Sekisui’s Sommers Bend wins top Japanese construction honor

Sommers Bend, the first SHAWOOD community developed by Japan-based Sekisui House Ltd. in the United States, has received the Award of Excellence in the Construction and Development Project category at the 9th JAPAN Construction International Award, according to a company announcement on Thursday. The award, conferred by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), marks the first time a detached-home community development has received the honor. The JAPAN Construction International Award was launched in fiscal 2017 to recognize “Quality Infrastructure” projects involving Japanese companies overseas and to support their global expansion. Master-planned community in Temecula Located in Temecula, California, Sommers Bend is a 57-lot detached-home community where sales of SHAWOOD homes began in 2024. The project extends Sekisui House’s integrated, Japan-honed system — spanning research and development, design, production and procurement, and construction management — into the U.S. market. The homes combine Sekisui House’s proprietary S-MJ construction system, an evolution of Japan’s post-and-beam method, with locally sourced 2×4 framing. The company said that...