MORE than S$2,500,000 has been spent by the Straits Times Press on a spacious new factory building in which to concentrate their expanding printing business.
Until the recent completion of the building, the company's printing acti- vities, other than press printing, had been carried out at two widely separat- ed centres and their storage of raw materials had been scattered in nu- merous godowns throughout the state. Now both operations are centralised in a single-storey block of about 120,000 sq. ft. floor area, to which is added some office space and a large canteen for the work staff.
The site of 222,600 sq. ft. was generally level and had been previously used as a quarry-cum-spoil pit, reducing the old hill slope by an average excava- tion of about 20 ft, to leave a solid 'floor' at about the same level as the access road. Situated about 321⁄2 miles from the city centre, the access road leads in from Thompson Road, one of the main city arteries.
The approach road is continued into the site in a straight line as a side
Printing works
has full
fire protection
THE STRAITS TIMES PRESS (M) BHD.
SWAN & MACLAREN
SOH BENG TEE & CO, LTD.
service road for delivery into three raw materials stores at the gable ends and for outgoing trucking from the ends of the factory bays. A link road off the main service road gives access to the main reception and the workers' en- trance and continues on to give access
owners
architects
main contractor
to the large parking area at the rear of the premises.
A ground floor loading of 600 lb. per sq. ft. was needed and a major reason for the selection of the Thomp- son Road site was its high bearing capacity. Even so further compaction
Printing floor covers about 60,000 sq. ft.
Far East BUILDER, June 1969
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