Smart districts like the PDD face a growing challenge: Their rising use of energy-intensive services, such as air-conditioning, robots and a multitude of sensors, can significantly raise costs if not managed well.
The district’s estate managers from JTC Corporation will need to keep an eye on 10 towers that, when fully complete, will be spread across a sprawling site the size of 70 football fields.
They are counting on the ODP to make building management simple.
The platform has been trialled in the JTC Summit office building in Jurong East, but is being taken to another level in PDD due to the sheer volume of interconnected offices, utilities and public facilities, including a train station.
Mr James Tan, director of JTC’s Smart District division, described the ODP as a smart city operating system akin to a mobile operating system. It can seamlessly analyse energy use among tenants, footfall in PDD and deployment of robots.
How will it all work?
This is Bob, an autonomous food delivery robot that sends food directly to offices in the district.
Now, meet Bill, a cleaning robot that keeps the district clean. Bill and Bob operate on different systems – like how phones might run on iOS or Android.
In the past, integrating these two systems would be a complex task. The ODP acts as a bridging platform that allows new robots to easily be added to the network and work together smoothly.
This lets various robots provide services in the district’s buildings without compatibility issues. For instance, robots can easily move between buildings...
... and direct lifts to desired floors, and access public or private spaces based on permissions granted by the PDD’s control centre operators.
With the ODP, the activities of different robots can be monitored through a single command post, where district estate managers are able to manage the robots, track their locations and address issues when necessary.
The ODP also allows tech tenants to use virtual 3D replicas of the district, which are backed by real-time data, on the platform to test projects before they are deployed.
Tenants who want to deploy robots to do tasks around the district can adopt the ODP’s communications standard via an application programming interface, which allows the robot to call lifts and open gantries.
The platform allows estate managers to grant permissions for specific robots, allowing them to enter specific buildings or elevators.
The ODP covers more than just robotics – it also tracks all moving parts of the district.
Some 20,000 sensors scattered across the district will track metrics such as movement, temperature and energy consumption, and processes such as a centralised waste management system that transports trash from buildings via a 4km underground conveyance system.
Activities and data are presented on dashboards and overlaid on a 3D replica of the district, all visible on screens at a single command post.
With a comprehensive view of the district’s operations, estate managers can make quick decisions on how to efficiently distribute resources. They will also get help from the ODP’s artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, which can collect information, perform risk assessments and present data according to instructions.
The ODP removes the need for educated guesswork by facility managers when it comes to optimising various systems, said JTC’s Mr Tan, who is also director of the Smart City Technology division at GovTech.
For instance, the ODP can tabulate the distribution of people within a building through surveillance cameras and security gantries where workers tap to enter.
With this real-time data, the ODP can recommend a schedule for the lifts and take actions such as “parking” lifts on floors with high foot traffic, thus reducing electrical consumption and enhancing convenience for its users by minimising unnecessary lift movements.
The same logic applies to the district’s smart cooling system, which serves offices, malls and hotels, and the train station within the estate.
The ODP’s AI can control temperature settings of air-conditioners in each location by taking into consideration footfall, historical data and live weather information.
The concept builds on the centralised cooling system in the “eco-smart” Tengah housing estate, which sends chilled air to rooms within a housing block. This is said to offer up to 30 per cent in savings for residents in the long run.
Another key feature of the PDD is its smart electrical grid, which taps AI to regulate energy use.
The district is powered by a mix of traditional energy sources, battery storage systems and rooftop solar panels.
Mr Nelson Liew, group director of new estates at JTC, said nearly 5 per cent of the estate’s energy needs will be generated by more than 1,000 solar panels.
The PDD will have more than 90 spots for electric vehicles (EVs) – one of the highest concentrations of charging lots in Singapore. JTC is testing reversible charging units that can tap vehicle fleets as a backup energy source.
The ODP monitors the district’s carparks as well, alerting estate managers when areas are near full capacity, or when unexpected traffic congestion occurs, indicating a potential problem.
So, how safe is the ODP?
Given the ODP’s vast capabilities, safeguards have been put in place to prevent software issues from affecting the physical world, and to deter malicious actors from exploiting the extensive oversight provided by the AI-powered ODP.
As a rule of thumb, the ODP is restricted to adjusting controls that a typical user can access, such as lighting and room temperature settings. This limitation was advised by cyber-security professionals who collaborated with JTC’s developers during a threat risk assessment to define the boundaries of AI capabilities, said Mr Tan.
“The AI cannot lock a door, for instance,” he said, adding that door systems are not connected to the ODP. “But it can adjust the temperature because there isn’t a threat to users. They’d at most feel discomfort.”
The ODP’s AI can send a lift to a specific floor, but cannot, for instance, shut down an elevator system or trigger a circuit breaker.
“It can access only what a normal user can control,” said Mr Tan. “The ODP does not have control of the master controls.”
Based on data presented on the ODP, managers can take further action when necessary, such as when there are faulty services or there is an influx of visitors.
AI should be able to improve our operations, and not cause threats to safety or privacy.
Mr Tan hopes the PDD will be a model for future smart business and residential districts in Singapore, and that its proximity to other tech players and services, such as the ODP, will attract more companies despite its distance from the city.
While the district will be fully ready only in 2026, parts of it are already open to the public.
The Punggol Coast MRT station opened its doors in December, connecting the district to Outram Park through the city centre via the North East Line.
The train service is expected to serve some 3,800 students from SIT, the first major tenant that has settled into the district.
Nearly half of the college’s students have relocated to the Punggol campus, while the remaining 8,200 students currently spread across SIT’s various campuses will move to the Punggol campus by mid-2025.
With most amenities and shops yet to open, the PDD’s early occupants have to make do with the few options available, like a single food court next to the SIT campus.
Most food and beverage options – like a bubble tea stall, fast food and eateries in a plaza near the MRT station exit – are due to open in March, with more tenants expected to sign leases and fill the area with life.
At least 65 per cent of the district’s office spaces have been signed for.
Among the major tenants, UOB and OCBC will each set up a smart-tech-focused innovation hub that will focus on fintech and other technology. Together, the banks have poured more than $1 billion into the district.
GovTech and the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore are slated to occupy offices there.
Robotics companies like dConstruct Robotics and Boston Dynamics – known for its robot dog Spot, which has been seen roaming parts of Singapore – will also move in.
dConstruct will collect its keys by February, chief executive Chinn Lim told ST, with around 200 employees expected to move in when the new office opens in September.
The firm plans to test various robots, including a humanoid concierge robot and others that specialise in deliveries and surveillance, he added.
The ODP was a major attraction for the company, as it enables robots under testing to navigate the district with fewer technical challenges, he said. This gives robotics companies more opportunities to stress-test their robots and improve their real-world performance.
“It was difficult to say no,” said Mr Lim. “There’s nowhere else in Singapore that has this kind of technology at a district scale.”
