Over $30 million to be pumped into construction research programme on greener building methods
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The programme will be funded by the Singapore Institute of Technology, A*STAR and other industry players, and also involves construction and civil engineering firm Woh Hup.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
- More than $30 million is invested in a research programme by SIT, A*STAR, and Woh Hup to develop greener construction methods focusing on sustainable materials and low-carbon structures.
- The programme targets innovations like ultra-low carbon concrete, AI-enabled design tools, and reusing demolition waste to reduce embodied carbon and improve productivity.
- A working group will create guidelines to optimise diaphragm wall construction, reducing steel use by 10%, saving costs and improving quality and safety in underground projects.
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SINGAPORE – More than $30 million is being pumped into a research programme that will help the construction sector develop greener building methods.
The programme will be funded by the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT), A*STAR and other industry players, and also involves construction and civil engineering firm Woh Hup.
Speaking at the Construction Technology Innovation Laboratory Seminar on Oct 1, National Development Minister Chee Hong Tat said the research programme is one of the largest private-sector research and development investments in the built environment sector so far.
The programme – called the Woh Hup-SIT-A*STAR Consortium Research Programme for Sustainable Construction Technology – will take on seven research projects spanning sustainable construction materials, innovative substructural systems, and low-carbon structures and reusability over the next three years.
Chee added that research will focus on areas where the built environment sector has clear needs, such as scaling up ultra-low carbon concrete production, developing AI-enabled design and optimisation tools, transforming demolition waste into useful construction materials, and enabling the reuse of structural steel.
Solutions developed, he said, can help reduce embodied carbon, improve productivity and resource efficiency, and strengthen the resilience of Singapore’s construction supply chain.
Embodied carbon refers to greenhouse gases that result from the extraction, creation and transportation of building materials, as well as the construction of buildings.
Chee said: “These investments will also build longer-term capabilities in Singapore.
“We want our firms and professionals to develop new competencies in areas such as AI-enabled design, sustainable materials and data analytics, and we hope that by doing this we can create more good job opportunities for our people, so that they can take on higher-value work as construction methods continue to evolve and our industry continues to transform.”
He added that the research programme builds on the work done by the Construction Technology Innovation Laboratory, which was set up in January 2021 by SIT and Woh Hup, along with three other industry players, for construction companies to research and develop construction technologies.
The lab developed solutions such as ultra-low carbon concrete, which has been deployed in projects like condominium developments Copen Grand and Lumina Grand, as well as the upcoming Union Square.
SIT, in a statement on Oct 1, said the programme will run until March 31, 2029.
The seven research projects will focus on things like transforming demolition waste into materials for land reclamation and scaling up production of ultra-low carbon concrete.
Improving productivity and safety in deep excavations using lightweight retaining and stabilising structures, AI-powered design and optimisation tools and reducing steel waste through a reuse system are a few of the other research projects.
At the seminar held at the SIT campus in Punggol, Chee said the Building and Construction Authority and Land Transport Authority have formed a joint working group with industry professionals, specialist contractors and practitioners.
The working group, which will develop technical guidelines to improve the construction quality of diaphragm walls, is one outcome of an “action team” made up of government and industry representatives to identify ways for firms to save time, costs and manpower, without compromising high standards of safety and quality.
Chee, who chairs the action team, announced its formation in February 2026.
He added that diaphragm walls, which are made of reinforced concrete, are commonly used in underground projects such as MRT stations and basements, and support the surrounding ground during construction and keep the completed structure watertight.
Construction firms, he said, gave feedback that in some diaphragm walls, steel reinforcement within the walls was “highly congested”, which made it difficult for concrete to flow around the steel bars, and that could impact construction quality and potentially lead to water leakage.
Chee added that the guidelines developed by the work group on diaphragm walls will “set out how improved concrete performance and appropriate detailing can be used to optimise reinforcement, while maintaining the required structural safety and watertightness”.
He said the measures are expected to reduce reinforcement usage in such walls by about 10%, which saves up to $3 million per km of diaphragm wall construction.
“At the same time, these measures will improve construction quality and productivity, and reduce the need for subsequent rectification works,” Chee added.
He said innovation does not always involve a new technology.
“Sometimes, it means taking a fresh look at the way we do things today, working with our industry partners to identify what are the areas that we can do better, and finding ways to achieve the same desired outcomes, but with lower costs, less time and manpower.”