Project manager's competency framework in managing Industrialised Building System (IBS) construction project / Izatul Laili Jabar

Industrialised Building System (IBS) has been introduced to promote a systematic construction process. The application of IBS offers numerous benefits such as cost and time reduction and enhancing construction quality and safety. In the Malaysian construction industry, IBS application was also expected to minimise the dependency on unskilled foreign labour. There are various issues associated with IBS construction projects such as poor quality building and construction delay, and thus, a qualified and experienced organisation led by a competent project manager is required to overcome the issues. The project manager who possesses the necessary competencies may lead the project to success and achieve its objectives. The objectives of this research are to investigate the competencies required for a project manager in managing IBS construction project; to determine the competencies required within the project management phases; to analyse the most significant competencies within the project management phases and to develop a competency framework for a project manager in managing the IBS construction project. This research is adopting a mixed method approach. A qualitative approach of semi-structured interviews was carried out to fourteen interviewees consisting of project managers of construction organisations, managers of installer companies and managers of manufacturing companies. Fifty competencies have been identified during the semi-structured interviews and categorised into project management phases. The identified competencies were then re-evaluated through a quantitative approach to determine the most significant competencies for a project manager. A questionnaire survey was used to measure the significant level of competencies for the project manager. SPSS version 20 was used to analyse the data from the questionnaire survey. The competencies were ranked by using Mean Analysis and Relative Importance Index (RII). Pareto Analysis was then used to cut-off the most significant competencies. Thirty-five competencies out of fifty listed competencies were identified as the most significant competencies formed the primary competencies section; meanwhile, another fifteen competencies established the secondary competencies section in the framework. The framework of project manager's competency in managing IBS construction project (PM-IBS Competency Framework) were validated by panels represented from the construction organisation, Association of Construction Project Manager (ACPM), Public Work Department (PWD), Malaysian Asset and Project Management Association (MAPMA), Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) and project management trainer

Challenges in the Management of IBS Construction Projects

IBS application had claimed to offer a faster construction, high quality, cost saving, cleaner and safer construction site. However, several challenges in management during the construction phase had been identified by researchers. This paper aims to analyze the challenges and issues arise in managing IBS construction projects.  The challenges and issues identified can be categorized into pre-construction, construction and post-construction phases. Categorizing the challenges and issues will help to increase the contractor's understanding and help them to be prepared in handling the situation that they may encounter during the project phases.Keywords: Issues, construction phases, construction process, project management.eISSN 2398-4279 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.

Conservation approaches on historic government buildings in Malaysia / Izatul Laili Jabar, Rohaslinda Ramele @ Ramli and Hasnizan Aksah

The historic building is one that gives us a sense of wonder and makes us want to know more about the people and culture that produced it. It has architectural, aesthetic, history, documentary, archaeological, economic, social and even political and spiritual or symbolic values. The first impact is always emotional, for it is a symbol of our cultural identity and continuity (Feilden B.M; 1994). The historic buildings in Malaysia are unique and valuable assets to this country for their historical values and tourism potential. Historic buildings in Malaysia may possibly classified into six(6) categories, namely shop houses, commercial buildings, religious buildings, private houses, palaces, and institutional buildings (Kuala Lumpur City Council ; 1996).The term conservation has become familiar to almost everybody. People often raise issues of conservation in regard historic buildings. The term of conservation defined as guardianship providing for maintenance, preservation or protection of what presently exists, from being destroyed or changed in an inappropriate manner. It is a process which leads to the prolongation of the life of cultural property and for its utilization now and in the future (Ahmad, A.G; 2008). All elements of historic buildings tend to deteriorate at a lesser or greater rate depending upon various factors such as aging, location and function. Buildings that were built in the early period of British occupation, for instance, often face problems in building materials. Therefore, proper treatment of building repair and maintenance should be given full consideration. The conservation must preserve and if possible enhance the messages and values of cultural property