UNK's Moscow business center project ranked as World's Best

The Academic Business Center designed by UNK Group has won the ABB Leaf Awards, a prestigious international architectural award. This is the first time a Russian design firm has received this award for a Russian-based project.

The festive award ceremony took place in London on 14 October. The Academic Business Center was named the best project in the Best Commercial Building Project nomination. It competed against world-class companies in this category, including against the Japanese Nikken Sekkei, a bureau that has been in operation for over 120 years.

The ABB Leaf Awards acknowledges the most outstanding projects implemented in the preceding 18 months in a variety of countries. They are all gold standards for the international architectural community, according to the Award's press service. The winner is chosen by a panel of judges comprised of representatives from the world's leading architecture companies, including Foster+Partners, Werner Sobek, and Zaha Hadid. The winning project's ideas become "trendsetters" for other professionals in the sector. This year, the Award’s administration received a record number of applications from the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Japan, China, India, Australia, South Korea, Turkey, and Europe.

The Academic BC is located adjacent to the metro station Prospekt Vernadskogo and features 47,000 square metres of office, catering, and retail space. It was launched in 2019 and has become a tourist and local attraction in less than two years owing to its distinctive architectural philosophy.

According to Yuliy Borisov, head of UNK Group and member of the Moscow Architectural Council, many projects by Russian architects merit the recognition of international experts. “They have repeatedly competed for and won international awards. This is a valuable experience for domestic professionals and the country's entire architectural community, as it enables businesses to establish a global presence. UNK projects have also won international competitions on multiple occasions, and the ABB Leaf Awards are proof of our high performance”, Mr. Borisov says.

The ABB Leaf Awards is an annual international architectural award that was launched in 2005 and was established by the Leading European Architects Forum (LEAF). This year's participants included projects by such seasoned professionals as Zaha Hadid Architects, Norman Foster, Aedas, etc.