assemblers, especially Bumiputera, to enter the market, thus reducing the price of IBS
components. MC will facilitate open industrialization.
(iii) A screening and selection program based in IBS standard components will ensure that low quality products
are not marketed in the country and this prevents the dumping of foreign IBS products in Malaysia. This aspect
is important to avoid failures in IBS projects
(iv) By reducing wet-trades through IBS, the dependency on foreign workers will also diminish, thus gaining the
billions of Ringgit currently being transferred out by the foreign workers to their home countries and reducing
inherent social problems involving these foreign workers.
2.11 IBS CONTENT SCORING SYSTEM (IBS SCORE)
As regulatory requirements such as “minimum percentage of utilisation of IBS in government building projects”
and encouragements such as “CIDB Levy exemptions for a minimum percentage IBS utilisation” have been put
forward, a system for IBS content assessment is needed.
The IBS Content Scoring System (IBS Score) is a systematic and structured assessment system that can be used
to measure the usage of Industrialised Building Systems (IBS) in a consistent way. The IBS Scoring System
emphasizes on the following attributes:
i) The use of prefabricated and precast components
ii) Off-site production of components
iii) The use standardized components
iv) Repeatability
v) Design using Modular Coordination concept
Higher IBS Score is a reflection of a more reduction of site labour, lower wastage, less
site materials, cleaner environment, better quality, neater and safer construction sites,
faster project completion as well as lower total construction costs. The detail information about IBS Score,
methods of calculating IBS Score as well as sample calculation are included in Manual for IBS Content Scoring
System (IBS Score) published by CIDB.
2.12 BARRIERS TO THE ADOPTION OF IBS IN MALAYSIA
A survey undertaken by CIDB in 2003 found that only mere 15% used IBS in the local construction industry.
According to Waleed A.M. Thanoon et al. (2003) the reasons of slow adoption of IBS in Malaysia are:
i) Inconsistent of houses demand, high interest rate and cheap labour cost make it hard
to justify large capital investment and it is easier to lay off workers during slack period.
ii) A high degree of precision is required in fully prefabricated construction system
while Malaysia still lack of skilled workers.
iii) Too many parties involve in construction industries. The owners, contractors and engineers still lack of
scientific information about the economic benefits of IBS. This make the agreement on the utilisation of IBS
during planning stage difficult to be achieved.
iv) Majorities of IBS in Malaysia are imported from developed countries and thus drive
up the cost.
v) The economic benefits of IBS are not well documented in Malaysia.
vi) Most projects constructed with IBS in Malaysia were low quality and high construction cost. Utilisation of
IBS in Japan and Sweden are so successful due to projects constructed with IBS are high quality and high
productivity.
vii) Many architects and engineers still unaware of the basis element of IBS such as
modular co-ordination.
CONCLUSION
There are many types of IBS existing in Malaysia: formwork precast load bearing wall panel, precast
frame, precast floor and hollow core slab, sandwich panel, block panel, and steel frame. These IBS represent
most of the IBS that exist worldwide. Quality, speed of construction, and cost savings are the main advantages
of these systems. These factors are very important in implementing the Ninth Malaysia Plan. The main
disadvantages of the IBS in Malaysia are that they are highly capital intensive and there is a need for experts at
the construction site for some of them. The main reason to recommend the use of IBS in Malaysia is that the raw
materials used in the IBS have to be produced locally in order to overcome the shortages that are being faced by
the IBS construction industry.
