scholarly journals Perception Analysis of Industrialized Building System (IBS) Implementation for G7 Contractors in Kuching, Sarawak

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Yee Yong Lee ◽  
Nurul Mizatul Qamarina Abdullah ◽  
Yeong Huei Lee ◽  
Hun Chuen Gui ◽  
Andrew Whyte

Industrialized Building System (IBS) is one of the initiatives underpinning the green construction zeitgeist. A myriad of advantages can be associated with adopting IBS in construction, including inter alia, improved construction quality and productivity, minimisation of construction waste, optimisation of construction materials on-site, enhanced environmental sustainability, and many others. In spite of these advantageous propositions, there is exist a gap in the exposure towards IBS construction methods, particularly in the city of Kuching, Sarawak, as compared to more familiar conventional methods. Thus, the purpose of this study is to identify the issues and challenges experienced by contractors in their IBS endeavour as well as to propose a framework of solution. Moreover, this study investigated the impact of IBS adoption by G7 contractors registered with the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) of Sarawak. Data of this study was collected via questionnaires distributed to the G7 contractors and subsequently analysed using descriptive and mean analysis. Results obtained from the study suggested that IBS construction method enhances the efficiency of construction for speedier completions, which recorded the highest ranking. Conversely, lowering the costs of construction through optimisation of materials registered the lowest ranking, suggesting that contractors do not necessarily perceive IBS as having a cost-saving ability. This study showed that IBS helps to improve the efficiency of the construction process. However, respondents were still uncertain that adopting IBS can reduce costs. This corresponds to the finding in which the most significant challenge perceived by the contractors was related to cost. This suggested a lack of integration between the different stakeholders, especially during the design stage, often resulting in the need for redesign works that required additional costs when IBS is to be adopted. In this regard, it was not a surprise to find that “promotions” obtained the top ranking as a solution in overcoming the IBS challenges. Hence, support from both the government and the private sector needs to be garnered and diligently promoted, so that the adoption of IBS in the Sarawak construction industry can be properly enhanced.

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2.29) ◽  
pp. 766 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maychuan Theong ◽  
Rosli Abd Rashid ◽  
Changsaar Chai

To further enhance the efficiency, capacity and capability of the Malaysian construction industry, the government has been aggressively championing the use of Industrialised Building System (IBS). However, several studies have pointed out that the trade contractors are very concern with the increasing use of IBS in the country because it will reduce their business opportunities.  Therefore, the research is dedicated to address issues faced by the trade contractors with the adoption of IBS. The objectives of this paper are to uncover the impact of IBS to the trade contractors and to suggest solutions to address issues faced by the trade contractors with the implementation of IBS. A fundamental of the methodology is to adopt multiple case studies approach. These projects adopted both conventional and IBS construction method. A number of 8 projects were selected. Interview sessions are conducted with trade and main contractors. Collected data is then modelled by using the combination of fuzzy theory set and simple multi-attribute rating technique. Main contractors’ input on several success factors that lead to the penetration of trade contractors in IBS is evaluated. Some degree of involvement of trade contractors in IBS projects is recommended. It is significant for the trade contractors to obtain skills for IBS approach besides their existing crafts. Furthermore, the trade contractors are suggested to register themselves as IBS components installer as this does not involve high investment capital or they can join the other companies to increase their technical and financial capacity. These findings will inform on numerous policy initiatives to manage the business sustainability of the domestic trade contractors, to improve construction methods, then to modernise and upgrade the construction industry within the country.  


2016 ◽  
Vol 78 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Hanizun Hanafi ◽  
Arniza Abas ◽  
Fazdliel Aswad Ibrahim ◽  
Shardy Abdullah

The Malaysian construction industry has lags behind other industries in terms of performance that had drawn the attention to implement innovative construction method like Industrial Building System (IBS). However, the implementation of IBS in Malaysia remains low although the Government had commenced various efforts. The architects have been perceived as the prime mover for construction innovations by integrating their roles as designer, manager, and professional advisor with their strength in design. Therefore, this paper is designed to assess readiness for IBS implementation among organizational members of architectural firms by examining the influence of demographic backgrounds. The study distributes questionnaires to randomly selected respondents who represent firms that are located in highly developed states in Malaysia. Various analysis techniques have been used namely Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients, frequency, mean, standard deviation, one-way ANOVA, and independent samples t-test towards achieving the research objective. The findings disclose that working experience in tender and construction stage (more than 18 years) indicate high likelihood of readiness to implement IBS. This research also reveals that demographic variables (job designation, working experience in design stage, and working experience in tender and construction stage) has significant impacts on the decision maker category, whereas decision maker is the most influential aspect for organizational readiness to implement IBS.  


Nanotechnology is a speedily increasing and innovating range of research, where advanced characteristics of resources manufactures on the nanoscale can be exploited as advantages for people at large through various methods or mechanisms of construction. Being a varied technical and scientific arena that brings and covers numerous application kinds, the contribution of nanotechnological innovations is immense for various sectors of construction industries. It also possesses a large future potential for ecological efficiency, which is dire need of the hour. In construction industry there are many factors involved to achieve the major goal of sustainability like smart design, planning through which energy can be saved, resource usage can be reduced and environmental damage can be avoided. No doubt, the application of nanotechnology materials and its various causes on the atmosphere and living organisms are not clearly defined yet which can become a problem. For instance, leakage of materials into the water resources, and seas, as well, discharge of nanoparticles into the air generating dust and exposure to harmful materials during various construction, maintenance and use etc. Considering tremendous revolution in Nanotechnological field there is an important aspect in relation to the impact of nanoparticles and nanomaterials on human health and environment which should be discussed at length. This paper intends to give a research review of current and near future, safety and eco-efficiency applications of nanotechnology to not only improve and maintain but also deal with certain future challenges and directions related to the sustainable development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 94-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debashree Das ◽  
Avik Datta ◽  
Patanjal Kumar

COVID 19 pandemic is the worst crisis that mankind has seen since World War-II. It has exposed glaring loopholes in the healthcare system and led to a global health crisis. In absence of any specific treatment or vaccine, countries began to enforce strict lockdown measures leading to a complete shutdown of economic activities. The purpose of this study is to identify key exit strategies that can be implemented to mitigate the impacts of COVID 19. Identification and categorisation of parameters have been done using multi criterion decision making tool of Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM) and MICMAC analysis. The study highlights a classification of key strategies based on their driving power and dependence which may enable Government to strengthen the disease surveillance system and effectively reduce the impact of the disease. The findings of the study suggest that Environmental Sustainability and Human Well-being; Online Awareness and Capacity Building Programme; Graded Surveillance- Targeted Restrictions and Stricter norms for Inter-State Mobility; and Harmonization between Centre, State and Local Authorities are the most important strategies that needs to be factored in while planning for the post lockdown economic recovery. Thus, the study can assist the government in devising exit strategies while framing the pandemic response plan.


Facilities ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (13/14) ◽  
pp. 942-960 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellemy Iskandar Khalid ◽  
Shardy Abdullah ◽  
Mohd Hanizun Hanafi ◽  
Shahrul Yani Said ◽  
Mohamad Sufian Hasim

Purpose Effective building maintenance management is vital for reducing the impact of building defects and costly building maintenance work. Such practice significantly contributes to the public sector in terms of cost reduction, improved effectiveness and efficiency in maintenance works, increasing safety and well-being of the occupants, expanding the life of building stocks and expanding the value of investment for the government building assets. The maintenance practice in Malaysia is still emerging in comparison to many developed nations. The purpose of this study is to determine the current scenario of the building maintenance approach at the design stage in public buildings in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach An extensive questionnaire survey was held, involving 312 key players (38 per cent out of 820 predetermined participants) in Malaysia. Findings The analysis showed that building maintenance in public building in Malaysia still uses the reactive approach. Despite the Malaysian Government’s adoption of a proactive maintenance approach, unfortunately, there are some misunderstandings among the key players regarding the approach. The research results demonstrate that the key players had a lack of understanding on the concept of the proactive maintenance management approach and that they were either ignorant or had insufficient awareness of proactive maintenance approach. Originality/value The contribution of this study is useful for the government to adopt a more proactive building maintenance policy at the design stage, to give awareness on proactive building maintenance to the key players in their construction project and as a guide to the key players to adopt a maintenance plan at the design stage of work.


1999 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 509-522
Author(s):  
Charles C. Okeahalam

The Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) is an attempt by the South African government to redress the imbalances of apartheid. It has many facets. One of these involves the provision and distribution of infrastructure to citizens who hitherto have been neglected. This calls for significant construction effort particularly for housing, water, roads and other social construction. This will require efficient production, and allocation of resources to ensure that there is adequate supply of materials to meet the likely increase in demand. This paper examines the expected demand for construction materials, assesses the supply capacity of South African suppliers of construction materials, and develops an econometric model which can be used to evaluate the impact that growth of the internal construction activity will have on construction industry suppliers.


2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 25 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.N. Jadid ◽  
M.M. Idress

Mobile computing technology has an enormous potential in civil engineering, mainly in the field of construction management. This paper presents an approach by using mobile computing in a civil engineering construction project, exploring how information can be exchanged at a construction site, and how billing of quantities (BOQ), drawings and specifications are shared for the benefit of the project. One of the major obstacles in using information technology (IT) when applied to civil engineering is due to the dynamic changes in the construction activities and the diversity of construction methods as compared to other industries. This has proved to be a great disadvantage when trying to give construction sites adequate IT support. Computers require infrastructure, which can be transferred easily to the head office, but rarely to the construction site itself in a systematic way. Therefore, the impact of IT on the way the construction industry actually works has not been significantly utilized. This paper consists of two main parts. The first part defines the concept of mobile computing, describes some recent research, and stresses the potential for the construction industry. The second part is focuses on an approach, implementing mobile computing in a real construction site. 


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yulia Orlovska ◽  
◽  
Daria Havrylenko ◽  

The main international trends in the world market of construction materials and services have been analyzed. The dynamics of world GDP and exports of construction services for the period 2000-2019 has been studied and a conclusion is made on the impact of economic crises on their growth rates. It has been determined that the dynamics of world exports of construction services is characterized by high instability with peaks of growth and decline, and is more sensitive than GDP growth. It has been noted that overcoming the crisis in the export sector of construction services takes more time and occurs with an approximate two-year time lag compared to GDP dynamics. The share of the construction industry in the world GDP by the degree of development has been analyzed. The reasons for the decline in the share of the construction industry in countries with economies in transition have been substantiated. It has been noted that in the developed countries the share of the construction sector is accounted for by real estate management activities related to maintenance, rent, purchase and sale and other transactions with land and real estate. The forecast values of growth of the market of building materials and services till 2030 have been given. The essence of the term «wide construction» has been revealed and the structure of this sector in different countries of the world is shown. The main exporters in the world construction market have been given and the structural distribution of the largest construction companies in the world ranking by country of origin has been analyzed. The dynamics of income level in the construction industry market for the period 2011-2018 has been studied. It has been noted that an important area of the construction sector is the market of roofing and facade materials and the world's largest companies for the production of this type of construction materials have been revealed. Conclusions on the essence of global transformations of the market of building materials and services have been made, and also it has been defined that they are caused by transnationalization of corporate structure of the market, influence of scientific and technical progress and information and communication technologies on world centers as well as the emergence of the concept of «sustainable construction» in the course of humanity for sustainable development.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Rovetta

AbstractItaly has been one of the first nations in the world to be heavily affected by the first wave of COVID-19. To date, it is among the first countries for both total cases of contagion and deaths. A wide range of containment measures have been adopted from February to December 2020 to mitigate the pandemic, including total lockdowns across the entire country. This research sets out to evaluate not only how these restrictions influenced Italian citizens’ consumption habits (such as online shopping, smart working and distance learning) but also the impact of lockdowns on the concentrations of particulate matter (PM) 10 and 2.5 in the Lombardy region. In particular, this survey is aimed at investigating the environmental sustainability of the new individual behaviors after the restrictions imposed by the Government in order to quantify their effects on particulate concentrations in Lombardy, the region most damaged by both COVID-19 and air pollution. Various tools and online platforms have been used to collect data, such as Google Trends, web portals providing statistical and demographic information (e.g. AdminStat Italia and ISTAT, which is the National Institute of Statistics), surveys conducted by the Department of Civil Protection, other scientific studies, and the most reliable national newspapers. Technical data on particulate matter was collected from the website of the Regional Agency for the Protection of the Environment (ARPA). To highlight any significant change, the average daily concentrations of PM10 and 2.5 during 2020 in all the provinces of Lombardy were compared with those of the previous year. The comparison between the mean values was made through the t-test. Two values were considered as statistically confident when t < 1.5. However, since the real significance of these thresholds is not easily determined, some margins of suspicious confidence have been kept. Finally, using Pearson and Spearman correlations, possible causal correlations between changes in citizens’ behavior and specific key events related to COVID-19 have been dealt with. The P-value threshold was indicatively set at 0.05. Microsoft Excel 2020 and Google Sheets were used as data analysis software. In conclusion, this paper showed a substantial ineffectiveness of total and partial lockdowns in reducing PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations in Lombardy. Furthermore, it has been estimated that COVID-19 has significantly changed the consumption habits of Italian citizens, thus leading to both positive and negative results in terms of sustainability. For instance, a sharp rise in the usage of home delivery services is posing a potential additional threat to the environment at present. At the same time, a positive aspect of this change is the spread of digital literacy, as Italians got quickly acquainted with the most modern technologies for distant learning and smart working, thus paving the way for the establishment of energetically and environmentally sustainable policies throughout the country.


2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-116
Author(s):  
Mohammad Affendy Omardin ◽  
Nazirah Zainul Abidin ◽  
Wan Dagang Wan Ali

This paper presents an overview of the environmental sustainability concept through construction industry. The aim is to create a environmental sustainability through pre-construction stage. This could be achieved where as it is important to look into minimizing the impact on the environment. However, the enthusiasm in pursuing rapid development often causes environmental sustainability aspect being ignored. This research was conducted to study the level of environmental sustainability concern and practices in through pre- construction stage in construction industry. A selected of construction working managerial level were selected as respondents. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. More than 70% respondents being interview and have high level of environmental concern but moderate level of environmental sustainability practices. Most of the respondents concern about environmental issues. The study also have positive perceptions on environmental sustainability. The findings showed that there is a positive and pro-active between the level of environmental sustainability concern and practices in construction management. This indicates that the higher the level of environmental concern, the higher the level of practices in environmental sustainability among project practitioners. The implication of the study showed that coordinate effort should be taken by construction practices during pre- construction stage to enhance environmental sustainability practices more effective through construction project.


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