Microclimate analysis informed the design of a comfortable indoor-outdoor public space that connects a state-of-the-art technology headquarters with its community in a warming climate.
Designed as a vertical campus for a leading Singaporean telecommunications firm, Singtel, the Comcentre Redevelopment demonstrates the company’s position as a leader in technology as well as a champion of sustainability. To meet ambitious goals that included achieving Green Mark and WELL Platinum certifications, KPF crafted a carbon-neutral scheme that features lushly planted, publicly accessible green space equivalent to over 100% of the site area, and provides a vibrant, mixed-use experience through hybrid open-air dining, retail destinations, and community-oriented programming.
The public realm is activated through a semi-covered pedestrian passageway that gives the site added porosity. KPF conducted extensive thermal comfort analysis and daylight modeling to ensure that this area would be comfortable in Singapore’s tropical climate while letting in sufficient sunlight to support planting. The analysis helped shape the design by identifying the optimal geometry of skylights to maximize the growth potential of the plants below without overheating visitors.
In Singapore, many indoor areas, including offices and shopping centers, are heavily air-conditioned, creating thermally unpleasant transitions for building occupants. Using the latest research on how human beings perceive temperature, KPF modeled and mapped static (UTCI) and dynamic (DTS) effective temperatures around the development and used the analysis to create semi-outdoor spaces cooled through passive measures such as shading and natural breezes. These zones allow for comfortable transitions as users move between indoor and outdoor conditions.
