The Gear and Glodon sign MoU to Advance Education for Digital Construction

The GEAR and Glodon formed a strategic partnership to advance education for digital construction, with the launch of an exhibit featuring programmable robots and digital learning tools at The GEAR building to inspire the next generation of builders.

SINGAPORE, Sept. 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On September 8, The GEAR by Kajima (The GEAR) and Glodon International (Glodon) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance education for digital construction. The signing ceremony took place at The GEAR building, with Luke Wu, Managing Director of The GEAR, and Wataru Matsumoto, Vice President of Glodon Company Limited, representing the two parties. This partnership marks an important step in promoting the use of smart technologies and skills development in the built environment.

Glodon, China's first A-share listed company in construction information technology, has been driving the digital transformation of the building industry for nearly three decades. The company develops software, hardware, and integrated solutions that support the full lifecycle of construction projects. The GEAR operates as the technology services and open innovation platform of the Kajima group. As part of Kajima, one of Japan's largest and most established construction, engineering, and real estate companies with a nearly two-century legacy of innovation, The GEAR continues to advance Kajima's vision of "Building for the Next 100 Years".

Key Initiatives Under the MoU

Education & Training: Jointly advance digital transformation and high-tech education through Glodon's smart technologies. Initiatives include virtual simulation for construction robotics, digital teaching applications, and knowledge exchange programs. Glodon's CubiCost 5D BIM digital cost solution will also be introduced via seminars, workshops, and collaborative programs.

Co-Branded Exhibition: As part of this initiative, a joint showcase at The GEAR building highlights smart technologies and digital learning tools to inspire the next generation of construction professionals. Demonstrations include:

• Smart Tiling Robot: This Robot demonstrates automated tiling in construction, showcasing how robotics can enhance efficiency, precision, and safety on site. It can be programmed and controlled to complete customised tasks, offering a hands-on way to explore how digital tools are reshaping building processes and inspiring future builders.
• Prefabricated Construction AR Education Platform: The AR Education Platform combines display screens and interactive tools to create an immersive learning environment for modular construction. By integrating AR teaching, interactive systems, and sandbox models, it enables users to visualise prefabricated building processes, experiment with digital models, and understand how modern methods enhance efficiency and sustainability in construction.

"For Glodon, this MoU is not just a business agreement—it is our commitment to industry transformation," said Wataru Matsumoto, "We are proud to contribute to Singapore's digital transformation in construction, and our collaboration with The GEAR allows us to share experiences, exchange best practices, and grow with the industry."

Luke Wu added: "People are at the heart of digital transformation — and it begins with students. Our partnership with Glodon will expand education in digital construction tools, enabling young talent to connect technology with practice and drive lasting change across the industry."

The partnership builds on previous engagements between Kajima Group and Glodon. Since 2019, Kajima Overseas Asia Singapore (KOAS) has adopted Glodon's CubiCost solution in 5D BIM Quantity Surveying and Systematic Cost Management, applying digital tools to strengthen construction planning and delivery from tender to project stage.

In 2019, Kajima Technical Research Institute Singapore (KaTRIS, Kajima Corporation) began engaging with Glodon through knowledge sharing and site visits. In May 2025, Dr. Chae Soungho, Chief Research Engineer, visited Glodon's headquarters during the Digital Building Summit in Beijing, China. These exchanges laid the foundation for today's partnership, bringing The GEAR and Glodon together to create new opportunities in digital construction education and innovation. 

[About The GEAR by Kajima]

The GEAR by Kajima is the technology services business and open innovation platform of the Kajima group. As part of Kajima, one of Japan's largest and oldest construction, engineering, and real estate companies with a nearly two-century legacy of innovation, The GEAR by Kajima bridges world-class engineering expertise, licensed technologies, and global-local collaboration to co-create transformative solutions for the built environment. 

The GEAR by Kajima provides unprecedented opportunities for businesses to access Kajima's licensed technologies and leverage our rich engineering heritage. As the operator of Kajima's first overseas headquarters and R&D facility in Southeast Asia, it also manages a state-of-the-art smart building that serves as a living lab for innovation and sustainable design. By cultivating an open and collaborative ecosystem with industry partners, The GEAR by Kajima is driving forward industry-wide advancement and setting new standards for the future of the built environment.

Website: https://www.thegear.sg/

[About Glodon International]

Glodon International is the digital building software and platform provider of Glodon Company Limited, a leading construction technology enterprise with over two decades of R&D and innovation in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. By integrating 5D BIM, cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and big data, Glodon provides software platforms for design, cost, and project management, supporting every stage of construction projects. With strong technical expertise and a professional R&D talent background, Glodon continues to develop practical solutions that address the evolving needs of the construction industry.

As the global arm of Glodon, it helps governments, enterprises, and professionals adopt digital construction through localized expertise and international collaboration. Its core solutions—CubiCost for 5D BIM cost management, Gsite for project collaboration, and MagiCAD for MEP design—are widely applied across the industry. Backed by continuous R&D and close partnerships, Glodon International is supporting the construction sector's move toward greater efficiency, accuracy, and sustainability.

Website: asia.glodon.com

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

The Gear and Glodon sign MoU to Advance Education for Digital Construction

ALULA, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Today marks the official opening of Desert X AlUla 2026, the landmark fourth edition of the international, open-air biennial exhibition. Arts AlUla, in collaboration with Desert X, welcomes visitors to experience a stellar line-up of Saudi and international multi-generational artists whose site-responsive earthworks, sculptures, and installations will engage in a powerful dialogue with the awe-inspiring landscapes and layered heritage of AlUla.

 

 

As a premier destination rich in ancient history and breathtaking nature, AlUla, located in Northwest Saudi Arabia, solidifies its position on the global stage as a dynamic, emerging land art destination with Desert X AlUla, the region's first public art biennale, and a key highlight of the AlUla Arts Festival.

The 2026 edition of Desert X AlUla brings together 11 acclaimed artists whose diverse works reflect a wide spectrum of ideas, materials, and traditions. From monumental kinetic sculpture to sound-based explorations above and below ground, each commission is deeply rooted in relationships to AlUla's distinctive environment, further cementing Desert X AlUla's reputation as a globally significant platform for site-responsive land art.

Desert X AlUla runs until February 28, 2026, as a cornerstone of the annual AlUla Arts Festival. Curated by Wejdan Reda, Zoé Whitley, with artistic direction by Neville Wakefield, and Raneem Farsi, its fourth edition explores 'Space Without Measure.' Inspired by Kahlil Gibran, the theme fosters contemplation of imagination within AlUla's natural settings. The exhibition, set in the desert canyons of AlUla, serves as a pre-opening programme for Wadi AlFann, offering a pivotal glimpse into AlUla's plans to create a permanent land art 'Valley of the Arts.'

Hamad Alhomiedan, Director of Arts & Creative Industries at the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), said: "At Desert X AlUla 2026, audiences will engage with art that deeply converses with AlUla's unique landscapes and rich heritage. These compelling commissions highlight AlUla's dynamic transformation into a major global destination, where ancient and contemporary expressions converge. This exhibition is part of our broader revitalisation of AlUla as a culturally rich destination to live, work and visit and integral to positioning AlUla in the global dialogue of contemporary art and as a precursor to monumental projects like Wadi AlFann."

Participating artist/artworks are: 

• Sara Abdu, A Kingdom Where No One Dies: Contours of Resonance
• Mohammad Alfaraj, What was the Question Again?
• Mohammed AlSaleem, The Thorn, AlShuruf Unit, The Triangles, Flower Bud, and Al Ahilla (courtesy of Royal Commission for Riyadh City)
• Tarek Atoui, The Water Song
• Bahraini-Danish, Bloom 
• Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Imole Red 
• Agnes Denes, The Living Pyramid
• Ibrahim El-Salahi, Haraza Tree
• Basmah Felemban, Murmur of Pebbles
• Vibha Galhotra, Future Fables
• Héctor Zamora, Tar HyPar

For further information, please contact:
Sabrine.Shaw@bursonglobal.com
AlUlaArtsFestival@bursonglobal.com 

Multimedia gallery:
High-resolution photos of all 11 artists and their artworks can be found here.

About AlUla and Arts AlUla

Located 1,100 km from Riyadh, in North-West Saudi Arabia, AlUla is a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage. The vast area, covering 22,561km², includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains and ancient cultural heritage sites dating back thousands of years to when the Lihyan and Nabataean kingdoms reigned.

The most well-known and recognised site in AlUla is Hegra, the principal southern city of the Nabataean Kingdom and Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site. AlUla is also home to ancient Dadan, the capital of the Dadan and Lihyan Kingdoms and considered to be one of the most developed 1st millennium BCE cities of the Arabian Peninsula, and Jabal Ikmah, an open air library of hundreds of inscriptions and writings in many different languages. AlUla Old Town Village, a labyrinth of more than 900 mudbrick homes was developed from at least the 12th century and has been revitalised as the vibrant hub for visitors and residents.

The creation of Arts AlUla within The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) is a commitment to crafting the next chapters in a millennia of artistic creation – celebrating cultural inheritance and shaping a future inspired by artists built be artists. The work of Arts AlUla seeks to preserve this legacy: fuse the old with the new; the local with the international, keeping the arts central to the spirit of AlUla as a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage.

Wadi AlFann, meaning 'Valley of the Arts,' will be a global cultural destination for land art, unveiling from 2028 onwards, where era-defining works by artists from around the world will be permanently sited in the monumental landscape of AlUla, the extraordinary desert region of north-west Saudi Arabia.

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

Desert X AlUla 2026: monumental land art exhibition opens in the ancient oasis of AlUla