From agriculture to shipbuilding, diversification is the name of the game for this company

In January last year, GKE set up an agriculture division to provide indoor farming solutions – in line with Singapore’s goal to locally produce 30 per cent of its nutritional needs by 2030. The facility utilises a controlled environment to grow crops such as kale under optimal conditions year-round. The produce can be found in Sheng Siong and some wet markets.

Charting a rapid growth

Founded in 1998, the company swiftly grew from its humble origins in warehousing, first forming a freight company, and later providing customised project logistics for events such as Cirque du Soleil, Ultra and TCR Asia.

Mr Neo stresses that the drive to remain nimble and diversify has not been a reactionary measure to the pandemic. Rather, it has been an ongoing strategy judging by GKE’s portfolio which includes shipbuilding, crane services, aerospace and marine logistics, port management, infrastructural materials and services, and agriculture. 

“Although GKE is an established logistics player in the Singapore scene, we’ve had to pre-emptively seek new opportunities in order to adapt to the ever-changing business landscape over the years,” says Mr Neo, 53.

“Diversifying our customer segments has proven fruitful in positioning the company for growth.”

From a staff strength of 250 in 2015, the company now has 880 staff across its operations in Singapore, as well as Wuzhou City and Cenxi City in China.