The presentation ceremony for the Hong Kong Information and Communications Technology Awards 2025 (Hong Kong ICT Awards 2025) was successfully held on 21 November 2025. The EMSD team won a Bronze Award in the Smart People (Smart Empowerment) Award for its AI Lift Occupancy Management System (UPLift), while the Iron Pipe Corrosion Detection Robot jointly developed with the Hong Kong Productivity Council received a Certificate of Merit in the Smart Business (Emerging Technologies) Award.
To ease the issue of prolonged lift waiting time at public hospitals, the EMSD team developed the UPLift. By analysing closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage in real time, the system identifies passengers and objects in the lift car and measures the remaining space. When the lift is fully loaded, it will automatically bypass intermediate floors and proceed direct to the destination floor, thereby reducing both waiting and travel time. Deployed at the Tuen Mun Hospital Rehabilitation Block in 2024, the system successfully reduced lift waiting time during peak hours by 20%, with a 15% increase in passenger handling capacity.
The Iron Pipe Corrosion Detection Robot, another award-winning project, facilitates predictive maintenance of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems. Equipped with magnets and a flexible chassis, the robot can adhere to and manoeuvre around curved pipe surfaces and traverse obstacles. With the use of AI and an image processor, it detects and highlights water stains and rust, allowing operators to address the issues promptly. The solution has been piloted in the Hong Kong West Cluster of the Hospital Authority since June 2025. More functional modules are currently under development to broaden its application scope.