INGENIEUR
Table 1: Types of refurbishment work
Areas
Redesign
Change of function or
purpose
Improve safety and
facilities
New usage
Description
To meet modern standards or changing demands of buildings such as hotels,
offices, airport terminals, retail premises, leisure and entertainment facilities,
educational and healthcare buildings.
Upgrading standards as a conversion to new uses, of the whole or parts of
industrial buildings, with production continuing in the area or adjacent areas.
Rearrangement of public service facilities with stringent operational safety
requirements, such as railway stations (both surface and underground), where
the provisions of the service must be continued during refurbishment.
The conversion of buildings of extant use such as warehouse, mills,
abandoned railway stations, large residential properties to new uses such as
hotels, offices, exhibition halls and residential apartments.
cleaning the concrete finishes will direct money to
tradesmen but in the case of a new building, it would
go to the manufacturer of concrete and steel. New
home construction requires at least four to eight
times more resources than refurbishment. Most
of the building mass and structural elements in an
existing property can be reused and do not require
replacement. This article identifies the current
state, scenario and the impact of refurbishment
activities and waste generated.
Refurbishment – A Malaysian Perspective
The trend of refurbishment is becoming a
popular activity in the construction industry and
is growing every day. The Malaysian Government
has introduced many incentives and economic
stimulus to boost the country’s construction,
healthcare and tourism industries by providing
reductions in tax or tax exemptions and qualifying
capital expenditure rebates for many sectors.
Municipal councils have refurbished old buildings
that need to be preserved in a cost-effective and
sustainable manner. Refurbishment costs less
than new construction and the most importantly
it can be completed faster. It was announced that
affordable homes will indeed be the priority of the
Government’s agenda, especially in Greater Kuala
Lumpur and the Klang Valley which are expected to
house eight to 10 million people by 2020, hosting
almost one-third of the country’s population.
There is a huge demand for space limitation
for new buildings, especially in large cities such
as Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Johor Bahru.
Furthermore, most of the old buildings have been
converted into offices, museums, hotels and
exhibition centres. This pattern is expected to
grow in years to come. According to the Chartered
Institute of Building Malaysia, repair and
maintenance work (which includes refurbishment
activities) create a tremendous opportunity for
growth in the Malaysian construction industry.
Existing buildings are getting old, so the
maintenance and refurbishment work needs to
be carried out in order to prolong the life of the
building. Malaysian construction trends follow
those of developed countries and it is anticipated
that the refurbishment sector will expand
further in the country. During the Budget 2020
announcement, the Government set aside RM100
million for the repair and refurbishment of lowand
medium-cost strata housing. This is mainly
due to the increasing number of ageing buildings,
limited vacant land for new development and
technological change and also high demand for
properties in urban areas.
There have been many issues associated with
refurbishment of old properties, summarised as
financial, technical, emotional, lack of knowledge
and limited amount of information. Apart from that,
Malaysia still lacks comprehensive and accurate
data on the value and number of refurbishment
projects that are carried out yearly. Most local
authorities do not have a complete database on
the actual number of refurbishment projects being
carried out. The lack of control on the refurbishment
industry at the Local (Council) level is one of the
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