Samwoh

Margaret Thatcher once said, “You and I come by road or rail, but economists travel by infrastructure.”

Indeed, it is the architectural beauty of a place that paints a picture of how advanced a city is and what more one can expect. For Singapore, the narrative begins right from its airport–Changi. Home to wide-spread green spaces and verdant gardens/fountains for travelers looking to unwind after a long flight, Changi gives a glimpse of what the world’s “City in a Garden” has to offer. But apart from its recreational offerings, Changi Airport has also received accolades for the smooth functioning of its impressive runways. This feat has been accomplished by none other than Samwoh–the company that strives hard to keep the runways durable and well-maintained. Since 2010, Samwoh, through its efficient lab facility and in-depth technological know-how, has left no stone unturned in bolstering the performance of the Changi Airport in its partnership with the Changi Airport Group (CAG). The company has even devised a concrete crushing plan to aid in the recycling of aircraft parking aprons and old concrete aggregates to design new ones.

As a one-stop-shop for most customers, Samwoh provides a full suite of engineering services committed to advancing infrastructural excellence in the country. Since its humble beginning as a transport and logistics company in 1975, it has metamorphosed itself into a thriving, vertically integrated construction company. Today, Samwoh offers a comprehensive array of services that include civil engineering and infrastructure construction, the supply of building materials and precast concrete components, the recycling and demolition of construction and industrial wastes, research and development, as well as pavement consultancy services. It also provides logistic support, facilitates the shipping of raw materials, and even operates in quarries from neighboring countries. Samwoh is an A1 civil engineering contractor under the registry of the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and hence can tender government projects of unlimited contract sums to build bridges, underpasses, and other such public infrastructure. “We forge deep competence in the construction space,” begins Executive Director at Samwoh, Sam Pang. “We utilize our depth of knowledge and expertise accrued from 45 years to address customer’s specific demands.”

With close to half a century since its inception, it’s clear that all of this didn’t manifest overnight. It is imperative to throw light on where it all began for Samwoh so as to truly appreciate the value it brings to the table.

Rooted in Innovation

It was around the late 90s when the founders of Samwoh realized that adding ‘sustainability’ in the built environment could take the construction sector to soaring new heights. They started by travelling overseas to understand how advanced countries recycled their waste, before investing significant lab hours into devising solutions that could further refine demolition waste. After several rounds of government approvals to get the building codes and permission to recycle concrete aggregate efficiently, Samwoh at last made it into the spotlight.

Over the years, the Singapore-based firm has continued to invest heavily in relevant state-of-the-art technologies, focusing strongly on research and development that add value to its customers’ core business propositions. Presently, the company is bridging tomorrow’s work and has successfully realized its ideal vision of a greener environment by fostering a zero construction demolition waste culture across Singapore. Besides a structured management system that assists stakeholders in maintaining and ensuring the safety, reliability, and cost-effectiveness of airfield and road networks, sustainable construction forms a pivotal aspect of Samwoh’s business. The company’s recycling facilities collect and process built products when they have reached the end of their lifespan, recycling the old materials into quality renewable products for commercial use. Samwoh’s sustainable construction focuses on decreasing landfill waste, reducing dependency on raw materials, and minimizing its environmental impact. At its core, Samwoh excels in civil engineering and infrastructure construction, bringing innovative ideas to bear in meeting the specific needs of the clients. As a leading asphalt supplier and service provider, Samwoh designs and supplies a comprehensive range of asphalt products powered by new technologies which improve efficiency, cost-effectiveness and eco-friendliness, seamlessly meeting the ever-changing needs of its clientele. The company also specializes in overseas sourcing and importing different kinds of aggregates that are adapted to both the international and local standards as well as customer requirements.

The distinctiveness of Samwoh stems from its ability to acknowledge customers’ problems and build out-of-the-box ideas that are sustainable and innovative. In essence, Samwoh acts as an aggregate supplier that revolutionizes the supply chain process by producing reclaimed asphalt pavement and recycled concrete aggregates for building massive structures and repairing old roads across Singapore.

Building a Greener Tomorrow

A progressive company at heart, Samwoh takes its corporate social responsibility seriously and is focused on building a greener tomorrow. Its new headquarter, the Samwoh Smart Hub, the first positive energy industrial building in Singapore, is setting a benchmark in sustainability for its contemporaries and encouraging them to harness the benefits of utilizing environment-friendly substitutes. The Smart Hub is built entirely out of recycled material and harnessing solar energy for meeting the energy requirement of the building.

The company is constantly trailblazing new initiatives to make the planet greener and embraces the idea that doing good for the environment is an essential part of operating businesses. To achieve this, the company works together with eminent Ph.D. professionals and engineers to conduct practical examinations in its Innovation Centre, creating alternate innovative building materials and construction methodologies that promote sustainability. To get a comprehensive overview of clients’ perspectives, the company also offers Consultancy Services to airport owners, operators, public road owners, maintenance agencies, and others within and beyond Singapore. This helps lay out a plan of action for clients to solve underlying challenges like the poor conditions of roads and pavements, undulated airport taxiway terrains or sub-surface foundational issues (i.e. durability, friction, performance, strength, etc.)

Another strength of the company lies in its proficient workforce that is undeniably passionate, progressive, and professional. The Samwoh team goes the extra mile to identify solutions that bring unprecedented results for its clients. The company is currently striving hard to unearth opportunities in the construction panorama using sophisticated technologies like AI and big data. “We are working with an AI company to add predictive maintenance to the construction portfolios,” says Mr. Pang, which will help augment productivity, reduce waste generation, and ultimately enhance safety. Additionally, Samwoh is keen on revamping the traditional modes of construction and maintenance based on empirical data and bolstering the sector through robust AI and cloud-based solutions.

Lastly, by aligning its services with the concept of the circular economy, Samwoh is gearing up to reduce the carbon footprint of the construction sector. The company is actively working with leading universities of Singapore and other stakeholders to foster the idea of a greener environment. Having proved its mettle in Singapore, Samwoh is now focused on marking its presence on foreign soil. Currently, the company has six overseas offices across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, South Korea, and even operates in the European market. With innovation at its core, Samwoh is gearing up to become a global leader in the construction, demolition, and recycling realm.