Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore, Clifford Pier, Customs House Building, Accommodation Design

The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore Building

Fullerton Bay Hotel Development design by DP Architects

18 Aug 2011

The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore

Architect: DP Architects

Location: 80 Collyer Quay, Singapore

The project comprises of the conservation of Clifford Pier and Customs House and the Fullerton Bay Hotel. Construction commenced in September 2007 and the development was completed in phases.

The restoration and conservation of Clifford Pier was completed in December 2008, Customs House in December 2009 and the Fullerton Bay Hotel was officially opened in July 2010.

The absence of a main vehicular access from Collyer Quay Road to the hotel provided the opportunity for the entry to the development via the conserved Clifford Pier. The heritage theme thus became a continuous thread in the conceptualization of the architecture as well as the design of the interior spaces.

As the buildings are lined along an important promenade for Marina Bay, the design ensured that services are adequately screened. The bulk of the services were contained within the conserved customs house and linked to the other buildings via a service trench, below the promenade deck.

The new intervention comprised of a 6-storey hotel as well as single storey structures which links the two heritage buildings to the hotel. Congruent to the procession of a hotel guest from the drop-off at Clifford Pier to the hotel via a single storey structure, the outlook & facade of the entire hotel compound slowly transits from a heritage appearance to the new built intervention, in terms of materials and colour.

The sloping facade of the hotel block responds to the heritage buildings flanking it. This gesture is translated into balconies with a slanting glass parapet to accentuate the experience of the waterfront.

The glass enclosure provides contrast between the existing buildings and the new intervention. The glass volume appears transient, and the reflections captured on the facade create visual intrigue. Integration between old and new elements, the facade fronting Collyer Quay was designed to echo the profile of the conserved Clifford Pier where beige limestone were used instead of glass.

The design of the feature wall for the entrance of the hotel along the promenade, demonstrates a response to the old Clifford Pier by adopting the distinctive horizontal lines evident on its facade. It is a modern interpretation of the historical context. An atrium was constructed within the hotel block to create a large verandah which frames the view of the conserved Clifford Pier.

It also forms a berthing bay for vessels. The ceiling of the atrium was designed with curved aluminum panels that are of the same shade as the balconies. The circulation to the guestrooms revolves around this atrium which offers glimpses of the waterbody as one move within the space. The roof of the hotel was designed as a landscape deck with a swimming pool and is highly visible from surrounding buildings.

The swimming pool is suspended over the atrium space below. This is to maximize usable rooftop area and to serve as the main landscape feature. The 3 individual buildings are linked via pedestrian network, formed by a series of linkways with glass canopies. These canopies are kept simple in design and lightweight in appearance, so as not to compete with the buildings along the promenade.