2026-10-23T09:22:11

AI in Indonesian Construction: WIKA Gedung and Hutama Karya Honoured at YII 2026

印尼建筑业人工智能：WIKA Gedung 与 Hutama Karya 获 2026 年 Bentley 基础设施奖

AI in Indonesian construction has won international recognition: state-owned contractors WIKA Gedung and Hutama Karya were honoured at Bentley Systems' Year in Infrastructure (YII) 2026 event in Singapore on 6–7 October 2026. The lesson for the building-materials trade is simple: artificial intelligence only works when project data, including material data, is clean and connected.

AI in Indonesian construction at YII 2026

According to Bentley Systems' official announcement, more than 300 projects from 53 countries were nominated in 2026, and independent judges selected winners in 12 categories spanning the whole infrastructure lifecycle. From Indonesia, PT Wijaya Karya Bangunan Gedung Tbk (WIKA Gedung) won the Structural Engineering category with Jakarta International Stadium, engineering the largest retractable roof. Bentley also gave a Founders' Honor in the Constructioneering category to PT Hutama Karya (Persero) for the Parliamentary Complex of Nusantara in the new capital, IKN.

Bentley's chief marketing officer, Cate Lochead, said this year's finalists went well beyond digitalising traditional workflows: they connected data across lifecycle phases and engineering disciplines and used AI to unlock potential that was previously out of reach.

AI-optimised heavy-equipment routes at IKN

ANTARA reported that Bentley CEO Nicholas Cumins explained how the Parliamentary Complex team used regularly updated site data to optimise heavy-equipment routes with AI, then validated every work scenario in the SYNCHRO software to prevent bottlenecks on site. Cumins said technologies first built for operations and maintenance, such as drone inspection and continuous sensor monitoring, are now being applied during construction. At IKN, the government also uses automatic compactors for road works, including Jalan Sumbu Kebangsaan in the Core Government Area.

Earthquake-resistant design: AI assists, engineers decide

Amit Shrivastava, Bentley's senior director of solution engineering for Asia Pacific and Japan, told ANTARA that structural simulation and AI help engineers analyse how buildings respond to Indonesia's seismic conditions. In road planning, a system can run hundreds of iterations using start and end points, terrain and soil data to compare design alternatives, reducing the risk of rework caused by design errors. He stressed, however, that decisions remain human: engineers must stay in the loop.

The real bottleneck is scattered data

In another interview carried by ANTARA Bengkulu, Shrivastava cited a McKinsey report showing that construction productivity grew only about 10 percent between 2002 and 2022, or 0.3–0.4 percent a year, far below manufacturing at roughly 3 percent a year. Construction firms already hold plenty of data, from drawings, photos and PDF documents to sensor readings, but it sits in different formats and systems, which makes it hard for AI or digital twins to use.

What it means for the building-materials supply chain

For contractors, hardware stores and homeowners, the YII 2026 lessons are practical. AI can help estimate material quantities, sequence deliveries and prevent overstocking on site, but only when product data is clear: specifications, units, stock and delivery schedules. Without structured data, even the most advanced tool will struggle to give good recommendations. Simple steps such as consistent material lists, uniform units and digital delivery records are therefore the foundation before any AI project.

This direction matches homeX, an integrated building-materials and furniture service platform in Indonesia with a showroom, warehouse and delivery service in Tangerang. homeX prepares the materials while partner tukang (craftsmen) handle on-site delivery and installation, and the company is developing towards a data- and AI-supported building-materials platform. For project material quotes, contact WhatsApp +62 821 1818 998.

FAQ

Which Indonesian projects were honoured at the 2026 YII Awards? WIKA Gedung's Jakarta International Stadium won Structural Engineering, and Hutama Karya's Parliamentary Complex of Nusantara received a Founders' Honor for Constructioneering.

How was AI used at the IKN project? According to Bentley's CEO, to optimise heavy-equipment routes using regularly updated site data, with work scenarios validated in SYNCHRO.

Does AI replace engineers? No. Bentley stresses that AI provides information and design options, while technical decisions stay with engineers (human-in-the-loop).