Malaysia's first open architecture design ideas competition and digital innovation lab are now officially launched! The launch of the creative collaboration between the Malaysian Institute of Architects (Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia - PAM) and Gamuda Industrial Building System Sdn. Bhd. (Gamuda IBS) took place at the PAM Centre and was attended by enthusiastic architects and designers.

The Housing 4.0 Competition hopes to see many inspiring and innovative proposals from Malaysian architects, designers, students, and industry players, reinventing the concept of housing in Malaysia with thoughtful thinking, creativity, and ingenuity. Winners of the competition will walk away with total cash prizes amounting to RM180, 000.00!

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 (Dasar Perumahan Negara 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 Ar. Ezumi Harzani.

"In this rapidly changing world, where we are now talking about Industry 4.0, the Internet of Things (IoT) and big data, 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," he added.

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 (BIM) and how it will integrate with the Industrialised Building Systems (IBS) in a digital ecosystem.

Led by PAM's Ar. Ang Chee Cheong, and Mr Tan Ek Khai, Gamuda IBS's General Manager, 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 Ar. Ang, PAM Team Leader for the competition.

Ang added, "Architects are traditionally the main drivers of housing and we welcome this great opportunity to work with premier industry partners to pilot innovation and creativity. With Gamuda IBS as a key digital technology collaborator together with us, this is an exciting project addressing real national issues and social concerns, and together we can tackle many pressing housing issues."

At the launch, PAM President Ar. Ezumi Harzani also said, "Technology revolution has upended the construction industry. As a result, the industry across the globe is starting to integrate innovations such as robotics, onsite drones, and building information modelling into routine construction practices. There is a need for us to come up to speed to meet the demands of Malaysia's future housing needs. By launching this competition PAM and Gamuda IBS believe that we would be able to make a difference in building more homes that have both intrinsic and extrinsic values, within a shorter span of time."

Tan of Gamuda IBS said, "The competition aims to attract innovative designers and architects to use Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology, an online design tool in 3D, which will dictate what the robots in Gamuda IBS's factories will produce. Homes built with such components can be sustainable with the consistency of stringent quality standards. This will be done without compromising on creativity as all panels produced are individually formed by robots based on the architect's BIM design. We believe this competition will lead Malaysia's housing landscape in the era of IR4.0. With IBS, it reduces the dependence on foreign and manual labour by 70%, while building up a pool of innovative and skilled workforce that is ready for Industry 4.0."

PAM and GAMUDA IBS are pleased to announce that registration for the Housing 4.0 Competition is now open. The competition, which will run from 16 April 2019 to 15 July 2019 offers attractive cash prizes of RM80, 000 (1st Prize); RM40, 000 (2nd Prize), RM30, 000 (3rd Prize), and two (2) Honorary Mentions of RM15, 000 each. Announcement of winners and exhibition of the design submissions will be made on 5 September 2019.

Details of the competition are now available here.