Surbana Jurong, an urban, infrastructure and managed services consulting firm, recently opened its new headquarters in Singapore. Surbana Jurong Campus inaugurates the Jurong Innovation District, a business park set in a tropical rainforest.
On the 742,000-sf campus, 10 five- and seven-story pavilions are grouped along a central pedestrian corridor connecting indoor and open-air courtyards, communal spaces, and amenities.
The design by Safdie Architects—with Surbana Jurong Group as the architect of record and KTP Consultants as the structural engineer—lifts up the pavilions like treehouses. As a result, the terrain below can grow and surround the lower-level public spaces and upper-level offices.
This approach brings together Surbana Jurong’s 4,000 employees with the surrounding landscape and community—creating an alternative to traditional buildings that are inwardly focused. The design provides employees access to light, air, and green space, along with publicly accessible clinic and fitness areas, nursing rooms, and childcare facilities.
“With the Surbana Jurong Campus, our latest project in Singapore, we are introducing a new workplace typology that responds to the pressing need for connection to nature and community,” Moshe Safdie, founding partner, Safdie Architects, said in a statement.
The project provides private, semi-private, and public work environments, including closed offices with expansive views, dedicated spaces for research, a sunken courtyard, and shaded seating alcoves. The campus also includes event spaces and a 1,000-seat multipurpose hall.
The passive design project is the first building to achieve Green Mark Platinum Super Low Energy status, the highest rating awarded by the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore for environmentally sustainable design. To achieve this, the campus:
- Preserves more than half of the site’s existing green space
- Replaces built-on green areas with rooftop gardens, interior gardens, and exterior landscaping
- Uses rooftop solar panels
- Features climate-controlled interior courtyards with native tropical plants
- Provides abundant natural light on all floors
- Minimizes solar heat gain through techniques such as light shelves and louvers
- Uses an underfloor air distribution system
- Incorporates rain gardens and bioswales
- Integrates EV charging stations
- Implements smart building control systems
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%281%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%282%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%283%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%284%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%285%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%286%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%287%29.jpg)
![](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%288%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%289%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%2810%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%2811%29.jpg)
![Photo by Timothy Hursley, courtesy of Safdie Architects](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Surbana%20Jurong%20Campus%20%2812%29.jpg)
Related Stories
| Jun 11, 2012
Hill International selected as CM for Porto Arabia Towers in Qatar
The complex is a mixed-use development featuring both residential and commercial properties.
| Jun 8, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti/Fore Solutions provides consulting for renovation at Tufts School of Dental Medicine
Project receives LEED Gold certification.
| Jun 6, 2012
KPF designs tower for Yongsan IBD
The master plan, created by Studio Daniel Libeskind, is a dynamic urban environment containing contributions from 19 different architects practicing in diverse locations around the globe.
| Jun 6, 2012
SOM urges Chicago tenants to partner with landlords to cut energy use
Tenants can exceed building energy challenge targets recently announced by Mayor Emanuel.
| Jun 5, 2012
Walker Parking opens office in Abu Dhabi
Walker has been in Abu Dhabi since May 2011 but in a temporary office suite.
| Jun 4, 2012
Brownfield goes green
Chicago Center for Green Technology uses high-speed, energy-efficient hand dryers to share its green message and earn LEED credits.
| Jun 1, 2012
New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available
By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.
| Jun 1, 2012
Robert Wilson joins SmithGroupJJR
Wilson makes the move to SmithGroupJJR from VOA Associates, Inc., where he served as a senior vice president and technical director in its Chicago office.
| May 31, 2012
5 military construction trends
Defense spending may be down somewhat, but there’s still plenty of project dollars out there if you know where to look.