ENR 2025 Global Best Projects
Best Project, Cultural/Worship: Solar Boat Museum
Ancient pharaoh's vessel gets new high-tech home
Solar Boat Museum
Giza, Egypt
Best Project, Cultural/Worship
Submitted by Hassan Allam Construction
Owner: Egypt Public Authority of Tourism
Contractor: Hassan Allam Construction
The Solar Boat Museum, which opened in November within the monumental 5-million-sq-ft Grand Egyptian Museum that also just fully opened after 20 years of construction, houses Pharaoh Khufu’s 4,500-year-old royal boat—considered one of the oldest and best-preserved in history—according to submitters. Evoking a boat silhouette, the museum uses modern materials, facades and energy systems to improve sustainability and visitor experience.
Team collaboration overcame the challenge of starting the Solar Boat Museum's construction without a final design or detailed project documents. “The steel structure had already been erected prior to finalization of architectural drawings, meaning the entire building had to be adapted around an existing frame,” says the submitter. The contractor and client worked together “in real time to validate evolving architectural designs against structural safety requirements, with individual calculations for substructure reinforcement performed to accommodate changing plans.”
Photo by Maryam Fouda, Hassan Allam Construction
The steel structure supporting the exhibition hall without visual interruption was engineered and built “with millimeter precision,” according to the submitter.
Virtual design and construction used to simulate key activities, particularly in the steel structure and MEP systems, “allowed the team to anticipate structural load challenges, HVAC routing constraints and installation conflicts within the tight museum footprint,” the team notes. The project achieved “unprecedented levels of climate control and preservation planning” to ensure vessel integrity, including tapping experts in global conservation and ancient craft methods. “From stone cladding to custom joinery, the project featured artisans from across Egypt who brought traditional skills to a modern setting,” the team says.
Building now housing a pharaoh’s 4,500-year-old vessel in the Grand Egyptian Museum complex in Giza has enhanced sustainability features.
Photo by Maryam Fouda, Hassan Allam Construction
Collaboration enabled a 30% cut in rework despite ongoing redesign, while the project’s “comprehensive” health, safety and environmental program included water, waste and energy-saving measures; mandatory staff safety training and performance measures that were factored into managers’ financial incentives.
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