Digitalisation of Tuas Checkpoint

Tuas Checkpoint is Singapore’s second land border crossing, connecting to Malaysia via the Second Link bridge to Tanjung Kupang, Johor. Built on 19.6 hectares of reclaimed land at Tuas and completed in 1998, the checkpoint and customs complex was designed by CPG Corporation and constructed using approximately 54,000 cubic metres of concrete and 18,000 tonnes of reinforcing steel, operating 24 hours a day under the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA).

As an existing, operationally critical border facility without a complete digital record of its as-built condition, the project scope covered laser scanning and surveying of the checkpoint complex, converting the captured point cloud data into a coordinated BIM model. This as-built digitalisation provides an accurate digital reference of the facility as it stands today, rather than relying on the original 1998 design and construction drawings, which may no longer reflect subsequent modifications, upgrades, or wear.

Scanning and modelling an active 24-hour border checkpoint, where vehicular and pedestrian clearance cannot be interrupted, required data capture to be planned around live operations. Beyond BIM modelling, the scope extended to BIM management, establishing the model as an ongoing digital reference that can support future facility management, renovation, or upgrading works without requiring further physical resurveying of the site.