Sekisui House's Sommers Bend community wins top Japanese construction award

Sekisui House Ltd.'s Sommers Bend community in Temecula, California, has been honored with the Award of Excellence in the Construction and Development Project category at the 9th JAPAN Construction International Award. This marks a significant achievement as it is the first time a detached-home community development has received this prestigious award, conferred by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT).

The Sommers Bend project, Sekisui House's first SHAWOOD community in the United States, showcases the company's integrated, Japan-honed construction system. This system combines Sekisui House’s proprietary S-MJ construction system with locally sourced 2×4 framing, creating a replicable framework for high-quality homes with features appealing to Western buyers, such as larger openings and indoor-outdoor connections.

The MLIT cited the project's environmental performance, durability, and disaster resilience. All homes are net-zero energy, equipped with solar power generation and battery storage. The use of durable structural components, informed by Sekisui House's disaster-response experience in Japan, and the promotion of pre-cutting and pre-setting of components to reduce waste were also highlighted.

Beyond the physical construction, the award recognized Sekisui House's commitment to technology transfer and workforce development through English-language manuals, videos, and hands-on training in the U.S. and Japan. This focus addresses the chronic labor shortages reported by U.S. builders.

Sommers Bend has previously received accolades in the U.S., including a SoCal MAME Award and honors at the PCBC Gold Nugget Awards. Sekisui House plans to expand its SHAWOOD platform, primarily along the West Coast, with a target of delivering 3,000 homes annually in the U.S. by 2031. This expansion aims to establish SHAWOOD as a significant player in select U.S. markets, particularly where land constraints and environmental regulations favor quality and performance.