Two projects involving faculty from CDE have received Prestigious Engineering Achievement Awards, presented annually by the Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES).
The projects honoured at the award ceremony were Innovative and Sustainable Solution for Seawall Construction in Coastal Development and Structural Digital Twin of Jack-up Platform – Methodology Verification & Validation.
The awards were presented at the IES 58th Annual Dinner, held on the evening of 15 October at the Shangri-La Singapore. Guest-of-Honour at the event was Mr Desmond Lee, Minister for National Development and Minister-in-Charge of Social Services Integration.
The Prestigious Engineering Achievement Awards recognise projects that “demonstrate outstanding engineering skills which have made a significant contribution to the engineering progress and the quality of life in Singapore.”
Innovative and Sustainable Solution for Seawall Construction in Coastal Development
A collaboration under the CoT (Cities of Tomorrow) Research & Development Programme between CDE NUS and Housing & Development Board
CDE faculty:
Assistant Professor Chew Soon Hoe (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering)
with PhD student Soh Jun Ming and Masters Students Lim Yun Mei and Deng Jinyu
This project explores innovative coastal protection methods for Singapore, addressing rising sea levels while reducing reliance on scarce natural resources. By utilising large geotextile tubes filled with locally excavated soil, the team aims to minimise the need for sand in constructing coastal defences.
Asst Prof Chew, principal Investigator of the project, said one of the key challenges the team faced was the lack of existing research on the effectiveness of using such materials and methods in Singapore’s climate and coastal conditions. For example, due to the deep coastal waters around Singapore, a significant part of the project involved the design and testing of a new deep water installation method.
“Applied research was done to address Singapore’s unique challenges,” he said. “This required close collaboration between the NUS research team, Housing & Development Board (HDB), site consultants and contractors. We are grateful for the support of all parties that helped and contributed to this research, including support from the Ministry of National Development (MND) and National Research Foundation (NRF) for making this project possible.”
PhD student Soh Jun Ming said, “This award validates the importance of our research, particularly in contributing to Singapore constructing seawalls in a more environmentally sustainable manner.”
The team sees the IES award as a stepping-stone towards the further development and deployment of their method, with potential application in other regions facing similar coastal protection challenges.
Team Members
Asst Prof Chew Soon Hoe – Project Principal Investigator
Mr Soh Jun Ming – PhD student, Research Engineer
Ms Lim Yun Mei – Research Engineer
Ms Deng Jinyu – Research Engineer
Structural Digital Twin of Jack-up Platform – Methodology Verification & Validation
A collaboration under the ENSURE (Enhancing Offshore System Productivity, Integrity and Survivability in Extreme Environments) project between Technology Centre for Offshore and Marine, Singapore (TCOMS), NUS and Seatrium.
CDE faculty:
Professor Michael Si – Lead Principal Investigator (TCOMS/NUS)
Professor Quek Ser Tong – Co-Principal Investigator
Associate Professor Qian Xudong – Co-Principal Investigator
(all from Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering)
The project focused on the development, verification and validation of a structural digital twin for self-elevating rigs known as jack-up platforms, commonly used in offshore shallow-water drilling activities. Funded under the Industry Alignment Fund (Pre-Positioning) of the RIE2020 Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering domain through the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), the work involved designing and testing a large-scale model equipped with a comprehensive sensing system to develop a digital twin framework with real-time predictive capabilities targeted at predictive maintenance.
The project is part of a wider effort to build capabilities and identify new areas that marine and offshore industry players can pivot to, to remain globally competitive and capture emerging market opportunities. The proposed methodologies have been independently reviewed and verified by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), which the project team says underscores the transformative potential of advanced engineering technologies in creating a safer, more efficient, and sustainable future for the offshore industry.
Expressing pride in what they have accomplished together, the team said the award would inspire them to continue driving forward impactful solutions in creating a safer, more efficient, and sustainable future for the offshore and marine sectors. “I want to thank and congratulate the team members for their exceptional work that led to winning this award,” said Professor Michael Si, Senior Director (Projects) at TCOMS, and adjunct professor (Practice) at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “This recognition is a testament not only to the team’s hard work, dedication and collaborative spirit, but also to the breadth and depth of expertise they have cultivated in this project.”
