Building maintenance manual to be drawn up
24/05/2007 NST

KUALA LUMPUR: A manual to end the blame game when things go wrong in buildings will be drawn up by a group of engineers.

The Institute of Engineers Malaysia will brainstorm with engineering groups to create a maintenance manual.

Vice-president Tan Yean Chin said the manual would list out the life span of every item of the building' among other things.
 

Let's say, a light bulb: It should be changed by the time its life span is over. Or an item in a roof, or wiring.

"If anything goes wrong, then it will be easier to investigate as there will be clear guidelines on who is supposed to do what and when."

Some of the engineers involved in the task are from the Real Estate and Housing Developers Association and Master Builders Association Malaysia.

Work on the manual comes in the wake of a spate of problems involving buildings, ranging from a ceiling collapse in Putrajaya to a leaky roof in Parliament House.

Tan said most of the problems in building were due to the poor maintenance culture.

"Unlike Hong Kong or other developed countries, we still have a long way to go."

He felt that the maintenance should be undertaken either by the Public Works Department or the relevant government departments.

"At the end of the day, the body or authority maintaining the building should constantly check on the condition of their infrastructure."

He said an allocation should be made to reverse the wear-and-tear of a building after several years.

Malaysian Professional Centre president Isaac Sunder Rajan said maintenance work should not be left to contractors and non-professionals.