Japanese construction and real estate firm Kajima Development Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kajima Corp, officially launched its new regional headquarters, R&D and innovation hub at Changi Business Park on August 4. It's named The Gear: Kajima Lab for Global Engineering, Architecture & Real Estate.

Kajima has had a long history in Singapore, with its first project being the Maruzen Oil Refinery in 1962, followed by the Jurong Shipyard Dock & Wharf in 1965. The company had been eyeing "an anchor for the region" for almost a decade. "The late Dr Shoichi Kajima tasked us with a mission to establish our headquarters in Singapore," said Shuichi Oishi, CEO of Kajima Development, in a statement on August 4.

Kajima Development and its local construction arm, Kajima Overseas Asia Singapore, broke ground on the site in Changi Busines Park in August 2020. The building was completed, with its Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) obtained on March 31, despite the disruption to construction during the pandemic.

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The state-of-the-art facility is designed by Kajima's team of architects and engineers in Japan and is the firm's first global R&D and innovation hub. "It embodies Kajima's commitment to a sustainable, connected and future-ready Singapore", according to the firm.

The R&D will be driven by Kajima Technical Research Institute Singapore, which has been based here since 2013. It intends to speed up its development of innovative solutions to climate change and urbanisation challenges.