Contractor suspended from public tenders after fatal Sau Mau Ping site accident

The Development Bureau on Monday instantly banned a contractor from bidding on government building projects after a fatal incident on November 2 at a private housing site in Sau Mau Ping, mandating an independent safety audit and proven reforms before any reinstatement.

The bureau announced today that the firm—one of the approved contractors for public works—has been barred from all building-category tenders with immediate effect. 

The suspension covers both new bids and any in-progress tender exercises yet to conclude.

The company must now engage an external expert to conduct a comprehensive review of its safety management system. 

It is required to submit a detailed improvement plan, implement the changes, and demonstrate effective safeguards before the bureau will consider lifting the ban.

The Labour Department is investigating the accident and will take enforcement action as warranted. 

Depending on its findings, the bureau may prolong the suspension or strike the contractor off the approved list entirely.

Officials emphasized that every contractor on the list is held to rigorous safety standards on all sites—public or private—to avert further loss of life.

The accident occurred at the Subsidised Sale Flats Development Project on Anderson Road Quarry Site R2-2. Hip Hing Engineering is the current main contractor. 

The site previously fell under Aggressive Construction, which suffered a catastrophic crane collapse there in September 2022 that claimed three lives and injured six others. 

After additional fatal incidents elsewhere, authorities declined to renew Aggressive’s license, prompting the switch to Hip Hing.