Question

Please refer to the article titled as “Sustainable Construction Excellence for a Better Future in Malaysia, published in The Ingenieur, Vol. 69 January – March 2017 by the Board of Engineers Malaysia. Simplify and create a summary of the Article. (150 words)

Answer 1

Sustainability has become an important aspect of the construction industry. The Malaysian Government launched the Construction Industry Master Plan 2006-2015 (CIMP) initiative to uphold sustainable construction in Malaysia (CIDB, 2007). One of the strategic thrusts under CIMP emphasises the application of an industrialised building system (IBS) as an innovative construction method that responds well to green construction and sustainability. Following the successful implementation of the CIMP, the Construction Industry Transformation Programme 2016-2020 (CITP) was initiated by the Malaysian Government to drive sustainable construction excellence in the industry (CIDB, 2015). Recognising the importance of infrastructure to a nation’s growth towards sustainable development, the CITP aims to make local infrastructure more resilient and sustainable, to align with the sustainability goal of the Eleventh Malaysia Plan.

Infrastructure is expected to provide long-term service to satisfy public need into the future. After decades of service, poor condition and under-performance of existing infrastructure requires redevelopment efforts to prolong and revive the infrastructure’s life and performance. The fact that infrastructure development requires large resources and massive investment calls for sustainable practice in infrastructure project delivery throughout the project life cycle. IBS was emphasised by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia as one of the solutions for sustainable construction. Furthermore, IBS has been identified as an option to promote flexibility and interchangeability in accommodating the different demands for built infrastructure redevelopment. Given this, it is essential for the industry to enhance sustainable IBS in the construction industry, which motivated this research to further explore the application of IBS in infrastructure projects and its potential in facilitating infrastructure redevelopment.