Visionary planning and design enrich lives

"Singapore is one of few countries that invest heavily in technical education and its infrastructure needs," says Lee Kut Cheung, managing director of RSP. "If you visit the ITE Ang Mo Kio campus, or its first regional campus College East in Simei, which we also designed, you will find students who are proud of their school and vocational education. As consultants, we find it very satisfying that our work has helped boost the confidence of these youths, motivating them to carve out a bright future."

RSP is also acclaimed for the design of commercial buildings such as Republic Plaza and Capital Tower, the headquarters of major developers City Developments group and CapitaLand, respectively. The firm was subsequently appointed by CapitaLand as the architect for CapitaGreen, an ambitious 40-storey office development that is home to multinationals Cargill, Bordier & Cie, Jardine Lloyd Thompson and Jones Day. 

Named the most "green" building in Singapore's central business district, CapitaGreen showcases intelligent building technology that sustains indoor air quality. In 2012, the building earned the Green Mark Platinum and Universal Design GoldPlus awards from the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) for its environment-friendly and human-centric design. Such awards are a major endorsement of RSP's breadth and depth of skills in commercial building design, reflecting its strong relationships with clients.

Transformative

Synonymous with shopping, Singapore's Orchard Road similarly demonstrates RSP's transformative impact. The firm has designed some of the prime retail area's most iconic buildings with structural and experiential attributes that have redefined the shopping experience. The upscale ION Orchard bridges the gap between high-end shopping and regular street activities with an open space that promotes exchanges and strolls. Plaza Singapura, one of the oldest shopping buildings in Orchard, sports a fresh look with a major retrofit linking the atrium building. Wave-like ribbons wrap around the buildings to create a strong visual statement. The visual fluidity also demonstrates social and spatial interconnectivity within the development, where both office building and shopping mall are seamlessly connected with transport links and the surroundings.

In these retail projects, design contributes to a stimulating experience and encourages a variety of interactions among different spaces and communities, helping to boost business activities and create more positive community attitudes towards urban life. 

From condominiums to public housing and school hostels, RSP's residential projects are landmarks in quality, sustainable urban living. They also deliver returns to owners in the long run by achieving top price gains - evidence of the value of good design work. Property prices of high-end residential project Ardmore Park, completed 18 years ago, peaked at S$2,000 (HK$11,347) per square foot (psf) at the time of launch. St Regis Residences topped the next peak in 2006, while Orchard Residences is holding steady at around S$4,000 psf. 

Luxury condominiums d'Leedon and The Interlace are award winners for universal design excellence. Offering solutions to modern challenges such as space and energy constraints, inclusivity and urban stress, these projects propose design elements such as lush green landscaping, ageing-in-place and handicap-friendly facilities, amenities and common areas. 

In hotel design, which is particularly demanding, RSP meets the two key requirements: to delight a great variety of guest markets and achieve operational efficiency for the owner. It has designed and built several major hotels in Singapore to this effect, including Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort, Grand Copthorne Waterfront, Grand Park City Hall, The St Regis Singapore and Royal Plaza on Scotts.

For the Holiday Inn Express Singapore Clarke Quay along Clemenceau Avenue, RSP departs from the "stuffy" grande dame design typical of hotels. 

Taking design cues from the surrounding urban and climate conditions, the firm proposed a distinctive geometrical façade comprising tilted and inclined windows. This gave the hotel its signature look while addressing environmental challenges. Holiday Inn Express won in the Architectural Design Awards of the Singapore Institute of Architects (SIA) and a Gold award in the MIPIM Asia Awards last year, the same year it was completed.

Hotels worldwide have been imbued with RSP's distinct architecture and design aesthetics that translate the hotel's true brand into a pleasurable, memorable experience for guests. 

The same is true with conservation projects. As architect of the Clarke Quay project, one of Singapore's most ambitious conservation and restoration initiatives, RSP was tasked to inject new life into history-rich districts and structures. It thus transformed the abandoned riverfront buildings into an outdoor dining and open-air shopping mecca, adding canopies to help reduce heat and improve air circulation. Besides conservation and restoration work, the project involved the integration of modern information technology (IT), mechanical and electrical services along with adherence to the latest health, safety and environmental requirements for a safe, efficient and comfortable environment.

A future of design excellence 

Going by its expanding portfolio of exciting projects, RSP continues to deliver its promise of thoughtfully designed quality projects for inclusive, enriching environments. It is part of the consortium for the Jewel Changi Airport project, a mixed-use complex being developed in front of Terminal 1. With about 22,000 square metres dedicated to landscaping, Jewel will house one of the largest indoor plant collections in the country.

RSP's body of work has consistently gained recognition from professional bodies such as BCA, SIA and the President's Design Award. 

At the BCA Awards 2015, many of the firm's projects were winners in the categories of green design, universal design, and design and construction excellence. RSP also snagged a Platinum award for its architectural and engineering consultancies in the inaugural BCA Building Information Modelling Awards.

The best evidence of RSP's 

quality services lies in its growing base of loyal and repeat customers. Over the years, British multinational pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline has engaged RSP for multiple industrial projects in Singapore. This began with a multi-purpose plant, development facility and production building extension in the Jurong industrial estate in the early 1990s, expanding to various main buildings and infrastructure for its vaccine manufacturing plant in Tuas Biomedical Park, along with continuing projects in the one-north business park. 

"We strive for design excellence," says Liu Thai Ker, senior director of RSP. "But we are practical enough to understand the needs of private developers. This is core to our work as architects. Understanding the needs of our clients is part of our success story - that is why they come back to us."

Global practice

A principal player in Singapore's bilateral ventures, RSP is among the largest foreign consultants for design and planning in China and India, where it has significant influence on urban development. 

In the Sino-Singapore collaboration on urban planning, the emphasis is on creating productive and sustainable communities that are complementary to the natural environment. This is evident in the seamless connectivity and lush greenery found in the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, Changdao county, and the cities of Zhuhai and Xiangyang. Last year, the firm's accomplishments included Baosteel Group's Wusong Industrial Estate - a revitalisation project in Shanghai, and the intercity rail corridor between Guangzhou and Zhuhai. 

The International Tech Park Bangalore project, master planned by RSP in the early 1990s, set the tone for subsequent IT hubs in India. The pioneering project in Bangalore inspired Indian authorities to invest in town planning, catapulting RSP into five more cities in India, including Hyderabad where RSP designed Microsoft's campus, the technology company's largest facility outside of the United States. 

"Being there at the right time with the right people in the right place helped us grow very quickly within the first 10 years," Lee says. 

About 400 professionals serve at RSP's office in India today, up from only three staff in the 1990s. The firm's other overseas offices in Malaysia, Vietnam and the Middle East are similarly experiencing rapid growth to meet industry demand. 

In Malaysia, the firm is participating in the development of the 118-storey KL118 Tower, which will be the country's tallest building upon completion. 

Within Kuala Lumpur's central business district, RSP is involved in the design of 12 landmarks, including the MATRADE Exhibition & Convention Centre - Southeast Asia's largest exhibition space. RSP is also active in Putrajaya, a planned city 25km south of Kuala Lumpur. 

The firm is setting its sights on expanding and deepening its international partnerships, especially in Vietnam, Myanmar and Kazakhstan. "The growth strategy is always to be with our clients where they need us and our brand," says Lai Huen Poh, managing director. "If the position is right, we will put down roots and grow in the country, and again transform lives. With the DNA that we have as a very well-run practice, there are greater opportunities for us." 

"As RSP approaches its 60th anniversary next year, the firm aspires to achieve more with its practice of architecture and engineering," Lee says. "Encapsulated in our vision and mission statements is the desire to design, build and create environments that will enrich people's lives. Our message to the industry is we would like to partner with people who share that vision."