design stage, and to reduce the time frame, including construction, digitalization of all processes, including expertise, is very important. Konstantin Mikhailik reminded that the increasing complexity of both construction projects and technological processes requires the use of increasingly “advanced” tools, and pointed out that digitalization has a positive effect not only on construction times, but also on the economy as a whole:

The faster the design, the faster the examination, the faster the construction, the easier we can manage the cost of the facility. The cost of money in dynamics is well understood by everyone.

Mikhailik said that at the end of 2023, there were 530 inspection organisations operating in Russia, employing 4,950 people, a total of 14.7 trillion rubles were assessed for the cost of facilities, while the budget managed to save 0.7 trillion rubles (4.8% of the total investment) by reducing the estimated cost. Today, 144 organisations, including 61 non-governmental organisations, are connected to the unified digital examination platform in Russia; more than 176,000 projects have been uploaded to it and almost 83,500 statements have been issued.

Move away from the “inspector” format

“Since 1 September, a personal account for the customer-developer with a full set of necessary working tools has been launched in Russia,” Igor Manylov, head of Glavgosexpertiza, told the conference participants. “In 2024, our main task has been to move from the previous format of examination as a routine inspector of compliance with design solutions to working with data, to managing the life cycle of an object, to efficiency at all stages from the conception of the facility to its operation.”

He noted that in the states whose representatives participated in the conference, a special institution of the customer was created, which is a large community of professional, well-trained managers. And he added that all the participants strive to create such an examination that could become the intellectual core of the construction, a high-tech system in which all processes are harmonised.

“We are here, it is the year of the BRICS Summit, and I consider it very symbolic that we, representatives of the expert community, are holding our meeting on the eve of the main events of the summit, which is a prologue to the upcoming events,” noted Igor Manylov.

Third in Russia in the number of statements

Tatarstan Prime Minister Alexey Pesoshin who took part in the conference said:

“Today, the State Inspection of the Republic of Tatarstan ranks third among state examinations of Russia in terms of the number of issued conclusions.

He called the conference a landmark event that sets the scale of construction in Russia and noted its importance in connection with the ever-increasing requirements for the level of competence and skills of participants in the investment and construction cycle.

“You, dear experts, control the quality of project execution, compliance with legislative requirements and safety, minimise all possible risks and make unique technical decisions that reduce the estimated cost of facilties several times, saving budget funds,” noted Alexey Pesoshin.

He also reported on the impressive growth of the republic's construction industry, in particular, that in the first half of 2024, the turnover of the construction industry of Tatarstan increased by 25% compared to the same period last year, that in 2023, 3.4 million square meters of housing were built in the republic, and over 8 months of 2024, more than 2.5 million square meters were commissioned, which put Tatarstan in third place in terms of housing delivery in Russia and in first place in the Volga Federal District.

Neighbours' experience

Vice Minister of Industry and Construction of Kazakhstan Kuandyk Kazhkenov spoke about digitalisation as the main vector of development in his report. He talked about the principles on which the unified digital construction system operating in Kazakhstan is built and the measures that made it possible to combine all services on the Unified Construction Portal on the “one-window” principle.

Since 2023, projects related to socially important, technically and technologically complex facilities in Kazakhstan are not transferred for examination to the competitive environment — they have become the prerogative of state examination, and now the country is considering the possibility of returning some projects related to state participation, as well as the reconstruction and major repairs of complex objects, to the state monopoly.

“A unified urban planning examination has been introduced in Kazakhstan, thanks to which the acceptance and verification of documents is carried out in a format, deviations of the maximum allowed indicators from the general plans are excluded, compliance with urban planning regulations is ensured,” he said.

A single portal for design and examination has also been developed there, a mechanism for monitoring construction projects has been strengthened, and a digital platform for maintaining executive documentation on construction has been introduced.