The Adoption of Industrialised Building System (IBS) Construction in Malaysia: the History, Policies, Experiences and Lesson Learned
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The adoption of Industrialised Building System (IBS) construction in Malaysia: The history, policies, experiences and lesson learned Mohd Idrus Din, Noraini Bahri, Mohd Azmi Dzulkifly, Mohd Rizal Norman, Kamarul Anuar Mohamad Kamar *, and Zuhairi Abd Hamid Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia * Corresponding author ([email protected]) Purpose Industry and government in Malaysia coined the term industrialised building system (IBS) to describe the adoption of construction industrialisation, mechanisation, and the use of prefabrication of components in building construction. IBS consists of precast component systems, fabricated steel structures, innovative mould systems, modular block systems, and prefabricated timber structures as construction components. Parts of the building that are repetitive but difficult – and too time consuming and labour intensive to be casted onsite – are designed and detailed as standardised components at the factory and are then brought to the site to be assembled. The construction industry in Malaysia has started to embrace IBS as a method of attaining better construction quality and productivity, reducing risks related to occupational safety and health, alleviating issues for skilled workers and dependency on manual foreign labour, and achieving the ultimate goal of reducing the overall cost of construction. The chronology of IBS-adoption in Malaysia goes back a long way, reaching back to the 1960s, when precast elements were adopted in the building industry to address the problem of an acute housing shortage. However, the introduction of IBS was never sustained beyond this period. As a result of the failure of early closed-fabricated systems, the industry is now avoiding changing its construction method to IBS. Some of the foreign systems that were introduced during the late 1960s and 1970s were also found to be unsuitable in Malaysia’s climate and not very compatible with social practices. IBS has regained its popularity presently due to problems with construction workforces where the industry has been relying for a long time on unskilled workers from neighbouring countries. Method In 1999, the IBS Strategic Plan was launched to promote the system’s usage in the industry. This was followed by the IBS Roadmap 2003-2010 and IBS Roadmap 2011-2015; these are blueprints for industrialised construction by 2015. The roadmaps have been developed by the government to chart progress and guide the awareness programmes, incentives, vendor scheme development, training, quality control and research and development programmes. The government also took the lead in 2008, by mandating that all public-sector projects must attain no less than 70% IBS-content under the Treasury Circular SPP 07/2008. This policy aims to build up momentum and to establish demand for IBScomponents, thus bringing the cost down. Results & Discussion At present, IBS-construction is widely used as a mainstream method and the implementation has moved from prefabrication towards mechanisation, automation, and robotics applications. This paper highlights some of the history, policies, experiences, and lesson learned in adopting IBS in Malaysia. The outlook for IBS-implementation in Malaysia is bright, but much work is still needed from the government to convince the contractors, manufacturers, and suppliers to adopt IBS-construction. Keywords: construction, industrialized building systems, Malaysia INTRODUCTION timber structures as construction components (CIDB, Industrialised Building System (IBS) is the term 2003). Parts of the building that are repetitive but coined by the industry and government in Malaysia difficult – and too time consuming and labour to represent the adoption of construction intensive to be casted onsite – are designed and industrialisation and the use of prefabrication of detailed as standardised components at the factory components in building construction. IBS is defined and are then brought to the site to be assembled as a construction technique in which components (CIDB, 2003). The onsite casting activities in IBS are manufactured in a controlled environment (on or utilise innovative and clean mould technologies off site), transported, positioned and assembled into (CIDB, 2007; CIDB, 2005 and CIDB, 2003). In the a structure with minimal additional site work (Hamid Malaysian context, the classification by the CIDB is et al., 2008; CIDB, 2007; CIDB, 2005 and CIDB, widely used and well understood by scholars and 2003). It consists of precast component systems, practitioners. CIDB has classified the IBS systems fabricated steel structures, innovative mould into five categories as depicted in Table 1 (CIDB, systems, modular block systems and prefabricated 2003). Table 1: IBS classification (CIDB, 2003) Classification Descriptions Precast concrete The most common group of IBS products is the precast concrete elements; precast framed buildings concrete columns, beams, slabs, walls, 3-D components (e.g. balconies, staircases, toilets, lift chambers, refuse chambers), lightweight precast concrete, as well as permanent concrete formworks. Formwork System Considered as one of the low-level or the least prefabricated IBS, as the system generally involves site casting and is therefore subject to structural quality control, the products offer high-quality finishes, and fast construction with less site labour and material requirement. Steel Framing System Commonly used with precast concrete slabs, steel columns and beams, steel framing systems have always been the popular choice and used extensively in the fast-track construction of skyscrapers. Recent developments in this type of IBS include the increased usage of light steel trusses consisting of cost-effective profiled cold-formed channels and steel portal frame systems as alternatives to the heavier traditional hot- rolled sections. Prefabricated Timber The system consists of timber building frames and timber roof trusses. While the latter Framing System are more popular, timber building frame systems also have their own niche market, offering interesting designs from simple dwelling units to buildings requiring high aesthetical values such as chalets for resorts. Blockwork System The construction method of using conventional bricks has been revolutionised by the development and usage of interlocking concrete masonry units (CMU) and lightweight concrete blocks. The tedious and time-consuming traditional brick-laying tasks are greatly simplified by the usage of these effective alternative solutions. The construction industry has started to embrace government sent a group of architect from PWD to IBS as a method of attaining better construction learn industrialised building in some of European quality and productivity, reducing risks related to countries. The following year, another group of occupational safety and health, alleviating issues for architect from the Federal Capital Commission was skilled workers and dependency on manual foreign sent to France for about 6 month for exposure in labour, and achieving the ultimate goal of reducing industrialised buildings (Sumadi et al. 2001). In the the overall cost of construction. Apart from this, it same year, Ministry of Housing and Local offers minimal wastage, fewer site materials, a Government (MHLG) was being set up by the cleaner and neater environment, controlled quality, government to concentrate to development of and lower total construction costs (Pan et al. 2008, housing. The ministry officers and representatives Hamid et al. 2008 and Pan et al. 2007). Already visited West Germany, Denmark and France to utilized in Malaysia since 1960s, IBS is the way gather more information on industrialised building forward for the industry stakeholders to make leaps later that year (Sumadi et al. 2001). and bounds progress in the Malaysian construction industry. Sufficient exposure and incentives are 2. Development in 1964 to 1970s: pouring in to encourage industry players to make a After their successful visit in 1964, the government paradigm move – from conventional to IBS had started its first IBS project aims to speed up the construction. delivery time and built affordable and quality houses as stipulated under the 2nd Malayan Plan 1960-1965 st THE CHRONOLOGY OF IBS ADOPTION IN MALAYSIA and the 1 Malaysian Plan 1966 – 1970. About 22.7 acres of land along Jalan Pekeliling, Kuala Lumpur 1. Development of IBS in post-independent was dedicated to the project comprising 7 blocks of Malaysia: 17 stories flat consists of 3000 units of low-cost flat IBS has been introduced in Malaysia since early and 40 shops lot. This project was awarded to JV 1960s when Public Work Department (PWD) and Gammon and Larsen and Nielsen using Danish Ministry of Housing and Local Government (MHLG) System of large panel pre-cast concrete wall and of Malaysia visited several European countries and plank slabs. The project was completed within 27 evaluate their housing development program months from 1966 to 1968 including the time taken (Thanoon et al. 2003). In 1963, the in the construction of the RM 2.5 million casting yard at Jalan Damansara. In 1965, the second housing project initiated by the government comprising 6 blocks of 17 stories flats and 3 block of 18 stories flats at Jalan Rifle Range, Penang. The project was awarded to Hochtief and Chee Seng using French Estoit System (CIDB, 2006 and CIDB, 2003). Both steel structure gained much attention with the projects utilised the large panel system which construction of 36-storey