Bryden Wood to plant Design for Manufacture roots in Singapore

Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands resort opened in 2010, and was billed as “the world’s second-most expensive building”.

BIM and Design for Manufacture specialist Bryden Wood is to set up a representative office in Singapore.

The new office is a response to government-level backing for DfM strategies in the construction sector, which is a reaction to the city state’s political decision to reduce its dependence on migrant labour, and the introduction of a system of levies and quotas for construction companies.

“The Singapore government is saying we no longer want to be dependent on labour from overseas, so it’s now mandating the number of people you can have on site,” said Bryden Wood director Jaimie Johnston. “So either the project takes longer, or you come up with a DfM idea, so it’s hopefully fertile ground for us. They’ve already started on a BIM journey, now they’re using it to drive DfM.”

In the UK, Bryden Wood has already pioneered DfM strategies for Circle healthcare group, the Metropolitan Police, London Gatwick airport and others, with Johnston saying it sees itself as “the R&D office of the building industry”.

“Some architects want a portfolio of beautiful buildings, but we’re more interested in solving the big problems.

“But we’re fed up of doing it on our own. Why aren’t more there more construction companies joining us?” said Johnston.

Bryden Wood was also lead consultant on Russia’s £10bn Gutenborg project, where the client has now U-turned on the assembly-plant approach. However, the firm has picked up work from other Russian clients, including a private healthcare provider.

“We’ve got to be global – we now know all the clients in the UK that want what we do, so now we have to ship some of this abroad,” said Johnston.