At the "CIC Innovation Award 2025" ceremony held on January 21, 2026, the "AI Tower Crane System"—a joint submission by the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA), CR Construction Company Limited, and the Hong Kong Center for Construction Robotics (HKCRC)—was awarded the Second Prize in the "Local Construction Safety" category. This accolade recognizes the system's exceptional effectiveness in enhancing construction site safety. The award not only signifies high-level industry validation of the project team's technical innovation but also marks a pivotal step forward for smart construction technologies in safeguarding worker lives and driving industry transformation.

Technological Innovation: Deep Integration of AI and Automation for a Comprehensive Safety Net

Independently developed by HKCRC, the AI Tower Crane System leverages 5G connectivity and advanced sensor integration to deliver four core capabilities: AI Safety Monitoring, AI Anti-Sway Control, Remote Operation, and AI Path Planning. The system has successfully increased lifting efficiency by 30%, effectively shortened construction schedules, enhanced operational safety, and significantly improved the working environment for operators. The synergistic breakthrough of these four core technologies constructs an "intelligent guardian net" for construction sites.

• 1. Visual Safety Inspection
  Mounted on the crane jib, the AI vision system provides real-time identification of personnel activities within hazardous zones. With an accuracy rate of 98%, it enables active early warning and intervention, establishing a proactive safety defense system.

• 2. AI Anti-Sway Control (AI Stable Hook)
  By applying deep learning to data from senior operators, the system automates precise stability control of the hook. This increases lifting efficiency by 30% and eliminates the time operators previously spent commuting to and from high-altitude cabins daily.

• 3. Remote Operation
  Realizing a "Ground Cockpit" revolution, this feature liberates operators from high-risk, high-altitude environments, allowing them to work from safe, ground-level control rooms. This fundamentally eliminates climbing risks and drastically improves the working environment.

• 4. AI Path Planning
  Operators need only designate start and end points; the system automatically calculates and executes the optimal lifting path, integrating environmental perception to handle complex site conditions.

Ecosystem Synergy Driving Rapid Deployment

The AI Tower Crane System completed installation and testing at the Pak Tin Estate Phase 13 public housing redevelopment project in May 2025 and was officially deployed in June, achieving a full lifecycle realization from R&D and testing to application and productization. This deployment fully demonstrates HKCRC's capacity for ecosystem synergy and rapid implementation: the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) provided critical application scenarios; CR Construction contributed on-site engineering coordination and technical support; and HKCRC injected cutting-edge R&D capabilities. This aligns perfectly with the Construction Industry Council's (CIC) vision of promoting a "smarter, safer, and more efficient" transformation of the construction industry through robotics.

About the "CIC Innovation Award"

Established by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) in 2015, the "CIC Innovation Award" aims to spearhead and promote the development and application of new materials, methods, and technologies to continuously enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong's construction industry. Selections are made through a rigorous process by a judging panel of senior experts from both industry and academia. The award has become a significant benchmark for measuring and recognizing local innovation in construction.

About the CraneR Technology Team

CraneR Technology Limited, incubated by the Hong Kong Center for Construction Robotics (HKCRC), is a high-tech company dedicated to the R&D and commercialization of construction machinery, robotics, and intelligent application systems. The team aggregates interdisciplinary researchers from top institutions including the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. Focused on translating frontier academic achievements into innovative solutions that address actual pain points in the construction sector, the team counts the AI Tower Crane System as one of its core achievements in promoting construction intelligence and operational safety.

(For business cooperation, please contact: Sam Xue at wsxue@craner.hk)

About HKCRC

The Hong Kong Center for Construction Robotics (HKCRC) is an international joint R&D and incubation center for smart construction established by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and the University of California, Berkeley. It operates under the Hong Kong Government's InnoHK initiative.

The Center has successfully incubated a range of smart construction products—including the MetaCam Air, ALC Panel Installation Robot, Rebar Tying Robot, Close-RangeAl Stereo Camera and IoT Smart Screed—which have been successfully applied in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, as well as overseas markets in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas. leveraging comprehensive "zero-to-one" incubation capabilities and an open international ecosystem, HKCRC connects global resources to drive the industrial implementation of smart construction.