"Have you seen the circular apartments proposed by Samsung C&T nationwide? They haven't built these kinds of apartments because the design is poor," said a representative of Hyundai Engineering & Construction.
On the morning of the 24th at 10 a.m. at the Hyundai Engineering & Construction's promotional hall for 'The DH Han River,' built to win the Hanam District 4 redevelopment project at 34-69 Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, a representative of Hyundai Engineering & Construction said this to about 20 members of the Hanam District 4 association.
The Hanam District 4 redevelopment is estimated to cost 1.6 trillion won, making it a prime redevelopment site in the northern part of Seoul. The project involves redeveloping the area at 360 Bogwang-dong, Yongsan-gu, to construct a new apartment complex with 4 basement floors, 22 above-ground floors, 51 buildings, and 2,331 residential units.
Hyundai Engineering & Construction emphasized that it would proceed without any setbacks in areas such as ▲design differentiation ▲minimizing member contributions ▲fulfilling promises at the promotional hall that opened at 10 a.m. on the same day. They explained that the exterior design of the The DH Han River complex reflects the philosophy of Zaha Hadid, the first female Pritzker Prize winner, by incorporating curved forms.
A representative of Hyundai Engineering & Construction stated, "We incorporated 88,000 aluminum panels, which construction companies seldom use due to high costs, throughout the complex to enhance the curved design," adding that "choosing Hyundai Engineering & Construction will reduce the member contribution by at least 190 million won."
Hyundai Engineering & Construction employed a strategy of highlighting the excellence of 'The DH Han River' while emphasizing the drawbacks of Samsung C&T's proposal.
The representative noted, "Hyundai Engineering & Construction's plan involves arranging the complex in 29 buildings, which is 6 fewer than Samsung C&T's 35 buildings, resulting in a larger landscaping area and better livability." However, they added that "unlike Hyundai Engineering & Construction, which designed the structure as a flat-type apartment with all living rooms aligned for cross ventilation and southwestern/southeastern exposure, Samsung C&T's circular structure hampers cross ventilation."
He criticized Samsung C&T's circular apartments, saying, "Each apartment is 165 square meters (50 pyeong), allowing only a total of 280 units, with half facing north. A single window faces the sunlight directly, while the back of the unit is a corridor, so cross ventilation is impossible. Each floor has 6 units but only 3 elevators."
Hyundai Engineering & Construction also highlighted that it allocated more to landscaping compared to Samsung C&T. They pointed out that Samsung C&T's claim of 1,600 units with a view of the Han River is false. They asserted that the construction period will be 49 months, including 6 months for demolition, which is over 8 months shorter than Samsung C&T's 57 months, including 9 months for demolition.
The representative mentioned, "Based on analyses by the artificial intelligence (AI) analysis firm Ten Eleven, the number of units with a view of the Han River in Hyundai Engineering & Construction's proposal is 849," but also pointed out that "when we applied Samsung C&T's design documents, the number dropped to only 650, making Samsung C&T's claim of over 1,650 units with a Han River view false."
Hyundai Engineering & Construction emphasized that by offering a rate of the Certificate of Deposit (CD) rate + fixed interest, they can save over 21.5 billion won in financial costs compared to Samsung C&T, reducing the cost per member by 18 million won.
Samsung C&T also opened the promotional hall for 'Glow Han River,' proposed by itself, targeting about 20 members of the Hanam District 4 association, at 34-158 Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, from the 5th to 6th floors at 2 p.m. on the same day, following Hyundai Engineering & Construction.
Samsung C&T emphasized to the Hanam District 4 members that the Raemian Glow Hills Hannam was designed to maximize the number of units with a view of the Han River.
A representative of Samsung C&T stated, "The premium on apartments varies significantly depending on whether there's a view of the Han River, and it's certain that Samsung C&T has more than double the number of units with a view compared to Hyundai Engineering & Construction."
He commented, "I heard that Hyundai Engineering & Construction spent over 70% of their time criticizing Samsung C&T's proposal in their own promotional hall because none of their proposal conditions are better than Samsung C&T's," adding that "in the simulation results, the number of units capable of viewing the Han River from the living room of Samsung C&T's Raemian Glow Hills Hannam exceeded 800."
Samsung C&T also meticulously pointed out the drawbacks of Hyundai Engineering & Construction's proposal, appealing to the Hanam District 4 members to choose Samsung C&T. They specifically highlighted that Samsung C&T's construction cost of 9.38 million won per 3.3 square meters is higher than Hyundai Engineering & Construction's 8.81 million won due to ▲early consideration of inflation-related construction cost increases ▲inclusion of cost for extending balconies in general sales ▲special earthquake resilience ratings ▲noise reduction between floors ▲the inclusion of 960 million won worth of specialized designs.
B said, "The issue with Hyundai Engineering & Construction's design is that their assembly consists of 6 units per floor, leading to many tower-type floor plans that do not allow for ventilation, making them narrow and stuffy." He further asserted, "Hyundai Engineering & Construction claims their reduced number of buildings—29—allows for more distance between the buildings, but the actual figures show their building coverage ratio is higher than Samsung C&T's."
Regarding financial procurement conditions for project costs, Samsung C&T claimed superiority over Hyundai Engineering & Construction. They explained that they apply a CD rate + 0.78% not only to essential project costs but also to project promotion expenses. In contrast, Hyundai Engineering & Construction applies a CD rate + 0.1% only to essential project costs and must be guaranteed by the Korea Housing & Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG), adding additional fees.
B criticized, "Samsung C&T increased sales revenue to maximize members' benefits and expanded the general sale area," noting that "to achieve differentiated design desired by Hanam District 4, special products must be proposed, even if it means raising construction costs. Hyundai Engineering & Construction merely reduced construction costs."
He continued, "If the essential project cost procurement condition of Hyundai Engineering & Construction, which is CD rate + 0.1%, incurs HUG guarantee fees, it changes to CD rate + 0.67%, and once you get the HUG guarantee, loans for project promotion costs are not available. Since the borrowing period for essential project costs is short, the financial costs that Hyundai Engineering & Construction bears are minimal, and project promotion costs must be borne by members throughout the project period, so comparing only the financial conditions for essential project costs and project promotion, Samsung C&T is more than 110 billion won cheaper than Hyundai Engineering & Construction.
Both companies plan to determine the final winner of Hanam District 4 through a general meeting to select a construction company on Jan. 18, after holding four briefings starting with the first joint briefing on the 23rd.
The promotional halls opened by both companies on the 24th of this month are scheduled to run until Jan. 17 of next year. Both companies invite an average of 30 to 60 members per session, operating four one-hour explanations per day in a reservation system.