How can the industry overcome the current challenges?
In the short term, the construction industry players must focus on gaining financial stability with the government to ensure that all public sector construction projects are awarded and implemented quickly. Construction projects are the catalyst to ignite positive economic impact on the construction industry supply chain and have a two times multiplier effect in which another 120 sectors were identified as being inter related to each other. This will mean that we have to constantly relook, rethink and replan our business models to ensure survivability for the long term. Needless to say, we are in this fight against COVID- 19 as a nation regardless of the industry sectors and must work together in synergy for the well-being of the country.
Safety & Health
Companies must focus on keeping their workforce safe and healthy by adhering to the SOPs for the construction industry which has been put in place by CIDB on Centralised Labour Quarters (CLQ) to ensure minimum risk of COVID-19 spreading in the workers’ accommodation and construction sites. The CIDB is continuously monitoring the compliance of these SOPs at construction sites. I have personally led a few construction sites visits to inspect on their compliance to the SOPs and found that 80 percent of the construction sites have complied accordingly.
Technology
In addition to health and safety, the COVID-19 pandemic and MCO has more than ever, emphasised the importance of technology adoption in the construction industry.
Notably, construction sites should no longer have large groups of people working at the same time in order to avoid the risk of infection. This emphasised the need for the construction industry to reduce the dependency on foreign unskilled labour and instead adopt mechanisation and technology which will allow us to reduce the workforce significantly and offer higher wages to a few highly skilled local work forces.
The Malaysian Government will continuously ensure that the construction industry will adopt and embrace the use of the Industrialised Building System (IBS) and Building Information Modelling (BIM) which is anticipated to transform the construction industry as a whole in the future.
Long term
The construction industry stakeholders should take this opportunity to relook, rethink and replan their business models as I have mentioned earlier in order to strengthen their business strategy and focus on upskilling and upgrading their workforce. I believe when the economy recovers from this pandemic, the construction industry will be ready and be resilient to compete at all levels through their enhanced capabilities and capacities to ensure productivity and competitiveness.