Ensuring S'pore's construction industry reaches for the sky

AS one of the key pillars to Singapore's growth and development, the construction industry has always been an important component of the economy, accounting for five per cent of the nation's GDP in 2016. But, it is not spared from a sluggish cycle as data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) indicated its continued contraction in the second quarter of 2017 by 5.6 per cent due to a decline in private and public projects and a forecasted growth of just 0.3 per cent this year.

With economic restructuring and disruptions becoming the new norm, it is high time for the construction industry to evaluate current measures and mindsets in order to ensure its competitiveness. The government has kick-started this with the launch of the Construction Industry Transformation Map (ITM).

For example, the Building Construction Authority of Singapore (BCA) has made clear its goal of reducing reliance on foreign construction workers by up to 30 per cent by 2020. This focus is expected to help provide higher skilled jobs for Singaporeans in the manufacturing process, and lower reliance on on-site construction jobs. Unsurprisingly, conversations revolve around offsite construction methods such as Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction (PPVC) and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT), which can shorten building time and cut manpower needs.