Skonto Būve on its 21^st anniversary received the main prize - GRAND PRIX in competition "Latvian Construction Award 2015" for the reconstruction of Riga Castle that was organized by magazines "Latvijas Būvniecība" and "Latvijas Architektūra".

Premises with an area of almost 10,000 m² have been reconstructed, providing not only restoration of the building, but also of all artistic and functional elements. Renovation of load-bearing structures and strengthening of the foundation and structures has been performed, as well as renovation of furniture, paintings, chandeliers, wall and ceiling paintings, and interior finish has been completed in all parts of the castle. Many interior elements have obtained an unseen brilliance and splendor.Builders and restorers have done magnificent work that was highly assessed by the jury.

This year 95 objects in 10 categories were submitted, of which 7 objects were built and reconstructed by Skonto Buve.

Award ceremony took place on March 10^th in the House of Culture “Ziemeļblāzma”.
Mission  of "Latvian Construction Award 2015” is to promote safe, innovative, high quality and aesthetic buildings and structures that are created in territory Latvia or outside it, where the implementation of the project is the responsibility of Latvian citizens - builders, designers, design manufacturers, etc.

For Skonto Būve, the Year 2015 in the domain of construction was hard but nevertheless - fertile. It was also recognised within the framework of the contest “Latvian Construction Awards 2015” organised by the magazines “Latvijas Būvniecība” and “Latvijas Architektūra” that awarded Skonto Būve 3 prizes for objects that it has built and reconstructed throughout the year, as well as an award to the project manager of Skonto Būve.

In the nomination “New engineer building” 1^st place was awarded to “Station “Bolderāja 2” with the Connecting Road to the Russian Island”.

“This is undoubtedly one of the widest transport infrastructure projects in Latvia as well as in the entire Baltic states, and Skonto Būve is glad for the opportunity to take part in it and to invest in the development of a modern city. I am proud that Skonto Būve, together with its partners, has succeeded in this,” explains Guntis Ravis, the Head of the Board of the limited company “Skonto Būve”.

Project manager Dmitrijs Soldatenko.

In the nomination “New building – public premises” 2^nd place was awarded to the object “Riga Motor Museum with the outbuilding of the Road Traffic Safety Directory’s client centre”.

Project manager Modris Seļakovs, the responsible construction work manager Raimonds Breide.

Meanwhile, the object “Riga Castle” received the main award GRAND PRIX.

The manager of the Riga Castle project Egils Klebergs and the responsible construction work manager Edgars Sivickis also received a certificate of recognition.

In the nomination “Project Manager of the Year 2015” 2^nd place was awarded to Dmitrijs Soldatenko.

On 6 January 2016 the renovated building of Ogre Technical School was opened, the construction works of which were performed by the building company “Skonto Būve”. The reconstruction that lasted for two years was finished within the predicted term, and Ogre Technical School is now a modern educational complex – the educational institution has been expanded and adjusted so that there is now a comfortable and modern environment with high potential for student achievements.

By the end of reconstruction of the existing study block, the premises were expanded, a new study hangar and the internal and external communications were built, and the surrounding school territory was also improved.

Guntis Rāvis, Chairman of the LLC Skonto Būve board, said: “The opening of a finished object is always a significant event. We are happy to help in creating a more valuable and modern environment, so that future young specialists can master their skills and knowledge more successfully in suitable, improved, and high quality premises, and therefore improve their competitiveness not only in Latvia, but even internationally”.

The reconstruction of Ogre Technical School took place within the project entitled “The development of the infrastructure of Ogre Technical School and modernisation of the study equipment”, which was financed by the European Regional Development Fund and co-financed by the State budget, the total costs of which were EUR 12 632 827. The project client is the Ministry of Education and Science.

Photographer: Ieva Čīka, LETA

On 18 December 2015, after an extensive three-year reconstruction and restoration period, the castle-front and eastern extension of Riga Castle and its garden were put into operation. The castle renovation works were performed by the general partnership “SBRE”, which is formed by two construction companies –  “Skonto Būve” and “RE&RE”.

The specialists admit that reconstruction works were difficult and full of surprises.Chairman of the Council on the Restoration of Riga Castle Imants Lancmanis said: “The Riga Castle is the place with the densest concentration of history and art works in Latvia. Here we can find everything that Latvia has gone through, from medieval times until now. Each century has brought its contribution in terms of art and architecture”. The restorers have done magnificent work. Many interior elementshave obtained an unseen brilliance and luxury. During renovation works of the castle, previously unseen historically valuable items were discovered.

In the premises of the Chancery of the President, located in the north-western part of the castle-front, the cabinet of the President, meeting halls, Press Department, as well as representation premises have been renovated. Each of them has been renovated to their historical appearance, adding contemporary functionality and quality.

Enormous work has been performed on the four splendid halls – the Festival Hall, White Hall, Ambassador Accreditation Hall, and the Hall of Coats of Arms. The halls have been renovated to their historical appearance – ceiling paintings, furniture, wooden details, and chandeliers were restored. A huge amount of work was done for renovation of the White Hall, which involved reconstruction of the interior, constructions, and finish. As a result, the hall interior created in the 19^th century received renewed gilding, which covers 68 m² of the entire area of the walls and ceiling, and strengthening and construction of the roof structures and ceiling beams have also been implemented. The renovation of the Ambassador Accreditation Hall has been quite complicated as well – research and renovation of the 86-year-old ceiling and wall paintings by Ansis Cīrulis was very complex. Specialists indicate that the painting created in 1929 was in very bad condition; however, after several months of hard work, the original ceiling and wall paintings by A. Cīrulis, created in the style of folk romanticism, have regained their initial appearance. In the Hall of Coats of Arms all coats of arms of 76 cities, as well as four regions, have been renovated, and the composition of the hall has been supplemented by restored and new, pre-ordered furniture.

Premises with an area of almost 10,000 m² have been reconstructed, providing not only restoration of the building, but also of all artistic and functional elements. Renovation of load-bearing structures and strengthening of the foundation and structures has been performed, as well as renovation of furniture, paintings, chandeliers, wall and ceiling paintings, and interior finish has been completed in all parts of the castle. During the construction works approximately 250 people worked in Riga Castle, and another 60–70 people in workshops all around Latvia.

The renovation of the Castle will be continued – in the second part of the reconstruction, the fortifications of the Castle will be renovated.

Reconstruction and restoration of castle-front and East extension of Riga Castle:

Client: SJSC State Real Estate, project manager Kārlis Mucenieks
General Contractor: general partnership SBRE, project manager Egils Klēbergs, supervising engineer Edgars Sivickis, chief restorer Ivars Rība.
Planner: general partnership “Pils projekts”, architect Artūrs Lapiņš.
Construction monitoring of the project: Būvalts ltd., responsible construction supervisor Bruno Fībigs, restoration supervisor Valdis Jānis Platais, construction supervisor Edmonds Vīksne.

Video: Latvijas Dzelzceļš