The Yard of Environmental Sustainability (YES) Pavilion at CUHK is a permanent brick structure merging architecture, mechanical automation engineering, and sustainable design. Developed by the CUHK Centre for Robotics in Construction and Architecture (CRCA), this cross-disciplinary project advances sustainability, computational design, and robotic construction.
Using CU-Brick—a cable-driven robot that lays bricks precisely—the pavilion’s curving walls create shaded gathering zones, organise campus recyclables, and host a book exchange, exemplifying circular-economy principles.
Answering Hong Kong’s green construction and digitisation goals, the project engages architecture students in workshops on robotic prototyping and computational methods. Partnerships with campus green initiatives, the Architecture and Construction Industry, and academia showcase low-carbon, adaptive building techniques in support of SDG 12 and SDG 13.
Internationally recognised, CU-Brick scales automation in architecture and in partnership with industry, it has advanced out of the laboratory and into practical, real-world, permanent construction.
Future prototypes will integrate technical advancements, expanded BIM adoption, and increased use of recycled construction materials, offering a replicable model for sustainable, tech-forward architecture through academia–industry–government collaboration.
