SINGAPORE - For the first time, a public housing project has achieved the Conquas Star rating, the highest possible accolade for construction quality.
The Build-to-Order (BTO) project, Hougang Capeview, was one of 12 projects for which contractors won Housing Board (HDB) Construction Awards this year.
Built by Qingjian International, Hougang Capeview received a Construction Quality Assessment System (Conquas) score of more than 95 out of 100, therefore achieving the Conquas Star rating.
A Conquas score of 95 means that 95 per cent of items checked for workmanship met the standards of the national rating system, which is administered by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).
Eight other public housing projects recognised in the HDB Construction Awards also achieved Conquas scores of over 90, above the national average score of 88.2.
The winning firms include Straits Construction Singapore Pte Ltd, which is receiving the award for the sixth year running; China Construction (South Pacific) Development Co Pte Ltd; and Rich Construction Company Pte Ltd.
Receiving the Merit award for two housing projects was LC&T Builder (1971) Pte Ltd, which was recognised for the Orchid Spring BTO at Yishun, and rental housing projects at Sembawang, Sengkang and Yishun.
Other Merit category winners for housing were Chip Eng Seng Contractors (1988) Pte Ltd, Kay Lim Construction & Trading Pte Ltd, and Teambuild Engineering & Construction Pte Ltd.
Two contractors, Chang Hua Construction Pte Ltd and Ken-Pal (S) Pte Ltd, clinched awards for upgrading projects. Eng Lee Engineering Pte Ltd won a Merit award for an infrastructure project, the vehicular bridge across Punggol Waterway.
BCA group director of research Tan Tian Chong, who was on the judging panel, said: "The overall workmanship quality of HDB projects has been improving steadily over the years."
"The HDB Construction Award winners, in particular, are as good as the private residential projects," he added. "This is impressive, considering that these are huge contracts comprising several hundred units."
The average Conquas score achieved by HDB flats has risen from 65.7 in 1989 to 88.6 in 2014, "comparable to private sector developments", said the HDB.
