Top 7 Heritage Building Restoration Firms in SG

Singapore’s conservation industry runs through the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and Building & Construction Authority (BCA) regulatory pipeline. A restoration contractor must demonstrate proven experience in pre-1940s materials: chengal timber, lime plasters, decorative fibrous plaster, and full-height brick masonry. The seven firms below have real project records across the island, from the National Gallery to Joo Chiat peranakan terraces. We cover their specific roles, the systems they deploy, and the measurable outcomes they deliver.

1. Gammon Construction – Structural Grouting

Gammon is the heavyweight for institutional heritage buildings. Their reference project is the National Gallery Singapore, where they restored the former Supreme Court and City Hall between 2012 and 2015. The firm used hydrodemolition robots at 2,400 bar to remove carbonated concrete from columns and beams, then installed 12,000 linear feet of galvanic sacrificial anodes to halt ongoing chloride-induced corrosion. All 1929 neoclassical elevations were laser-scanned with a Leica P40 to within ±2 mm tolerance before re-propping. Gammon’s structural grouting crew injected custom micro-cementitious grout at 40 MPa compressive strength into the internal voids of the original brick load-bearing walls. They also rebuilt 14 deteriorated granite column bases using off-site carving workshops in Batam.

2. Woh Hup – Plaster Replication

Woh Hup’s restoration portfolio centres on the Capitol Building and Capitol Theatre, a mixed-use conservation project completed in 2015. The task: reinstate the original 1929 proscenium arch and decorative plaster ceilings without original drawings. Woh Hup’s plaster shop at Tuas fabricated 38 replacement Corinthian capitals using fibrous plaster casts made from surviving fragments. The team repointed all external brickwork with natural hydraulic lime mortar (NHL 5) instead of Portland cement, after discovering that earlier cement repointing had spalled the brick faces. They also installed a concealed steel exoskeleton that transfers theatre balcony loads without touching the original façade. The project required 30,000 individual plaster pieces, each logged in a digital asset registry.

3. DP Architects – Conservation Design

DP Architects is the design-side firm on many URA-listed buildings, but their restoration work is hands-on. Their flagship is the National Museum of Singapore, restored in 2006. DP’s team stripped away 1970s additions, repaired the 1903 dome’s decorative plaster using lime putty and goat hair reinforcement, and documented every crack in a Revit model tied to a defect-mapping database. They also managed the re-installation of original timber casement windows, which were repaired with epoxy resin injections rather than replaced—a cost-saving method that preserved 92% of the original timber fabric. The museum’s structural engineer on the project was Arup, but DP directed the restoration sequence, budget, and material procurement.

4. RSP Architects – Timber Roof Restoration

RSP Architects is the firm behind the CHIJMES complex restoration, a 1990s project that set the standard for adaptive reuse of a 19th-century convent. RSP focused on the timber roof trusses in the former chapel, replacing 65% of decayed chengal timber with new chengal sourced from certified Malaysian plantations. Each connection was pinned with stainless steel dowels and reinforced with epoxy grout. The external brick walls were cleaned using a low-pressure nebulous spray with pH-neutral detergent—no sandblasting allowed. RSP also specified a breathable limewash re-coating system to keep the original brickwork from trapping moisture. Their restoration methodology is still cited by BCA’s conservation engineer training course.

5. Lian Ho Lee Construction – Shophouse Restoration

Lian Ho Lee Construction is the go-to contractor for URA-conserved shophouses, particularly in Joo Chiat, Koon Seng Road, and Emerald Hill. The firm specialises in restoring 1920s–1930s Peranakan terraces with painted plaster façades. On a recent Koon Seng Road project, they reinstated 18 original timber louvred windows, repaired ceramic floor tiles using matching antique tile stock from a Penang salvage yard, and replaced structural timber floor joists with engineered I-joists hidden behind original ceilings. The external wall paint was removed using a soft-wash system—a low-pressure chemical wash, not water blasting—to avoid eroding the soft lime plaster underneath. Their work is frequently inspected by URA for façade fidelity; they maintain a 100% pass rate on URA restoration compliance checks.

6. Orion Restoration – Masonry and Paint Chemistry

Orion Restoration is a niche facade and masonry specialist that subcontracts to main contractors on high-profile conservation jobs. Their strength is paint chemistry and surface analysis. For the restoration of the Old Hill Street Police Station (now MICA Building), Orion ran pigment analysis of 11 paint layers to pin down the original 1934 colour. They also repaired the building’s decorative plaster mouldings using a proprietary lime-based compound, and cleaned the terracotta roof tiles with a dry-ice blasting method that removed 80 years of grime without damaging the glaze. Orion carries a BCA-registered Restoration Specialist certification and maintains a climate-controlled workshop for cast plaster conservation.

7. Surbana Jurong – Structural Health Monitoring

Surbana Jurong often appears as the project manager or engineering consultant on heritage buildings, but they also field a dedicated conservation monitoring unit. For the Former Ford Factory at Bukit Timah—a nationally designated monument—Surbana Jurong installed a network of tiltmeters, crack gauges, and moisture sensors across the 1930s building. The system feeds data into their proprietary dashboard, generating monthly reports that flag movement beyond 0.5 mm thresholds. They also supervise the restoration contractor’s use of breathable renders and ensure that excavation works within 10 metres of the heritage structure comply with URA’s vibration limits (below 2 mm/s peak particle velocity). For building owners, this is the pragmatic layer between pure architectural intent and actual on-site execution.

Restoration Firms Comparison