Addressing the ventilation load in designing of air-conditioning systems for buildings having requirement of fresh air is important information for Heating Ventilation and Air-conditioner (HVAC) consultants, architects etc. As treatment of fresh air significantly contributes in the energy requirement of air-conditioning of any building as fresh air includes both sensible and latent load. The aim of this paper is to quickly access the cooling generated by the fresh air brought from outside weather to space neutral conditions for Indian climatic conditions which assist HVAC designer for deciding of cooling equipment. Ventilation load index is the criteria adopted for addressing cooling load created by ventilation air. This work presents the comparison based on ventilation load index for different geographic locations within India. Ventilation Load based mapping of Indian region has been presented which can be served as a useful information for practicing air-conditioning (AC) engineers, consultants and architects operating in that region. These regions be for Industrial hub for moisture related systems/ equipment of HVAC industry.
The Industrialised Building System (IBS) has recently been brought forward as a new methodology in the construction industry for improving the productivity, quality of the projects and their sustainability. IBS has a 70% minimum required to be met by public projects and 50% is to be met by private projects. Nonetheless, the IBS is currently proving problematic in practice as the technical capability is lacking and investment in capital is huge at the initial stage. To this end, the objective of this study is to investigate the IBS practices construct, including the technology, organization, and environment dimensions, in Malaysia. This study also assesses reliability and predictiveness of the results. A quantitative method was used in Selangor by making use of precast concrete from contractor questionnaires. The data were analysed using SPSS version 22.0 for descriptive statistics, and Smart PLS-SEM for structural model assessment. The findings showed that the highest mean value (4.32) of time, followed by popularity of IBS (4.31), and low mean value construction cost (4.04). In contrast, when evaluating the predictive capacity of the model on IBS performance, the R² value is very high 0.670. Hence, strategies for enhancing contractors' performance practices not only propel the success of IBS implementation; it also helps to transform Malaysia's construction sector in accordance with the aspirations of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0) and the Sustainable Development Agenda.
This study examines existing qualitative and quantitative models developed to understand and evaluate adaptability in buildings, aiming to provide a comprehensive reference for future research on both adaptive reuse of existing structures and the design of adaptable new buildings. The existing literature offers numerous frameworks—both qualitative and quantitative—for assessing building adaptability. However, while studies include comparative analyses of these models, they have generally overlooked the inherent strategies that outline a roadmap for achieving adaptability and the relationships between these strategies. Recognizing that the interrelationships between strategies have significant implications for the development of integrated adaptability solutions, this research comparatively reviews these models based on criteria such as publication year, scope, function, focus, evaluation criteria, methodology, output, and strategies.When viewed over time, an analysis of the temporal distribution of these models reveals that interest in adaptability assessment has remained consistent over the past two decades. Among the various evaluation methods, criterion-based scoring emerges as the most commonly applied approach.Although their intended purposes differ, many of these models share similar features, including rating or classification systems, conceptual decision-support tools for adaptive reuse, and analyses of relationships among key variables. Furthermore, the evolving definition of adaptability and the expanding scope of related research have led to a diversification of strategies proposed to achieve adaptability in buildings. The most frequently cited strategies include disassembly or deconstruction, flexibility, scalability, movability, durability, accessibility, and layering.
This paper proposes and applies an integrated Likert–Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) decision model to identify critical factors and to prioritise hotel business takeover strategies in Malaysia, using Kuala Lumpur as the benchmark investment market. A structured questionnaire was administered to 122 industry stakeholders. Respondents first rated five critical factors (location, brand, management, technology and economy/post-pandemic conditions) on a five-point Likert scale to capture perceived salience, and then completed AHP pairwise comparisons to elicit trade-off priorities. For the 5×5 factor matrix, the Consistency Ratio (CR) was computed for each respondent and only consistent judgements (CR < 0.10; n = 75) were aggregated to derive final factor weights. Likert results indicate that management (mean = 4.66) and technology (mean = 4.64) are perceived as the most salient drivers, followed by location (mean = 4.52). In contrast, CR-filtered AHP weights prioritise location (0.2657) and brand (0.2245) above management (0.1976), evidencing a perception–trade-off divergence when stakeholders are required to make explicit comparisons. To translate these priorities into actionable governance options, respondents also compared three takeover strategy alternatives using AHP, producing global priorities that favour full ownership of both asset and business (A1: 0.4028) over an asset-light business-only takeover (A2: 0.3265) and long-term leasing (A3: 0.2708). The contribution is a repeatable, CR-screened Likert–AHP model that converts practitioner judgement into transparent numerical priorities and supports more defensible board-level investment decisions.
External shading devices play a crucial role in reducing solar radiation entering buildings and are an important strategy for lowering cooling loads in tropical regions with high temperatures, high humidity and intense solar radiation. This study used a combination of field measurements and software simulations to explore the appropriate ratio of overhang shading devices for a faculty office at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). By applying the appropriate ratio of shading device, the compliance rate of indoor air temperature (IAT) in the test room can be brought into compliance with the requirement. Building on this, the study simulated the data of IAT and daylight factor (DF) for four common types of external shading devices across 16 building orientations to identify the appropriate shading device for each orientation. This study found that the most suitable shading device for the -45° building orientation (North-west) is the egg crate shading device. Applying it at an appropriate ratio increased compliance rate of IAT of the test room by 20.7%. This study can provide data and theoretical support for the design and practice of shading devices for buildings in tropical regions such as Malaysia.
