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Industrialized Building Systems Construction in

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Article in Journal of Architectural Engineering · March 2002

DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)1076-0431(2002)8:1(19)

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 Industrialized Building Systems Construction in Malaysia
Yuosre F. Badir1; M. R. Abdul Kadir2; and Ahmed H. Hashim3

Abstract: Available literature indicates that considerable research efforts have been directed toward the ‘‘hardware elements’’ of the
industrialized building systems technology. However, the hardware elements are only concerned with the structure itself. Nonetheless, to
date, the ‘‘software elements’’ of the industrialized building systems, which are concerned with the data and information available on the
system, users, clients, establishment of manufacturing and assembly layout and process, as well as allocation or resources and material,
have received little attention. There is therefore a dire need to overcome the shortage in the software elements of the building system
research. This paper reports a survey conducted on industrialized building system construction companies. The main objective is to
present the building system technologies existing in Malaysia and to examine problems and constraints associated with these technologies.
DOI: 10.1061/共ASCE兲1076-0431共2002兲8:1共1兲
CE Database keywords: Industrial plants; Malaysia; Construction industry; Concrete, precast; Panels; Construction materials.

Introduction
Malaysia’s housing policy is geared toward meeting the objective
of ensuring access to adequate and decent shelter to all citizens,
particularly the low-income groups. The national housing policy
will effectively contribute to the provision of physical shelter as a
basic social need toward improving and enhancing the quality of
life through the erection of decent and viable human settlements.
In implementing this policy the quantitative and qualitative as-
pects of housing development are taken into account 共Yahya
1997兲.
Under the Seventh Malaysia Plan 共1996 –2000兲, the govern-
ment drew up a housing program involving the planned construc-
tion of some 800,000 units of houses by both the public and
private sectors 共Salleh and Meng 1997兲. In addition to that, there
are many other buildings—offices, schools, shopping centers,
hospitals, etc.—supposed to be built to serve the new housing
program.
While the problem of housing grows more acute, Malaysia is
struggling to meet its own housing needs and is doing so through
an increasingly advance technology. The conventional construc-
tion method, due to the slow pace of construction and higher cost,
is not able to meet the demand 共Agus 1997兲.
1
Researcher, Housing Research Center, Faculty of Engineering, Univ.
of Putra Malaysia UPM, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. Cur-
rently, Research Associate at Logistics, Economic, and Management Unit
共LEM兲, Civil Engineering, Dept., Swiss Federal Institute of Technology–
Lausanne EPFL, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland. E-mail:
yuosre.badir@ieee.org
2 suggested that there are a number of appropriate IBS, useful for a
Associate Professor, Deputy Dean of Faculty of Engineering and
Associate Director of Housing Research Center, Univ. of Putra Malaysia,
43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
3
Doctor, Faculty of Human Ecology, Univ. of Putra Malaysia, 43400,
UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
Note. Discussion open until August 1, 2002. Separate discussions
must be submitted for individual papers. To extend the closing date by
one month, a written request must be filed with the ASCE Managing
Editor. The manuscript for this paper was submitted for review and pos-
sible publication on March 20, 2000; approved on December 4, 2001.
This paper is part of the Journal of Architectural Engineering, Vol. 8,
No. 1, May 1, 2002. ©ASCE, ISSN 1076-0431/2002/1-1–5/$8.00⫹$.50
per page.
Waleed et al. 共1997兲 stated that to achieve the Malaysian plan
target using the present conventional building system, it will re-
quire an excessive workforce, since on average only one house is
completed per year per worker 共one house/year/worker兲. The ris-
ing cost of labor is an important factor in increasing the total cost
of the house. The labor cost has increased to 30% of the construc-
tion cost as compared with 10% a few years ago 共Friedman and
Cammalleri 1993兲. Moreover, the required quality cannot be
achieved, because of poor quality control at the site. In order to
overcome the present problems, the mass production of housing
under high quality control is required.
The concept of mass production of quality building is termed
industrialized building systems 共IBSs兲. By using new building
systems and factory-produced building components, and by pio-
neering ‘‘conveyor belt’’ mass production technique at the build-
ing site, it may be possible for each building worker to construct
up to 10 houses per year 共Waleed et al. 1997兲. ‘‘Industrialized
system’’ means to build on-site with elements or components pro-
duced by series in plants. These components are things like floors,
walls, columns, beams, and roofs. They are then assembled and
erected on the site properly joined to form the final units. How-
ever, it is accepted that the IBS is the only way to bridge the gap
between demand and supply 共Rollet 1986兲.
Malaysia is presently taking a hard look at IBS as an answer to
a housing shortage problem. The main advantages of using IBS,
according to a report published by the Malaysian Ministry for
Local Government and Housing 共Ministry 1997兲, are speed of
construction, quality, and economic advantage, all of which are
required to meet such a large demand for housing. It has been
wide range of specific uses and situations, but none of them is
applicable to all construction sites. They are dependent upon and
influenced by many other aspects of the housing situation, aspects
such as land use, density, volume, environmental conditions, user
needs, continuity of demand, and labor 共Swee 1988兲.
The clear understanding of the current status of IBSs will help
to set the housing programs under the Seventh Malaysia Plan.
However, the first step in any advance study on building systems
and its technology should be initiated by knowing the status quo.
This paper reports a survey conducted on IBS construction com-
panies. The main objectives of the survey was to investigate the

JOURNAL OF ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING / MARCH 2002 / 1

building system technologies existing in Malaysia and to examine
problems and constraints associated with these technologies. Spe-
cifically, the objectives of this survey are
1. To investigate and compile technical information about the
types of IBSs existing in Malaysia;
2. To determine the technical problems associated with adopt-
ing building system technology;
3. To determine the advantages and disadvantages of the IBSs
in the Malaysian environment;
4. To investigate the current IBSs construction projects; and
5. To determine the reasons for delay in construction of IBSs.
Literature Review
Available literature indicates that considerable research efforts
have been directed toward the ‘‘hardware elements’’ of the IBSs
technology. However, the hardware elements are concerned with
the structure itself—the strength of the concrete and steel, the
share forces, the bending moment of the structure members, etc.
But to date, the ‘‘software elements of the IBSs, which 关are兴 con-
cerned with the data and information available on the system,
users, clients, establishment of manufacturing and assembly lay-
out and process, and allocation or resources and material, have
received little attention 共Dulaimi 1995兲. Therefore, there is a dire
need to overcome the shortage in the software elements of the
building system research.
Software elements of the building system research utilize ac-
cumulated technical knowledge and the best technical foresight;
this is in order to improve building performance, make building
less costly to own, make them safer to build and safer to live in,
build and use them with less waste of resources and less pollution
of the environment, and improve the quality of private and public
lives.
Types of IBS
In general, the construction methods can be classified into four
categories 共Badir and Razali 1998兲: 共1兲 conventional method; 共2兲
cast–in situ; 共3兲 composite method; and 共4兲 fully prefabricated.
The last three construction methods are considered nonconven-
tional and all types of IBSs are categorized under them. The fol-
lowing paragraphs give an overview about construction methods.
Conventional Construction Method
In the conventional construction method 共reinforced concrete
frames and brick as infill兲, beam, column, wall, and roof are cast
in situ using timber formwork while steel reinforcement is fabri-
cated on site. This method of construction is labor intensive and
involves three separate trades, namely, steel bending, formwork
fabrication, and concreting. Skilled carpenters, plasterers, and
brick workers are also involved in this method. The process can
be hampered by bad weather and unfavorable site conditions. The
application of prefabrication technology to this construction pro-
cess is a solution to these problems.
Cast – In Situ Construction Method
In this method, lightweight prefabricated formwork that is easily
erected and dismantled is used to replace traditional timber form-
work. The formwork is a structure—usually temporary but it can
2 / JOURNAL OF ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING / MARCH 2002
be partly or wholly permanent—that is designed to contain fresh
fluid concrete, form it into the required shape and dimensions,
and support it until it cures sufficiently to become self-supporting
共Dulaimi 1995兲. The most commonly used prefabricated form-
work materials in the construction are 共1兲 metal products, such as
steel and aluminum, 共2兲 plastics products, 共3兲 wood products, 共4兲
ferrocement, 共5兲 fiber products, 共6兲 special timber, and 共7兲 poly-
ethylene formwork.
Those prefabricated formwork materials can be reused many
times. It’s a fact that repetitive utilization of formwork normally
results in cost savings for a project, especially when a large num-
ber of housing units is involved 共Swee 1988兲. These formworks
have clearly shown a construction speed faster than timber form-
work.
There are many types of formwork: tunnel form, modular
moulding metal form, column and beam form, and permanent
form 共Dulaimi 1995兲. The tunnel formwork system uses half and
completed tunnels. A half tunnel is composed of two panels 共ver-
tical and horizontal兲 set at a right angle and supported by struts
and props. The walls and slabs are cast in a single operation. This
method leaves no joints, and therefore leakage is unlikely to hap-
pen 共Friedman and Cammalleri 1993兲. The modular moulding
metal form is also a tunnel formwork system but with only com-
plete walls being cast in situ, and precasting slabs or casting in
situ slabs, by the conventional methods, are erected onto the com-
pleted walls 共Dulaimi 1995兲.
Composite Construction Method
The composite construction method, sometimes called partially
industrialized, has the objectives of improving quality, reducing
cost, and shortening construction time. The concept of ‘‘partially
by industrialized’’ derives from the composite nature of full in-
dustrialization and conventional construction methods 共Badir and
Razali 1998兲. In this method of construction, certain elements,
those that can be standardized, are prefabricated in the factory
while others are cast in site. Normally this method would involve
the assembly of precast elements, such as floors, slabs, infilled
wall, bathrooms, staircases, etc., into place for incorporation into
the main unit. Columns and beams are usually cast in situ as these
are a relatively easier and less time-consuming part of the opera-
tion 共Partadinate 1988兲.
Fully Prefabricated Construction Method
According to Badir and Razali 共1998兲, the fully prefabricated
construction method can be classified into two main categories.
The first is on-site prefabricated and the second is off-site prefab-
ricated 共factory producing兲. On-site precasting consists of casting
the floor and roof slabs on top of one another so that they can be
lifted into place once the columns and jacking equipment are in
place. Cast precast elements at or near the construction site serve
to transfer some of the advantages of the factory to the site and in
some circumstance proves to be economically and organization-
ally the most satisfactory method. In the off-site fabrication, some
or all components of the building are casting or preparing away
from its final position. By transferring the construction operations
to the factory, a good quality of product is more easily attainable,
and materials and suppliers are much improved and can arrive in
economically large loads.
As shown in Fig. 1, the fully prefabricated construction
method consists of four types of IBSs. Those types are precast
concrete, sandwich panel, load-bearing block, and steel frame.

Fig. 1. Classification of fully prefabricated construction method
共adopted from Badir and Raziali 1998兲
A precast concrete component may be defined as a component
cast in a formwork in a position other than that which it will
finally occupy in the completed structure and which, after re-
moval from the forms and maturing, requires to be placed and
fixed in position. There are various precast concrete building sys-
tems used throughout the world, and they can be classified into
three major groups 共Majzub 1977兲: frame or post and beam sys-
tem, panel system, and box system. It is clear that all of these
three groups can be constructed either on- or off-site.
The precast concrete frame system may be defined as those
structures that carry the loads through their beams and girders to
columns and to the footing. The precast panel system is defined as
those structures that carry the load through floor and wall panels.
The panels, factory or on-site produced, are assembled in their
final position to form the final unit. The concrete panel systems
are extensively used in Europe for construction of high-rise build-
ings 共Din 1994兲. The precast box system is defined as those struc-
tures that do not have an independent vertical load-carrying
frame, but rather depend upon the walls to not only carry the
vertical loads but also provide the necessary lateral stability. This
system is preferable because of its compatibility with a high de-
gree of finish in the factory and its seismic resistance.
The second type of fully prefabricated construction method is
the sandwich pane system. This system is a layered structural
system composed of a low-density core material bonded to, and
acting integrally with, relatively thin, high-strength facing mate-
rials. When used as a wall, roof, or floor element in housing, the
sandwich panel provides exceptional strength for the amount of
material used. In a load-bearing wall, the two facing act as slender
columns continuously supported by the core material to resist
compression and buckling 共Friedman and Cammalleri 1993兲.
The load-bearing block system is the third type of fully pre-
fabricated construction method. This system is a cast hollow
block, which can be composed of a variety of material, such as
concrete, lightweight concrete, stabilized mud, and dense polysty-
rene. Usually, the building block is interlocking in four directions
to assist laying by unskilled workers. The blocks are erected dry
and stabilized by a number of methods to form a system building
structure 共Yau and Kheong 1996兲.
The fourth type is the steel frame system. This system is com-
patible with most other building materials. Steel is light, strong
and structurally stable, and environmentally friendly. Prepunched
holes panned within the frame design allow electrical wiring and
plumbing services to be installed quickly and efficiently 共Sang
et al. 1996兲.
Methodology
The data in this study were gathered through mailing question-
naires to IBS companies that exist in Malaysia. The questionnaire
design was undertaken in two phases. The first phase consisted of
handbooks 共particularly government documents兲, a literature
search, and papers focused on IBSs and the construction industry.
This phase resulted in a preliminary questionnaire. The question-
naire was first pretested to find out if there was any possible
confusion and to discern the presence of any offensive questions
that exist in the questionnaire. Six IBS companies were chosen as
samples for the pretesting of the questionnaire. Four out of the six
companies responded. After the pilot survey phase was over, ap-
propriate revisions were made in the questionnaire.
The last version of the questionnaire was composed of three
main parts. The first part included information about the respon-
dent, such as qualification, total number of years of experience,
and his position during his last and current projects.
The second part provided 11 items, pertaining to company
data. These items were the number of projects that have been
constructed by the company’s systems, business activity of the
company, advantages and disadvantages, the number of stories
which the system is suitable for, and the country of origin of the
system.
The third and final part of the questionnaire dealt with the
project itself. This part included information about the recent
project constructed by the company, such as contract value, type
of contract, project description, duration of the project, and the
reasons for delay if any. In addition, comparison of the IBSs with
the conventional system was provided.
Because of the small population, 50 companies, it was decided
to use the whole 50 IBS companies as the sample for this study.
Twenty-two out of the 50 companies responded, amounting to
44% of the population. Data gathered on IBSs in Malaysia were
processed and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sci-
ence 共SPSS兲 for Windows, version 7.5.
Survey Finding
It has been found from the analysis of the data that there are
different IBSs, each having its own characteristic features, advan-
tages, and disadvantages. All of these IBSs are grouped under the
three construction methods mentioned earlier—the cast–in situ,
fully prefabricated, and composite construction methods.
So far, the IBSs used in Malaysia belong mainly to closed
systems. This means that the components are not interchangeable
with any other system or method. Thus the building is formed
from components specifically designed for and applicable to the
particular building system.
Building Systems Information
Most of the IBSs in Malaysia have been very recently established
in the early 90s. This sudden and very rapid growth in the number
of IBSs is in perfect tune and harmony with the tremendous
amount of emphasis for building construction activities in the
Malaysia Seventh Five-Year Plan.
The results of the analysis reveal that the systems originating
from the United States are the largest in number in the construc-
tion industry in Malaysia 共25%兲, followed by those from Australia
and Germany 共17% for each兲. In all the IBSs used in Malaysia,
the locally produced systems account for only 12%. Austria and
JOURNAL OF ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING / MARCH 2002 / 3
 Table 1. Comparing Industrialized Building System with Conven-
tional System
Answering Percentage of Respondents
共with reference to conventional system兲
Factors More 共%兲 Less 共%兲 Same 共%兲
Cost of construction 5 86 9
Cost of transportation 20 50 30
Speed of construction 77 23 —
Save in raw material 55 27 18
Total number of laborers 5 86 9
Unskilled 41 50 9
Fig. 2. Types of industrialized building systems in Malaysia Skilled 14 86 —
Expert 14 63 23
Initial capital investment 57 10 33
the U.K. represent 8% and 4%, respectively. The rest of the build- Flexibility of design 59 9 32
ing systems 共17%兲 are originally from other countries—Canada, Heavy equipment 24 48 28
France, Japan, and Finland. Ease of erection 68 32 —
The various projects that have been constructed in Malaysia Quality of building 95 — 5
using IBSs can be arranged according to the number of buildings
constructed; these projects include residential and apartments, of-
Advantages and Disadvantages of IBSs
fices, housing units, shopping centers, and schools.
The IBS companies in Malaysia can be classified into six dif- The quality, speed of construction, and cost saving are the main
ferent interrelated areas of business activities. However, the major emphases given in the building construction industry in Malaysia.
three areas of business are 共1兲 building product manufacturing, These factors are very important ones from the points of view of
共2兲 main supplier of building materials, and 共3兲 main contractors the Seventh Malaysia Plan in terms of the very large number of
involved in the actual construction. The other three areas of busi- buildings envisaged. The savings in labor cost and the savings in
ness are subcontractor, consultant, and client. It is interesting to material cost are also the major advantages of the Malaysian
note on the basis of analysis of data, virtually all the IBS compa- IBSs. The control in using materials, such as steel, sand, and
nies are in more than one building-related business. timber, will result in substantial savings on the overall cost of the
The types of IBS in Malaysia, as shown in Fig. 2, are 共1兲 project.
formwork, 共2兲 precast load-bearing wall panel, 共3兲 precast frame, The IBS construction activities are highly capital intensive.
共4兲 precast floor and hollow core slab, 共5兲 sandwich panel, 共6兲 This is the main disadvantage of the IBS. The heavily mechanized
block panel, and 共7兲 steel frame structure. approach has displeased a substantial number of the labor force
Fig. 2 indicates that about one-half 共45%兲 of the IBSs in Ma- from the building construction industry. In some IBSs there is a
laysia are of formwork systems. This type of system is grouped tremendous need for expert labor at the construction site. There-
under cast in situ construction method. The main advantages of fore, extra costs are needed to train the semiskilled labor force for
this system lay in reducing the traditional site-based trades like highly skilled jobs.
traditional timber formwork, brickwork, and plastering and thus The main reasons for delay in early completion of projects in
enabling us to reduce the overall labor content in the building IBS construction industry are supply delay, bad weather, and
construction. Moreover, the unskilled laborer can be easily trained shortage of raw material. In some cases, the main reason for the
to construct buildings using the formwork systems. delay was the lack of labor experience. This is because certain
There are four types of formwork, namely 共1兲 modular moul- types of IBS construction are still new in Malaysia and the labor
ding wall form, 共2兲 column and beam form, 共3兲 tunnel form, and force is still not familiar with the special erection procedure re-
共4兲 permanent formwork. The modular wall seems to be the most quired by those systems.
used form in the construction industry in Malaysia 共32%兲, fol- Almost all the IBSs in Malaysia are suitable for all number of
lowed by column and beam formworks. stories, especially for three to five-storey buildings. At the same
The precast load-bearing wall panel system could be consid- time, all the IBSs in Malaysia are very much suitable for all
ered the second most popular IBS in Malaysia 共21%兲, next only to classes of construction from the unit cost point of view, which are
the formwork system. The precast panelled system is classified arranged from low-cost house class to high-cost house class.
into 共1兲 precast panel factory produced and 共2兲 precast panel cast
on-site. In Malaysia, the factory-produced precast panelling is
IBSs versus Conventional System
more widely and popularly used than those of precast panelling
cast on-site. The factory-based precast panelling is to be found In this section, the respondents were asked to compare their IBSs
more than twice as much as the precast panelling produced on the with reference to the conventional system from the points of view
building site. This is because a cast-on-site precast panel requires of certain factors. The respondents were given multiple answers
sufficient space for both casting and storage, and this is some- to choose from. These answers were ‘‘more,’’ ‘‘less,’’ and
times not available. ‘‘same.’’ Table 1 gives the details of responses by the respondents
The sandwich panel system seems to be a new innovation, at for various factors in the questionnaire.
least in Malaysia. Its application is limited to single and double- Compared with the conventional method, IBSs have lesser
storey buildings. The load-bearing block panel and steel-frame cost and higher speed of construction. In terms of the total num-
systems make the lowest contribution to the construction industry ber of labor force required in the current IBSs, it is far lower than
in Malaysia. those required in the conventional method of construction.

4 / JOURNAL OF ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING / MARCH 2002

 In terms of usage of heavy equipment, the IBSs’ construction
requires less use of heavy equipment than that required for the
conventional method of construction. This is due to the fact that
most of the IBSs are of formwork, sandwich panel, block panel,
and steel frame. These systems do not require use of heavy equip-
ment. The precast panel is the only system that needs the use of
heavy equipment during erection.
In terms of quality of the building, the IBSs construction was
found to be capable of producing units of higher quality than what
the conventional construction method could achieve. However,
the IBSs need a much higher initial capital investment than does
a conventional system. This is because factories/production facili-
ties must be constructed and because of the high cost of training
labor.
Conclusions and Recommendation
There are many types of IBSs existing in Malaysia: formwork,
precast load-bearing wall panel, precast frame, precast floor and
hollow core slab, sandwich panel, block panel, and steel frame.
These IBSs represent most of the IBSs that exist worldwide.
Quality, speed of construction, and cost savings are the main ad-
vantages of these systems. These factors are very important in
implementing the Seventh Malaysia Plan. The main disadvan-
tages of the IBSs in Malaysia are that they are highly capital
intensive and there is a need for experts at the construction site
for some of them. The main reason to recommend the use of IBSs
in Malaysia is that the raw materials used in the IBSs have to be
produced locally in order to overcome the shortages that are being
faced by the IBSs construction industry.
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