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GS E&C opens railway test center in Singapore

Published: 01 Apr. 2025, 16:50 Updated: 01 Apr. 2025, 17:28

CHO YONG-JUN
[email protected]

An aerial view of the Singapore Rail Test Center, constructed by GS Engineering & Construction [GS E&C]

GS Engineering & Construction (E&C) opened a railway test center in Singapore, the builder announced Tuesday.

Located at the very west of Singapore, the Singapore Rail Test Centre (SRTC) is a 540,000-square-meter (5.8 million-square-foot) testing ground built for the Singaporean Land Transportation Authority (LTA) and the country's rapid transit system called the Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT) system.

The SRTC includes three testing railroads for a combined 16.9 kilometers (10.5 miles) in length, with 10 different buildings, including a management center and a control center.

The testing center will be able to accommodate the different kinds of vehicles used in the SMRT network to test for reliability, performance, compatibility and top speed. The center will also be used to test future SMRT trains and resolve potential issues in the network.

GS E&C held an opening ceremony on Friday with Singaporean Senior Minister of State for Transport Amy Khor, LTA officials and GS E&C’s head of infrastructure business division Cho Sung-han in attendance. The groundbreaking ceremony was held in March 2021 and the first phase of construction was completed in November 2023.

The construction company said it used different techniques for added safety and efficiency, including pre-casting concrete in the factory and Building Information Modelling technology that utilizes 3D models to simulate potential interferences.

“The successful completion [of the SRTC] that included challenging levels of construction techniques proves the company’s ability as a global railway construction firm,” GS E&C said in a press release Tuesday, adding that the firm aims to expand to other foreign nations based on the success it showed in Singapore.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [[email protected]]