Butterflies are the primary motif in Eco Sanctuary development, with butterfly wings inspiring the curvilinear and oblique patterns found throughout.

With a nearly 50-year history and a reputation as one of Malaysia's top listed real estate players, S P Setia Berhad is certainly no stranger to the real estate industry. Homegrown in Malaysia, S P Setia has grown to be a strong brand, dominating in the property industry scene in the nation’s major economic hubs, namely Klang Valley, Johor Bahru, Penang and Sabah. The group's presence has also grown internationally, with noteworthy developments in six nations: Australia, China, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam.

There are many notable accomplishments by S P Setia, including being the only developer in Malaysia to have won 15 FIABCI World Gold Prix d'Excellence Awards and 14 FIABCI Malaysia Property Awards to date. S P Setia also won the top spot of The Edge Malaysia Top Property Developers Awards in 2020 for a record-breaking 13th time, and it is the only developer to have done so since the awards' inception.

S P Setia was awarded the MDA Top-Of-The-Charts Award with a market capitalisation of RM1bil and above. During the same award ceremony, the group received a second award, a Special Award for the International category, for its Singapore Eco Sanctuary project.

The developer has 47 ongoing projects as of June 30, 2022, with an effective remaining land bank of 7,042 acres valued at a gross development value (GDV) of RM120.88bil and total unbilled sales of RM8.71bil. Furthermore, the group's GDV of launched phases for this year is RM806mil and the GDV of planned subsequent launches is RM3.49bil, for a total GDV of planned launches of RM4.29bil. In addition, the total GDV of completed projects stands at RM7.14bil as of FY2021, which ended on Dec 31, 2022.

Setia Eco Glades in Cyberjaya is surrounded by 1,545 trees that had been relocated, making it the largest tree transplantation operation in Malaysia.

Award-winning strategies

S P Setia’s award-winning ways have already been ingrained into the company structure and its culture. Being financially strong both in earnings and profitability puts it ahead of the pack and when coupled with the company’s financial stability, transparency and sustainable capacity to last the decades, it is not surprising that SP Setia makes the MDA’s list. While financial strength and company growth is part of the MDA quantitative criteria, there were also qualitative attributes comprising placemaking, environmental, social and governance (ESG) and digitisation aspects.

The LiveLearnWorkPlay development philosophy at S P Setia placed the developer in good stead as the group is already committed to innovation in placemaking by taking a customer-centric approach and delivering high-quality products and services that are tailored to meet the needs of ever-evolving lifestyles. Every project, whether a township, an eco-sanctuary, a commercial hub, an integrated development, or a venue for a convention, is planned to have the amenities needed to promote sustainable lifestyles and raise the quality of life.

“We are honoured to have been conferred as one of the Top 10 property developers in Malaysia, as well as one of the Malaysian developers who have succeeded overseas. This platform created by Star Media Group and FIABCI Malaysia has propelled us to stay resilient and we have been inspired to be innovative with our upcoming offerings,” S P Setia executive vice-president Datuk Zaini Yusoff said.

The D'Network@Setia Eco Park in Shah Alam encompasses a hybrid solar-powered F&B hub with an energy generation capacity of 207kWp.

Green focus

“With our dedication to protecting the environment as much as we can, our commitment towards sustainability measures can be seen through our efforts in implementing high-quality sustainable projects designed to minimise impact towards the environment,” he added.

Because ESG strategies have always been incorporated into the group's projects, this allowed S P Setia to have an edge over others. As part of their commitment to building sustainable communities, their projects, including the Eco-series, are designed to cause as little disruption to the surrounding environment and natural habitat as possible. They ensure that at least 10% of the development area is dedicated to green spaces such as parks, gardens, and water bodies to create a sustainable environment and opportunities for community engagement.

Ticking the right boxes

In the international arena, S P Setia stood out as well. Little wonder as it took the MDA International Award with the iconic Eco Sanctuary, a low-density high-rise development nestled among the lush greenery of Cheng Hua Garden, Singapore. Awarded for its thoughtful landscaping and architectural excellence, the design is inspired by Mother Nature, a natural progression from the biodiversity study and S P Setia's personal experience building Eco-themed townships in Malaysia. Thanks to the 14% footprint, residents can enjoy boardwalks and different landscapes in the company of nature.

S P Setia paid special attention to sustainability for this development because it was located in an ecologically sensitive area near the Central Catchment Nature Reserve. Thus, the emphasis was on ensuring that there was no negative impact on the immediate environment. In recognition of its sustainability efforts, Eco Sanctuary was also named World Gold Winner for the FIABCI World Prix d'Excellence Awards Gold Award (Sustainable Development) in 2018.

Having experienced FIABCI’s stringent criteria contributed to S P Setia's success as the International Award adopts part of FIABCI's criteria. While the International Award takes into account other criteria from architectural design to the financial well-being of the project, and qualitative company aspects as well, Eco Sanctuary nevertheless ticked the right boxes to take the trophy. 

S P Setia's years of experience as a property developer has place the company in the forefront and winning the MDA's two awards are certainly proof that it will continue to lead the charge for the next few generations.

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