Building Maintenance Practices Research Articles

The impact of sustainable design and construction upon FM: four case studies

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the impact of sustainability measures taken during the design and construction phases, by examining two categories of sustainability: energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions and material selection and waste management. These aspects are examined from the perspectives of long-term building performance and maintenance practices, as well as user/tenant satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach This study includes a literature review related to the two topics under consideration, followed by a comparative case study analysis of four projects to determine practical validity. All case studies in this paper used a semi-structured survey with various project stakeholders, which helped the authors identify measures taken as well as obstacles and challenges during the process. Findings According to the four case studies, adequate attention should be paid to the two areas of interest during a project’s design and construction phases. Including case studies from around the world (four case studies from three different countries) offers insights into effective sustainability practices in building design and construction, providing instances of successful implementation and emphasizing the obstacles and potential when incorporating sustainability into the design and construction phases. Research limitations/implications The findings also show that design and construction participants and companies should reduce waste generation and carbon emissions. In addition, they should make decisions on material selection to enhance projects’ sustainability and to contribute to creating a habitable planet for the future. Originality/value The influence of the design and construction phases on long-term project sustainability is of major importance and concern to users, owners, designers, contractors and facility managers. This study illustrates the necessity of including sustainability measures in the design and construction phases, highlighting the importance of sustainability in building design and construction through effective implementation techniques and interdisciplinary teamwork to realize sustainable goals.

A Comprehensive Study on Building Maintenance Practices for Heritage Shop Houses in Penang, Malaysia

A Comprehensive Study on Building Maintenance Practices for Heritage Shop Houses in Penang, Malaysia

Identification of Major Maintenance Issues in Public Sector Universities of Sindh (Pakistan)

This study investigates the detrimental effects of maintenance issues on public-sector universities in Pakistan. Budgetary constraints, staff shortages, and political interference are common factors that contribute to the decline of both physical infrastructure and academic standards. These issues significantly hinder the quality of education and research within these institutions. While existing literature acknowledges the challenges faced by Pakistani universities, a gap exists regarding sustainable building maintenance practices. This research aims to address this gap by focusing on public universities within Sukkur City. Through a combination of surveys and data analysis, the study seeks to identify the prevalent maintenance issues within the universities of Sukkur, Sindh. The findings from this research demonstrate nine major maintenance issues, out of which fading or peeling paint on walls and ceilings is at the top; second is plumbing system issues affective water quality; and third is a lack of proper waste management and disposal systems. Ultimately, this study underscores the critical need for enhanced maintenance practices in Pakistan's public-sector universities. By ensuring a well-maintained infrastructure, these institutions can foster a more conducive learning environment, leading to improved academic performance and stakeholder satisfaction.

Factors Affecting Building Maintenance Practices: Review

Buildings begin to deteriorate gradually over time due to several factors, including environmental influences, improper use of the building, and neglected repairs for damages during the building's life span. Effective maintenance practices can minimize operational costs, extend the life of building systems and components, improve energy efficiency, and maintain property value. This paper aims to review articles related to building maintenance to identify factors affecting maintenance practices. After conducting the review, the result was that there were 33 factors affecting building maintenance categorized into six groups: management-related factors, manpower-related factors, technical-related factors, financial-related factors, building user-related factors, and building characteristics-related factors. Facility managers can enhance their understanding of building maintenance by examining the various factors that affect maintenance. By doing so, they can assess how these factors affect maintenance practices. This evaluation is crucial as it assists in creating efficient maintenance plans while optimizing resource allocation and timely repairs. Moreover, this approach enables facility managers to adopt proactive strategies toward maintenance, ultimately leading to cost savings by addressing or managing potential obstacles hindering optimal building maintenance.

Assessment of public building defects and maintenance practices: Cases in Mettu town, Ethiopia

Building flaws are one of the main aspects of building problems that need to be carefully considered. Besides the high demand for construction projects in Ethiopia, the problems of defective buildings and maintenance issues were so prevalent. According to the researchers' field survey, Mettu town's public buildings have suffered from major building defects and deterioration, and neglect of maintenance practices. This research aimed to assess building construction defects and maintenance practices in Mettu building projects. A case study and questionnaire survey were utilized for data collection. A Case study was conducted on a randomly selected nine public building projects in Mettu Town using site observation and formal checklists. Whereas, a questionnaire method was used to address the study objectives based on respondents' perspectives using ordinal scales of Likert's. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient, mean score, and weighted average values were utilized for data analysis using Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and SPSS version 20 tools. The study revealed that non-structural cracks were found the top first-ranked building defect. Shortage of budget, inadequate maintenance standards, and Poor maintenance cultures were the top-ranked building maintenance factors. Project delay, High maintenance cost, and diminishing reputation were the top-ranked impacts of building defects. Periodic and regular construction supervision and proper and periodic maintenance were the top measures to minimize building defects.

Developing a framework for building maintenance: a case study of Malaysia's low-cost housing via soft system methodology

PurposeThe cost of residential building maintenance can harmfully affect low-income earners' expenditure if not checked. A customised maintenance concept via a framework will ensure efficient and proper building maintenance operations. The outcome may keep the life cycle cost down. Studies concerning the low-cost housing (LCH) maintenance concept through a framework are scarce in Malaysia. Thus, the study aims to investigate the state of LCH and develop a framework to improve LCH maintenance practices in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopted a soft system methodology (SSM) to comprehend Malaysia's LCH building maintenance practices. The SSM allowed an alternative approach to improve LCH maintenance practices via a developed framework. Virtual interviews were conducted with experts, and findings were presented. It was in line with the SSM seven steps.FindingsThe findings show that apart from the poor state of LCH maintenance, there is the absence of a framework to improve maintenance practices, especially in LCH across Malaysia's cities. The findings developed a framework that would reposition the joint management body and management corporation in collaboration with the proposed maintenance agency for better service delivery via substantive, technical and administrative aspects.Research limitations/implicationsThis study's data collection is restricted to Pulau Pinang, Kuala Lumpur and Johor through a qualitative research design approach. Future research is needed to consider more extensive coverage and validate the developed framework from this study via a quantitative research design.Practical implicationsApart from the conceptual model that was developed, the suggested framework can be employed by Malaysia's maintenance practitioners and policymakers as a guideline to improve LCH building maintenance practices across the cities.Originality/valueThis study examined Malaysia's LCH maintenance practices via SSM to identify the state of the houses, identify the information required and propose a suitable framework to improve Malaysia's LCH maintenance practices.

MAINTENANCE ANALYTICS FOR BUILDING DECISION-MAKING: A LITERATURE REVIEW

There is a prevalence of poor building maintenance practices in both the public and private sectors in Malaysia. To improve the current state of maintenance, effective decisions must be made by the building stakeholders. Unfortunately, the decision-making process for building maintenance in Malaysia is still traditional. The decisions are usually made based on the latest maintenance inspection without taking into consideration the trend of past data. This limits the building maintenance strategy to corrective (reactive) and preventive (expensive). Data-driven decisions improve building operations and create better predictive maintenance programs because the stakeholders can instantly identify problems and effectively act. Maintenance analytics is a structured and technological approach used to extract information from data and has proven to be an acceptable tool to improve building operation and maintenance. It is used to determine “what has happened?”, “why it happened?”, “what will happen?”, and “what needs to be done?” to enable decision-makers to take appropriate actions. In a country like Malaysia where maintenance practice is not data-driven, there is a need to identify the techniques to improve the maintenance process (especially decision-making). Therefore, this study aims to identify the various analytical techniques applied in existing maintenance analytics studies and determine the current direction of maintenance analytics studies. A comprehensive literature review was done to understand maintenance analytics, types of data and its sources, and the analytical techniques applied. Findings from the literature review revealed that the major data sources are CMMS, BIM, IoT, BAS. It was also noticed that the type of data used influenced the choice of analytical technical techniques. In addition, it was noted that certain studies did not use the major data sources and analytical techniques, and other studies used more than one data source. Overall, the general direction of the maintenance analytics studies was building performance and operation, end-user complaints, and work orders. There is a gap in the application of maintenance analytics to cost-effective decision-making in building maintenance. Which is recommended as the direction for future studies.

Assessment of Public Building Defects and Maintenance Practices: Cases in Mettu Town, Ethiopia

Assessment of Public Building Defects and Maintenance Practices: Cases in Mettu Town, Ethiopia

Strategic approaches towards achieving sustainable and effective building maintenance practices in maintenance-managed buildings: A combination of expert interviews and a literature review

Buildings have been consistently identified as the sector with the greatest potential to reduce both energy consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions through more sustainable and effective strategies of building maintenance, along with enhancing user behaviour. While ineffective building maintenance practices have environmental, economic and social consequences, according to evidence from the literature, there has been a lack of studies that offer strategic approaches for sustainable and effective building maintenance practices. The significance of these strategic approaches comes from the fact that building maintenance practices are still based on unsatisfactory actions in many countries around the world. Thus, studies that provide such approaches could contribute to improvements globally and help reduce the impact of these practices, while also pointing stakeholders involved in the right direction. Consequently, an in-depth semi-structured interview was developed and conducted based on the current issues and needs, as well as the latest trends in the challenges, in building maintenance, supported by an extensive review of the recent literature. This study introduces seven strategies that will positively improve maintenance work procedures within the domain of sustainability practices and allow for a more effective allocation of resources, capabilities and time. The adoption of these strategies by stakeholders in maintenance-managed buildings will significantly overcome both the current issues and future challenges in achieving sustainable and effective building maintenance practices, which will benefit the environmental, economic and social dimensions.

A Value-Based Approach to the Programming of Training Centers

The emergent population of students in tertiary institutions is rising annually, hence, it is imperative to make sure that buildings are performing not only optimally but functionally throughout their life cycles. Poor maintenance policy framework has been identified as core issue confronting hostel buildings in Nigeria, thus this research is aimed to evaluate the hostel building maintenance practices employed in Nigeria federal universities. This research met its objectives through documentary analysis from direct field observation and a survey questionnaire. A reconnaissance survey was undertaken in other to have adequate knowledge of the issues under investigation. Findings shown further that Poor funding, lack of maintenance practice and culture, function of the building are the top identified factors which. The test ascertains the agreement among the university and found out to be the same. Their level of homogeneity of variance is the same while the F-sig of 26.178 is higher than the significance value of 0.05. The work thus recommended good maintenance policy and proper funding of hostel building.

Value-Based Building Maintenance Practices for Public Hospitals in Malaysia

Public hospital buildings in Malaysia have been facing problems and have become subjects of public criticisms due to poor building maintenance practices. A value-based approach which integrates and assimilates the concepts of value can be applied to mitigate maintenance problems in hospital buildings. This study evaluated the causal relationships between value factors and value outcomes of building maintenance in public hospitals in Malaysia. A total of 66 samples were collected via an online questionnaire survey. Analysis was performed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Our results reveal that value-adding practices and value co-creation have a positive influence on value outcomes in hospitals. The findings, however, do not support the relationships between factors of user involvement and value outcomes, which merit further investigation. This study concludes that value-adding practice has the strongest impact on value outcomes. Thus, maintenance service providers should assimilate these practices in their services to enhance performance. In addition, the findings also justify the requirement for collaborative working arrangements for value co-creation of building maintenance.

Structural equation model for assessing factors affecting building maintenance success

Currently, significant and continuous attention is given by governments, policymakers, local authorities, users and researchers to the ambiguous standing behind the low performance of implemented maintenance in buildings. In an attempt to understand this problem, a hypothetical structural model was developed to evaluate the factors affecting building maintenance success. By employing a structural equation modelling technique, the model adapts a total of 34 attributes across six confirmatory factors, namely, organisational-related factor (ORF), human resources-related factor (HRRF), technical-related factor (TRF), financial-related factor (FRF), building user-related factor (BURF) and overall building maintenance success (OBMS). Based on the survey data collected from a case study in Malaysia, the model results assessed the impacts of the factors above on the OBMS. With a clear understanding of the significance of these factors in the context of maintenance success, these outcomes could help develop the procedures of the maintenance organisation to enhance existing building maintenance practices towards their successful implementation. The theoretical and practical contributions, the limitations of the present study and the future paths for research have been addressed.

Maintenance practices in Nigeria’s public health-care buildings: a systematic review of issues and feasible solutions

Purpose Health-care building maintenance has been receiving concern because of the recent global pandemic. However, there are inadequate broad studies affecting health-care facilities maintenance and feasible solutions in Nigeria. This study aims to conduct an all-inclusive review of public hospital building maintenance issues and proffer possible solutions to improve maintenance practices in health-care buildings via a framework that will support studies in the future. Design/methodology/approach A review of published papers from 2006 to 2020 was conducted. Based on the keywords, 3 pertinent databases were searched and descriptions of the findings from 40 studies were recognised and used in line with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Findings Two main themes (issues and feasible solutions to improve practices) emerged from public health-care building maintenance practices. The study developed a framework that describes the relationship between issues and possible solutions with an emphasis on how to improve human development, management efficiency, technical competence and professional skills, cost-minimisation and others. Practical implications As part of the paper implications, emerged issues were group into five categories (human development, management, technical, limited financial resources and others). The proposed framework for future studies will attempt to mitigate issues and proffer feasible solutions to improve hospital building maintenance practices in Nigeria and other developing countries that are facing similar challenges. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper is possibly the first comprehensive review of public health-care building maintenance practices in Nigeria. Moreover, this review demonstrates how the proposed feasible solutions can mitigate problems.

Building maintenance practices in Malaysia: a systematic review of issues, effects and the way forward

PurposeIn recent years, there have been many concerns about issues surrounding building maintenance, which are continually increasing. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies on building maintenance issues, their effects and the way forward. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to carry out a comprehensive review of building maintenance issues, their effects and the way forward. It also aims to develop a conceptual model that can support future research.Design/methodology/approachA systematic review of the literature published from 2009 to 2019 was carried out. Five relevant databases were searched, based on this study's search terms, and a narrative synthesis of the results from the included studies was carried out. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they fulfilled the inclusion criteria of this systematic review.FindingsThis study has identified and classified building maintenance issues, their effects and the way forward, and also developed a conceptual model that demonstrates the association between issues, their effects and the way forward. The way forward of the conceptual model focuses on effective management, technical capability, development of human resources and cost optimisation.Originality/valueThis paper addresses an important topic: the aspect in which it differs from existing studies is that, in the latter, the researchers studied a single sub-issue, whereas this systematic review includes a comprehensive study of building maintenance issues. Furthermore, this review has demonstrated how the way forward can moderate issues and their effects.

Influence of Building Maintenance Practices on the Security of Lives and Property in Public Housing in Lagos State, Nigeria

The desire for security has continued to receive research attention globally. One of the critical aspects has been on how best to secure lives and property in residential neighbourhood in urban areas in the Global south. Although several approaches have been identified on how best to secure the home environment, less research attention has been given to the how maintenance practices can enhance security of lives and property in mass housing environments. This study investigated the influence of building maintenance practices on security of lives and property, using the Lagos State Development and Property Corporation (LSDPC) housing estates as case study. Household survey involving 1036 residents in 14 housing estates was conducted in the study area using questionnaire as the data collection instrument. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and categorical regression analysis. The result shows that spaces and components of the buildings under the control of individuals and/or households were more frequently maintained than those jointly used spaces. The pruning of flowers and trees, replacement of damaged doors in the buildings and sweeping of open spaces emerged as the top three maintenance practices with the most significant influence on the residents’ perception of security of lives and property in the estates. The study implies that maintenance activities should be focused on these three aspects with more attention given to jointly owned and used spaces and facilities if security of lives and property is to be achieved in mass housing environments.

The User Requirements for Building Maintenance Management Systems in Malaysian Public Universities

Representing almost 50% of the total turnover of construction activities, building maintenance investment is huge all over the world. In facilities management activities, building maintenance is also regarded as a common function. This paper emphasises the current user requirements for building maintenance management in Malaysian public universities. Starting with semi-structured interviews, information gathered focuses on different aspects of building maintenance practice to identify the main user requirement issues. The areas of study are to justify the objectives of maintenance departments and examine the processes of maintenance reporting and verification and other associated tasks. In this study the applications and contributions of Information Technology (IT) facilities in maintenance practices are reviewed. Finally, the development of user requirements by using the interface design concept is explored. It is envisioned that, in the future, good building maintenance practices will become the norm in Malaysia so that users will extract maximum benefits from their buildings and facilities.

Developing an Effective Maintenance Culture for Some Monumental Public School Buildings in Ibadan, Oyo State Nigeria.

As part of effort to understand challenges faced with building maintenance practices in Nigeria an investigation of the maintenance culture in some of the oldest public schools in Ibadan, Oyo State Nigeria was carried out. A total of five schools located within Ibadan metropolis were selected based on their historical importance, year of establishment and viability of alumni. Site visits were carried out, during these visits, oral interviews accompanied with questionnaires was administered on the stake holders, the buildings were visually assessed to determine severity of degradation experienced by the buildings and the risk it poses to learning. Photographs of structures been assessed were also taken. Results shows that, the buildings have not been properly maintained over the years and can be attributed to the following: lack of funding for maintenance works, absence of guidelines for maintenance of school buildings by Government, lack of maintenance department in the schools visited and unplanned approach to implementation of maintenance work. As part of effort to salvage the situation, some recommendations were made, they are: the establishment of maintenance department in all schools with technical expertise and the formation of a School Buildings Maintenance Board (SBMB) by the state Government

Study on life cycle costing: a case of building for private high school in Jakarta

There are increasing awareness of life cycle costing (LCC) by the management who has lengthy experience in operation and maintenance of the building. Maintenance of buildings includes replacement, updating, and repair building components in accordance with predetermined standards. This research aim at identifying building maintenance practices of a private high school Building in Jakarta. This instrument of the study was referred to Regulation of Minister of Public Works. Another aim is to identify service life of the building components, and conducts 25 years life cycle cost plan for the school management by adopting model of LCC from ISO 15686 part 5. Research data obtained by distributing questionnaires to the Section of Maintenance 30 persons, and school teachers 68 persons. Result showed that the implementation of the management school provides a score of 4.6 out of 5 scale and considered as a very good maintenance performance for the building. To confirms whether the user perception on the operating and maintenance efforts, a similarly assessment were obtained from direct users who provide a good category. From the results of life cycle costing, the study shows that: for long-term life cycle cost plan, the proportion cost for 1) construction, 2) operational, and 3) replacement and maintenance are 46%, 39% and 15% respectively.

Building Maintenance Practices towards the Common Defects and Resident’s Satisfaction of Elderly Homes

The growing population of elderly globally gives rise to the importance to provide better home for elderly. The homes for elderly need special features to support the decrease in physical to mental capabilities of elderly and enable them to lead an active and well-being lifestyle. Maintenance of this special feature and basic elements in the building play an importance role to ensure the homes are safe to live and will not endanger the users. This research aims to investigate the relationship of maintenance practices (staff behaviours) towards the common defects and resident’s satisfaction of elderly homes. Questionnaire survey forms were distributed to the elderly to determine the types of defects and rank the behaviour of maintenance personnel. In addition, semi-structured interview was conducted with the maintenance personnel to validate the current maintenance practice in elderly homes. The findings proven that the behaviours of maintenance personnel were critical to convince the residents in executing the maintenance tasks and to reduce the occurrence of defect. In addition, the findings also proven the maintenance practice for active aging home is differ from usual building maintenance practices. The failure to differentiate the nature of operation could indirectly affect the maintenance performance of the buildings.

The New NABERS Indoor Environment tool – the Next Frontier for Australian Buildings

In our ambition to improve the environmental performance of office buildings, it is easy to lose sight of their real purpose – to accommodate people. To understand the future of sustainable buildings, it is important to recognise that services such as HVAC and lighting are provided to create suitably comfortable conditions for staff to be productive.Providing a good quality indoor environment has been shown to increase staff productivity from improved comfort, health and wellbeing. Productive staff are essential for creating competitive businesses. The Property Council of Australia has estimated for offices that a 1% improvement in productivity would be equivalent to the whole energy cost of a building or, nationally $2 billion annually. The indoor environment quality (IEQ) of an office is complex and determined by many factors, including the layout of the space, lighting, air quality, thermal conditions and noise levels. These are influenced by the building characteristics, maintenance practices, tenant equipment and behaviour. The new NABERS Indoor Environment (IE) tool measures these IEQ factors and compares their performance against a set of benchmarks that reflect industry standards, scientific research and current market performance of office buildings. NABERS IE converts this complex information into a score on a six star scale – providing a direct measure of the overall IEQ for the office. This star rating provides a common language which can assist in coordinating multiple parties in setting goals, evaluating performance and recognising market achievements in occupant comfort and wellbeing.A high NABERS IE rating will help attract and retain tenants with excellence in indoor air quality and thermal comfort identified by tenants as significantly more important than other building attributes [14]. While for businesses, a high NABERS IE tenancy rating will identify you as an employer of choice – helping you to attract and retain staff.