Suntec City is a major multi-use real estate complex located in the Marina Centre neighbourhood in downtown Singapore, consisting of a shopping centre, a convention centre and office buildings. Managed by APM Property Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ARA Asset Management Limited, Suntec City comprises of five high rise office towers built around the world’s largest fountains, the Fountain of Wealth.
Towers One to Four are 45 floor buildings representing the four fingers of a hand, and Tower Five has 18 floors and represents the thumb. APM is an innovative property and asset management company, which operates as a fully independent yet integrated property management platform. APM have the right expertise in securing reputable retailers and multinational corporations for retail and office properties. They provide and coordinate professional services, and foster positive relationships with tenants.
Monitoring and managing Suntec City
APM implemented a multitude of diverse systems to monitor and manage Suntec City including the building management system, lighting management system, fire protection and detection systems, elevator management systems, public address systems, access control and security surveillance system, security guard patrol system, footfall counting system and a parking guide system.
APM operators with different roles and system expertise were physically dispersed among the different locations, from the various local Fire Command Centres (FCC), a Building Management Systems (BMS) room and a carpark control room, to manage these systems. WEY Technology Singapore Pte Ltd faced significant challenges for the Suntec project. The first technical mandate was to integrate all the disparate equipment from nine locations onto a single platform while maintaining individual system integrity without software upgrades or system intrusions. Second, the solution needed to provide a centralised system of control from a single consolidated control room so that any operator could manage any system from any desk.The Central Fire Command Centre is better organised and more flexible than ever before"
Logistics challenges
WEY also took on substantial logistics challenges. As the general contractor for the entire new Suntec City Central Fire Command Centre (CFCC) renovation project, WEY was responsible for all coordination with third party suppliers and specialised sub-contractors. All the work had to be carried out during ongoing operations at the live site, with minimum disturbances to operators and procedures.
WEY Technology’s solution is based upon the WEY Distribution Platform, an IP-based network that connects and switches virtually any system, new or legacy, to any workplace in real-time. For Suntec City, WEY connected 47 different sources located in nine sites to a new fibre optics backbone over KVM-over-IP technology using IP Remote Transmitters and Receivers. The network converges at seven state-of- the-art workplaces at the completely refurbished CFCC.
A single WEY Smart Touch multifunctional keyboard with an integrated 10" touch screen is deployed at each operator position. With the Free Seating feature, operators can sit anywhere within the entire network, view, access and interact with all the sources, according to their individual authorisation profiles. Desktops are uniform, neat and tidy, and the operators enjoy a single user interface to manage their complete environments.
A 2x3 46" WEY video wall crowns the CFCC and provides an overview of all sources and closed circuit TV feeds. Operators are now fully prepared to take immediate appropriate action in case of an incident. Three UltraFlex Mini PCs administer the WEY Distribution Platform and the video wall controller. UltraFlex Mini PCs are full-fledged high performance, low power PCs with an extremely small footprint. The WEY Smart Touch keyboards, UltraFlex Mini PCs and the IP remote devices are designed and manufactured by WEY in-house in Switzerland.
Crisis room is connected to the WEY Distribution Platform
A crisis room is connected to the WEY Distribution Platform and therefore, to all of Suntec’s sources. Here, WEY installed a WIFI projector and a WEY Smart Touch keyboard. In case of an emergency, APM management can meet here, access the data, view the situation and immediately implement contingency plans. WEY’s professional project manager worked round the clock with weekly meetings and daily reports to coordinate the entire renovation of Suntec’s CFCC.Suntec enjoys best in class, easy-to-use working environments with a guaranteed latency-free user experience
Over a dozen sub-contractors completely refurbished the centre, removing debris and delivering new electricity infrastructure, fire protection, air conditioning, ceilings, walls, doors, carpets, custom-built technical furniture and an entirely modern design. WEY deployed the project during ongoing operations with minimal disturbance to operators. Delivery time was thirteen weeks from contract signing to the live date.
Flexibility is a key benefit of WEY’s state-of-the-art solutions. Operations have been fully consolidated in the single CFCC Central Fire Command Centre. Here, security officers, engineers and the management team collaborate efficiently while supervising the complex. This optimises human resources and significantly increases security for property and tenants. For Suntec, another major benefit is that all their sources and equipment have remained intact. There have been no costly upgrades or changes of settings required to integrate new or legacy systems, thus protecting Suntec’s investments.
Suntec enjoys easy-to-use working environments
According to Giuseppe Zaccaria, Managing Director of WEY Technology for the Asia Pacific region, “WEY has deployed the most advanced and cost-effective command and control room. Suntec enjoys best in class, easy-to-use working environments with a guaranteed latency-free user experience.”
Mr. Nicholas Tan, General Manager of Suntec City states that, “The Central Fire Command Centre is better organised and more flexible than ever before. Now that all the common functions are controlled from consolidated desks, our operators can manage Suntec City much more effectively and respond immediately to situations. The WEY team also coordinated the entire project with the other stakeholders and vendors, and absolutely fulfilled all our requirements. APM has found in the WEY Asia Pacific team not only a very efficient solution provider for its technological requirements, but also fantastic support and commitment.”
