Maintenance Facilities Condominium | Construction Dissertations

The Study of Satisfaction Level of Occupants towards the Maintenance and Facilities in PV10 Condominium

Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 Background

The population in Malaysia is on a rapid growth and this can be seen in the last three (3) years, 2007 – 2009. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia, the population growth was from 27.17 million (2007) to 28.31 million (2009). That shows an increase of 1.14 million within three (3) years. This population figure was last updated on the 31 st July 2009. (Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Website, 2009)

According to the International and National Context of Growth from the Kuala Lumpur Structure Plan 2020, the figure below illustrates the function of Kuala Lumpur and its conurbation (KLC). The figure illustrates ‘functional pyramid’ for the KLC with more specialised urban functions towards the apex of the pyramid, which represents Kuala Lumpur and more general functions towards its base, representing the remainder of the KLC. (DBKL International and National Context of Growth, 2009)

Figure 1 Functional Pyramid

Source: DBKL International and National Context of Growth (2009)

From Figure 1, it is shown that the number of population increases. However, the land area still remains the same. Land scarcity is faced by the people of Kuala Lumpur as more construction works are carried out to meet the demand of the increasing population. The relationship between population and living standard is obvious as the graph shows that the living standard is proportional to the population. According to Datuk Michael Yam (2009), Kuala Lumpur’s 1.7 million population is expected to expand by 30% within the next decade and that the market is getting more sophisticated with consumers demanding more facilities, convenience and built quality to improve their quality of life. (The Star, 28 March 2009)

Condominiums are on high demand in a high density area like Kuala Lumpur due to the population increase and at the same time this highly populated area is facing scarcity of land. However, the satisfaction of the occupants in a condominium is important to ensure that developers will be able to continue to expand such projects in their firm. This is because, liberalization or opening up of the market gives wider choices of goods or services for consumers which contribute to their satisfaction. (The Star, 6 July 2009) Therefore, the facilities and maintenance provided in a condominium are important to meet the occupants’ satisfaction towards the condominium they are staying.

1.2 Problem Statement

In Malaysia, as the population rises through the years, the construction of condominium development also has to increase to meet the demand of increasing residents. As the latest statistic stated that there is a population of 28.31 million (in 2009), there will also be an increase in land use. (Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Website, 2009)

In Kuala Lumpur, despite the softer conditions in the property market construction will still be an on-going process. According to one of the top companies like Sunrise Sdn. Bhd, they expect to perform well in the next two to three years due to its high unbilled sales of RM 1.36 billion. As at July, Sunrise had sold 93% of 10 Mount’ Kiara (MK10) units, 45% of 11 Mount’ Kiara (MK 11), 92% of Solaris Dutamas, 9% of The Residence Phase 2B, 90% of Mont’ Kiara Meridin, 95% of Mont’ Kiara Banyan, and 100% of Kiara Designer Suites-Kiara Walk. (The Star, 29 October 2008)

As Sunrise is focusing more on the condominium residential type of construction, it is shown that condominium is still in high demand despite the slow economic flow at the moment. However, there must be certain factors which cause the homebuyers to set their mind on purchasing the condominium of their choice. To successfully compete in the long term, the company must be sure that existing customers are satisfied. Providing superior quality and keeping customers satisfied are rapidly becoming the ways for companies to stand out among the other companies. (Zeljko M. Torbica and Robert C. Stroh., 2001)

Figure 2 Complaints Statistics (Year 2006)

Source: National Home Buyers Association (2006)

According to the National House Buyers Association, management and maintenance ranked second in the types of complaint in the complaints statistics. (National House Buyers Association, 2006) The complaints statistics is as illustrated in Figure 2.

Therefore, it is important to carry out the research about the satisfaction of the occupants in the aspect of the maintenance and facilities provided in a condominium. Besides that, ways of improving the maintenance and facilities from the occupants’ point of view will also be carried out in this research.

1.3 Aim & Objectives

Aim

To look into the satisfaction levels of occupants towards the maintenance and facilities of the condominium.

Objectives

v To determine the satisfaction of occupants in PV 10 Condominium with the maintenance and facilities provided.

v To determine the ways to improve the maintenance and facilities to increase the satisfaction of occupants in PV10 Condominium.

1.4 Benefits/Importance of Study

This study will benefit three parties; consisting of the developer, the management of the condominium and the occupants of condominiums. The developers will be able to plan their construction wisely to increase the demand in houses and preserve the developer’s reputation as it is one of the essential key to success for a developer. On the other hand, occupants or homebuyers will benefit when they are able to purchase and stay in the type of house they wish to have, and to own a worth buying piece of property. Besides that, the management of the condominium will be able to plan their management in the maintenance and facilities offered to the occupants as this is the key to customer satisfaction.

1.5 Scope of Study

This case study will be carried out in PV 10, Jalan Genting Kelang, Setapak. There are 4 blocks of condominium in PV10 and they will be taken into consideration for this research. This place is chosen because it is one of the latest condominiums built in one of the highly populated area. Maintenance and facilities offered will be further looked into. The maintenance in the condominium will cover the cleanliness and collection of rubbish maintenance, the lifts operation and lighting maintenance and water maintenance. On the other hand, the facilities in the condominium will cover the recreational facilities such as play ground for children, health facilities and the safety facilities. In addition, another facility which will be looked into will be the car parks provided. Maintenance of facilities will also be explained.

1.6 Research Methodology

1.6.1 Introduction

The increase in condominium construction is proportional to the rapid growth of the population in Malaysia. Besides that, land scarcity in high density areas of Kuala Lumpur forces the people to go further into the development of condominiums.

1.6.2 Literature Review

Data collected will be secondary type of data collection. They consist of:

Books

Relevant books will be from the Tunku Abdul Rahman Library and National Library. The type of books will be those under building maintenance, facility management, economy, development, research and dissertation studies, property management and other relevant books to the research study.

Magazines and Newspapers

Magazines and newspapers used will be from local newspapers and magazines. Newspapers search will be the online type of newspaper. News and updates will be taken based on current issues regarding construction, development, property, and maintenance and facilities management that are reported in the newspapers and magazines.

Online resources and Journals

Online resources will be from reliable sources which provide reference of research papers such as online journals and articles. Relevant sources to the research studies will be taken into consideration through these websites. Online journals will also be those which are regarding with the research study and are available through the college library website which linked to reliable sources such as Emerald. 

1.6.3 Background

PV10 will be the place of case study for this research. This condominium is situated at Jalan Genting Kelang. Resources will be obtained from the management of the condominium and the developer of the condominium.

1.6.4 Analysis

Primary data will be used in this research and data through this type of data will be analysed. Questionnaire will be selected in order to scrutinize the feedback from the respondent. First, a set of questionnaire will be set. After that, the set of questionnaire will be distributed to occupants in PV10 to get their responds. A selected sample size of 200 will be chosen randomly. SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) software will be used to analyse the data. Snowball sampling type will be used to determine the satisfaction of occupants in PV10. This type of sampling is chosen as this sampling design will be given out randomly. Besides that, this study design will increase the number of participants in process.

1.6.5 Conclusion & Recommendation

Ways of improving the condominium will be suggested base on the data that will be collected.

Figure 3 Research methodology

References

Author unknown, Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Website. 2009. Population (updated 31 July 2009). Viewed on 2 August 2009. Available from: <https://www.statistics.gov.my/eng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50:population&catid=38:kaystats&Itemid=11>

Author unknown, DBKL. 2009. Kuala Lumpur Structure Plan 2020: International and National Context of Growth. Viewed on 10 July 2009. Available from: <https://www.dbkl.gov.my/pskl2020/english/international_and_national_context_of_growth/index.htm>

Ng, A. 2009. Raising KL’s living standards. Viewed on 10 July 2009. Available from: <https://star-space.com/news/story.asp?file=/2009/3/28/pnews/3557279&sec=pnews>

Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Mamat, 2009. Making sense of liberalisation. Viewed on 10 July 2009. Available from: <https://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/7/6/business/4240867&sec=business>

Author unknown, 2009. Sunrise is confident RM1.3bil in unbilled sales can sustain performance over three years. Viewed 10 July 2009. Available from: <https://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/10/29/business/2397990&sec=business>

Torbica, Zeljko M. and Stroh., Robert C. 2001. ‘Customer satisfaction in home building’. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management. 127(1), pp.82.

Author unknown, 2006. Complaints Statistics. Viewed on 10 July 2009. Available from: <https://www.hba.org.my/HBA/Statistic/complaints_2006.htm>

Chapter 2

Literature Review

2.1 Introduction

Looking into the population of the world, it is clear that the population will increase as the years go by. The population in the urban areas will increase while the population in the rural areas will decrease through the years. This can be proven when the United Nations (2008), when the World Urbanization Prospects the 2007 Revision corroborates that the world population will reach a landmark in 2008 for the first time in history, as the urban population will equal the rural population of the world and, from then on, the world population will be urban in its majority.

The United Nation (2008) also stated that from the year 2007 to 2050, the world population is expected to increase by 2.5 billion, passing from 6.7 billion to 9.7 billion. At the same time, the population living in urban areas is to gain 3.1 billion in 2007 to 6.4 billion in 2050. Thus, the urban form has interdependently affected the development and the governance of the city.

Generally, the population in Malaysia will increase as the years go by. The population in the urban areas will increase and this can be seen in the increasing population of the World – Class City of Kuala Lumpur. The Draft Kuala Lumpur (KL) City Plan 2020 has five (5) core guiding principles that will frame the draft, and one of these principles is Planning ‘For and With’ the People (DBKL, 2009).

Density Structure of Kuala Lumpur

Strategic Zones

Area Sq. Kms

Population 2005

Density 2005 (person/ sq. km)

Population 2020

Density 2020 (person/ sq. km)

City Centre

17.7915

143,000

8,038

245,611

13,805

Figure 4 shows the density structure of Kuala Lumpur. The figure also shows that Wangsa Maju – Maluri which is within the Setapak area, rank the highest in the 2005 data on population. At the same time, the population is expected to increase and become the third highest in population by the year 2020.

According to the DBKL (2009), Kuala Lumpur is a city that houses 2.2 million populations and provides employment to 1.4 million people. The City will thus ensure whatever its plans, builds or develop are based on the wants and needs of the people. Furthermore, the Future Population of Kuala Lumpur in DBKL (2009) stressed that Kuala Lumpur must be liveable in order to encourage people to live in the City comfortably and through the plan allows for an additional 600,000 people in the next 12 years. From the Draft KL City Plan 2020, it shows that the satisfaction of the occupants is also taken into consideration when planning of the city is done.

Therefore, this research will focus on the satisfaction level of occupants in one of the most populated area, Setapak. In this chapter, there will be reviews on some key words definition regarding the research study from various sources and the various maintenance and facilities which may also include explanation on some of the types of maintenance and function of maintenance. Reports and case studies on maintenance and facilities will also be included in this chapter.

2.1.1 Definitions

The satisfaction level of occupants towards the maintenance and facilities in a condominium can be defined as the repair works and the upkeep of a condominium together with the functional things and services provided which fulfil the needs, claim or desire that gives gratification to the occupants or residents of the condominium. Further clarification of this statement can be found through the definition of the key words such as satisfaction, occupants, maintenance, facilities and condominium.

2.1.1.1 Satisfaction

Finch (2004) proposed that customer satisfaction with facilities is determined not only by technical performance, but also by “an intricate set of exchange process”, such as effective communication and management of expectations. Salleh and Abdul Ghani (2008) also mentioned that residential and neighbourhood satisfaction is an important indicator of housing quality and condition, which affects individuals’ quality of life. Besides that, according to the MSN Encarta Dictionary (2009), satisfaction means happiness with arrangement, which can refer to the happiness with the way that something has been arranged or done. On the other hand, Compact Oxford English Dictionary (2009) defined satisfaction is the state of being satisfied and by the law, it is the payment of a debt of fulfilment of an obligation or claim. In addition, Longman English Dictionary Online (2009) further defines that satisfaction is a feeling of happiness or pleasure when someone gets something that they want, need or have demanded.

2.1.1.2 Occupant

The Longman English Dictionary Online (2009) defines occupants as someone who lives in a house, room etc. Meanwhile, MSN Encarta Dictionary (2009) defines occupant as a resident of a place. The Compact Oxford English Dictionary (2009) further clarifies that occupant as a person who occupies a place at a given time. Besides that, according to the Laws of Malaysia (2007), occupier means the person in actual occupation of the building, but, in the case of premises for lodging purposes, does not include a lodger.

2.1.1.3 Maintenance

Maintenance is synonymous with controlling the condition of a building so that its pattern lies within specified regions as defined by Lee (White, 1969). The MSN Encarta Dictionary (2009) defines maintenance as the continuing repair work where work that is done regularly to keep a machine, building or piece of equipment in good condition and working order. Compact Oxford English Dictionary (2009) further defines maintenance as the process of maintaining or being maintained. Longman English Dictionary Online (2009) also clarifies in depth that maintenance is the repairs, painting etc. that are necessary to keep something in good condition.

In fact, Chanter and Swallow (1996) identified maintenance as actions that relate not only to the physical execution of maintenance work, but also those concerned with its initiation, financing and organisation, and the notion of an acceptable condition. This implies an understanding of the requirements for the effective usage of the building and its parts, which in turn compels broader consideration of building performance from the definition of BS3811 (1984), as it defines maintenance as a combination of any actions carried out to retain an item in, or restore it to an acceptable condition. Besides that, Singh (1996) further defined building maintenance as work undertaken in order to keep, restore or improve every facility, i.e. every part of a building, its services and surrounds to a currently accepted standard, and to sustain the utility and value of facility.

2.1.1.4 Facilties

The MSN Encarta Dictionary (2009) defines facility as something with particular function, in which something is designed or created to provide a service or fulfil a need. Besides that, Compact Oxford English Dictionary (2009) defines facility as a building, service, or piece of equipment provided for a particular purpose. Longman English Dictionary Online (2009) further defines facility as a place or building used for a particular activity or industry, or for providing a particular type of service.

With these definitions explained from the dictionaries, facilities can be define as services or equipments provided to improve the effectiveness of a building. However, facilities are further clarified by the Charted Institute of Building (CIOB) with the definition that facilities management is an umbrella term under which a wide range of property and user – related functions may be brought together for the benefit of the organisation and its employees as a whole (Flanagan et al., 1995). Meanwhile, Alexander (1996) mentioned in his paper that facilities management is first and foremost about organizational effectiveness.

2.1.1.5 Condominum

The House Buyers Association (2009) mentioned that the word “condominium” comes from the Latin word “con” which means “together” and “dominium, meaning “property”. There are two parts in this type of property ownership. They are the ownership of the individual unit and joint ownership of the common property, in which the property is shared with other unit owners in the project. The MSN Encarta Dictionary (2009) defines condominium as an individually owned apartment, which is an individually owned unit of real estate, especially an apartment or town house, in a building or on land that is owned in common by the owners of the units. Meanwhile, the Compact Oxford English Dictionary (2009) further defines condominium as a building or complex containing a number of individually owned flats or houses. Longman English Dictionary Online (2009) later defines that condominium is one apartment in a building with several apartments, each of which is owned by the people living in it.

2.2 Maintenance In Condominium

For the maintenance in condominium in Malaysia, there is an act that was specially gazetted on 12th April 2007 for the purpose of maintaining the condominium and its surrounding, together with the facilities available in the condominium. According to the Laws of Malaysia (2007), under the act 663 building and common property (maintenance and management) act 2007, the act is to provide for proper maintenance and management of building and common property, and for matters incidental thereto. Maintenance in the condominium comprises maintenance of all the common property area in the condominium.

The building and common property (maintenance and management) act 2007 further defines common property as development area not comprised in any parcel, such as the structural elements of the building, stairs, stairways, fire escapes, entrances and exits, corridors, lobbies, fixtures and fittings, lifts, refuse chutes, refuse bins, compounds, drains, water tanks, sewers, pipes, wires, cables and ducts that serve more than one parcel, the exterior of all common parts of the building, playing fields and recreational areas, driveways, car parks and parking areas, open spaces, landscape areas, walls and fences, and all other facilities and installations and any part of the land used or capable of being used or enjoyed in common by all the occupiers of the building.

Charges which means any money collected by the owner, developer, Body or managing agent from the purchaser for the maintenance and management of the building or land intended for subdivision into parcels and common property, will be taken from the building maintenance account which is also known as building maintenance fund after the account is passed to the Joint Management Body (Laws of Malaysia, 2007).

2.2.1 Types of Maintenance

According to Gurjit Singh (1996), generally, maintenance management can be approached in the following ways:

v Cyclical maintenance: this is maintenance for recurring items such as redecoration.

v Non-cyclical maintenance: this will apply to the items identified in the condition survey and includes items that need major repairs and replacements.

v Planned preventive maintenance: this is maintenance which is carried out on regular basis to prevent breakdowns. It has the advantage of predicting the loss of facility to the owner and down-time.

v Emergency maintenance: this is maintenance which is carried out only when there is a breakdown. It is normally expensive and increases the amount of non – productive time.

Chanter and Swallow (1996) further explained the types of maintenance according to definitions given in BS 3811 and produced flow charts to summarise the types of maintenance and decision based types of maintenance as below:

(1) Planned maintenance: This is maintenance organised and carried out with forethought, control and the use of records to a predetermined plan.

(2) Unplanned maintenance: Ad hoc maintenance carried out to no predetermined plan.

(3) Preventive maintenance: Maintenance carried out at predetermined intervals, or corresponding to prescribed criteria, and intended to reduce the probability of failure, or the performance degradation of an item.

(4) Corrective maintenance: Maintenance carried out after failure has occurred, and intended to restore an item to a state in which it can perform its required function.

(5) Emergency maintenance: Maintenance which it is necessary to put in hand immediately to avoid serious consequences.

(6) Condition – based maintenance: Preventive maintenance initiated as a result of knowledge of the condition of an item from routine or continuous monitoring.

(7) Scheduled maintenance: Preventive maintenance carried out to a pre – determined interval of time, number of operations, mileage, etc.

Figure 5 Decision based types of maintenance

Source: Chanter and Swallow (1996)

2.2.2 Maintenance Function

Miles and Syagga (1987) mentioned that the function of maintenance can be divided into three groups. These three groups consist of cleaning and servicing, rectification and repair, and replacement. Both authors also added that cleaning and servicing should be carried out regularly and may be combined with a system of reporting faults, so that repairs can be carried out soon after faults become apparent, thereby avoiding the need for more expensive repairs or even replacement at a later stage.

2.2.3 Malaysia's Report On Poor Maintenance

According to the report from National House Buyers Association (The Star, 2005), residents of Mount Karunmas Condominium fret over cracks in car park. Residents want the developer or maintenance company of the building to rectify the cracks that have appeared on the beams in the car park. Besides the cracks, there was a water leak from the extension joints which were connected to the slabs.

In this case, the developer and the maintenance parties did not deliver their duty and responsibility well despites the complaints from the residents and had pin point each other to take hold of the work. In such case, the matter was brought to the press and the local council and the developer in the end stood up rectify the defects and mentioned that defects were only minor cracks. 

Figure 6 A concrete block supporting the beam has chipped off above parking bay no. 173 of the Mount Karunmus Condominium in Balakong. 

Source: The Star (2005)

In another report regarding to maintenance, there was a statement stating that one of the many issues of public concern is how to develop a strong maintenance culture in Malaysia in the interest of public safety and convenience. There was also an addition stating that Malaysia is known as a country which prides itself on the provision of First World infrastructure but not in terms of its maintenance (The Star,24 June 2009)

The Star (2009) also mentioned that poor maintenance of children’s playground can result in accidents and injuries. Besides that, poor maintenance of public buildings and infrastructures can also cause accidents, injuries and also flash floods when roads and public drains are not properly maintained. (The Star, 24 June 2009)

When maintenance are not done properly, image of the country is also not preserved as tourist would come to Malaysia to visit and this give a bad image to the country when maintenance are poorly done. According to the Star (24 June 2009) improving a country’s image is not only the responsibility of the Government but also the duty of each citizen who must be civic – minded.

According to the Star (7 May 2009) former squatters moved into the Putri Laksamana apartments in Batu Caves had to deal with poor maintenance, cracking tiles, water leakages, sewage problems and even snakes entering their houses for four years. According to Sundramoorthy Veerasamy (2009), when they moved into the apartment which comprises of 400 units, many of the units had cracked floor tiles and water leaking from the roof and pipes.

There were also drainage and garbage problem, and even though the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) promised to solve the problem, it has been eight months since the problem have not been solved (Sundramoorthy Veerasamy, 2009). Sundramoorthy (2009) also mentioned that they are losing faith in the councillors and state government finding a solution. From this, Government should be able to come out with a solution to help these residents as they are also the citizens of Malaysia and deserve to live in a properly maintained place.

Poor maintenance can also lead to criminal activities. According to the Star (7 May 2009) criminal activities like snatch thefts, break-ins, and motorcycle and car thefts are rampant there and drug addicts and pushers also haunt the area of the apartment. MPS councillor Gopalan Krishnan Rajoo (2009) also mentioned that because there is no Joint Management Body (JMB) for the apartment, it is difficult to solve the problems and residents were urged to form the JMB to bring up the residents’ problems so that they can be solved easily.

From this report, it is shown that forming a JMB in a community is important to solve certain problems and that increase in poor maintenance also would increase the crime rate in the area.

2.2.4 Case Study of Poor Maintenance

Abdulmohsen Al – Hammad, Sadi Assaf and Mansoor Al – Shihah (1997) in their research which outlines the defects and faults during the design stage that affect building maintenance in Saudi Arabia and their relative degree of importance, came out with a table on the level of importance of design defects on building maintenance. The following tables show the result from the questionnaire done from their research on the defects.

Table 2 Index and rank of design defects

Source: Abdulmohsen Al – Hammad, Sadi Assaf and Mansoor Al – Shihah (1997)

Table 3 Index and rank of design defects by groups

Source: Abdulmohsen Al – Hammad, Sadi Assaf and Mansoor Al – Shihah (1997)

From the table above, the maintenance practicality and adequacy which is one of the defect groups rank the highest among the owners. When maintenance are not planned and done adequately, there will be defects and the defects will worsen causing the building to be not safe for the occupants and even aesthetically affected.

2.3 Facilties In Condominium

In Malaysia, there are many types of facilities available in a condominium. The National House Buyers Association (2009) mentioned that there are many facilities and services in a condominium, such as lifts, swimming pool, gym, tennis court, landscaped gardens and even security services. Further explanation was that these facilities and services are expensive to maintain. Facilities are actually one of the important key aspects which purchasers will look into when buying a condominium. This is because purchasers have to understand that they when purchasing a unit of the condominium, two things are bought.

These two things are the individual unit and the common property which includes all the facilities available in the condominium. Nowadays, facilities play a big role in portraying the image of the condominium. Besides that, facilities available in a condominium also determine and set a standard to the condominium. This can be seen when the low – end condominiums and high – end condominiums are being compared. Types of facilities available will be very different for both types of condominium, where the facilities in the high – end condominiums are more and much better than those of low – end condominiums.

2.3.1 Malaysia's Report On Facilities

National House Buyers Association (The Star, 2008) reported that hairline cracks have appeared on pillars and car park areas of the Sri Gotong apartment block in Batu Caves for the past year. One of the occupants, Abd Rahman Suraiman, mentioned that the management company Benih Kencana Sdn. Bhd. Should act fast to prevent the situation from getting worse.

According to Rahman, who is secretary of the Sri Gotong Apartment Batu Caves Pro – tem Committee, the apartment was supposed to have condominium facilities like swimming pool, recreational area and sauna, but such facilities were lacking and the place was not properly maintained. Rahman also mentioned that the sauna room is locked, the gymnasium equipment is damaged and ever since he started staying there, one of the lifts stopped working and has yet to be repair.

This report shows that lacking of facilities in a condominium will also cause dissatisfaction to the occupants. Thus, this kind of problem gives the condominium a bad image.

In another report from the National House Buyers Association (The Star, 2004) stated that the local authorities are often hampered in their efforts to build sports facilities when developers, in fulfilling the requirement of providing open areas, allocate land that is too small or narrow. The report also added that local authorities wanted to provide more recreational facilities, especially in housing estates, but were unable to do so in some areas due to the lack of land. Developers would usually tell local authorities that they had carried out their responsibility by providing recreational through building playgrounds which are meant for younger children and this leaves teenagers without a proper place for recreation. According to the report, this could more likely cause teenagers.

Therefore, it is wise that the developers to allocate sufficient area for the recreational facilities to ensure that occupants in that condominium will be able to live healthy life style also.

2.3.2 Case Study On Facilities

Hui (2005) in a case study broadly defined that building is to include all assets such as the multi – storey building blocks, electrical and mechanical plants, and common areas such as car parks, landscaping and recreational facilities. The building should provide a clean, secure and comfortable environment for living. A framework was proposed to facilitate the ease of understanding the context of building management. The context of building management is represented by a hexagonal cell by Hui (2005) as shown in the figure below. 

Figure 7 Context of building management

Source: Hui (2005)

In his research, Hui (2005) mentioned that due to the high density of occupancy, the residential buildings in the study are subjected to heavy usage and stress under different weather conditions. The building and facilities naturally age with time. Wear and tear is inevitable. Wastes and external sources of pollution need to be managed and proper operation and maintenance are necessary to prevent the condition of the building from deteriorating.

Besides that, customer satisfaction was also mentioned. For the complete customer satisfaction, the quality of the service which also refers to the facilities should be perceived on the basis of five dimensions, namely:

1. tangibles;

2. reliability;

3. responsiveness;

4. assurance; and

5. empathy

According to Hui (Headley and Choi, 1992) the gap analysis approached provides excellent information for building a true customer – centred attitude to service delivery. In the context of building management, the gap model of service quality is slightly adapted as shown in the figure below.

Figure 8 Gap model of service quality

Source: Hui (2005)

From the figure above, the service expected by the maintenance committee and residents may not be the same. Therefore, the contractor has to look after two types of customers. One, the residents of each household are individual customers while the other is the management committee is a corporate customer who provides consolidated feedback to the contractor. Hui (2005) concluded that to reduce the gap between the expected level of service and the perceived level service, customer orientation, information sharing, and a consistent track record of professionalism are important. Tables below are the outcome of the author’s case study.

Table 4 Description of residential estates under study

Source: Hui (2005)

Table 5 Possible causes of gaps

Source: Hui (2005)

Table 6 Guidelines for gap minimization

Source: Hui (2005)

Indirectly, from the case study, a conclusion that can be made is that facilities and the maintenance of the services or facilities can affect the satisfaction level of the occupants.

References

United Nation, 2009. World urbanization prospects: the 2007 revision. Viewed on 5 August 2009. Available from: <https://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/wup2007/2007WUP_ExecSum_web.pdf>

DBKL, 2009. KL city plan 2020: future population of kuala lumpur. Viewed on 5 August 2009. Available from: <https://klcityplan2020.dbkl.gov.my/eis/?page_id=290>

DBKL, 2009. KL city plan 2020: the draft kl city plan. Viewed on 5 August 2009. Available from: <https://klcityplan2020.dbkl.gov.my/eis/?page_id=292>

Campbell, L. and Finch, E. 2004. ‘Customer satisfaction and organisational justice’. Facilities. 22(7/8), pp.178-189.

Salleh and Abdul Ghani. 2008. ‘Neighbourhood factors in private low – cost housing Malaysia’. Habitat International. 32(4), pp485 – 493.

Laws of Malaysia, 2007. Act 663 building and common property (maintenance and management) act 2007. Viewed on 17 August 2009. Available from: <https://www.rehda.com/resources/acts/A663-2007.pdf>

Lee, R. 1976. Building maintenance management. Great Britain: Granada.

Chanter, B. and Swallow, P. 1996. Building maintenance management. Great Britain: Blackwell Science.

Gurjit Singh. 1996. Property management in Malaysia. Malaysia: 1995 Federal Publication Sdn. Bhd.

Miles, D. and Syagga, P. 1987. Building maintenance a management manual. London: Intermediate Technology Publications.

Chow, H. B. 2005. ‘Residents fret over cracks in car park’. 10 May 2005. National Home Buyers Association. Viewed on 16 August 2009. Available from: <https://www.hba.org.my/news/2005/505/residents_fret.htm>

Abdulmohsen Al – Hammad and Sadi Assaf and Mansoor Al – Shihah. 1997. ‘The effect of faulty design on building maintenance’. Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering. 3(1355-2511), pp. 29 – 39.

Flanagan, R., Hadley, N., Hargitay, S., Holmes, R., Jordan, A., Kitson, T., Leaman, A., Marsh, L., Park, A., Spedding, A., Tong, D., Tyler, M., Worthing, D. and Worthington, J. 1995. CIOB handbook of facilities management. England: Longman Group Limited 1994.

National House Buyers Association, 2005. A buyer watch article. Viewed on 15 July 2009. Available from: <https://www.hba.org.my/articles/buyer_watch/2005/condo.htm>

Michael, S. 2008. ‘Sri Gotong folks upset by poor maintenance of facilities’. 17 October 2008. The Star. Viewed on 17 August 2009. Available from: <https://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/10/17/central/2212533&sec=central>

The Star. 2004. ‘Don’t take advantage of loophole, developers told’. 30 October 2004. National Home Buyers Association. Viewed on 16 August 2009. Available from: <https://www.hba.org.my/news/2004/1004/don.htm>

Hui, Y. Y. 2005. ‘Key success factors of building management in large and dense residential estates’. Facilities. 23(1/2), pp.47 – 62.

Chapter 3

Background

3.1 Introduction

The place of case study for this research will be in Platinum Lake (PV10). PV10 was built in 2008 and consists of four (4) blocks namely Block A, Block B, Block C and Block D. PV10 is a project under Platinum Victory Development (PVD) Sdn. Bhd. The condominium consists of 4 bedroom units with a spacious built up of 1,272 sf and 3 bedroom units with built up of 1,182 sf. Comprising of 800 units of condominium and 20 units of shop lots, the facilities in PV10 include swimming and wadding pools, tennis court, gymnasium, mini market, cafeteria, saloon, children’s playground and nursery, house keeping services, covered car park, multi – purpose hall and satellite MATV. The surrounding of the PV10 is under 24 hour security with access card system at the main gate. The residents’ private recreational park encompasses more than 1 acre and with tropical themed swimming pool. (Platinum Victory Development Sdn. Bhd., 2008)

Besides being located in booming residential area of Danau Kota, the condominium is surrounded with tranquil and serene environment with breathtaking view of landscaped lake. There are two schools namely Sekolah Kebangsaan Danau Kota and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Danau Kota situated at the west of PV10. Meanwhile, on the south there are up – coming new construction of projects by Platinum Victory Development Sdn. Bhd. and on the north east there is a Hindu temple. PV10 is also a 10 minutes drive away from the Duke highway as well as a 15 minutes drive away from downtown Kuala Lumpur. These show how strategic and convenient it is to stay in PV10. (Setapak, 2009)

Figure 9 Platinum Lake (PV10) Condominium

Source: PV10 Blog (2009)

In this research, more information was collected regarding PV10 Condominium through an informal interview with the Ar. Tan and Janice, who are the architect and maintenance executive of Platinum Victory Development Sdn. Bhd. Following are the maintenance and facilities in PV10 which were discussed through the interview.

3.2 Maintenance In PV10

There are many types of maintenance available in PV 10. Maintenance is done in order that occupants in the condominium are able to have a nice and healthy life style when living in that community. Following are the types of maintenance available:

3.2.1 Cleaning Services

There are 12 cleaners everyday. This includes a supervisor. Two cleaners are placed at each block to collect rubbish to the refuse every morning. After that, general mopping on every floor, lobby and lift are to be done. There are also two cleaners placed at the common area such as car park, just to check out if there is any bulk rubbish. However, usually there is no rubbish there. On the other hand the playground and swimming pool area have lots of debris, left over food on the grass and rubbish thrown from high level. The cleaners will also be cleaning up these places. (Janice, 2009)

3.2.2 Collection of Rubbish

PV10 uses a refuse chamber for the rubbish collection. There are 2 spiral bins where rubbish can be squeezed and compacted. Besides that, there are 2 numbers of 16.4m cube volume model coded swb-14d. The DBKL contractor will collect once in 2 days as a routine. However, maintenance sometimes calls them to collect if they are full. Thus, the collection will be in different charges. For bulk waste or renovation waste, there is one (1) number of Roro Bin allocated. The size of the toll truck rubbish bin is 12ft x 16ft x 2ft deep and it takes five times trip per week and cost RM100 each trip. If more trips are required, maintenance can call to provide extra trip, but the cost will be rm150 per extra trip. (Ar. Tan and Janice, 2009)

Residents who throw their rubbish in plastic bags will have to throw the rubbish in the rubbish ledge bin located at every floor. Maintenance will collect the rubbish during the morning and afternoon, which is two times per day. However, for bulk waste, residents have to carry them themselves and dump them into the ground floor Roro bin. (Janice, 2009)

3.2.3 Lifts

The brand of the lifts used in PV10 is EITA and this is a German brand. However, these products are manufactured and assembled in Malaysia, with the original design speed of the lifts at 150 meter per second. The Building by Law required every block of the building to have a fireman lift for safety purposes. (Ar. Tan, 2009)

The lifts are all maintained according to emergency maintenance. If the lifts break down, then, there will be maintenance for the life. However, the lifts will also be checked from time to time so ensure that its safety requirements are made. (Janice, 2009)

3.2.4 Lighting

Lighting will consist of those at the common areas. Common areas are like corridor lights and car park lights. All the lights will be switched on at 7pm till next morning at 7am. However, the swimming pool light will off after 10pm. This is because after 10 pm, no one is allowed to swim. The landscape lighting will also be turned on from 7pm till 7am. (Janice, 2009)

Figure 10 Lighting at the corridor

Source: PV10 Blog (2009)

3.2.5 Water Supply System

There are two (2) bulk meter, each for the common area and for the domestic use. For the common areas, they are charged on commercial rates. The shops in PV10 are charged on commercial rates. Meter for the common areas also refer to those for the garden tap, swimming pool, car park washing and also for the toilets and fire hydrant. On the other hand, domestic use is to supply to all the apartment units. It is charged by using water meter on every floor unit located near the lift lobby. (Janice, 2009)

3.3 Facilties In PV10

There are many types of facilities available in PV10. These facilities are for the occupants to relax and have fun when staying in PV10. Besides that, the facilities are to provide safety measures to the occupants and to live a healthy life. Followings are the types of facilities available:

3.3.1 Recreational Facilities

In this research, the recreational facilities available refer to the facilities that could provide activities for the occupants to live a happy and healthy lifestyle. These are also places where the occupants can interact and get to know each other besides having a nice and enjoyable time relaxing.

3.3.1.1 Children's Playground

The children’s playground is approved by the DBKL landscape department. Approval of the playground is based on the type of equipments at the playground and the approved brand. The approved brand mentioned means that the brand used have enough safety features to prevent accident or injury to children. (Tan, 2009)

Figure 11 Children’s Playground

Source: PVD Sdn. Bhd. Webpage (2009)

3.3.1.1 Swimming Pool

There are three (3) types of pool in PV10. They are they children pool, adult pool and spa pool.

Figure 12 Swimming Pool

Source: PVD Sdn. Bhd. Webpage (2009)

Children Pool

The size of the children pool is 2’ depth with 4 meter in radius. The pool system used is the overflow system with perimeter overflow drain. There is no sucking pit in the children pool. Hence, it is safer as there was a case in Malaysia where a child’s leg got stuck into the pit and drowned. (Tan, 2009)

Adult Pool

On the other hand, the adult pool is 4’ deep in size. In Malaysia, the law stated that 4’ depth pool does not require a life guard. However, due to safety issue, the maintenance team provides a guard to control the pool area. An overflow system is used with overflow drain at the perimeter of the pool while incoming supply of water from the bottom of the pool. There are also pool depth indicators. Besides that the staircase for the pool is built using stainless steel due to its corrosion resistance and hardness in strength. (Tan, 2009)

Figure 13 Children pool and adult pool

Source: PV10 Blog (2009)

Pool System

The pool system works in a very unique way. Firstly, there is the motor room which is for filtering. It also helps to change the water and it is a system for chlorine dropping. The balance tank is designed to add in water; taking prevention of lost during evaporation. Lastly for the water spill, it is used to balance the water level constant at overflow drain level. (Tan, 2009)

The pool system runs on automatically in terms of filtering and chlorine dropping system. The water flow is controlled at two (2) changes in 12 hours. Thus, the pump flow is strong enough to have a complete four (4) cycles of the whole swimming pool water volume changed in one (1) day, which is 24 hours. (Ar. Tan)

3.3.2 Health Facilities

The health facilities available refer to the facilities that could allow the occupants to live a healthy lifestyle through exercising. These are also places where the occupants can interact and get to know each other besides having the time and access to build up their body or to stay fit.

3.3.2.1 Gymnasium

Only very basic equipments are provided in the gymnasium. Approval from the management staff will be needed to be able to access into the gymnasium. Occupants will have to present their identity with a resident’s card to get the approval. The operation for the gym will be from 7am to 10 pm. Near to the entrance of the gymnasium is a list of rules and regulations. For example, smoking and food are not allowed in the gymnasium. (Janice, 2009)

3.3.2.2 Tennis Court

The tennis court is as 23.744 m X 10.973 m in size with a surrounding width of three (3) m and (6) m. The tennis court is also like the gymnasium, where there it can be used during the day and also at night. Occupants will have to get approval and also present themselves with the resident’s card in order to be able to use the tennis court. (Tan and Janice, 2009)

Figure 14 Tennis court

Source: PVD Webpage (2009)

3.3.3 Safety Facilities

The safety facilities in this research refer to the facilities that could provide a safe and secure life for the occupants. These are the facilities where the occupants can go to in case of emergency and also for information about the condominium.

3.3.3.1 Security

There are two shifts of guards in PV10. The day time shift has ten (10) guards on duty, while for the night shift, there are nine (9) guards on duty. There are more guards in the day time shift compared to the night time shift because most of the houses which have been broke into happen during day time when occupants are out for work. (Janice, 2009)

The guards are spread out accordingly. Two (2) guards will be located at the guard house, one (1) at the swimming pool, one (1) guard at the lift lobby of each block which total up to four (4) guards, one guard who will patrol around the third (3rd) level and the subsequent levels and another is to patrol the car park floor and motorcycles. (Janice, 2009)

Besides that, there are two (2) security cameras pointing at the driver’s face and car plate number, which are situated at the entrance and exit of the condominium. Security cameras are also provided at the car parks of every floor. This is to record the people that goes in and out from the condominium. (Janice, 2009)

Figure 15 Guard house

Source: PV10 Blog (2009)

3.3.3.2 Fire Fighting System

There is a requirement where there should be a fireman lift for each block. When there is a fire breakdown, all lifts will automatically go down and stop at the ground floor with the lift door open. Firemen will then be able to operate the fireman lift. Besides that, there are escape staircase which are all protected with reinforced concrete wall or 6” thick brick wall. This specification is equivalent to 2 hours fire rated. Staircases are also natural ventilated with no needs of pressurization. All staircases access to ground floor. The smoke detector and fire alarms are placed in all lift lobbies and M & E rooms. All the systems are linked back to fire panel in the guard house where the guards can monitor. In every floor in the lobby, there is a dry riser or hose reel. There are also three (3) number of 9 kg dry powder extinguishers on every floor of the corridor. (Tan, 2009)

3.3.4 Car Park System

According to the law of DBKL, one (1) unit is to 1.2 car park plus (+) 20% for visitor. Therefore, total number of minimum car parks that should be provided is 1120 in number.

(800 units X 1.2) + (800 X 20%) = 1120

However, the actual number of car parks provided in PV10 is 1394 in total. Under the Sales and Purchase (S&P) Agreement, 1 unit will be given 1 car park. An extra car park will be sold at RM 12,000 and this depends on the buyers. (Tan, 2009)

Owners of the car parks are given a sticker and access card to park their vehicle in PV10. All cars without the sticker and access card will not be allowed to enter into PV10. Visitors are to show their identity card (IC) and the IC is to be kept by the guard in the guard house while the visitors are in the PV10. All car parks are written decimated unit number. Random parking on other person’s parking lot will be locked and a penalty of RM50 will be charged. Parking on non-parking areas will be locked as well.

Lorries for loading and unloading will have to inform the guard at the guard house and give the owners’ or residents’ unit. Renovation contractor will have to show renovation approval from management and a deposit of RM200 will be collected. This is to ensure that no damages are done during construction of works. (Janice, 2009) Under the Strata Title Act, the car park is a separate lot under accessory parcel attached to the main unit parcel, it can not be disposed off (meaning sold off) separately without the main parcel. Once the application is done at the land office, it is not possible to add in another car park accessory into the main parcel. (Tan, 2009)

3.4 Maintenance of Facilities

3.4.1 Swimming Pool

For the swimming pool, maintenance is done every alternate day and chlorine dropping at the pool will be checked. Besides that, the pool area will also be vacuumed to keep the pool clean. The filter is flushed out once every month to make sure that the filter is clean and performing well in keeping the pool clean.

3.4.2 Fogging

Fogging is done for mosquito control. This will only be carried out if it is requested and approved by the Joint Management Body (JMB) committee. (Janice, 2009)

3.4.3 Posting System

For the posting system, the Pos Malaysia will deliver the mails to the office every morning. A maintenance staff will then distribute to every block at the ground floor area where letter box for all units is placed. However, certain letters such as for quit rent, land tax and electricity bills will be delivered to the maintenance office. (Janice, 2009)

3.4.4 Landscape

Watering of flowers is manually done each day. The plants are fertilized once every two weeks. If there were to be any addition or replacement of new plants or tree, permission must be taken from the maintenance. (Janice, 2009)

Figure 16 Landscape

Source: PV10 Blog (2009)

3.4.5 Signage System

There are also different types of signage used in PV10. They are for the:

¨ Fire fighting system – For the fire fighting system, there are signage to show the direction for escape, fire appliances and mimic diagram.

¨ Traffic system – Signage for traffic system is to show the traffic flow, car park numbering and visitors or residents car parks.

¨ Directional system – For this system, signage are for the layout plan of the guard house or the maintenance office.

¨ Safety signage – This signage are for the swimming pool rules and regulation, and also for the car park which serve as warning for not leaving personal belongings in the car.

(Tan and Janice, 2009)

3.4.6 Health Concern

At the present H1N1 disease that is spreading around the world, a brief on health measure was given to ensure occupants take prevention. Sanitizations are used at all public door handles and lift buttons. Residents are to report to the Joint Management Committee (JMC) or guard if there is any case of infection which happens in the condominium. At the kindergarten in PV10, all students’ body temperature is check at the start and end of school. In addition, all management staffs, cleaners, gardeners, guards and shop workers who have flu or symptoms must self quarantine and are not allowed to work until they are fully recovered. (Janice, 2009)

Besides that, all food stalls are to install grease trap to block grease and debris from entering the drain. Jabatan Kesihatan will have to do checking for approval of all the food stalls. (Tan, 2009)

Reference

Platinum Victory Development Sdn. Bhd. Viewed on 16 August 2009. Available from: < https://www.platinumvictory.com/>

PV10 Blog. Viewed on 16 August 2009. Available from: <https://jmcpv10.blogspot.com/> and <https://pv10.highrise.my>

Report

According to the actual and planned schedule, there are some variations in the actual schedule compared to the planned scheduled. The reasons for these differences are:

¨ The title proposed was not only to the approval of one supervisor as I have to get the approval from another supervisor. I am under the supervision of Ms. Puspa as my main supervisor but also under the supervision of Madam Janaky to look through my work.

¨ Proposal took a longer time because every time there is minor things to be changed after the vetting of the proposal. It was considered correctly done by week 9.

¨ Literature Review was on track and actually still in the process of amendment and this will last till next semester.

¨ Following are the log book sheets according to the improvement and the time I meet my supervisor. Included in this report are also the sources that I used.

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