Bentley Systems, an infrastructure engineering software company, has announced the finalists for its 2026 Year in Infrastructure (YII) Awards. For more than two decades, the annual awards have recognised infrastructure professionals and their innovative use of Bentley software to improve how infrastructure is designed, built and operated.
Selected by independent panels of global industry experts, this year’s finalists demonstrate how technologies including digital twins and artificial intelligence (AI) are being used to deliver more efficient project outcomes. Of the 36 finalist projects, 24 reported using AI in some form, while 22 showed strong or supporting evidence of a connected digital foundation.
“The YII Awards honour the professionals behind the infrastructure that communities rely on every day,” said Cate Lochead, chief marketing officer at Bentley Systems. “This year’s finalists show how infrastructure is moving from disconnected files, manual workflows and periodic inspections to connected information, intelligent automation and continuous insight.”
Across the finalist projects, digital twins, AI, analytics and connected data are helping teams make more informed decisions, assess alternatives more quickly and operate infrastructure with greater confidence and resilience. Projects span areas including geotechnical and subsurface modelling, wildfire risk and landslide mitigation, coastal and flood infrastructure, and stormwater planning.
Chosen from more than 300 submissions representing 53 countries, the YII Awards 2026 recognise projects across 12 categories covering the infrastructure lifecycle. Finalists were selected based on project innovation, the challenges addressed and the results achieved.
YII Awards 2026 finalists by category
Bridges and tunnels
• AYESA Engineering (Portugal): Porto Metro 3.0: Optimising tunnel design at scale
• Parsons, on behalf of the Georgia Department of Transportation (US): Talmadge Memorial Bridge: Modernising a critical Savannah crossing
• SUDOP PRAHA (Czech Republic): Praha–Beroun Tunnel: Designing Czechia’s largest rail tunnel
Cities and facilities
• Baosteel Engineering & Technology Group (China): Industrial site: City ‘rust belt rebirth’ transformation
• Pinnacle Future Build (India): Pinnacle Madurai campus: A digital twin for smart operations
• SUDOP PRAHA (Czech Republic): Prague main railway station: A digital twin for urban transformation
Construction
• AtkinsRéalis (UK): Hinkley Point C: Advancing 4D construction at scale
• DPR Construction and Trillium Advisory Group (US): Abilene data centre: Connecting digital delivery to construction reality
• Wills Bros (Ireland): Dublin Port Berths 52 and 53: Improving marine construction with 4D planning
Energy production
• CITIC Heavy Industry Machinery (China): Wind power equipment: Digital innovation throughout the entire lifecycle
• Wijaya Karya (Persero) (Indonesia): Lumut Balai 2 geothermal power plant: Transforming clean energy
• South-to-North Water Diversion (Chongqing) New Energy Development and POWERCHINA Zhongnan Engineering Corporation (China): Chongqing Yunyang Jianquan pumped storage: Innovation in a digital power station
Geospatial and reality modeling
• Aboitiz Renewables (Philippines): GeoShield: Predicting landslide risk with geospatial intelligence
• Department of Transport and Planning (Australia): Transport reality capture and integrated reality data management platform: Creating a shared view of the physical network
• Haskoning (UK): Port of Dover: Scaling maritime inspection with drones
Project delivery
• Kiewit (US): LAND: Transforming project delivery through connected data
• Port Polska (Poland): Port Polska: Connecting information across a major infrastructure program
• RS&H (US): Moving I-4 forward: Connecting project knowledge and delivery
Rail and transit
• NMA — Nikhil Mahashur and Associates (India): Hajimalang Gad funicular rail: Engineering access through challenging terrain
• Skanska Costain STRABAG JV (UK): HS2 London tunnels: Rehearsing construction before it happens
• SUDOP PRAHA (Czech Republic): Central Bohemia high-speed rail: Connecting design and project knowledge
Roads and highways
• Burgess & Niple (US): US-98: Accelerating design-build through digital innovation
• Wijaya Karya (Persero) (Indonesia): Semarang-Demak Toll Road: Designing for resilience at the edge of the sea
• Torrens to Darlington Alliance (John Holland, Bouygues, Arcadis, Jacobs, Ventia) in partnership with the South Australian Government, Department for Infrastructure and Transport (Australia): Torrens to Darlington (T2D): Digital delivery for South Australia’s north-south corridor
Structural engineering
• Arcadis (US): AutoFW: Automating design of flood protection structures
• Wijaya Karya Bangunan Gedung (WIKA Gedung) (Indonesia): Jakarta International Stadium: Engineering the largest retractable roof
• QB Engineering & Construction (Philippines): Our Lady of Light Parish Church, Loon: Digitally reconstructing a historic landmark
Subsurface modeling and analysis
• Intertechne Consultores (Brazil): Tailings Dam: Innovative use of geological and geotechnical models and assessment
• Mott MacDonald (Czech Republic): Praha-Smíchov–Beroun rail line: Building a connected subsurface model
• Mott MacDonald (Singapore): Changi Airport T5: 3D geological modeling and analysis to support planning decisions for T5’s complex ground conditions
Transmission and distribution
• APD Global (Australia): Clean Energy Link–North: Accelerating the renewable transition through AI enabled digital delivery
• Dar International for Engineering Consultancy (Saudi Arabia): Nariyah 380kV substation: Integrated digital delivery of a high-voltage GIS SS
• NV5, India (US): Utility infrastructure protection: Mapping risk across 17,600 miles of grid
Water and wastewater
• Evides (Netherlands): Water distribution: Operational digital twins for a 14,000-kilometer water network
• Haskoning India Consulting (India): Delhi stormwater drainage masterplan: Designing for a flood-free national capital
• Hunan Provincial Water Resources and Hydropower Survey, Design, Planning, and Research Institute (China): Hunan Zishui Quanmutang Reservoir: Applying full lifecycle BIM technology
The finalists will present their projects during Bentley’s Year in Infrastructure event at the Fairmont Singapore from 6–7 Oct 2026. Presentations will cover the engineering context, project execution, digital methods used and results achieved.
Bentley will also present selected projects with Founders’ Honors. Chosen by Bentley’s founders and executives, these awards recognise projects that reflect the company’s purpose of advancing the world’s infrastructure for a better quality of life.
