Perspective of Construction Building Professionals on Low-Carbon Materials in Malaysia
Authors:   Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Kompleks Pusat Pengajian Jejawi 3, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA, Omar Mohd Rohim , Ayob Afizah ,   Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Kompleks Pusat Pengajian Jejawi 3, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA,   Centre of Excellent, Water Research and Environmental Sustainability Growth (WAREG), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA,   Research Cluster of Construction Management Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA, Zakaria Mohd Hafiz ,   Institute of Engineering Mathematics, Pauh Putra Main Campus, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA, Rahim Nur Soleha Abdul ,   Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Kompleks Pusat Pengajian Jejawi 3, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA, Mokhtar Hamizah ,   School of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UITM Pahang Branch, 26400 Bandar Tun Razak, Pahang, MALAYSIA, Rani Hafnidar A. ,   Department of Civil Engineering, Engineering Faculty, Universitas Muhammadiyah Aceh, 23245 Aceh, INDONESIA, Rahman Farahiyah Abdul ,   Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Kompleks Pusat Pengajian Jejawi 3, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600 Arau, Perlis, MALAYSIA
Published: April 2023

Low-carbon (LC) materials and alternative technology must overcome various institutional policy and market constraints to gain greater acceptance in the construction sector. The primary impediments that must be addressed to build a viable and sustainable local construction sector are awareness and knowledge. To analyse the perspective on LC materials in the northern states of Malaysia, 93 companies were surveyed via their construction building professionals (CBPs) on awareness, usage frequency, user experience, drivers for material selection and barriers to LC material adoption in projects. To establish an understanding of CBPs and LC materials, survey data were analysed using semi-structured qualitative-quantitative approaches and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), influenced by basic theory. 79.57% valid responses indicate that most participants had a low degree of awareness, with 95% confidence that there is no difference in the score levels of the overall viewpoints between architects, civil engineers and structural engineers. While unfired bricks (16.2%) are commonly and widely employed in construction projects, structural insulated panels (40.9%) are the most favourable LC materials for future projects. Client requirements, regulatory requirements and expectations of a shorter completion time are the most important factors driving CBPs to select LC materials, accounting for 44.6%, 37.8% and 37.8%, respectively. According to the CBPs, the main constraint factor to market acceptability is the “Lack of sustainable material information” (44.9%). The proposed recommendations include “Training on designing a building with LC material”, “Clear regulation on limiting carbon emission in a project” and “Increase demonstration of projects and case studies” at a rate ranging from 36.5% to 43.2% to improve client and CBPs acceptance of LC materials for a more sustainable building sector.