Improving maintenance management practices on green building projects

Abstract

Purpose The improper maintenance affects the performance of management practices for Green Building (GB) in Malaysia. This is due to the issues of lack of GB knowledge and competency for maintenance activities in GB projects. However, only a few researchers have investigated maintenance within the GBs. This may be due to industry’s lack of awareness concerning the currently existing maintenance problems and their causes. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach This paper intends to develop a new Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based approach for managing maintenance in GB schemes. As a precursor to this work, the current maintenance management activities, ICT tools and techniques are reviewed and explored in such projects to gather processes and information database of maintenance and management. Findings The findings reveal the need for more sophisticated maintenance management solutions that accord with the needs of GB schemes to manage quality and reduce associated defects. Originality/value The paper concludes by presenting a research framework for developing such a system in the future. It is also suggested that further research into maintenance of GB should consider issues in terms of concern for lifecycle assessment and sustainability.