At 35 stories, the State Courts Towers at Havelock Square is the tallest government building in Singapore. And while it’s been open since December 2019—when the State Courts started relocating from a nine-story building that dated back to 1975—details and images about its design and construction have only recently been made public by CPG Consultants, the S$450 million (US$334.6 million) project’s Principal Consultant and Architect.
The 178-meter (584-ft) building contains 53 courtrooms and 54 hearing chambers. The structure, designed by Serie + Multiply Consultants, is actually two slender buildings, the Court Tower and Office Tower, connected by 39 link bridges. The design optimizes visibility to the public, with courtroom boxes placed onto large “court trays” of different heights and sizes that are completely open in that there is no glazed façade around the tower.
The towers' 53 courtrooms are placed onto “trays” of different sizes that are “open,” in that there's no glazed facade. Illustration: CPG Consultants
Each “tray” includes a garden terrace that filters sunlight and allows for views of the city. The courtrooms themselves are clad in pigmented precast panels, five to 12 meters in height, whose colors and textures match the tiled roofs of shophouses in Singapore’s nearby Chinatown.
“The relationship between the city and its civic buildings was our primary interest for this project,” explains Christopher Lee, Principal at Serie Architects UK. “The new State Courts Towers should be a building that is symbolically open and accessible to the public. Its design language is drawn from the architecture typical of the city and hence is both familiar and surprisingly new to its citizens.”
The front tower includes the courtrooms and is accessible to the public; the back tower is for judges' chambers and conference rooms. The towers are linked by 39 bridges. lIlustration: CPG Consultants; Image: Khoogj
A SMART, TRANSPARENT BUILDING
The cladding for the courtrooms is precast panels, 5 to 12 ft in height, whose colors and textures match to roofs of nearby shops in Singapore's Chinatown. Image" Finbarr Fallon
The office tower, for judges’ chambers and staff offices, features a vertical façade that expands where light and views are required in the middle, and contracts where the service core is located. Horizontal grids draw the viewer’s eye across the façade and to the sky.
The towers include a coworking space managed by the Singapore Academy of Law, for attorneys and tech companies; a theatrette, business center, cafeteria, roof garden and sky terraces, and a library and auditorium located in the basement.
The complex’s smart building features include facial recognition and automated building management processes for security and MEP systems. Other IT or web-enabled services introduced include video-conferencing facilities and interactive self-service kiosks. A universal design approach was adopted to ensure that it is user-friendly to the judges, persons in custody, and the public, for example in providing Assistive Listening Systems for court attendees and in all its courtrooms, digital wayfinding through apps.
The State Courts Towers is an environmentally sustainable building, with green building features incorporated in its design, such as solar panels and condensate water recovery systems.
Open space, acoustics, user inclusion, visibility, and smart technology were important factors in the design of the courtrooms. Illustration: CPG Consultants; Image: Khoogj
Related Stories
AEC Tech | Nov 12, 2020
The Weekly show: Nvidia's Omniverse, AI for construction scheduling, COVID-19 signage
BD+C editors speak with experts from ALICE Technologies, Build Group, Hastings Architecture, Nvidia, and Woods Bagot on the November 12 episode of "The Weekly." The episode is available for viewing on demand.
Smart Buildings | Oct 26, 2020
World’s first smart building assessment and rating program released
The SPIRE Smart Building Program will help building owners and operators make better investment decisions, improve tenant satisfaction, and increase asset value.
Government Buildings | Sep 14, 2020
Latest addition to Fermilab campus about to begin construction
Lots of natural light and hybrid labs will distinguish the new Integrated Engineering Research Center.
Giants 400 | Aug 28, 2020
2020 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms
The 2020 Giants 400 Report features more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Healthcare Facilities | Aug 13, 2020
New VA care center showcases the agency’s P3 approach to financing healthcare facilities
Clinic programming enhances patient privacy.
Sustainability | Aug 11, 2020
Sustainability is key for Denver Water’s modernized campus and distribution system
The utility is showcasing a new admin building and a water reuse plan that’s a first for the state.
Cultural Facilities | Jun 19, 2020
A new ULI report chronicles the depaving of America
Fifteen examples of how parks and green spaces emerged from parking lots, garages, and underpasses.
Green | Mar 9, 2020
BuroHappold commits to all new building projects achieving net-zero carbon by 2030
The engineering firm also launched a long-term partnership with ILFI.
Giants 400 | Jan 23, 2020
Government Buildings Sector Giants Report for 2019 [Updated]
AECOM, HOK, Jacobs, and Turner Construction top the rankings of the nation's largest government buildings sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
Government Buildings | Nov 13, 2019
The Washington Monument reopens with a new visitor center
This is one of several landmark restoration projects underway in the nation’s capital.