Singapore, 8 December 2020 – City Developments Limited (CDL) has launched a first-of-its kind contactless lift eCall solution at its flagship commercial building Republic Plaza (RP). Integrated with CityNexus, CDL’s proprietary smart building app for the RP office community, RP is the first building globally to use Otis’ eCall™ API solution and one of the first office buildings in Singapore to offer a contactless lift eCall function. The lift eCall solution and further enhancements to CityNexus are in preparation for the calibrated return of workers back to the office, as Singapore prepares to enter Phase 3 of its reopening.

Through the lift eCall function on CityNexus, tenants are able to call for the building’s lifts from their personal smartphones, allowing a quicker and contactless passenger experience by reducing the wait time at RP’s lift lobbies. Furthermore, coupled with the app’s existing feature that enables contactless turnstile access into the building, RP tenants can now enjoy contactless access from entering the building to leaving their workplaces, using a single mobile app.

The contactless lift eCall system was made possible through a collaboration with Otis Worldwide Corporation, who was contracted to implement a Lift Destination Control System (DCS) as part of RP’s Asset Enhancement Initiative (AEI). Designed to complement the DCS system which was launched at RP in December 2019, the development of the eCall API was the result of a three-month innovation ideation and discovery process between both CDL and Otis teams. The integration of Otis’ eCall API in RP’s CityNexus also marks a global first for the company’s mobile application to be integrated in a building management app.

Ms Yvonne Ong, Chief Executive Officer, Commercial of CDL, said, “As Singapore prepares to enter Phase 3 of its reopening, the implementation of innovative solutions at RP, such as the lift eCall function, reinforces our support of the nation-wide drive to prevent a resurgence of the spread of the virus and ensure the continued safety and well-being of our occupants and visitors.”

“Since the launch of CityNexus last September, we have been receiving positive and encouraging feedback from tenants and users. Through enhancing CityNexus and providing more value-added services in the app, we hope to bring our users even greater convenience and increase their productivity as RP evolves into a smart workplace of the future.”

Enhancements to CityNexus App

Created by CDL, CityNexus is an innovative smart building app for all RP tenants to enhance user experience and convenience. Tenants can access a myriad of value-added services (VAS) such as building access, meeting room booking, air-con extension request and building feedback submission. The app also includes an ‘Order-Pay-Collect’ function enabling office tenants to pre-order their meals from RP F&B outlets, pay through the in-built payment system, and pick up when ready, effectively reducing tenants’ waiting time, crowding and frequency of contact touch points between F&B and building tenants.

Since its launch in September 2019, in conjunction with the launch of the refreshed RP, several other VAS have been progressively added to the app, to enhance the well-being of occupants. As the pandemic has heightened awareness on indoor air quality (IAQ) and a safe work environment, CDL has installed IAQ monitoring devices at the lobby of RP Tower 1 Level 1 and its office premises on Level 12 and Level 36. Through CityNexus, RP’s office tenants have been able to monitor IAQ parameters at the lobby of Tower 1 Level 1 – temperature, humidity, PM2.5, Carbon Dioxide and Volatile Organic Compounds levels – with the potential to scale the monitoring to other common areas and tenanted premises within RP as one of many facets of CDL’s smart building blueprint.

For a smoother visitor experience, tenants will be able to provide their guests with direct turnstile entry via their personal smartphones by the end of the year. The visitor invitation feature has been enhanced to allow visitors to pre-register via MyInfo, further reducing visitors’ need to touch high-contact common area surfaces and interact with the concierge desk. Upon invitation, visitors simply have to pre-register via MyInfo which retrieves their personal details from SingPass for verification. Once registered, an e-mail containing a QR code which grants turnstile access will be sent to the guest.

More VAS which will enhance the productivity and convenience of the office tenants will be introduced progressively to the CityNexus digital platform. Currently available exclusively at RP, the app will potentially be rolled out across other CDL office buildings.