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Safdie Architects has officially opened the new campus headquarters of Surbana Jurong, Singapore’s leading architecture, urban design and infrastructure company. The project extends Safdie Architects’ vision of “a garden for everyone” into the workplace, with a design that capitalizes on the tranquility of the site’s previously unexplored natural environment to promote shared moments of engagement and creativity. The park, which is Green Mark (Ultra Low Energy) certified, is a flagship development in the emerging Jurong Innovation District and is envisioned as the first business park in a tropical rainforest.
The development marks Safdie Architects’ sixth project in Singapore and adds to the firm’s portfolio of prestigious buildings in Singapore, which includes Marina Bay Sands, Sky Habitat and Jewel Hotel at Changi Airport. On the occasion of the opening, ArchDaily interviewed Safdie Architects partner Charu Kokate, who is responsible for the Singapore region, and learned about the company’s unique development footprint and architectural philosophy.
Kokat is particularly outspoken when it comes to integrating green spaces into projects and making them available to the wider public: “In many densely populated cities like Singapore, people go to shopping malls for their entertainment because it’s more comfortable. , especially when “it rains, it’s hot or it’s humid. Cities are getting denser and greenery and community spaces are disappearing. I think the only way to enrich communities and make them more active or engage them is to think about them all the time. ”
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Architectural Classics: Habitat 67 / Safdie Architects
Surbana Jurong embodies this commitment and, as well as supporting the workplace wellness of Surbana Jurong’s 4,000 on-site employees, it integrates harmoniously with the natural environment and serves as a gathering place for the wider community through planned public spaces.
Situated on a previously undeveloped rainforest site, the design retains much of the existing topography and replaces lost landscape areas with indoor gardens and an accessible roof garden. Rejecting traditional office towers, Safdie Architects envisioned the headquarters as a sprawling campus, deploying functional elements across a series of 10 seven-story pavilions.
This is more than just an admission. Good architecture can be recognized, but a truly successful project is one that is accepted by society. The only effective approach is to go beyond the client brief and create an opportunity for the public to take pride in the building. We don’t work in isolation. The building itself does not exist. They exist in the community.
Kokate said company founding partner Moshe Safdie has prioritized community pride and unity from the beginning, saying, “Even when he was designing Habitat 67, which everyone was working on, he was incorporating greenery. Even I studied it when I was a student. He said, “I want to design houses, not apartments – because everyone should have access to natural light and nature. That’s how we’ve been working ever since. “
Although Surbana Jurong’s new campus is by definition a corporate structure, the concept of habitat is evident throughout the scheme. Serving as the main thoroughfare for the public and staff, a central curved glass pedestrian ‘street’ connects the 10 pavilions, as well as a series of indoor and open-air sunken gardens, public cafes and gathering spaces, external walkways and amenities at all levels facility.
Even from the beginning of the design process, Safdie Architects expanded on the client’s requirements. “Our model encompasses not just the delegation structure, but everything around it,” explains Kokate. “The moment you make a change, it anchors a project. You have to have very strong design principles and always think about constructability. That’s why we do physical models, because physical models really show you problem. We don’t like to rely too much on “We put a lot of emphasis on cool graphics and software. It’s not about being flashy or what we want to start, it’s about something that works for people. “
In the case of Surbana Jurong Park, what’s good for the people is the new central connectivity hub in the Greater Jurong Innovation District, which will be home to cutting-edge companies in key growth areas such as advanced manufacturing, urban solutions and smart logistics, including the nearby Nanyang Technological University , as well as new residential developments. Facilities such as childcare centres, open-air cinemas, fitness facilities and medical clinics are all open to the public, creating a sense of community that has never been seen in this part of Singapore.
The campus is designed with the philosophy that everyone deserves optimal light, air and green space, and promotes a more balanced and collective working atmosphere that helps reduce stress, enhance social interaction and enhance creativity. “It’s a palatial building because it’s very luxurious. And luxury is light, nature and space. It’s not expensive marble or granite or gold, but a different form of luxury,” explains Kokat.
Thinking outside the box and going beyond the initial client brief on issues like equity or community was also a theme Coquette elaborated on during his keynote speech at last year’s World Architecture Festival. “I think we’re very proud of it. Me personally too. Because it’s very unique. As design architects, we’re involved in the whole process until the very end. It’s something that no one talks about very often, but we’re involved until we deliver the key Yes. Even a project like Jewel, which has been open for five years. I think the ownership of the project, the involvement in the project, the passion for the project to be the best it can be, I think that’s really what it means to make a difference.”
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