Kajima Overseas Asia (KOA) Celebrates 20th Anniversary

Singapore is in the midst of an unprecedented construction boom fueled by surging residential real estate investment and major government-sponsored urban development projects. Towering cranes busily work away throughout the bay area, bringing new communities into existence.

KOA Singapore is involved in the construction of office buildings, hotels, high-class condominiums, commercial facilities, and many other types of structures. In April 2008 KOA got started on the company’s biggest project ever—the Sentosa Resort—which includes high-class hotels, a casino, a theater, and more.

Ever since the birth of the Millennia Singapore mixed-use development project in 1996, KOA has been growing its real estate development business by pursuing development projects that fit in well with the larger Singaporean milieu. All of these efforts are now bearing fruit, as KOA currently has three development projects in progress.

The St. Regis Singapore Hotel
The St. Regis, a high-class 20-story hotel with 299 rooms, is located near the western end of Orchard Road, Singapore’s main thoroughfare, and was completed in 2007. Deluxe guest rooms, a collection of art worthy of a museum, and a restaurant that offers culinary delights beyond compare all combine to make the St. Regis Singapore a six-star experience.

The project owner was Singapore-based Richmond Hotel Pte. Ltd. Design was carried out by the US firm, Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo, while construction was handled by a joint venture between KOA Singapore and Tiong Seng Contractors, a local construction firm. By moving forward simultaneously with construction work and detailed design, we were able to minimize the impact of numerous design changes upon the construction schedule. Determined to make the hotel “as if we were building a home for ourselves,” we imported custom-made furnishings from around the world in order to accomplish what the owner had in mind for the interior design, and we hired KOA affiliate Taiko Trading Co., Ltd., to finish and install the marble walls and floors exactly how the owner wanted it done.

In addition to the hotel, the mixed-use project also includes two 23-story condominium towers, also built by the KOA Singapore joint venture. The project was completed in August 2008.

Marina Bay Financial Centre
Located in the middle of the Marina Bay business and shopping district, the Marina Bay Financial Centre is being designed by BFC Development Pte. Ltd., a joint venture between three major Asian real estate developers. It will be one of the largest mixed-use developments in Singapore, comprising three office towers and one residential tower.

KOA has entered into a joint venture with Tiong Seng Contractors to build Tower One (32 stories) and Tower Two (52 stories), which are scheduled for completion in March 2010. The foundation is currently under construction. Basic design and design consultant services are being provided by the US firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates PC, which designed Roppongi Hills in Tokyo. The facility is expected to be leased to local and overseas financial institutions.

Cliveden at Grange
Cliveden at Grange is comprised of four ultra high-rise condominiums in an up-scale residential district in the heart of Singapore. The four towers share a common B1 floor underground, while above ground there are three 24-story single towers, one 24-story twin tower, and a two-story club house. The project is being developed by City Developments Ltd., basic design is being provided by ADDP, and KOA Singapore is in charge of execution design and construction.

There are 22 units per tower, and a total of 110 units in all. With one residence (of roughly 250m²) per floor, the layout offers the ultimate in luxury condominium living. Painstaking attention to quality control and construction supervision ensure the highest quality. The project has been conferred the Green Mark Platinum award for environmental excellence by the Singapore Building and Construction Authority.

Sentosa Resort Project
This resort island off the southern coast of Singapore is the largest project ever undertaken by KOA. Work is currently underway.

Under the supervision of the Singapore government, Resorts World at Sentosa Pte. Ltd. is to invest some S$6 billion (US$4 billion) in this project, which will cover about 49 hectares and is currently in the planning stage. The resort will feature a number of first-rate attractions, including Universal Studios Singapore, as well as six hotels.

KOA Singapore will build three deluxe hotels at the resort, all to be designed by the US architect Michael Graves—the all-suite Maxims Residences (130 suites), the Hotel Michael (470 rooms), and the fashionable Festive Hotel (400 rooms)—as well as a 15,000m² casino, the 1,600-seat Le Vie theater, restaurants, shops, and the 500-meter Festive Walk, which will make a perfect venue for street performances. Construction is scheduled for completion in December 2010.

Making dreams come true
Koji Sugimoto has been on the job in Singapore for ten years, and is now working on his third project, a 120,000m² site that will eventually be built up with 320,000m² of floor space, including three hotels, a casino, a theater, and much more. Work is moving forward at a blistering pace, with partial completion scheduled for the end of next year.

“This is a big project running on a tight schedule. Singapore is in the midst of a construction boom, so material and human capital are in extremely short supply. We currently have 100 site staff supervising 800 construction workers, and the number will eventually peak at 3,000. We have people from many different countries all working together—Singapore, Malaysia, China, India, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Myanmar, and Japan, for example—so we hire foremen from all these different countries to oversee them. We receive support from KOA, and from the entire Kajima Group, which enables us to run a very tight ship.”

Work at the construction site is busy in the extreme, but communication lines remain wide open. Every month, for example, there is a birthday lunch for all employees celebrating a birthday during that month. Mr. Sugimoto says, “This is no doubt the biggest project any of us has ever worked on, so there is a feeling of joy just to be involved. At the same time, I want to be sure that everyone stays healthy so they can keep contributing all the way to the end.”

Mr. Sugimoto was kind enough to round up about 100 of the managerial staff at the site for a group photo.

New transport system between Sentosa and the main island
The Sentosa Express monorail linking Sentosa and the main island entered into service at the end of 2006. The monorail track beams were installed by KOA Singapore. Care has been taken to ensure that the Sentosa Resort project site is easily visible from the monorail.

71 Robinson Road office development project
The 71 Robinson Road project is located in Shenton Way district, in the heart of Singapore’s central business district. The project owner purchased a building already standing at this address for refurbishment into an ultra-modern office building (15 floors, approx. 26,000m² of floor space). This is a joint development project being carried out in cooperation with a US investment bank. KOA Singapore is in charge of planning, licenses, funding, project management, and construction.

In keeping with the environmental focus of the project, the building will boast an ecologically friendly design by renowned German architect Christoph Ingenhoven, and has been conferred the Green Mark Gold award for environmental excellence by the Singapore Building and Construction Authority.

A German real estate fund recently entered into a contract to purchase the project, which is scheduled for completion in mid-2009.