Marina Bay Sands: Global Architecture’s Integrated Labor Forces
The concept of Global Architecture has held different
meanings relative to the period in which it was realized. For some, the term may conjure images of
Caesar’s Roman Empire, while others may be reminded more recently of Walter
Gropius’ Bauhaus and International Style.
Today, ‘global’ is merely a function of bandwidth and transactional
costs facilitated by the click of a mouse or swipe of a finger. Global
Architecture refers to an industrial component of the economic engine powering
an increasingly integrated world economy and labor force. What does the role of technology and the
ability to cross cultural, economic and geographical boarders play in today’s
‘Global Architecture,’ specifically regarding integrated design and labor forces
along a project communication spectrum?
The Marina Bay Sands project by
Safdie Architects filtered through the perspective of integrated labor forces
at different phases of the process is an example of Global Architecture’s effects
of diversity, interpretation and technology on the design industry.
The 845,000 square meter, $5.7
billion complex featuring a hotel, casino, convention center, museum, park,
retail shopping, theaters, pavilions, and event plaza was completed in 2010 in
Singapore. The government of Singapore requires the involvement of an executive
architect local to the country to carry out the Contract Administration
process. This is one of many instances
of “international cooperation” where an association exists between foreign and
local firms that while not new, has certainly become commonplace as growing
design firms extend their reach across cultural, economic and geographic borders.[i]
At one end of the spectrum,
Owner, Architect/Engineer and Builder make critical decisions, using email,
phone, video conferencing and cloud computing.
At the other end of the spectrum a labor force comprised of Malaysian,
Chinese, and Indian worker groups, each of whom hold different values, religions,
work ethic and social norms, cooperate through a disciplined communication
hierarchy while on the jobsite, each responding to the directives of their team
supervisor.[ii] How is this spectrum functional at both the
jobsite scale as well as the “global” scale?
The variety of worker groups at
Marina Bay Sands implies a migration of labor forces that allow skilled
workers, presumably at lower pay rates than local labor, to follow large
projects where travel and accommodations are cost effective. This form of a mobile labor market where skilled,
lower wage workers move towards jobs and vice versa, is an indication that
labor markets are integrating internationally while reallocating capital.[iii] For the architect practicing internationally,
the Marina Bay Sands model exemplifies the need for technological integration
at every level of the project.
What does this mean for
architecture? If Marina Bay Sands is any
indication of current trends in the distribution of capital, design, and labor,
advanced and developing countries alike in pursuit of iconic buildings will
have open access to the competitive marketplace as a result of technological
communication channels. However, in
terms of aesthetics, style and a translation from concept to form, while
subjective in nature, the competition to work abroad, fueled by technological
advancements has few barriers outside of local code requirements and the
integrity of the design.
[i]
Paolo Tombesi, “A true south for design?
The new international division of labour in architecture,” practice, vol. 5, no. 2: 2001
[ii]
Tunch Gungor
[iii]
William Shaw and Uri Dadush, “Is the Labor Market Global?” Current History, 2012
Graeme B. Robertson, “Leading Labor: Unions, Politics and
Protests in New Democracies,” Comparative
Politics, Vol. 36, No. 3: 2004 (253)
Paolo Tombesi, “A true south for design? The new international division of labour in
architecture,” practice, vol. 5, no.
2: 2001
William Shaw and Uri Dadush, “Is the Labor Market
Global?” Current History, 2012
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