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Work to replace sleepers on the North-South Line (NSL) will be completed by the end of this month, and commuters can expect faster train rides when speed restrictions are lifted, said the Land Transport Authority and rail operator SMRT

By then, all 96,000 timber sleepers - used to hold tracks in place - will be replaced with concrete ones, and speed restrictions which have been imposed for safety reasons will be lifted.

Instead of running at between 40 kmh and 60 kmh at some stretches of track, trains will run at 80 kmh. This will cut down travelling times by around 10 to 15 per cent, for example a trip between Jurong East and Marina Bay will be reduced by 10 minutes, from 77 minutes to 67 minutes.

The sleeper replacement programme is part of an effort to improve commuter experience on the two lines. These would benefit residences of The Brownstone EC (executive condo) and Skypark Residences.

China State Construction Engineering has been awarded the contract to construct Canberra station at a sum of S$90 million. Established in 1992, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (Singapore) has also been working on the construction of Downtown Line 3’s Kaki Bukit and Geylang Bahru stations.

Located between the Sembawang and Yishun stations along Canberra Link, The new Canberra station will serve commuters living in nearby estates such as The Brownstone EC (executive condo) and Skypark Residences, together with upcoming private and public residential developments nearby.

With five entrances linking the new Canberra MRT to the housing estates across Canberra Link as well as elevated link bridge built across Canberra Link, commuters will enjoy greater convenience and can bypass the station’s concourse level to directly access the city-bound train platform.

Canberra Station will be the second MRT station to be built on an existing rail line, the transport authority said. The Dover station, which opened in 2001, was also built on an existing rail line.

The Brownstone EC (executive condo) @ Canberra Drive is an upcoming 99-year leasehold Executive Condominium by renowned developer CDL. The site is bounded by Canberra Link and Canberra Drive and is near the upcoming Canberra MRT Station which will be ready in 2019.

The Brownstone EC @ Canberra Drive is expected to be completed in mid 2017 comprising about eight 10 to 12-storey blocks with an estimated 636 units and is in close proximity to Sembawang Shopping Centre.

A myriad of amenities can be found in the vicinity of The Brownstone EC @ Canberra Drive. For dining, shopping and entertainment, there are Sembawang Shopping Centre, Northpoint Mall and the future mega mall, Northpoint City. There are several eateries located at the shophouses along Sembawang Road and at the nearby Chong Pang City, a neighbourhood cluster where ones can also get their groceries and basic necessities.

For leisure nearby there is the Sembawang park and a short drive away is the Admiral Country Club.

The Brownstone EC @ Canberra Drive is about 20 minutes’ drive to Orchard Road and a further 5 minutes’ drive to reach the Central Business District CBD, City Centre. The site is also easily accessible to all parts of the island via Central Expressway, Seletar Expressway and the new North-South Expressway

The Brownstone EC (executive condo) @ Canberra Drive also offers good potential for rental yield and capital appreciation because of its close proximity to the upcoming new Canberra MRT station, north-South Expressway and the planned north Coast Innovation corridor.

There are many neighbourhood schools within the vicinity such as Wellington Primary School, Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School, Ahmad Ibrahim Primary School,Chongfu Primary School, Sembawang Primary School,Yishun Primary School, Endeavour Primary School,Sembawang Secondary school, Yishun Town Secondary School, Northland Secondary School, Canberra Secondary School. A short drive away is the YishunJunior College

For more info on executive condominiums, check out

http://executivecondominiums.sg/

Likely the world’s largest application of Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction for a large-scale residential project - Expected to boost construction productivity by more than 40% and save some 55,000 man days At the launch of the annual Singapore Construction Productivity Week today, it was announced that City Developments Limited (CDL) will be the first developer in Asia to adopt the use of advanced construction technology, Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction (PPVC), for a large-scale residential development.

In the use of PPVC, prefabricated building modules are hoisted into position and assembled in a Lego-like manner. Some 3,300 building modules will be used to build CDL’s Executive Condominiums (EC) named The Brownstone at Canberra Drive in Sembawang. The Brownstone EC comprises eight 10 to 12-storey blocks with an estimated 636 units. This is likely to be the largest application of PPVC in the world for a large-scale residential project.

Mr Kwek Leng Joo, CDL Deputy Chairman, said, “As an established developer committed to innovation and green practices, CDL has continuously explored using sustainable designs and construction technologies to develop buildings in a productive, safer, and eco-friendly manner. The extensive use of PPVC for this executive condo project is ideal due to its modularity of units which we have embraced from the design stage. Productivity is expected to increase by more than 40% and will save some 55,000 man days, compared to using conventional construction methods for The Brownstone EC (executive condo).The project should complete four months ahead of schedule with the adoption of this game-changing technology.” He added that the building design and quality of construction will by no means be less superior to conventional buildings.