Iron Architecture, Building and Structure Design · 2024
3G Home Residential House
by Kelvin Bing
- A' Design Award 2024 Iron Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Awarded April 15, 2024
- CLIENT: Renaissance Planners and Designers
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 13,095
- Verification code 151FE32541 · Verify this award
About 3G Home Residential House
3G Home is a residential house in Singapore, redesigned as a multi generation family home. The project keeps the existing two storey terrace structure and adds a third storey that is set back from the front, so the house does not tower over the neighbouring units. A pure white facade gives the building a calm and timeless look and helps keep the interior cool. The old roof tiles were replaced with a steel roof and skylights of treated glass that filters most of the heat. A powder coated steel screen shades the master bedroom balcony.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- In the land scarce of Singapore, freehold landed houses are a family’s heirloom. Keeping the existing structures of the house, was a challenge to redesign a new architectural look and redeveloping the internal space planning. By focusing the key aspects, the project aims to create harmonious blend of modern and timeless charm, prioritize sustainable and durable materials to minimize long-term maintenance costs and fostering a more harmonious and tranquil atmosphere.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Site area, 185.70 square metres
- Tags
- Architecture, Private Home, House, Residential, Home, Singapore, Timeless, Contemporary, White Facades, Clean, Simplicity, Minimalist, Singapore Home, Intermediate Terrace
- Production Technology
- One of the first things was to replace the old roof tiles with a steel roof punctuated by skylights the glass for which was specially treated to filter out 70 percent of the heat, while letting light into the centre of the house, flooding its stairwell. The slab is also a balcony for the master bedroom on the second floor, now shielded from the sun by a sun shading screen made of powder coated steel members. It also casts interesting shadows onto the floor, and is like a giant door that can open fully, so it does not get in the way. The couple can enjoy the pixelated graphical shadows cast during the day and the night breeze at the balcony.
- Design Challenge
- One of the challenge is to redesign a new architectural look and interior space planning while keeping the existing old structures in place. The space planning shall serve the client's requirement to transform the house to a multi generation home.
- Project Duration
- The project started in October 2021 in Singapore and finished in December 2022.
- Operation Flow
- A new third storey was introduced onto the existing two storey intermediate terrace house. Indeed, even though a third floor has been added to the house, the home remains well lit and well ventilated. Small windows that open into the stairwell from bedrooms, double volume dining area and pockets of skylights allowed natural ventilation and light into the internal spaces. As the additional floor is set back from the façade of the building, it is unobstructive; the house does not tower over the neighbouring units which have retained their original two storey design look.
- Research
- This project emphasized on importance of sustainability. Demolishing a building generates a great amount of waste. By repurposing old structures, the amount of waste can be significantly reduced. The carbon footprint associated with manufacturing construction materials and transporting them to the site is substantial. By preserving existing old structures, the need for new materials, carbon emissions, energy consumption and transportation can be highly reduced. This project’s approach supports a more environmentally friendly and responsible approach to the urban development.
- Inspiration
- A pure white architectural façade exudes a timeless elegance, embodying a sense of purity, interplays of light and shadow on a white canvas, and help keeping the building cool in a hot climate in Singapore, are the guiding ideas of the project.
- Image Credits
- Images : Photographer Jiwen, 2023.
- Patents
- Copyrights belong to Renaissance Planners and Designers.
Colors of 3G Home Residential House
Grand Interview about 3G Home Residential House
The main consideration while designing for multiple generations was ensuring there was both connection and privacy. The home needed spaces where the family could come together while also providing areas for independent living. We achieved this by adding reconfiguring the layout to achieve both private and common areas for different generations while keeping the existing structures.
The white façade was chosen to create a sense of purity, simplicity, and timeless elegance, also serving as a pure canvas for light and shadow. White surfaces, by nature, have the ability to reflect light, creating shadow and form throughout the day as the sun moves across the sky. Besides that, the white color contrasts with the natural surroundings, highlighting the home’s architectural features.
The primary technical challenges in integrating skylights was ensuring that natural light could flood the stairwell while simultaneously managing heat gain and glare. Skylights, while providing an abundance of natural light, can also allow unwanted heat from the sun to penetrate the home, making interior spaces uncomfortable and raising cooling costs. To address this, we chose skylights with advanced glazing technology that filters out up to 70% of heat without compromising the amount of natural light entering the space. We also ensure that the skylights were designed with adequate ventilation systems to promote air circulation. With this, we incorporated vented skylights to allow hot air and humidity to escape, contributing to the overall comfort and air quality inside the home.
Given the limited horizontal area of the site, the design strategy prioritized vertical expansion to maximize the available footprint. An additional level was introduced to accommodate more spaces for the family.
The powder-coated steel sun shading screen is an innovative design element that serves both aesthetic and functional purposes. Its evolution from concept to implementation was driven by the need to address practical considerations such as heat control, privacy from the neighborhood, and light filtering.
One of the main concerns when adding a new storey to an existing structure in a dense urban area is ensuring that the new addition does not overwhelm the surrounding buildings / disrupt the visual balance of the streetscape.
One of the most significant ways that can influence future residential architecture in Singapore is by highlighting the potential of adaptive reuse. Singapore, where land is scarce and expensive, the demolition of existing buildings to make way for new developments is often seen as the default approach. However, adaptive reuse / preserving and repurposing existing structures, can offer numerous benefits
The key element in achieving passive cooling and enhancing the comfort of the home in Singapore’s tropical climate. The design is centered around optimizing airflow, reducing the use of mechanical cooling systems, and maintaining energy efficiency.
I would say is the vertical extension of the home, which helped accommodate the increased space requirements of a multi-generational family. By adding an additional storey to the original structure, the design created additional living spaces without expanding the building's footprint.
The success of this project in transforming the internal spaces while keeping the existing structures is something I aim to explore further. Singapore’s urban landscape has a rich architectural history, and there are numerous opportunities for adaptive reuse in the future, where old buildings can be repurposed to meet contemporary needs. With this, it promotes sustainability.