BAM Construction has been appointed by property company Lend Lease to build a new £60m events and exhibition venue at Bluewater Shopping Centre at Greenhithe, Kent.

The 55,000sq ft (5,110sq m) Bluewater Events Venue, which is set to host its first events in late 2011, has been designed by London-based Denton Corker Marshall. Accessed off Thames Walk through the existing Water Circus, the complex will be centred around a 32,000sq ft (2,973sq m) plaza and is set to boast 43,000sq ft (3,995sq m) of catering and restaurant space.

BAM Construction, which has previously been involved with the revamp of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and the construction of the Natural History Museum's Darwin Centre in London, was selected following a tender process. Nigel Comben, BAM's regional director for the south east, said: "Bluewater represents an excellent opportunity to showcase the quality of our work. But we believe it is not just about what we build, it is also how we build that matters, particularly with regards to health and safety and working with the community."