Construction

Renovation contractors hit by slow property market in Singapore

Refurbishment businesses have been affected by the slow property market in Singapore. According to the Renovation and Decoration Advisory Centre (RADAC), which represents about 80 industry players, some firms have seen business drop by up to 50 per cent compared to three or four years ago when the property market was booming. Homeowners seem to have a smaller appetite for lavish renovation works as...

Developers required to use prefab bathroom units from 2nd half of 2014

The push to raise productivity in Singapore’s construction sector is taking on a new focus this year. New rules will soon take effect, pushing for greater use of productive technologies such as prefabricated components. From the second half of 2014, developers will be required to use prefabricated bathroom units (PBUs) for all residential projects on government land sales sites. Singapore...

BCA hopes developers will adopt new technologies to increase productivity

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has said the output productivity for building projects in the construction industry has risen by 1 to 2 per cent in the last couple of years. But it believes more can be done and it hopes developers can adopt new technologies such as the Prefabricated, Pre-finished Volumetric Construction and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) in their projects. Whether it is...

BCA scheme to encourage gracious building practices

More measures will be taken to encourage builders to adopt gracious construction practices, which help to address environmental concerns and mitigate inconveniences to the public caused by construction works. Speaking at an industry event, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Trade and Industry Lee Yi Shyan said the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) will be enhancing its Green...

Construction demand expected to remain strong in 2013

Singapore's construction demand is expected to remain strong in 2013, fuelled by public sector projects. The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) is projecting a construction demand of between S$26 billion and S$32 billion for 2013. This comes after the industry reported S$28 billion worth of contracts awarded in 2012. BCA said the public sector will contribute to 53 per cent of the industry demand...

Increase in BTO flats stretches contractors’ resources

Contractors say resources are being stretched following the move to increase the supply of Build-To-Order flats in the last two years. But they said this has driven them to be more productive. The Housing and Development Board (HDB) said it is also working closely with contractors to ensure that they deliver their projects on time, if not earlier. More than 27,000 Build-To-Order flats were launched this...

More residential projects to receive Construction Excellence Award

More residential projects will receive the Construction Excellence Award this year. The award recognises construction projects that have demonstrated the highest standards of construction excellence in Singapore, particularly in project management, technical inputs and workmanship. The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) says 10 awards and seven certificates of merit will be given to builders of...

Construction industry faces labour crunch following stricter rules

The Singapore construction industry is facing a labour crunch with stricter foreign manpower quota even as the pipeline of projects remains strong. Many contractors are already taking measures to raise productivity but this is seen as just the first step forward. For example, Sam Woh uses a $200,000 tracking system to pinpoint the exact location of its over 200 delivery trucks. With this, the company...

Construction sector to get more boost

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has taken another step forward to help boost productivity in the sector with a technology initiative. BCA has tied up with software modelling company Tekla and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) to promote the use of building information modelling (BIM) among industry practitioners. BIM is a three dimensional (3D) technology that can change the way...

Khaw Boon Wan on raising construction productivity

National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said the local construction industry needs to raise productivity through standardisation and prefabrication. In his latest blog entry, he said Singapore can try to build more flats with fewer foreign workers, if construction productivity is raised. Singapore is adding another 25,000 public flats this year through the Build-to-Order scheme, and needs some 30,000...

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