Six years ago, with investment in health care facilities declining in the United States, Milwaukee architectural and design firm Kahler Slater Inc. tapped into the market in Singapore.
In a sign that investment is paying off, Kahler Slater opened a permanent office in Singapore in September.
The company made its Singapore debut in 2007 with the $1.3 billion redevelopment of National University Hospital Medical Center and National University Cancer Institute. Work on that project is expected to end in July, when the 1 million-square-foot hospital opens.
Recently, Kahler Slater partnered with Singapore-based Consultants Incorporated Architects Planners – better known as CIAP – to add the Yishun Community Hospital and the Geriatric Education and Research Institute to its portfolio. The 10-story, 700,000-square-foot center housing the two organizations is expected to open in June 2015.
Through its partnership with CIAP, Kahler Slater plans to pursue work in Malasia, Myanmar, Indonesia and China.
Kahler Slater is a 105-year-old company that specializes in health care, higher education, corporate, hospitality and recreation facilities.
“It’s a profession where firms are looking to diversify, so they’re not vulnerable to regional or national downturns that we’ve seen in the U.S. in the last five to six years,” said Kermit Baker, chief economist at the American Institute of Architects in Washington. “I’m guessing their strategy is to try and work off of the projects they currently have in Singapore, and then demonstrate their credibility as an expert within that international area.”
The company’s three-person Singapore team targets health care and higher education markets. Jim Rasche, who leads the office, is the firm’s co-CEO, along with George Meyer, who works in the Milwaukee office.
“I think Kahler Slater has made one of the largest investments in Singapore, in terms of other international firms,” Rasche said. “It’s a matter of showing that we are here and committed.”
Singapore is an island no wider than the distance from Pewaukee to Lake Michigan, nestled at Malaysia’s southern tip. As a former British colony, all business is done in English. It’s become a destination for non-Asian company headquarters such as Johnson Controls, Harley-Davidson, Snap-on and Manitowoc Co.
Christian Bartley, chief executive officer at World Trade Center Wisconsin, said a lot of large companies locate in Singapore because it’s a regional hub and strong financial and business center that has proximity to different Asia-Pacific countries.
“It’s important to be closer to the customer because it shows that your company is invested in the region,” said Bartley. “It is smart business.”
According to a 2011 study conducted by European Chamber of Commerce and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, Singapore is attractive to non-Asian offices because of its stable political environment and desire to increase industry competition while focusing on creativity and innovation.
In striving to be a world-class economy, Singapore invests in large capital projects costing $100 million to $300 million, Meyer said.
Its economy is expected to grow by 2.8% in 2013, with construction projected at 5%, according to a quarterly survey released in March.
In 2009, Singapore’s construction sector led growth by 16.2%, according to a 2010 country report. The U.S. dollar is also stronger in Singapore, so signed contracts increase in value.
Unlike in the United States, where 80% of architectural requests for proposals do not include preliminary designs, the Singapore Ministry of Health requires it, along with research and an interview. The process can take up to eight months, Meyer said.
Singapore’s culture values sustainability because of the nation’s proximity to the equator, its tropical climate and heavy rain. Rasche said Kahler Slater’s design proposals cater to the region’s appreciation for the preservation of greenery, natural ventilation and water conservation technology.
U.S.-based clients benefit from the materials and design inspiration Kahler Slater gleans from Singapore culture, as well.
“From a health care planning point of view, we’ve been able to show the way Singapore and other countries think about how intensive care units and surgeries should be organized,” Meyer said. “We’re showing those to our clients, and they’re seeing how they can change operations in a new way.”
Kahler Slater opens office in Singapore - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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