SOUTHEAST ASIA CONSTRUCTION16 Oct 2023
Founders’ Honors: Bentley’s digital technologies support Indonesia’s new capital city development

Work on Indonesia’s new national capital Nusantara (‘Ibu Kota Nusantara’ in Indonesian, or IKN) in East Kalimantan province is currently underway. It is expected to be among the world’s most sustainable cities upon full completion. Two local contractors, PT. Waskita Karya (Persero) Tbk and PT Hutama Karya (Persero), are involved in this massive development.

Both contractors were recently named recipients of Bentley Systems’ Founder’s Honors for their road project in Nusantara. The announcement was made during the 2023 Year in Infrastructure and Going Digital Awards event held in Singapore, taking place at Marina Bay Sands from 11 to 12 October. Click here to view all recipients.

IKN toll road section 5A

Waskita Karya is the main contractor for the 6.675-km section 5A of the total 75.62-km planned highway, located in Penajam Paser Utara. This toll road infrastructure aims to improve connectivity and shorten travel times.

The project presented extreme terrain and design compatibility issues with an existing bridge on a tight construction schedule. To accelerate precise multidiscipline decision-making and keep the project on schedule, Waskita Karya established a connected digital ecosystem.

The team selected ProjectWise, Bentley’s open 3D and reality modelling applications, and iTwin to generate digital twins and establish a real-time, cloud-based design review environment. The integrated digital twin solution facilitated early clash detection, reducing design time by 40%, and optimised the road alignment, saving potential rework equivalent to IDR 12.5 billion.

Bentley’s applications eliminated 20,000 truck movements during initial construction, saving 32,800 l in diesel fuel consumption. Establishing a digital framework is expected to yield timely deliverables and additional construction cost savings associated with minimal on-site changes.

IKN toll road section 3A

The IKN toll road connects Balikpapan to Nusantara. Hutama Karya is the lead contractor for the 13.4-km section 3A, including a 920-m bridge across a river with a high water level. With a project area covering 109.49 ha of steep terrain and dense forest, the team faced challenging topography amid a tight construction schedule and strict environmental requirements.

Hutama Karya opted for Bentley’s iTwin Capture modeler to process aerial-captured data into an accurate reality mesh of the entire site, accelerating data processing time by seven days. Requiring comprehensive modelling and geotechnical analysis technology, the team used Bentley’s Leapfrog Works, Plaxis and GeoStudio to perform 3D geotechnical modelling and analysis, resulting in over US$90 million saved in potential rework.

The integrated digital solution accelerated construction, enabling timely project completion while reducing carbon emissions by 83% during the construction period. The technology provides real-time monitoring of land clearing progress to minimise tree felling and meet crucial environmental requirements of the project.

Image credits:
Image 1: PT. Waskita Karya (Persero) Tbk
Image 2: PT Hutama Karya (Persero)
Image 3: Bentley Systems

Note: A total of 15 projects have been recognised for Founder’s Honors this year. They were selected by Bentley Systems’ founders, Greg Bentley and Keith Bentley (with input from senior company executives), from the more than 300 nominations submitted for the company’s 2023 Going Digital Awards in Infrastructure programme.