"Now and Then" Monuments Edition - Singapore Conference Hall

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SingapOre COnference Hall

THEN Monuments Edition

Singapore’s Historic Landmark

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THEN

Then

What is the building created for back then?

It was formerly known as Conference Hall and Trade Union House. During the 1959 general elections, the People’s Action Party (PAP) proposed to consolidate the trade union movement as part of its five-year plan for Singapore. So the plan was also the promise to build a headquarters for the unions called Trade Union House.

The building was officially opened by the then-Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew on 15th October 1965 and subsequently served as the headquarters of the National Trade Union Congress (NTUC) for many years, the Singapore Conference Hall saw the establishment of historical milestones and a wide spectrum of significant events, from international events like the first Commonwealth Heads of Delegations conference to be held outside the traditional family meeting place, London in 1971 to home celebrations and political events like the State Banquet in Celebration of National Day and the 150th Anniversary of the Founding of Modern Singapore on 8th August 1969, the Inaugural Meeting of the National Road Safety Campaign Committee in 1977, the NTUC May Day Rally in 1978 and the election of Singapore’s first elected President in 1993.

Conference hall in the past

The design of the building won a the top award at an architecture design competition in 1961 and construction works for the building begins on 9th May 1963 and were completed two years later in 1965 at a cost of $4 million dollars. Its avant-garde design was an amazing example of Singapore’s urban architecture in the 1960s. Despite its avant-garde design, it was built with an eye on functionalism and practicality.

Shortly after winning the elections, PAP relocated the elderly residents of Nantina Home, an old folks’ home on Queen Street, and converted the building into a temporary headquarters for the Singapore Trades Union Congress (STUC) and its related unions. The unions had earlier denied a vacant government bungalow on Canning Rise because it was considered an inconvenient location. STUC moved into its new place from Towner Road on 1 November 1959. After extensive renovation works, it was reopened in 2001 as the home of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra.

The building, now known simply as Singapore Conference Hall, was gazetted as a national monument on 28 December 2010.

The gallery of the historic journey of the monument

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What is the function of the hall now?

Like all other buildings, the Singapore Conference Hall suffered the inevitable construction and underwent retrofitting and renovation works in September 1999. Although the external facet of the building has remained untouched, to retain its significance in history and time, the interior design has changed modernly and it is better equipped to accommodate most types of events. It was reopened two years later on 22nd September 2001 at a cost of $14.7 million dollars by then-Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, it is now home to the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, the national Chinese Orchestra in Singapore. It is the orchestra’s permanent and only venue for rehearsals and performances. Authorized with the management of the building, the Singapore Chinese Orchestra hopes to broaden the Singapore Conference Hall’s role as a venue provider while remaining active in both the political as well as the arts scene.

The first floor reception

With its well-equipped halls, the newly modernize Singapore Conference Hall is now in an even better position to be the venue provider for important and large-scale international events. It has been changed into a multipurpose venue that houses the SCO Concert Hall with fine acoustics of international standards, an inclusive Exhibition Hall, a multi-functional Sectional Practice Hall, a Concourse dotted with water features and an exclusive VIP Lounge for the honoured guests.

The hall is fully equipped to cater for international conferences and events.

It is also designed for acoustic excellence for musical performances that were indeed the biggest and best of its kind in Singapore then. There were plenty facilities for press, radio and television coverage, which included private booths for radio and telephone calls, a special soundproof booth for tape-recording speeches, facilities for dispatch and general information, provisions for a projector room, film rewinding and multilingual concurrent translator facilities with soundproof observation room for six translators.

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Design and architecture

Singapore’s first urban architecture in the 1960s

DESIGN and

The Singapore Conference Hall design took part in the nation-wide open competition in 1961 where it was selected as the design of Singapore's urban architecture in the 1960s. The original architecture was primarily used concrete and glass in its exterior. It has a large butterfly roof and in the past the roof and terrace have vertical sunscreens to provide shade for the interior. The concourse on the first level was assume as a large space for programmes and from which visitors could find their way to the upper floors. Currently, it is used as a concourse as well as a reception area for the Singapore Chinese Orchestra. It is also a waiting area for audience.

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archiTecTure

Design and architecture

The entrance to the concert hall

The area can be used for exhibitions, receptions, performances and conferences. It was originally designed as a naturally aerial space.

The trade congress rooms were located on the third to fifth floors of the building. The building was designed by Malayan Architects Co-Partnership and was completed by Architects Team 3. The five storey building has no basements and has an outdoor car park. The building is next to UIC Building which is now transformed into a mixed development of residential and commercial unit- V on Shenton.

In the union section, which was accessible by a separate entrance, the second to fourth floors were occupied by the offices of NTUC and its connected unions and a research library. There was a restaurant on the first floor but its kitchen and service areas were on the ground floor below it as well as the reception.

The other side of the building was the conference hall, that consisted primarily of a huge exhibition hall on the ground floor and an auditorium above that could contain over 1,000 people. The exhibition hall consist of an enclosed area measuring 28m by 11m and could be subdivided into two or three sections for smaller events. The auditorium, the main feature of the conference hall, was three storeys high with entrances located on the second and fourth floors. The secretarial and administrative rooms, a lounge for delegates and a press room is located at the first floor.

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sINGAPORE nATIONAL mONUMENTS

CREDITS http://www.sch.org.sg/ http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1853_2011-12-31.html