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Rewards worth RM180,000 await architects, designers in the Housing 4.0 Competition

Last update: 24/04/2019

KUALA LUMPUR, April 24 (Bernama) -- Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) and Gamuda Industrial Building System Sdn Bhd (Gamuda IBS) hope to see inspiring and innovative proposals from Malaysian architects, designers, students, and industry players in the Housing 4.0 Competition.

Launched recently, the competition seeks to reinvent the concept of housing in Malaysia with thoughtful thinking, creativity, and ingenuity, it said in a statement.

Winners of this first open architecture design ideas competition will bring home total cash prizes amounting to RM180,000 where the first prize winner will walk away with RM80,000; RM40,000 (second prize), RM30,000 (third prize), and two honorary mentions of RM15,000 each.

The competition, which is a unique exchange and collaboration of design and technology, is an advocacy platform for the utilisation of digital technology in the construction and manufacturing industry while responding timely to the National Housing Policy 2019 which aims to build 1 million new, affordable homes in the next 10 years.

“The concept of “home” and the way homes are being built are rapidly evolving. Factors such as population growth, shortage of affordable housing, sustainability design, and a construction industry that’s navigating the challenges of Industry Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0) are driving the business towards building homes that are affordable, well designed, eco-friendly, of high quality, and healthy,” said PAM’s current President Ezumi Harzani in the statement.

He added that, in the rapidly changing world, there is a need to make sure architects are up to speed with technology as well as developing innovative designs for future Malaysian housing needs.

A key component of the competition is the innovation labs which will allow participants to discuss the next phase of growth for the construction sector in Malaysia, particularly on the use of digital design tools such the Building Information Modeling and how it will integrate with the Industrialised Building Systems in a digital ecosystem.

Led by PAM’s Ar. Ang Chee Cheong, and Gamuda IBS’s General Manager Tan Ek Khai, the Housing 4.0 project will also involve a tour at Malaysia’s first fully automated digital IBS plant in Sepang, which was operational in 2016.

“Housing is always discussed in terms of quantities and rarely in qualities. The competition will provide architects with a platform to showcase their creativity and develop designs using the latest digital elements. With the Fourth Industrial Revolution hitting the construction industry, architects can only thrive if it rethinks the industry’s best practices can now contribute to the housing conversation” said Ang.

Registration for the Housing 4.0 Competition is now open.

The competition will run from April 16 to July 15 and the announcement of winners and exhibition of the design submissions will be made on September 5, 2019.
Details of the competition are now available on www.pam.org.my/Housing4.0

--BERNAMA