Academic Building South in Nanyang Technological University

This is a proposal for the new business school within Nanyang Technological University’s lush garden campus. The building is laid out on-site in a gently curved form, with abundant greenery and waterscape introduced into the site to reunite with its surroundings.

The building has approximately 40,000 square metres of floor area, running 210 metres long, 48 metres deep and six storeys tall. It has a clear and simple programmatic configuration, with teaching facilities allocated on the lower floors and research facilities grouped in clusters on the upper floors. At the lower floors a triple-height entrance hall is placed in the centre, connecting the undergraduate and postgraduate facilities that extend linearly on the North and South Wings respectively. In the middle, between the teaching facilities, is a collection of visually connected communal spaces that comprises a library, multipurpose halls and an auditorium. On the upper floors, the research centre and faculty offices are placed in a set-back stepped formation, facilitating a comfortable research environment.

Apart from the emergency staircases, the building’s main structure is entirely made of wood. All beams and columns are engineered timber members spanning the short direction. A 160-millimetre thick CLT slab is placed above, acting both as a connecting member and as a floor slab. Such a simple structural system is highly cost effective and easy to build.

On the east and west, a deep coffered façade is proposed with horizontal and vertical fins that effectively reduces heat gain. By maximising the use of natural energy resources such as solar energy, geothermal cooling, prevailing wind and rainwater harvesting, the building will become a symbolic energy-efficient model for the tropical climate.

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PROJECT DATA

Project Name
Academic Building South in Nanyang Technological University

Location
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Status
Under construction

Expected Completion
Spring 2022

Client/Owner
Nanyang Technological University

Architecture Firms
Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects; RSP Architects Planners & Engineers (Pte) Ltd

Main Contractor
Newcon Builders (Pte) Ltd

M&E Engineer
Squire Mech Pte Ltd

Civil & Structural Engineer
Aurecon Group

Site Area
21,530 square metres

Gross Floor Area
40,604 square metres

Number of Rooms
460

Building Height
30.4 metres

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