Contractor Obayashi Singapore Pte Ltd and developer City Developments Ltd (CDL) have each been accorded the inaugural BCA ‘Company of the Year’ pinnacle award for their outstanding performance and growth. Both companies have also made significant progress in their business and workforce transformation efforts.
The Company of the Year Award by Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA) recognises companies that have demonstrated the greatest commitment to transformation. This award seeks to spur companies to go beyond project-level initiatives and achieve business and workforce transformation at the enterprise level. Winners are selected based on two criteria: business transformation and workforce transformation.
Pioneers in innovative technologies
As a builder, Obayashi has been a pioneer in technology adoption. For example, the company makes use of a photogrammetry software, combined with images taken from a drone camera, to generate precise point cloud data and models. This system helps to track, monitor and verify site progress more efficiently. Obayashi also set up a Construction-Tech Lab to advance technology development in Singapore.
Besides technology adoption, Obayashi has been highly committed to upskilling its workforce. The company develops career progression pathways for each employee and provides mentorship programmes and sponsorship opportunities to encourage employees to continuously upskill. Selected employees are also sent for training at the company’s Japan headquarters.
Furthermore, Obayashi has supported its value chain partners, such as its subcontractors, to upskill by organising study trips for them.
“This is one of the proudest moments for our team at Obayashi Singapore. It gives us further motivation to continue developing technologies and upskilling our workforce,” said Atsushi Nakagawa, deputy managing director of Obayashi.
Meanwhile, CDL has also been a trailblazer in transformation. The company is a pioneer in bringing along value chain partners in its transformation journey through various initiatives. For example, CDL introduced green leases for its tenants, and helped its SME suppliers to develop the SMEs’ carbon reports and sustainability roadmaps.
Through a Green Buildings Innovation Cluster (GBIC) demonstration project, CDL and its joint venture partner IOI Properties will team up with local startups to pilot the use of AI and machine-learning to optimise South Beach Tower Office’s cooling systems to achieve 75% energy efficiency improvement over 2005 levels.
In addition, CDL is a leader in adopting innovative technologies. The company has employed common data environment (CDE) standards to enable the digitalisation of construction processes, and also used the 360-degree camera and AI for virtual smart inspections. These have allowed CDL to transform the way the company builds.
To enable its transformation efforts to succeed, CDL continually invests in staff development and has redesigned job roles to adapt to new needs. The company’s efforts have contributed to its long track record of delivering quality developments. CDL’s 12th consecutive Quality Excellence Award (QEA) win is a testament to the company’s commitment to quality.
“As a homegrown developer, we have been contributing towards shaping Singapore’s skyline and the built environment for over six decades,” said Chia Ngiang Hong, group general manager of CDL. “It is a tremendous honour to receive this prestigious inaugural BCA Company of the Year Award, which affirms our unwavering commitment towards quality and excellence.
“Through our continued focus on digitalisation and innovation, we will chart new growth pathways and drive transformation within our value chain, as well as support the shared vision of a future-ready built environment for Singapore.”
Project of the Year winners
There are five winners for the 2024 BCA ‘Project of the Year’ Award. They were selected based on their achievements in adopting innovative construction methods, driving digitalisation, improving productivity and advancing sustainability.
The Sentosa Sensoryscape project is lauded for groundbreaking achievements in the use of design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA) methods to bring complex architectural designs to life. The project team employed digital tools to break down the complex designs into smaller components that were fabricated offsite, before being transported and assembled onsite. The team also incorporated time- and manpower- saving solutions, such as mechanical joints instead of more common welded joints.
Another winner, Geneo, overcame the manpower and supply chain disruptions during the Covid-19 period to achieve extraordinary results in sustainability. The team utilised CarbonCure concrete in 44% of its project concrete needs. This is estimated to have reduced almost 3.4 mil kg of CO2 emissions.
Note: The video below presents Obayashi Singapore, one of BCA’s Company of the Year Award recipients. The video on CDL can be viewed here. More details on the Project of the Year Award winners will be published in the Nov/Dec 2024 issue of SEAC.
Image and video: BCA
