Published on 21 Nov 2024

Award of Cities of Tomorrow Grant - Associate Professor Leong Eng Choon & Assistant Professor Shi Chao

Congratulation to Associate Professor Leong Eng Choon and Assistant Professor Shi Chao on the award of Cities of Tomorrow Grant for their projects.

About Cities of Tomorrow Grant

Launched in 2017, the Cities of Tomorrow (CoT) R&D programme is a multi-agency effort led by Ministry of National Development (MND) that seeks to sustain Singapore’s success in the decades ahead by leveraging on Research and Innovation (R&I). It is supported under the National Research Foundation’s Research, Innovation & Enterprise (RIE) efforts which are organised along 4 domains, with MND and Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment co-leading the Urban Solutions and Sustainability (USS) domain. The CoT aims to establish Singapore as a highly liveable, sustainable, and resilient city of the future, and as a vibrant urban solutions hub, through a suite of carefully curated research to develop urban solutions that address our national needs.

Building on earlier R&D efforts on space creation and optimisation, the CoT has expanded its research focus in RIE2020 to also support Built Environment (BE) industry transformation efforts. In 2022, the CoT Research & Innovation (R&I) Framework was refreshed to guide research priorities to support other national goals such as the Singapore Green Plan 2030, and in view of emerging challenges such as climate change and ageing infrastructure.

There are six strategic thrusts under the Cities of Tomorrow R&I Framework:

Advanced ConstructionResilient infrastructure & Smart Facilities ManagementSustainable Built EnvironmentNew SpacesLiveable & Healthy CitiesCity in Nature
  • Robotics & automation
  • Additive manufacturing
  • Sustainable construction
  • Pre-emptive inspection & repair
  • Durable & maintainable buildings
  • Advanced & smart facilities management
  • Climate-ready bulit environment
  • Green Buildings innovation
  • Undergraound space & mapping
  • Polder inspection & maintainence
  • Sea space optimisation
  • People-centric & healthy urban design
  • Reduce UHI impact & disamenities
  • Data-driven urban planning
  • Resilient greenery & biodiversity
  • Nature-based solution for climate adaptation & well-being
  • Marine climate change science

Associate Professor Leong's project: Tree-Root Anchorage and Non-Destructive Tests is under the City in Nature strategic thrust.

Project Write-up

In Singapore’s urban landscape, trees are often confined to limited planting spaces, both at ground level and increasingly in innovative skyrise and rooftop environments. These spaces are shaped by urban infrastructure—walkways, pavements, drainage systems, and more—restricting the natural growth of tree roots. Despite the vital role trees play in creating resilient, sustainable cities, the complex interactions between mature tree roots, and urban structures are still under-researched.

This project aims to transform our understanding of these interactions, utilizing non-destructive testing to map root architecture and assess anchorage strength. By generating insights that inform tree-care practices and policy, this project supports the development of safer, greener urban ecosystems, ensuring that the well-being of Singapore's urban trees thrives even amidst the challenges of climate change.

 

Assistant Professor Shi Chao's project: A Multi-Source Data Fusion Approach for Multi-hazard Perception and Risk Mitigation in TBM Tunnelling is under the New Space strategic thrust.

 

Project Write-up


This project aims at developing a multi-source data fusion framework that harnesses emerging machine learning technologies to uncover the intricate interrelationships among site investigation (SI), instrumentation and monitoring (I&M), and tunnel boring machine (TBM) operation data for multi-hazard identification and risk mitigation in TBM tunnelling. Conventional approaches primarily rely on massive TBM streaming data alone to perceive and predict tunnel ahead geology and identify construction risks, and the valuable SI and I&M data have not been effectively utilized for geohazard detection.

This project will develop efficient and data-centric algorithms to seamlessly integrate SI, I&M, and TBM data for ensemble perception and prediction of geohazards in TBM tunnelling. The outcomes from this this study will immediately contribute to tackling present challenges encountered during TBM tunnelling in Singapore, such as over-excavation and sinkholes.