Some Common Maintenance Problems and Building Defects: Our Experiences

Poor and improper building maintenance will definitely cause more damages and costly repair works if left unattended. In Malaysia, buildings are built in accordance with British Standard and under strict supervision. Unfortunately the maintenance aspects of the building are still weak. Making it worse, sometimes building maintenance is perceived as merely about the mechanical and electrical system in the buildings without much consideration given to civil and structural elements. This non-research paper is to discuss the common maintenance problems and building defects on civil and structural elements at the Social Security Organisation (SOCSO) buildings across Malaysia due to various factors. Some common problems involving water proofing system, cracks, soil settlement are discussed in this paper. For instance, with tropical climate and average rainfall of 250 centimetres in a year, a good water proofing system is crucial for buildings with flat roof in Malaysia. However the performance of water proofing systems depend on many factors i.e. quality of the materials, the skill of workers, application methods, substrates condition, weather, maintenance, etc. Recent roof leakage incidents at numerous prestigious buildings such as parliament house, high court and other government buildings has sparked more awareness among the engineering fraternity on the importance of good and systematic building maintenance. With 34 office buildings throughout Malaysia, Property Division of SOCSO has been dealing with such problems regularly and would like to share them with other participants of this conference.