CPG Consultants (CPG) has launched The Making of Mandai North Crematorium, a book chronicling the design and making of Singapore’s newest public crematorium, Mandai North Crematorium (MNC). CPG provided consultancy services for architecture, mechanical and electrical engineering, and quantity surveying, leveraging its multidisciplinary expertise to deliver a facility that is both emotionally resonant and technically robust.
The book launch follows the commencement of operations at MNC in August 2025. MNC recently received a Singapore Institute of Architects (SIA) Design Award (Merit) in the Religious Buildings category for 2025, as well as the Green Mark (Platinum) by the Building and Construction Authority for sustainability efforts in building design.
For decades, CPG has helped shape Singapore’s funerary landscape, creating spaces where dignity, tradition, and thoughtful design converge. In 2004, the firm completed the original Mandai Crematorium, enhancing capacity and improving the experience for mourners. Building on this legacy, the Mandai North Crematorium—completed in 2025 and featured in The Making of Mandai North Crematorium—continues this vision with a design that restores the intimacy of farewells while ensuring smooth and respectful operations.
Evocative and thoughtful design choices bring meaning to MNC
Taking cues from the original land profile, the building’s form rises from the lowest part of the site on the west to the forested hill on the east. Layers of greenery are incorporated into the rising form, creating a man-made landscape that visually merges with the natural landscape beyond. The form of the building synchronises with the building’s internal functions, allowing the two-storey cremator spaces to occupy the tallest part of the building.
Central to the MNC project is CPG’s application of biophilic design principles to create a dignified and restorative environment.
“Recognising its importance as a symbolic gateway between life and death, the crematorium is designed to provide a peaceful backdrop for the final farewell rituals. Elements of nature are brought into the key spaces in the form of greenery, daylighting and natural materials to provide a comforting environment for the bereaved,” said Ar. Pauline Ang from CPG Consultants, the Lead Architect of the MNC project.
Right from arrival, visitors are immediately connected to nature. Urban greening strategies such as sunken gardens, hanging greenery and a roof garden create a sense of being surrounded by greenery in the key spaces from the arrival lobby in the basement, through the Main Foyers and within the Service Halls.
In the Service Hall, daylight filters through the large clerestory windows—draped with hanging vines—creating an interplay of light, shadow, and greenery. The swaying vines cast shifting patterns on the floor at certain times of the day, complemented by the warmth of timber finishes. These biophilic touches are carefully integrated not only to enhance the visual environment but also to support emotional healing for families and friends during the farewell ritual. The ascending roof culminates in a double-volume space bathed in natural light, evoking a sense of awe.
The building layout is designed to minimise walking distances, especially for elderly visitors. A one-way visitor circulation flow caters to back-to-back cremation services, minimising the need for arriving and departing groups to cross paths. This arrangement provides a degree of privacy for each group of visitors and facilitates a sense of closure for the bereaved.
MNC integrates innovative design with technology to boost operational efficiency and deliver a seamless visitor experience, featuring automated coffin transport, a self-help ash collection system, and a centralised process control for reliable services.
Singapore’s second inland ash scattering facility, the Garden of Serenity (GOS), sits beside the MNC building. Designed as an open garden, it features dedicated walkways and ash scattering lanes, along with a stormwater detention pond styled as a natural water feature. The facility expands capacity to meet the growing demand for inland ash scattering services.
A purposeful milestone
CPG’s legacy and expertise in crematoria design have shaped dignified spaces where Singaporeans commemorate their loved ones. The Making of Mandai North Crematorium documents this milestone, while charting the future of funerary design—humane, sustainable, and quietly transformative.
An excerpt from The Making of Mandai North Crematorium is available to read online here.
The book is priced at SGD 52 (inclusive of GST) and may be purchased at CPG’s office by completing this form.
It is also available for borrowing at all public libraries in Singapore.
