Outstanding Geotechnical Project Award

Outstanding Geotechnical Project Award

• ISSMGE IT Administrator
• Awards
• 13-07-2026

Purpose

To recognize projects that best illustrate superior geotechnical engineering skills and represent significant contributions to geotechnical engineering progress and society. Criteria reflect the importance placed on sustainability while continuing to recognize innovative design and construction.  Any geotechnical engineering project, regardless of its location and cost, is eligible, e.g. projects such as tunnels, dams, innovative foundation engineering solutions and military projects.

Nomination

Nominations for the award are invited from ISSMGE Member Societies and must reach the ISSMGE Secretariat by the announced date.  Member societies are encouraged to arrange their own competitions to identify an outstanding geotechnical project which can then be nominated for the ISSMGE award. 

The nomination package should include:

• A cover letter, signed by the nominator (Chair of the ISSMGE Member Society), introducing the nominated project.
• A written motivation, not more than five pages in length, to address the following:
  • 1.   Originality and innovation new or innovative application of technology, design, materials, process/methods and construction;
  • 2.   Resourcefulness in planning and solving design challenges (a) complexity of the problem or situation addressed, (b) creativity in solutions;
  • 3.   Photographs, video, design drawings, figures, sketches as applicable.

And, where applicable:

4.   Sustainability considerations (a) environmental, (b) social, (c) economic;

5.   Project planning and delivery (a) financing, budget and schedule, (b) meeting the clients needs particularly related to budget and schedule adherence;

6.   Contribution to the well-being of people and communities, including aesthetic value;

7.   Focus on health and safety elements;

8.   Equality, diversity and inclusion considerations.

Selection

AWAC will judge the nominations per region, selecting 1 project for each region. One overall project will be selected by AWAC to be awarded as the ISSMGE Outstanding Geotechnical Project.

Exposure

All the selected regional projects will be presented on the ISSMGE website and social media channels, as well as in the ISSMGE Bulletin.

Outstanding Geotechnical Project Awardees

The 2026 Awardee

Central Kowloon Route - Central Tunnel (CKR-CT) project (Hong Kong)

This project represents a paradigm shift in urban tunnelling, achieving excellence across all criteria.

• The project pioneered transformative solutions in congested urban environments.
• Advanced 3D geological model synthesizing 1,900 geotechnical data sources, including six horizontal directional cores, enhanced by a bespoke AGS data processor that automated critical parameter extraction.
• The project developed a fully hydraulic-mechanical lining system integrating waterproofing, rebar fixing, and concrete placement within a single formwork, achieving unprecedented progress rates of 6 meters per day in variable tunnel profiles.
• Hong Kong’s inaugural use of slip forming for the 27-meter-diameter HMT Ventilation Shaft (ascending at 200mm/hour)
• Strategic combination of a 7-meter pilot TBM with a 3.3-bar hyperbaric chamber for metro under-crossing exemplify its groundbreaking methodology.
• AI-driven energy optimisation and real-time data analytics for crane operations amplified productivity by 30%, establishing new benchmarks for intelligent construction
• Extreme complexity—including tunnelling beneath 450+ structures affecting 100,000 residents, intersecting four live metro lines, and traversing seven fault zones
• Substitution of traditional diaphragm walls with vibration-minimizing pipe pile walls for shaft excavation, designing adaptive temporary supports for 20-meter tunnel spans based on robust geological baselines, and deploying high-speed gantry cranes to overcome site constraints.
• Converting the HMT Ventilation Building foundation from piles to a raft, eliminating 48% of H-piles—yielded significant savings