International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation

Maintenance work for heritage buildings in Malaysia: owners’ perspectives

Umi Kalsum Zolkafli, Norhanim Zakaria, Aina Mohammad Mazlan, Azlan Shah Ali,
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Maintenance
Maintenance work for heritage work for
buildings in Malaysia: heritage
buildings
owners’ perspectives
Umi Kalsum Zolkafli, Norhanim Zakaria, Aina Mohammad Mazlan
and Azlan Shah Ali Received 28 July 2018
Faculty of Built Environment, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Revised 15 October 2018
14 November 2018
Accepted 14 November 2018
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to establish the impacts of good maintenance work for
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heritage buildings in Malaysia. This purpose is achieved through identifying factors that lead to the
lack of maintenance of heritage buildings, establishing strategies to overcome the lack of maintenance
of heritage buildings and analyzing the impact of good maintenance work on heritage buildings
in Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative method was employed for this study to identify the
variables that most influence the maintenance of heritage buildings in Malaysia. The respondents
were the owners of the heritage buildings in Peninsular Malaysia. There were 65 owners of heritage
buildings identified from the official website of the Department of National Heritage, Ministry of Tourism
and Culture, Malaysia. Simple random sampling was used to obtain the sample size of the targeted
respondent. A total of 56 questionnaire surveys were distributed to the owners of heritage buildings.
In total, 37 respondents returned the completed questionnaires, resulting in a response rate of 66 percent.
The data were analyzed by Descriptive Statistics using Statistical Package for the Social Science
software version 20.
Findings – Results show that the factors that lead to the lack of maintenance of heritage buildings are
limited finance, the absence of maintenance guideline and ill-defined maintenance policy. The strategies to
overcome the problem include providing a financial budget by the respective authorities, establishing a
standard maintenance guideline and revising the existing policy.
Research limitations/implications – The paper is limited to the identification of factors that lead to a lack
of maintenance and strategies to overcome the problem for the heritage buildings in Malaysia. The
respondents are the owners of heritage buildings in Malaysia. The focus is given to them due to the fact that it
will help them in understanding the importance of managing and operating for their buildings.
Practical implications – The results offer value-added information to building managers who are responsible
for maintaining heritage buildings. Findings show that good maintenance work on heritage buildings can
enhance the value and safety of the building as well as preventing heritage buildings from deteriorating.
Social implications – The quality of maintenance could be enhanced by focusing on the important
variables that affect the quality of maintenance works of heritage buildings.
Originality/value – Limited studies had been carried out in the context of the maintenance of heritage
buildings, especially in Malaysia.
Keywords Heritage building, Maintenance, Conservation
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
The concept of conservation of heritage buildings in Malaysia was initiated
approximately four decades ago. Heritage buildings have their own historical,
esthetical, social, archeological, cultural, architectural, documentary and even symbolic
values that need to be protected (Mohd-Isa et al., 2011). Many heritage buildings are still in
poor conditions with signs of serious defects, threatening their existence because
legislations related to heritage buildings do not sufficiently address the issues related to
their maintenance and management, thereby resulting in poor maintenance and
management practices which eventually lead to the deterioration of these buildings International Journal of Building
Pathology and Adaptation
(v-Sodangi et al., 2013; Zolkafli et al., 2017). Amir and Robiah (2007) found that the © Emerald Publishing Limited
2398-4708
proposed good maintenance process seemed to be neglected. Meanwhile, Forster and DOI 10.1108/IJBPA-07-2018-0062
 IJBPA Kayan (2009) mentioned that a maintenance program is often not properly implemented
even though it is the best way to protect heritage buildings. According to previous studies
by Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa (2012) and Rahman, Akasah and
Zuraidi (2012), maintenance seemed to be overlooked and not properly addressed, which
led to the decaying of the buildings that were valuable assets to the country. Rashid and
Ahmad (2011) highlighted that the lack of understanding in conservation works and the
significance of scheduled and systematic maintenance as part of conservation practices
are some of the reasons why the maintenance of heritage buildings is often disregarded.
The maintenance work for heritage buildings is often neglected, leading to the decaying of
the structures and resulting in an unsafe building condition for the users and occupants
(Paiman, 2002). Without a systematic maintenance approach, the heritage buildings will
not function accordingly due to the continued deterioration of the buildings. The lack of
awareness and recognition of heritage buildings is the main reason why these buildings
have been left in decayed conditions without any appropriate maintenance works
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(Utusan Malaysia, 2007a, b). According to Berita Harian (2005), there have been cases
where only the façades of heritage buildings were maintained with the backsides and
alleys being neglected. Robiah and Ghafar (2010) confirmed that poor maintenance works
can cause various building deterioration problems that can result in millions of ringgits
worth of repairs and conservation efforts. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to
demonstrate the impact of good maintenance work on heritage buildings in Malaysia.
This aim is achieved through the following objectives: to identify the factors that lead to
the lack of maintenance of heritage buildings; to establish the strategies to overcome the
lack of maintenance of heritage buildings; and to analyze the impact of good maintenance
work for heritage buildings in Malaysia.

2. Maintenance of heritage buildings

Keromo (2006) stated that maintenance is one of the conservation activities. Maintenance is
different from other activities in conservation that it must be done in a continuous way and
not just depending on need. Additionally, Ahmad (2006) mentioned that building
maintenance can be described as a process of protecting and keeping the building at a
certain level of standard to benefit the users, and it is a significant part of building
management to maintain the functionality of the building. Maintenance includes all
technical and practical works in order to ensure that the heritage buildings are being
appropriately maintained so they do not decrease in value and significance (Feilden and
Jokilehto, 1998). This paper adopts the definition of maintenance provided by Ahmad (2006).
Also, Dann and Cantell (2005) further added that regular maintenance remains the most
suitable and appropriate way of maintaining heritage buildings. In fact, maintenance is a
continuous care process that involves repair works conducted on the building elements to
retain the best condition that can prolong the lifespan of such structures for as long as
possible (Dann et al., 1999; Forsyth, 2007). Meanwhile, Mustapa et al. (2003) further added
that great maintenance work is a must in extending the heritage buildings’ life and avoiding
any potential troublesome repair works which can affect the value of the heritage buildings.
Therefore, it can be concluded that maintenance is crucial for heritage buildings.
Amir-Fasha (2010) highlighted that the best maintenance works not only include
maintaining the buildings’ functionality but also preserving its own uniqueness from the
passage of time. Even though there is an enactment of the National Heritage Act 2005 and
establishment of the National Heritage Department in Malaysia, there are still many
heritage buildings remaining in poor conditions with signs of serious building defects
threatening their survival (Forster and Kayan, 2009). Therefore, in order to improve the
maintenance of heritage buildings, it is crucial to understand why there is a lack of
maintenance work for heritage buildings and how to improve it.
 2.1 Factors that lead to the lack of maintenance work for heritage buildings Maintenance
Most heritage buildings’ maintenance works are influenced by some related problems that work for
affect the overall building conservation approach, resulting in the lack of maintenance heritage
works in these heritage buildings (Kayan, 2005). According to Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah,
Abdullah and Musa (2012) and Rahman, Akasah and Zuraidi (2012), the absence of buildings
standard guidelines for the owners to refer to in maintaining their heritage buildings is
one of the reasons why the right maintenance principles are not applied for heritage
buildings. Standard guidelines in maintaining heritage buildings are very important in
curbing the inevitable decay and deterioration of building fabric due to climatic
conditions, wear and tear by building users, neglect and other threats. Missing of the
standard guidelines will increase the ignorance level of the owner of a heritage building.
Abdul-Rashid and Ahmad (2011) disclosed that the lack of periodic inspection by the
authorities for heritage buildings is also an issue closely relating to the non-compliance of
the maintenance works, resulting in building decay. There are also some buildings the
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maintenance works of which were postponed due to financial constraints (Hashim and
Mydin, 2012). As heritage buildings involve conservation that obviously requires different
approaches to their maintenance, there is practically a lack of workers with skills and
technical expertise in conservation techniques (Harun, 2011). The fact that new or modern
materials cannot be used on heritage buildings complicates maintenance work for heritage
buildings as some of the original materials are no more being manufactured (Hashim and
Mydin, 2012). Ahmad (2002) pointed out that maintenance is usually not prioritized by the
heritage building owners as they lack the understanding and awareness of the significant
value of the buildings. It can be concluded that a lot of factors contribute to the lack of
maintenance of heritage buildings. Therefore, it is important to identify factors that most
influence the lack of maintenance of heritage buildings so that necessary action can be
taken to improve the situation.

2.2 Strategies to overcome the lack of maintenance work for heritage buildings in Malaysia
A good approach in maintaining heritage buildings can only be applied when there is an
established comprehensive and standard guideline that can be referred to by the owner of
the buildings, which currently does not exist in Malaysia (Idrus et al., 2010). Good
maintenance management for heritage buildings needs to adopt true regular and
scheduled inspections in order to conserve the cultural significance of the buildings and
help in long-term maintenance planning (Sodangi et al., 2011). To provide an effective
heritage building administration, the responsible parties need a higher budget to meet the
overall cost of heritage buildings’ maintenance work in order to ensure the building is in
its best condition (Ali et al., 2016; Hashim and Mydin, 2012). The maintenance work
weaknesses in conserving the heritage buildings can be overcome by developing an
effective maintenance plan. This can provide better outline and procedures on how
maintenance can be managed and carried out accordingly (Sodangi et al., 2011).
Maintaining heritage buildings requires special skills from selected skilled workers who
have a wide knowledge of heritage building maintenance works. Training on maintenance
management system is required for all staff involved in maintaining heritage buildings.
To create awareness of the heritage value, suitably designed courses should be included in
the curricula of colleges and schools. The training and motivation in these areas can help
spread the message of heritage conservation (Shankar and Swamy, 2013). Sodangi et al.
(2011) highlighted that there is the need for information management in order to handle
and store important maintenance information as the records can show the past
development and the condition of the building over time, maintenance works undertaken
before and the amount spent on the building and also help in deciding on areas to spend
the money budgeted for maintenance work.
 IJBPA 2.3 Impact of good maintenance work on heritage buildings in Malaysia
Harun (2011) highlighted that the elements and materials of heritage buildings will decay over
time; therefore, they need regular maintenance. It is generally recognized that taking care of
heritage buildings is not easy, but it is not an excuse to ignore the importance of maintenance
work in these buildings, especially in ensuring the safety of public and their properties (Dann
and Wood, 2004; Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa, 2012, Rahman, Akasah and
Zuraidi, 2012). Heritage buildings that are still standing have been declared as valuable assets
for this country and they will not benefit or reach their optimum impact if their maintenance is
neglected. In maintaining heritage buildings, the originality and functionality of the building
need to be conserved without damaging its physical structure (Bullen and Love, 2011;
Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa, 2012; Rahman, Akasah and Zuraidi, 2012).
Best maintenance practice can prevent conditions that increase future cost. For example, as
the buildings still retain their originality in terms of the structures and material used, the
possibility in getting a replacement with same sources is hard and difficult (Ali et al., 2018;
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Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa, 2012; Rahman, Akasah and Zuraidi, 2012).
If there is no appropriate maintenance work conducted in the heritage buildings, these
buildings will deteriorate and be demolished, thus resulting in the loss of historical marks, and
will not be able to be passed to future generations (Abdul-Rashid and Ahmad, 2011). Heritage
buildings are considered as highly valuable assets in Malaysia due to their strong influence in
motivating and attracting tourists to visit the country. The significance of these heritage
buildings highly depends on their condition. To put it another way, effective and good
maintenance works can keep the buildings in a better condition and thus able to continue to
generate interest among tourists to visit the country (Sodangi et al., 2011; Aigwi et al., 2018).

3. Research methodology
The scope of this research covers the heritage buildings in Peninsular Malaysia that have
been declared as National Heritage property. A quantitative technique using a questionnaire
survey has been adopted as the main tool in collecting data for this study. There were
65 identified owners of the heritage building. The list was obtained from the official website
of the Department of National Heritage, Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia. A total
of 56 questionnaire surveys were distributed to the owners of the heritage buildings located
in Peninsular Malaysia through random sampling. The questionnaires were distributed
through e-mail, phone and direct meeting. Each of the respondents was given one copy of
the questionnaire to be answered. The respondents were asked the factors leading to the
lack of maintenance of heritage buildings, strategies to improve and the impact of good
maintenance work on heritage buildings in Malaysia. The respondents were instructed to
complete the questionnaire based on their experience in handling their buildings’
conservation. About 37 owners replied the questionnaire and appropriately completed the
questionnaires without any question left blank. Data obtained from the returned
questionnaire were sorted out and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Science
(SPSS) software version 20.0. The reliability test showed Cronbach’s α scores of 0.696, 0.886
and 0.883 for the factors, strategy and the impact of good maintenance, respectively. The
Cronbach’s α reading of more than 0.60 was considered acceptable for reliability coefficient
(Santos, 1999). A selected appropriate statistical test was employed using the SPSS
software, based on the types of data. The descriptive statistical test was used for the data
analysis and presentation. Ultimately, conclusions were drawn up to summarize the data
gained from the questionnaire survey and literature review.

4. Results and discussion

A total of 56 questionnaire surveys were distributed and the rate of response was 66 percent
from 37 returned questionnaires.
 Table I shows that 70 percent of the respondents are male and 30 percent are female. Maintenance
This indicates that the majority of heritage building owners are male. Analysis on the age of work for
respondents shows that only 8 percent of the respondent ages are below 30 years, 24 percent heritage
between 30 and 40 years old, 32 percent between 41 and 50 years and 24 percent between
51 and 60 years. This result shows that 92 percent of the respondents are more than 30 years buildings
old, indicating that the respondents are well experienced to give their opinion and views on
the maintenance of heritage buildings.
On the types of heritage buildings owned by the respondents, both educational and
administration buildings are 27 percent each. Meanwhile, 16 percent are residential
buildings, 14 percent are religious buildings, 11 percent are commercial buildings and
5 percent are other buildings.
Analysis of the current status of the maintenance work for the heritage buildings shows
that 51 percent are in poor condition, 35 percent are in average level and 14 percent are in
good conditions. This indicates that most of the heritage buildings which are privately
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owned are in a poor condition.

Analysis of the factors pointing to the lack of maintenance was also carried out.
Strategies to overcome the lack of maintenance work and the impact of good maintenance
work were analyzed on the Likert scale using ranking analysis. The respondents were asked
to respond on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The ranking on the
degree of agreement for the factors that lead to the lack of maintenance work for heritage
buildings used the mean score to indicate the degree of agreement for these items.
Table II shows the result of the mean and ranking of the factors that lead to the lack of
maintenance work for heritage buildings in Malaysia. The overall result shows that the top
three factors are “limited financial to carry out the maintenance work,” followed by “absence
of maintenance guideline” and “unclear maintenance policy.”
“Limited financial” achieved the highest mean score of 4.81. This result is in line with the
statement given by Idrus et al. (2010), where they pointed out that the main problem in
carrying out the maintenance work for heritage buildings is insufficient financial capacity.

Demographic profile Frequency Percent (%)

Respondent’s gender
Male 26 70
Female 11 30
Respondent’s age
o 30 years 3 8
30–40 years 9 24
41–50 years 12 32
51–60 years 9 24
W 60 years 4 11
Types of heritage buildings
Residential 6 16
Commercial buildings 4 11
Administration buildings 10 27
Educational buildings 10 27
Religious buildings 5 14
Others 2 5
Current status of the maintenance of heritage buildings
Poor 19 51 Table I.
Average 13 35 Demographic profile
Good 5 14 of the respondents
 IJBPA This statement is also supported by Hashim and Mydin (2012), who indicated that some
heritage buildings need to postpone their maintenance work due to the lack of money. The
financial budget provided by the government is not enough (Abdul-Rashid and Ahmad, 2011).
“Absence of maintenance guideline” achieved the second highest mean score of 4.57.
Idrus et al. (2010) stated that there are no specific guidelines on how to manage
maintenance work for heritage buildings and this result in poor maintenance work being
carried out. The absence of standard guidelines as a reference for the owner is also one of
the reasons why maintenance is not carried out according to the right principles (Rahman,
Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa, 2012; Rahman, Akasah and Zuraidi, 2012).
Additionally, Abdul-Rashid and Ahmad (2011) further indicated that there is no example
of a guideline in assisting maintenance workers, which, in turn, leads to the lack of a
maintenance policy for heritage buildings.
Table II also shows the overall mean for “unclear maintenance policy” to be 4.49. This
result is supported by v-Sodangi et al. (2013), who noted that there is no clear policy on
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maintenance works for heritage buildings that can assert cultural significance as the key
driver for maintenance planning and implementation.
In Table III, the results on the strategies to overcome the lack of maintenance work for
heritage buildings in Malaysia are shown. The overall result shows that the top three
strategies are “provide a financial budget for maintenance,” followed by “enhance
maintenance policy” and “establish standard guideline.” This shows that providing a
financial budget for maintenance achieves the highest mean score of 4.86. In addition,
Hashim and Mydin (2012) mentioned that the responsible parties need to provide a higher
financial budget in order to ensure the buildings are in their best condition with the effective
maintenance. This is supported by Queensland Government (2004), who stated that some
budget must be allocated in order to conduct routine maintenance to prevent any spending

Mean Ranking

Limited financial 4.81 1

Absence of maintenance guideline 4.57 2
Unclear of maintenance policy 4.49 3
Absence of regular inspection 4.35 4
Table II. Lack of skilled workers 4.27 5
Factors that lead Lack of public’s awareness 4.22 6
to the lack of Lack of technical experts 4.16 7
maintenance work Limited sources of original materials 4.11 8
for heritage buildings Lack of owner’s awareness 3.81 9
in Malaysia Negative mentality of certain people 3.81 10

Mean Ranking

Provide a financial budget for maintenance 4.86 1

Enhance maintenance policy 4.59 2
Establish standard guideline 4.57 3
Table III. Establish information management to handle maintenance records 4.49 4
Strategies to Give awareness to public 4.22 5
overcome the lack Establish maintenance planning 4.22 6
of maintenance work Provide education for public 4.19 7
for heritage buildings Carry out regular inspection 4.11 8
in Malaysia Provide training for maintenance workers 3.92 9
 of large amounts of money possibly to repair defects that have occurred due to the failure of Maintenance
conducting continuous maintenance works. Besides that, if there is a lack of fund or budget, work for
the maintenance of heritage buildings can be done in stages by giving priority to the most heritage
important and urgent/critical maintenance issues.
“Enhance maintenance policy” was ranked the second highest for strategies to buildings
overcome the lack of maintenance of heritage buildings with a mean score of 4.59. This
shows that the enhancement of maintenance policy is one of the important strategies.
v-Sodangi et al. (2013) highlighted that a clear maintenance policy is important in linking
the assessment of the cultural significance of heritage buildings for maintenance
implementation and can prevent the lack of maintenance of heritage buildings. The policy
and guidelines in maintaining heritage buildings need to be revised and enhanced. The
more stringent policy should be included if there is non-compliance by the owners in
maintaining their heritage buildings.
Table III also shows that the third-ranked strategy is “establish standard guideline” with
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an overall mean score of 4.57. This result supports Idrus et al. (2010), who stated that a good
maintenance approach for heritage buildings can only be applied when there is a
comprehensive and standard guideline established to act as a reference for the owner of the
buildings. In fact, Abdul-Rashid and Ahmad (2011) mentioned the need for proper
guidelines to help in conducting maintenance works accordingly and to achieve
standardization.
The overall result for the impact of good maintenance work on heritage buildings
indicates that the top three factors are “enhance heritage buildings’ value,” followed by
“provide safety for occupants” and “prevent heritage buildings from decay.”
Table IV shows that “enhance heritage buildings” value has the highest impact with a
mean score of 4.86. Fortunately, Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa (2012) and
Rahman, Akasah and Zuraidi (2012) mentioned that heritage buildings now have been
declared as valuable assets in Malaysia. In maintaining the buildings, their originality and
functionality, they need to be conserved without any damage to their physical structure to
enhance the buildings’ value. A good and efficient maintenance can enhance the value of the
heritage buildings. This is supported by Harun (2011), who stated that a good maintenance
approach is important to protect the significant values of the heritage buildings.
“Provide safety for occupants” was ranked as the second highest with a mean score of
4.81. Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa (2012) and Rahman, Akasah and
Zuraidi (2012) mentioned that good maintenance work for heritage buildings can ensure the
safety of public life and their properties. According to Hashim and Mydin (2012), good
maintenance work for heritage buildings helps to give the satisfaction of facilities available,
safety and comfort to the users.
The item ranked third was “prevent heritage buildings from decay” with a mean score of
4.81. Harun (2011) stated that good and regular maintenance of heritage buildings can prevent
the continuous decay of the buildings which can result in the destruction of the buildings.

Mean Ranking

Enhance the heritage building’s value 4.86 1

Provide safety for the occupants 4.81 2
Prevent heritage building from decay 4.81 3 Table IV.
Avoid the demolition of a heritage building 4.76 4 Impacts of good
Raise public awareness 4.57 5 maintenance work
Avoid increasing cost in the future 4.35 6 on heritage buildings
Enhance tourism industry 4.27 7 in Malaysia
 IJBPA This is supported by Rahman, Ashraf, Akasah, Abdullah and Musa (2012) and Rahman,
Akasah and Zuraidi (2012), who stated that there is no doubt heritage buildings will rapidly
decay if good and better maintenance work is not carried out.

5. Conclusion
As heritage buildings have their own value and significance, they must be protected and
preserved. Heritage buildings will deteriorate as time passes and thus need continuous care
and regular maintenance to prevent defects and decay. All the maintenance problems
arising should be studied first in order to know the factors that contribute to the problems.
The owners of heritage buildings can utilize the findings in this study to help them in
managing and operating their buildings in effective ways, mainly in the maintenance aspect
such as managing the budget. Heritage buildings are valuable assets for Malaysia and the
society needs to appreciate and be aware of their important values that should be passed
down to the future generation. In order to protect these heritage buildings, maintenance
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works need to be properly and regularly carried out without affecting their original
value. The factors that lead to the lack of maintenance work for heritage buildings need to
be addressed. A standard guideline on how to correctly manage maintenance work needs to
be established. Each individual needs to own up to responsibly taking care of these valuable
buildings instead of just depending on certain parties.

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Further reading
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Infornet (M) Sdn Bhd, Selangor.
Downloaded by University of Malaya At 01:04 14 December 2018 (PT)

Hills, S. and Worthing, D. (2006), “Private home, public cultural asset: the maintenance behaviour of
listed building owner-occupiers”, Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, Vol. 21 No. 2,
pp. 203-213.

Corresponding author
Azlan Shah Ali can be contacted at: asafab@um.edu.my

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