Brilliant Singapore Engineering Projects Received Top Regional Accolades at CAFEO 40
Two engineering projects from Singapore have been presented with the prestigious ASEAN Outstanding Engineering Achievement Awards 2022. The award ceremony was held on 7 December at the 40th Conference of the ASEAN Federation of Engineering Organisations (CAFEO 40) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Presented by ASEAN Federation of Engineering Organisations (AFEO), the awards recognise exceptional engineering achievements within ASEAN countries that have demonstrated remarkable engineering skills and made significant contributions to engineering progress and quality of life in ASEAN.
The two winning projects are:
● Tuas Port Phase 1 (TPP1): Reclamation, Wharf Construction & Dredging Project by Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and Surbana Jurong Consultants Pte. Ltd.
Completed in November 2021, the project marked a significant milestone in the Singapore Government’s long-term plan to develop the Tuas next-generation port to be the largest fully-automated containerised terminal at a single location in the world by 2040.
Consisting of 21 deep-water berths that can handle 20 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) annually, TPP1 involved about 120 hectares of soil improvement works on existing land, 294 hectares of reclamation filling and soil improvement works at existing sea area and 8.6 km of caissons wharf construction works. TPP1 is recognised for its adoption of several innovative and sustainable engineering solutions and green initiatives to protect the environment and reduce carbon footprint.
● Use of Plastic Waste to Construct Durable Asphalt Pavement by Samwoh Innovation Centre (Samwoh)
In 2019, Samwoh and Singapore Polytechnic (SP) initiated a joint research study to evaluate the use of plastic waste in asphalt. Laboratory test results from the study have shown that the use of certain types of plastic waste in asphalt can increase its service life by about 40 per cent, while leading to cost savings of about 20 per cent as compared to conventional asphalt.
The team has moved on to conduct a field trial to validate the performance of the plastic asphalt under actual traffic and weather conditions, focusing on monitoring road pavement conditions and groundwater and surface runoff.
In 2021, plastic waste made up around 15 per cent of the total waste generated in Singapore. The total volume of plastic waste generated in that year was 982,000 metric tonnes and only six per cent of it was recycled. The rest was incinerated and the residue being used for landfill. With the potential of plastic asphalt in boosting plastic waste recycling rate and reducing carbon emissions arising from road maintenance, this project could make significant contributions to the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and promote a circular economy.
“I would like to congratulate Samwoh Innovation Centre, as well as MPA and Surbana Jurong Consultants for bringing regional honours to Singapore. Both projects are excellent illustrations of our engineers using their ingenuity and resourcefulness in planning and solving design challenges, as well as their ability in pioneering the use of new materials and methods to contribute to the well-being of people and communities for a sustainable future,” said Mr Dalson Chung, IES President.
“It is our great honour to receive the ASEAN Outstanding Engineering Achievement Award. Our project is ‘for the use of plastic waste to conduct durable asphalt pavement’. The success of the research project will contribute significantly to Singapore Green Plan 2030 of increasing the overall recycling rate of plastic waste and will push a big step towards a circular economy,” said Dr Ho Nyok Yong, Chief Operating Officer of Samwoh Corporation Pte Ltd.
