[2026 Asia Construction Awards] "Beyond Quality and Safety: Tracking Industry Change Through Technology and Design"

21st Asia Construction Awards

Judging Committee Chair’s Review - Hyunsu Lee, Professor Emeritus of Architecture, Seoul National University

This year’s 21st Asia Construction Awards judging focused on identifying individual sites that successfully embodied the core values of the construction industry, even under challenging circumstances. Applications were submitted in eight out of ten total categories: Smart Housing, Brand, Overseas, Construction Safety, Architecture, Design, Innovation, and Social Contribution. During the evaluation process, the judging panel comprehensively examined quality, construction management, safety—which are essential elements in the construction sector—as well as creative design, application of advanced technologies, functionality, and public awareness, all based on the public achievements documents submitted by each company.

Hyunsoo Lee, Honorary Professor of Architecture at Seoul National University, is attending the '21st Asia Construction Awards' held at the Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 17th and delivering a judging review. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

The Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Award was presented to Doosan Engineering & Construction for “Doosan We've The Zenith Bucheon” supplied in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, as well as to Seoul Housing & Communities Corporation’s “SHARE (SH:ARE)” project, which utilizes semi-basement spaces as shared warehouses. Doosan Engineering & Construction received high marks for its continuous development of new products and designs each year to enhance the marketability of residential design. In this particular project, various exterior features such as roof structures, landscape lighting, glass railings, and panoramic strengthening windows were applied using the 49-story height. Seoul Housing & Communities Corporation’s SHARE project involves converting semi-basement units in public rental housing—spaces traditionally unsuitable for residential use—into shared warehouses by changing their usage designation to neighborhood living facilities. The project demonstrated effective utilization of idle space from a public perspective by reducing vacancies and addressing the storage shortage for local residents through unmanned storage services utilizing IT technologies.

DL E&C’s “e-Pyunhansesang Centum High Avenue” won the Seoul Mayor’s Award in the Smart Housing category, and Lotte Engineering & Construction’s Shiheung Eungbank 2 District received the award in the Construction Safety category. DL E&C’s project incorporated advanced technologies such as the C2 House, which allows residents to freely utilize space according to their preferences or needs, as well as the Smart Clean & Care solution that integrates management of air quality throughout the apartment complex. Lotte Engineering & Construction earned praise for building a smart safety roll call system designed for foreign workers and for applying distinct color schemes for each section at the construction site to enhance intuitive understanding and safety management. Daewoo E&C was selected for the Chairman's Award from the International Contractors Association of Korea in the Overseas category for its Al Faw New Port Container Terminal Phase 1 project in Iraq. Despite the harsh on-site conditions, including a hot, dry climate, maritime environment, and deep weak ground layers, the company utilized optimal construction methods and rigorous ground verification, successfully completing the project on schedule and thereby strengthening the global reputation and competitiveness of Korea’s construction technology.

In addition, Hanwha Construction Division’s integrated senior town and Kumho E&C’s Athera in Goduk New City were selected for the Smart Housing and Brand categories, respectively, and Hyundai E&C’s Hillstate Goduk Eliste won in the Architecture category, each receiving the President's Award from The Asia Business Daily. GS E&C’s residential environment improvement initiative for veterans’ families won in the Social Contribution category, and IPARK Hyundai Development Company’s Gangbyeon Station Central IPARK received the award in the Design category.

All members of the judging panel recognized that despite difficult internal and external conditions, each company made multifaceted efforts to deliver improved outcomes, rather than settling for established practices. It is our hope that the Korean construction industry will use these awards as a turning point toward continuous advancement and the development of a future-oriented ecosystem. We sincerely congratulate all the winning companies and individuals today. May your efforts continue to spread across more sites, greatly contributing to the foundation for sustainable growth in our construction industry.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.