Journal of Architecture, Planning and Construction Management
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Measuring Use Patters among Malaysian Neighbourhood Parks Users
Get PDFThis study validates the use pattern scales of park users’ for Neighbourhood Parks context in Malaysian residential area. Samples of 414 daily park users in two neighbourhood parks in the Klang Valley area were achieved. The measures on use pattern were developed using three use pattern scales which are activities, passive activity and active activity. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were used to validate the instrument. Results showed good-fit indices on each construct confirming the theory behind each and every items used in the study. Despite several reduction on the items, the CFA on use pattern yield a good internal consistencies making it suitable for it’s use in the research design as well as future research focusing in measuring the use pattern aspect of neighbourhood green
Low Energy Ground Cooling System For Buildings In Hot And Humid Malaysia
Get PDFThis thesis presents an investigation into the viability of Low Energy Earth Pipe Cooling Technology in providing thermal comfort in Malaysia. The demand for air-conditioning in buildings in Malaysia affects the country escalating energy consumption. Therefore, this investigation was intended to seek for a passive cooling alternative to air-conditioning. By reducing the air-conditioning demand, there would be a higher chance of Malaysia government to achieve their aim in reducing CO2 emissions to 40 per cent by the year 2020, compared to 2005 levels. The passive technology, where the ground was used as a heat sink to produce cooler air, has not been investigated systematically in hot and humid countries. In this work, air and soil temperatures were measured on a test site in Kuala Lumpur. At 1m underground, the result is most significant, where the soil temperature are 6oC and 9oC lower than the maximum ambient temperature during wet and dry season, respectively. Polyethylene pipes were buried around 0.5m, 1.0m and 1.5m underground and temperature drop between inlet and outlet were compared. A significant temperature drop was found in these pipes: up to 6.4oC and 6.9oC depending on the season of the year. The results have shown the potential of Earth Pipe in providing low energy cooling in Malaysia. A parametric study on the same experiment was carried out using Energy Plus programme. Energy Plus data agreed with the field work data and therefore, this confirms Energy Plus is reliable to investigate Earth Pipe Cooling in Malaysia. Furthermore, thermal comfort of air at the Earth Pipe outlet was analyzed and the result has shown that the outlet air is within the envelope of thermal comfort conditions for hot/humid countries
The Alleviation Of Rural Poverty in Malaysia: The Role Of Zakat A Case Study
Get PDFThis study focuses on the factors contributing to the lack of emphasis by the Kedah Department of Zakat (KDoZ), Malaysia on the alleviation of poverty among the rural poor through zakat capital assistance programmes and employment opportunities. In this study, seven research questions were outlined. A mixed-methods study was developed to answer research questions 1, 2, 3 and 4. Research questions 5, 6 and 7 were answered using qualitative data. Quantitative data was collected from questionnaire. The sample size was 406 participants from among the capable poor who can work which received annual monetary assistance. Qualitative data was generated from the interviews with KDoZ officers (n=11) and participants for the qualitative method were selected purposefully. The responses to research questions 1, 2,3 and 4 show that the majority of the respondents were not aware of the existence of SHS. Respondents’ awareness towards SHS programme is significantly related with the socio-economic and zakat assistance characteristics which are rate of districts’ collection, number of years respondents receive zakat and distance of respondents’ house from the KDoZ office. 80% of respondents interested to apply for the SHS programme. The factors contributing to apply SHS were current zakat assistance, current income, economic activity, lack of motivation and constraints. Furthermore, the lack of interest in SHS was significantly related to the age of the respondents. In answering research question 5, there were 3 factors leading to this approach by the KDoZ: 1) the KDoZ faces the constraints of low zakatcollection caused by two subscales; 2) a high rate of failure among the recipients or the poor in economic activities; and 3) incompetence of members of the KDoZ committee. The answers to research question 6 were difficulties in dealing with the poor, responsibility of the state government, and the committee’s lack of interest. The answers to research question 7 were factors related to politics, the committee and priority in providing financial assistance. There are 5 main findings which hindered the effective use of zakat, which are capitalist thinking, local collection rates, avoiding the query of Sultan, a large number of committee members and limited zakat funds allocated for administration. Finally, recommendations were provided to overcome these problems. Several additional recommendations for future research have emerged from this study and these have been briefly outlined
Managing Commitment In Small Construction Professional Services Firms
Get PDFSmall construction professional services (CPS) firms are recognised as being vitally important to the UK construction industry as much of the professional capacity of the sector resides within these small practices. They rely on the capabilities of small groups of professional employees in delivering their services and so need to ensure their commitment to achieving organisational objectives. Clearly, human resource management (HRM) strategies have a major role to play in managing employee commitment, and yet such strategies have received little attention within the construction management literature. This study investigates the nature of construction professionals’ commitment within small CPS firms and to develop HRM interventions that foster organisational commitment in small CPS firms.
The study adopts qualitative approach to enable gathering of rich data that come directly from the participants involved in the phenomenon. Exploratory interviews with managers of small CPS firms conducted in the early phase of the research helped to identify some of the key strategies and operational challenges related to the management of commitment. Following this, the main data was collected through conducting two in-depth case studies, which included one small quantity surveying practice in the East Midlands, UK, and one small multi-disciplinary practice in the West Midlands, UK. The case studies involve in-depth interviews involving the employer and employees, participation observation and document analysis at the main office of both organisations. Together, these data helped to unravel the nature of the employment relationship within such firms and also to gain a better understanding of how professional employees express their commitment. The findings reveal that professional employees’ commitment is influenced by a complex range of factors, but thatfive main HRM levers have a particular influence within such firms.
These relate to job design, performance and career management, training and development, reward management and employee involvement. It is clear that a range of factors impinge on the abilities of employers to enact effective HRM strategies. In particular the recent economic crisis and personal problems have both been cited as the main challenges by the employer and employees of both organisations. It highlights the significant importance of managing organisational commitment much more effectively, regardless of the economic climate. Based on the research results a framework for managing professional commitment was developed and validated within a range of small CPS firms. The framework presents a holistic way of accounting for all the issues that influence the development and maintenance of organisational commitment within small CPS firms. Such knowledge is essential to the management of small CPS firms for achieving meaningful improvement in their approach to foster organisational commitment. The key recommendations for the management of small CPS firms is to make sure that every aspect of the job meets the professional employees’ expectations as well as project requirements and organisational objectives.
This includes improving communication by utilising both formal and informal medium of communication, rewarding employees with both monetary and non-monetary rewards and developing employees by providing both on-the-job training and off-the job training. All these HRM practices need to be effectively linked and managed appropriately to collectively foster commitment. In conclusion, the complex nature of organisational commitment raised the importance for the management of small CPS firms to have a structured approach in managing their employees’ commitment
Role of the State and Market in Low Cost Housing Provision: The Case Study of Open Registration System (ORS) for Low Cost House Buyers in Malaysia
Get PDFThe aim of this research is to examine the role of the state and market in low cost housing allocation in Malaysia in the context of a global trend towards neo-liberalism. This research explores the transformation in low cost housing provision in Malaysia particularly in the allocation process. The research is premised on a qualitative research paradigm using case study research design. The low cost housing allocation system in Malaysia under the Open Registration System (ORS) was selected as a case study to determine the role of the state and market in housing allocation. Meanwhile the State of Selangor was selected to study the implementation of ORS at the state level. The research framework was based on the Structure of Housing Provision (SHP) approach in order to determine the changes in housing provision system in Malaysia since the 1950s and to identify the key players involved in the low cost housing production and allocation process. The method of data collection was based on the analysis of documents, qualitative interviews and a group interview. The key findings include, firstly, the fact that housing provision in Malaysia shows no sign of convergence with the Western neo-liberal model. The state continues to control and regulate the market in low cost housing allocation through ORS. Secondly, although low cost housing production shows trends of commodification since the early 1990s, but the allocation process remains the sole responsibility of the state and is highly decommodified. Thirdly, most low cost house buyers prefer the market to manage the allocation for private low cost housing. Finally, ORS implementation shows the state is dominant in housing provision in Malaysia, which is synonymous with the developmental state approach in the East Asia
Adoption Of Building Performance Evaluation And Value Management Tools In Building Facilities Management
Get PDFThe purpose of this paper is to establish the relationship/utility of building performance evaluation and value management to building facilities management. The full potentials of building performance evaluation and value management are under-utilised by building/facilities managers in many organisations/institutions involved in the procurement of building facilities. This has led to unapprised facilities management decisions in the wider organisational learning cycle. The objectives of the study were achieved through a review of current literature and associated web sources. This methodology was designed to identify and evaluate the utility of building performance evaluation and value management tools to improve building facilities management functions. The study suggests that the maximum effectiveness of building facilities management decisions can be realised if performance evaluation data/information are integrated into the value management studies. The study clarifies the links that exist and gaps that need to be addressed when taking a building facilities management decision and raised a number of methodological and performance evaluation issues that must be explored in further studies. The study provides a better understanding of the use of building performance evaluation and value management constructs/concepts in facilities management
Wood Carving In Selected Kelantan And Terengganu Timber House
Get PDFThis study aimed to determine the significance and meanings of the carved components and their placements within the timber houses of Kelantan and Terengganu during the periods of 1800s to 1930s. An analytical review on 25 sets of measured drawings of 14 Kelantan houses and 11 Terengganu houses including a total of 148 carved components was conducted by visual descriptive and interpretative analyses. The analytical review of the drawings which were obtained from the Centre for the Study of Built Environment in the Malay World at the Department of Architecture in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia was embraced as a principal method of data collection. Semi-structured interviews with five prominent woodcarvers on art and crafts of wood carving were conducted to substantiate the findings from the analytical review. The woodcarvers’ interpretations were required for verification and validation. The results suggest that 17 types of carved components were found in the houses which were dominated by ventilation panels. A significant pattern of visual attributes was prevalent in the components including types of motifs, shapes and layouts, forms of incision and perforation, carving patterns and compositional principles. Motifs of flora, geometry, Arabic calligraphy and combination of these were depicted in two and three dimensional compositions either in relief or non-relief and perforated or non-perforated forms. Configurations of carving pattern, shapes and layouts of the components were in agreement with the nomenclature of their placements within the interior and exterior fabric and the different forms of the houses. Consistency in the distributions of the components suggests its functions for practical, aesthetical and socio-cultural values and signifies hierarchical utilization of spaces whilst strengthening the regional forms of the house architecture. These qualities including the visual attributes contribute to the significance and meanings of the carved components in the architecture of the selected Kelantan and Terengganu timber houses
Book Review - Tourism And Development In The Developing World
No full textThe central aim of the book is to present an introductory text that explores the relationship between tourism and development in the developing countries against the background that tourism is widely regarded as an effective contributor to socio-economic development in these countries. It is well-known that the relationship between tourism and development is a debatable issue. Starting with this dictum, the book provides an introduction to the tourism-development process. Focusing mostly on developing countries and drawing on contemporary case studies, the authors of the book have raised many questions about the role tourism in development and highlight the dilemmas faced by destinations seeking to achieve development through tourism
Leveraging IT-Based Competitive Advantage: UK Industry Perspective
Get PDFIt is widely acknowledged that the UK construction industry has invested in IT as an integral part of its core business. However, there is also ample evidence to indicate that this investment has repeatedly and systematically failed to deliver the anticipated benefits, and it is argued that the investments are still predominantly sporadic and inward looking. Whilst the industry appears to understand the strategic benefits that can be realised through IT, the precise mechanisms through which these can be leveraged to maximise the likelihood of their success is not yet fully understood. In this context therefore, organisations need to be in a state of 'readiness', in order to have the capability required to effectively absorb IT enabled innovation into its work practices. In this respect, a high-level survey was conducted to gauge and assess the overall awareness and understanding of the UK construction industry's leading Chief Executives and IT Directors on this issue - particularly, to envision a way forward. This survey covered three main areas of: strategic benefits of IT; critical elements that lead to the realisation of these benefits, and the drivers behind these investment decisions. Research results identify a clear paradigm shift in thinking, with respondents identifying that IT strategies are now being integrated into organisational business strategies but that IT investment was now being influenced by the 'state of readiness' of the organisation in order successfully leverage these investments
Intergration Of Local And Islamic Architecture In Traditional Minangkabau
No full textMosque architecture is an important part in the process of Islamizing societies whose civilizations have had influences from another system of belief prior to the conversion into Islam. The mosque provides a new substitute for a place of ritual and signifies a change in the welsthanchauung where the alien concept of mosque is integrated in the new Muslim community through the incorporation and reinterpretation of local traditional symbols and architectural designs. A fieldtrip, accompanied by a local guide, to ancient Minangkabau mosques, on the Sumatera Island, Indonesia sought to examine examples of Islamicization in mosque architecture. Interview with locals were conducted, photographs were captured and observations made were cross-referenced with available literature to validate interpretation. In these mosques, old designs, thought to be of Hindu-Buddhist origin, such as the stupa (mound-like structure), gunungan (mountain-like feature) and makara (mythical sea-creature) have been retained and incorporated in mosque designs and given new Islamic interpretation. Non-religious designs with strong local affinity such as floral and vegetal motifs using local flower and plant as inspiration are utilized to increase the aesthetic value of mosque. Other examples, like the radiant sun motifs that is peculiar only to Malay mosque, is thought to carry symbolic Islamic meaning whereas gonjong roof (buffalo horn-shaped roof), is incorporated for both cultural identity and functional purposes. In addition, new components, symbols and designs were introduced from other Islamic civilization; examples include features such as crescent and na’al (sandal) motifs