In 2025, a journalist for the Danish publication Ekstra Bladet, Stefan Weikert, interviewed the management of the company for the design and production of protective shelters in Ukraine, LLC "BUNKEROK". Below is a translation of the correspondent's original article.
The Russian invasion has radically changed the lives of Ukrainians. One of the main priorities was the construction of protective structures and bomb shelters, which can be seen in many cities and villages today.
Especially in frontline regions, gray modular reinforced concrete shelters have become a common element near post offices, bus stops, schools, playgrounds, and administrative buildings.
A number of Ukrainian companies are engaged in the production of such structures, the leader of which is BUNKER-OK, an enterprise that manufactures both underground bomb shelters and above-ground modular shelters for public places and private homes.
Shelters to save lives
Oleg Grigoriev, director of BUNKER-OK, emphasizes that the company's main goal is to save as many lives as possible:
“We even develop playground shelters, because there are cases when children play outside and do not have time to get to the bomb shelter during an air raid.”
One of the company’s large shelters can accommodate up to 35 people. Inside there are benches, a first aid kit and a ventilation system. Although such structures cannot withstand a direct missile hit, they effectively protect against debris and a shock wave.
How bomb shelters are tested
All models undergo strength tests: shelling from various types of weapons and pressure tests. In one of the tests, a Ukrainian tank fired at a shelter from a distance of 200 meters.
“We improved the design again and again until we reached the required level of safety,” says Grigoriev.
BUNKER-OK has already installed its facilities in all regions of Ukraine: Kharkiv, Sumy, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhia, Kyiv and others.
Experience for Europe
Before the war in Ukraine, most of the old bunkers were in a neglected state. Therefore, Grigoriev advises European countries, including Denmark, to foresee protective structures in urban planning in advance.
“It is much easier to do this in peacetime than in wartime,” he emphasizes.
Two functions - in peacetime and wartime
BUNKER-OK designs shelters so that they are also useful in peacetime:
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large models can be turned into cafes;
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shelters for schools and playgrounds are integrated into the game infrastructure;
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some options can serve parking spaces.
Entering the international market
Maxim Remnev, co-founder of BUNKER-OK, notes that the company is ready to share technologies with other countries, in particular Poland and Germany, which are already interested in cooperation.
“We want engineers to come, study with us, and then build themselves. Our goal is to save as many people as possible,” says Remnev.
After the invasion
The war forced Ukraine to revive its defense industry, review its energy security, and expand the construction of shelters.
In addition, the behavior of citizens has changed: more and more people are storing reproductive material (eggs and sperm) to have a chance to have children in the future, even if one of their partners is fighting.
© BUNKER-OK, 2025. The text is based on interviews and materials about modular shelters in Ukraine.