The Obayashi Construction-Tech Lab Singapore (OCLS) will serve as a research and development (R&D) centre for construction technology
Established by Obaysahi Corporation, the centre will operate as a hub for enabling and deploying next-generation construction productivity technologies in the Asian region and for strengthening research and development efforts through proactive collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.
Labour-saving and productivity improvement have become major social issues in the construction industry. Construction companies and start-ups in Singapore and abroad are actively developing technologies and applying them on sites.
OCLS will serve as a base for joint research and development with universities and other research institutions, construction companies, and start-ups.
The focus will be on construction robotics technology, which is being actively developed and applied in the Asian region.
Research and Development initiatives at OCLS include:
- Accelerating the Validation and Deployment of Asia-Origin Technologies on Construction Sites – OCLS will receive funding from BCA’s Productivity Innovation Project (PIP) incentive scheme to bring robots from Chinese robot maker Fang Shi Technology to Singapore. Their concrete levelling and troweling robots will be used in one of Obayashi Singapore’s ongoing projects.
- Collaborative Research with the Singapore Centre for 3D Printing (SC3DP) –
OCLS will collaborate with SC3DP, located within Nanyang Technological University, to explore the application of 3D printing technology. Under the new Master Research Collaboration Agreement (MRCA), OCLS and NTU Singapore will launch a joint laboratory at SC3DP. This partnership will focus on developing research initiatives that will pioneer the development of sustainable construction materials and the 3D printing of mechanical joints and multi-material components.
- Collaborative Research with the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) –
Following the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), both parties plan to conduct joint research and explore collaborations in the areas of design, development, and application of robotic solutions as well as artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the design and construction process. For example, mapping the use of sensors and AI to explore ways to make construction sites robot-friendly, as well as the development of a platform or framework enabling the remote management of multiple robots on different sites.
In the future, OCLS will expand its scope to fields beyond construction robotics, actively promote the results of its research and development outside Japan.
