Crane Collapse… Exposing Structural Problems in the Construction Sector: Reform or Repeat the Same Mistakes?

Consecutive construction crane collapse incidents have undermined public confidence in the safety of public infrastructure projects on a broad scale.  The series of construction crane collapses in January 2026 included: (1) the collapse of a crane at the Bangkok–Nakhon Ratchasima high-speed rail project site, which fell onto Special Express Train No. 21 operating on the Krung Thep Aphiwat–Ubon Ratchathani route; and (2) the collapse of a crane at the elevated roadway project on the Ekkachai–Ban Phaeo section (Motorway M82), which fell onto private vehicles. In addition, the collapse of the new Office of the Auditor General building under construction as a result of an earthquake in 2025, together with subsidence of completed and ongoing road construction in multiple areas occurring on a continuing basis, has collectively eroded confidence in the safety standards of public sector construction projects more broadly.

Addressing structural issues—through both strengthening regulatory oversight of construction contractors and adopting construction technologies—will help enhance safety in construction activities.

• Strengthening regulatory oversight of construction contractors. In the short term, it is necessary to accelerate the implementation of the contractor performance record system (including the deduction of accumulated points in cases of contractor violations). In addition, procurement processes for construction contractors must be made more stringent at every stage—from bidding and construction to project inspection and acceptance. This should be accompanied by the rigorous enforcement of penalties against contractors with construction deficiencies or delivery failures, ranging from financial penalties and disqualification from bidding, to downgrading of contractor classification and, ultimately, removal from the approved contractor list.
  
  In the long term, the construction sector across the entire supply chain must be upgraded through the establishment of an institution responsible for regulating and developing the construction industry. In this regard, the public sector may consider approaches to establishing a regulatory and development body for the construction sector, drawing on the example of Malaysia’s Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB), which plays a role in providing advice and policy recommendations to the government, as well as in regulation, standard setting, and upgrading the quality of construction contractors, extending to research and development to promote and facilitate the international competitiveness of the construction sector.

• The adoption of construction technologies will significantly reduce the risk of accidents, such as through the use of automated equipment and machinery to replace manual labor in hazardous tasks, and the deployment of sensor devices to provide alerts when equipment or machinery is operating abnormally or when maintenance and repair intervals are due. In this regard, the public sector plays a key role in accelerating the adoption of construction technologies through measures including the establishment of technology usage standards in public construction project procurement, support for research and development of construction technologies, reductions in corporate income tax, and the provision of financial support for contractors investing in relevant technologies and software.

Construction contractors should accelerate quality upgrading and exercise caution in adopting excessively low-price bidding strategies. Contractors should enhance quality by selecting reliable partners and subcontractors, strengthening construction processes to ensure safety, using construction materials and machinery that meet quality and standard requirements, and delivering projects on time and to the required quality. In addition, the adoption of technology will help increase productivity. At the same time, participation in construction project tenders should avoid overly aggressive price-based competition, in order to prevent situations in which contractors are pressured to preserve profit margins by cutting costs through reductions in construction quality.