Fusionpolis ICT Media Park provides an exceptional environment within the ‘one-north’ Media, ICT and Life-Science cluster which is establishing Singapore as a cutting edge international node for a new generation of 21st century organizations. The establishment of a third generation technology park, or ‘innovation environment’ at one-north where leading and emerging businesses can generate new synergies, and accelerate their knowledge and competencies in a supportive ecology and exceptional physical environment which facilitates connection and interaction.

Within this new innovation cluster and opening directly onto BuonaVista Park a combined Hotel and ICT office complex with integrated services creates a singular ‘work, rest and play environment’ technologically smart and environmentally sensitive design. The ICT office building provides a hub for organisations with global/regional operations in Singapore with integrated accommodation for short stay and transient traveler. Modular ‘smart’ spaces, seminar rooms with 3D conferencing facilities, AV rooms, data hosting facilities, medical, courier, accounting, secretarial, transport and travel facilities. The 4 star 200 room hotel provides ‘overnight stay’ en suite rooms and ‘medium stay’ studio’s hotel suites with gym, swimming pool, restaurant & bar, games rooms.

The tropical forest landscape at Fusionpolis, offers a seed of inspiration for a poetic and ecological architecture conducive to innovation. The exceptional bio-diversity of tropical forests and their complex inter-active ecologies provide outstanding examples of rich synergies between species and eco-systems which enable continuous co-evolution. Our response to this architectural challenge is ‘mimetic architecture’, an approach to architecture which draws inspiration directly from nature. Lessons from nature’s techniques of environmental adaptation can provide brilliant insights for practical and poetic architectural responses.

Initial sketches explore mimetic ideas such as forest canopy like structures to link the office and hotel buildings together as an inter-active innovation environment. The canopy structures extend habitable space beyond the buildings into courtyards which provide shelter from rain and intense daylight. Above hotel suites and smart modular office layouts are clustered seed-pod like with the left-over spaces between seeds providing the equivalent of meeting spaces. The green-gold outer façade or second skin, and louvre leaf-like architecture draws its inspiration from the ‘carabo’ sports car which in its turn mimics a forest beetle.