Khaw Boon Wan on raising construction
productivity
SINGAPORE: 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
foreign construction workers to meet its building programme.
Mr Khaw said prefabrication technology is now indispensable in
HDB's building programme.
Seventy per cent of public housing building components such as
walls, floors and toilets are now precast.
These parts are fabricated off-site and then transported to the
construction site for assembly.
But Mr Khaw added that at the next stage of development, prefab
plants themselves also need to be transformed to up their own
productivity.
He cited local company, Tiong Seng Contractors, as an example of
how companies can raise their productivity by implementing the
Construction Productivity Roadmap.
Tiong Seng has set up Singapore's first computerised and
semi-automated multi-storey precast plant at Tuas, with some
funding support from the Building & Construction
Authority.
Known as Integrated Construction and Precast Hubs, these plants
optimise land use and achieve higher productivity through automated
production processes.
Tiong Seng's precast plant only needs a third of the workers to
produce almost double the tonnage of precast components.
An existing plant would need 150 workers to produce 60,000 cubic
metres of precast components, while a new integrated construction
and precast hub only requires 50 workers to churn out 100,000 cubic
metres of precast parts.
Mr Khaw said BCA will make more land available for such integrated
construction and precast hubs in its masterplan.
He hopes more contractors will come forward to participate in
implementing the Construction Productivity Roadmap to transform
Singapore's construction industry and raise its productivity.
This, he says will help Singapore cut down on its reliance on
foreign construction workers.
- CNA/cc
