In order to improve quality of life, the PWD plans to create a "Built Environment of Distinction" through the development of buildings, services, and infrastructure.

By utilising its technical capabilities to build infrastructure and offer project management services for sustainable socioeconomic development, PWD plays a critical role in accomplishing the national goals of Wawasan Brunei 2035.

The agency, tasked with enhancing the country's quickly expanding infrastructure requirements, marked a noteworthy achievement in 1966 when Dato Seri Paduka Haji Talib bin Darwish was appointed as the first local director.

It was formally named the 'Public Works Department' in the 1967 annual report and was able to start developing and establishing infrastructure thanks to budgetary allocations from the British Government based in Malaysia.

In addition to erecting the roads and Bubungan Dua Belas, one of its first tasks was clearing the land for Brunei Town in the same year.

PWD has contributed significantly to Brunei's physical growth over the course of a century, as seen by the standards of the infrastructure it has built, including roads, highways, drainage and sewage systems, water supply and conservation, and a variety of public and government buildings.

From design to construction, the process consists of several steps, including certification for practical completion and fault correction, final account approvals, and the transfer of maintenance obligation to the customer following the defect liability term.