1.0 ABSTRACT

This report is study on the maintenance of the building. Normally, building maintenance is synonymous with property management. Everyone has different views on the meaning of building maintenance and the efficiency of the management. The main objective the maintenance of the building is to ensure the building in good condition, create conducive accommodation to occupants and to ensure the functional requirements of the facility at every times. This report only gives some brief explanation about the scope of building maintenance work. Moreover, the report more focused on the strategy to ensuring efficiency in building maintenance practices. The conclusion has drawn the important to maintain the building maintenance in efficiently.

2.0 INTRODUCTION

Normally, building maintenance is part of property management. This maintenance carried out in order to ensure that the building in good condition and functioning optimally. Typically, the scope of this work is done by the property manager.

2.1 DEFINITION OF EFFICIENCY

Efficiency can be defined as doing things right. It is more to the degree of economy where it is more to the process to consume resources especially in terms of money and time. For example, if the building maintenance practice use of computerized maintenance management software, it can ensures a smooth running facility at cost efficient levels. From that it can increase sustainability. Besides that, it will make it easier to make decisions regarding on repair or replacement of assets. (Effectiveness and Efficiency, 2006). When the management has the good system in the building maintenance management, it can ensure the management will capable to achieve the targeting reliability, system efficiency and occupant comfort (Sullivan, Pugh, Melendez, & Hunt, 2002).

2.2 DEFINITION OF MAINTENANCE

According to Scarrett (1995), building maintenance is work undertaken in order to keep, restore or improve every facility that have in every part of a building and services. It is also to sustain the utility and sustain the value of the building as well as acceptable standard at a reasonable cost. According to Chanter & Swallow (2007), the building maintenance practices are also focused on the financing and organization. Thus, it shows that maintenance not only focused on the physical execution of maintenance work.

Besides that, maintenance is an actions that control and upkeep not only property but also the equipment. Generally, this practice more focused on scheduling and preventive and predictive actions. This action is need to preventing the facility or any equipment failure in the property. Thus, it can achieve the objective of their management where it can increasing efficiency and safety (Sullivan, Pugh, Melendez, & Hunt, 2002). Maintenance is a method used to repair and restore the services and implementation of work that necessary in order to prolong the age of the building (Kiong & Akasah, 2011).

2.3 SCOPE OF BUILDING MAINTENANCE WORK

According to Burgess & White (1979), building maintenance work can be divided by two which are form part of planned programmme of improvement and renovation or due to suddenly failure in performance a few section of the building.There are five types of maintenance work which are preventive maintenance, day to day repairs, emergency repairs and servicing works. In addition, minor works also one of the maintenance works where it consist of works of improvement to meet the requirement of new legislation. For example, tender.

According to Chanter & Swallow (2007), there are two category of maintenance work which are planned and unplanned maintenance. The figure below shows the category of maintenance that always practice in Malaysia and around the world.

Figure 1: Category of building maintenance work

3.0 STRATEGY TO ENSURING EFFICIENCY IN BUILDING MAINTENANCE PRACTICES

3.1 Maintenance control

Property managers should identify the most efficient method of maintenance to every part of the building. Maintenance control is an area that not only controllable via simple record keeping. The proper maintenance record are need for improving return on investment, improved the relationship among the tenants, reducing cost, improving operating efficiency and also reduced the complaints related to the maintenance. Example of maintenance control is recording the maintenance data. Normally, the data have some information about the person who makes complaints such as name of the person making the request, address and a summary of maintenance that request. Throughout this maintenance control, it can make an analysis of the total maintenance performed. Therefore, it can control costs properly (Robert F. Cushman & Rodin, 1985).

3.2 Planned maintenance

Every type of building should have a maintenance plan. The plan should be more comprehensive and systematic in order to ensure the efficiency in building maintenance practice. Generally, the plans have short and medium term considerations. From the systematic planned maintenance, the property manager can control of maintenance work. For example, the property manager always makes a regular inspection. Therefore, the property manager should ensure that they have large amount of information regarding to the property (Scarrett, 1995).

According to Singh (1996), planned maintenance is an important tool in building maintenance practices. In order to maintain the building, the property manager should provide the operational plans. The operational plans represent the short term operational strategies for the building. Usually, this plan more focused on the day to day routine issues. From the planned maintenance, it can minimising costs and also maximising income where it can keeps the property values at the desired level.

3.3 Corrective maintenance pelan

This is a process to replacement of the malfunctioned equipment. The manager should have effective and efficient system in order to handle repair as well as replacement. When the building maintenance practices have an effective corrective maintenance plan, it can ensure all things that they do like repair are dealt with efficiently and also effectively (Malaysian Property Management Standard, 2010).

3.4 Computerisation of maintenance

Computerisation is one of the strategies in ensuring the efficiency of building maintenance practice. It can structure schedules for inspections and monitoring all works using the computers diary facilities (Singh, 1996). Moreover, the computerized maintenance management system have a comprehensive models that include cost and budgeting, preventive maintenance tasks and scheduling and work order management (Campbell, n.d).

3.5 Multidisciplinary manager

In building maintenance practice, it should have a multidisciplinary manager approach to manage any type of the building. The manager should have a multidisciplinary skill. They should balance the skill between technological expertise and practical expertise and together with an understanding the overall performance of management (Burgess & White, 1979). According to Adenuga (2012), a good maintenance manager as somebody having ability to thinking creatively and clearly and also have the talent to resolve the problem that having in maintenance practice. The maintenance manager should able to create plan, have a high confident level and leaderships skill.Besides that, in order to ensure the efficent and effective management, the manager should have three skill. These are technical, human and conceptual skill.

3.6 Controlling cost and budgeting

Budget can be defined as financial or quantitative statements that usually include income, expenditure and the employment salary. Therefore, to control the budget fro over budget, the maintenance manager should present a budget based on his needs in management. (Chanter & Swallow, 2007). In addition, according to Ali, Kamaruzzaman, Sulaiman, & Peng (2010), the building can continues to operate efficiently when it have the effective building maintenance management where it can minimise the operating and maintenace costs.The controlling cost and budget is important activity. Normally, it will manage the maintenance cost expenditure. The sufficient finance is needed for maintenace work. So that, it can sustain the required standard of building functions. If the maintentenace activity is over budget, it shows that the management have poor budgetary control. Therefore, the efficient management should often controll the maintenace budget and cost.

3.7 The maintenance policies and standard for maintenance

According to Chanter & Swallow (2007), the maintenance policy and standard is important in order to ensuring efficiency in building maintenance practice. The policy is more to the strategy which maintenance decisions are made by manager. This policy is providing set of rules for the allocation of resources when the manager want take the maintenance action. A good maintenance policy is policies that have a comprehensive and clearly written. The policy and standard will promote the effective and efficient maintenance management practices and support the efficient conduct of maintenance activities and compliance with relevant government policies and statutory requirements.

3.8 Good relationship with occupants in the property

According to Ali, Kamaruzzaman, Sulaiman, & Peng ( 2010), the maintenance management should have a good relation with occupants in the building. From that, management can influenced them in many aspects. For example, the management can encourage them to pay the service charges. Other example is a vandalism that done by tenants. It is one of the factors that causes the defect on building components. Normally, maintenance costs become expensive because the management need to spend the money to repair costs to treat such defects. The defects are caused by vandalism.

3.9 Quality management services

The meaning of quality is the degree and service standards that encourage maintenance management achievement of materials and workmanship. Quality always related with the time taken when execute work (Yahya & Ibrahim, 2012). For example, when the elevator failed to function well, the maintenance management will responds as soon as possible upon receiving complaints regarding the breakdown of elevator.

3.10 Analysis of defects in the buildings

According to Lateef, Khamidi, & Idrus ( 2010), the maintenance management will be more effective and efficient when it will taking into account building defects in the total maintenance management. The maintenance managers should have a strategic function in order to ensure the management is efficiently. Thus, defect classification is a good strategy for detect whether the defect is urgent or not very urgent.Normally, the defects of the building can influence the maintenance cost as well as users satisfactions. Therefore, it must be managed effective and efficiently in order to ensure the performance of buildings.

4.0 CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, maintenance of buildings needs to be kept from deteriorations, vandalism, debris and others. There are many strategies that need be implemented in order to ensure the efficiency in building maintenance practices. The important to maintain the building is it can increase the value of the property, to minimize inconvenience and to ensure safety among the occupants. The aim of maintenance is to presenting a good appearance and the buildings still have a good condition. Other than that, when do regular maintenance it will save the cost for repair or renovation.