BUILDING COMPLIANCE ASSESSMENT

Author: Michael ANG | 24 January, 2021

Building Compliance Assessment is an assessment aimed to investigate the compliance of the

existing building against the Uniform Building By-Law (UBBL), State Planning Guideline, Fire
Protection Guideline, and other relevant legislation, regulations, or codes. The assessment shall
be conducted by Professional Architect or Professional Engineer, who have extensive
knowledge about building compliance.

Many buildings in Malaysia failed to comply with the UBBL and local authorities’ development
requirements. Some of the buildings complied with the requirements earlier and obtained the
Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) but eventually become non-compliance after
a series of illegal extensions (building extension without proper submission). Some of the
buildings do not even comply with the requirements since starting as there was no proper
submission at all to local authorities for approval. These buildings, specifically industrial and
commercial buildings, would face difficulties in getting relevant permits, e.g. business license
application, business license renewal, MQA Accreditation, etc., without a proper CCC due to
building non-compliance.

CCC is an important document to prove that a building is safe to occupy. It is one of the
mandatory documents for various types of license applications with government agencies. CCC
would only be issued if the buildings are inspected by local authorities and found that all aspects
of the building comply with the requirements. Thus it is crucial for all business owners to
understand whether the buildings they own, rent, or planning to buy are compliance so that they
will not face unnecessary problems when they applying for the relevant permits from government
agencies in the future.

Building Compliance Assessment shall focus on a few critical aspects which determine whether a
building could obtain the CCC, which includes but not limited to the following:

a) Building Setback

Building setbacks are mandatory requirements by the Urban Planning Department and
the Local Authorities (Pihak Berkuasa Tempatan, PBT) for Development Order (DO) and
Building Plan (BP) approval. The setback is a distance between the property line and the
land boundary line, which no structure or building shall be allowed within the area. The
purpose of the setbacks is to make sure the developed buildings look more organised,
comfortable, and spacey. It is also serving as a buffer area for any incidents such as fire
spreading.

The setback requirements are various depend on the types of building and local
authorities’ requirements. For instance, the setback requirements for Detached type and
Semi-Detached type factory in Selangor according to Selangor State Planning Guideline
are:

Detached Factory Semi Detached Factory

Setback Requirements:
 Front 12.2m (40’) 12.2m (40’)
 Rear/ Side 7.6m (25’) 7.6m (25’)
 Side (Facing Road) 12.2m (40’) 12.2m (40’)

Figure 1: Building Setback Requirement for Detached Type and Semi-Detached Type Factory [1]
b) Parking Requirement

Sufficient numbers of parking shall be provided in a premise to meet the demand of the
building users who travel to the building with their own transportation. Thus, the provision
numbers of parking is one of the criteria considered by the local authority during the
evaluation of the DO and BP. The quantity of parking allocated shall depend on the
function of the building. For instance, the parking requirement for Detached type and
Semi-Detached type factory in Selangor according to Selangor State Planning Guideline
are:

Detached Factory Semi Detached

Factory
Parking Requirements:
 Car Parking Production Area
(Tempat Letak Kereta,  1 TLK for every 92.9 sqm (1,000 sqft) of
TLK) gross floor area + 10% TLK for visitor.

Storage Area
 1 TLK for every 232.2 sqm (2,500 sqft) of
gross floor area + 10% TLK for visitor.

Office Area
 1 TLK for every 46.4 sqm (500 sqft) of
gross floor area + 10% TLK for visitor.

 Motorcycle Parking 1 TLM for every 185.8 sqm (2,000sqft)/ 1 TLM for 1
(Tempat Letak employee
Motorsikal, TLM)

 Lorry Parking (Tempat 1 TLL for every 929.9 sqm (10,000 sqft)/ minimum
Letak Lori, TLL) 2 TLL, whichever higher

Figure 2: Parking Requirement for Detached Type and Semi-Detached Type Factory [1]

c) Travel Distance

Travel Distance is the distance from the dead-end to the nearest available exit. Take
factory building as an example; based on the UBBL, Seventh Schedule, the maximum
travel distance will be 15m for a dead-end room if the occupancy is not more than 6
persons [2]. The dead-end limit shall be the distance to a storey exit or to a point where
alternative means of escape are available provided that the total travel distance shall not
exceed 30m. If an alternative exit route is provided in the room, the maximum travel
distance will be 30m for the un-sprinkler building and 45m for the sprinkler building.
 d) Fire Protection System Requirement

Fire protection system requirements are also varied based on different types and sizes of
the buildings (occupancy hazards). UBBL Tenth Schedule listed the different
requirements of the fire protection system based on different levels of occupancy hazards.
For example, a factory with each floor area exceeding 500 sq.m. , but less than 1000
sq.m., it requires hose reel system, automatic fire detectors system, manual electrical fire
alarm system, and signal point units emergency illumination [2]. All the fire protection
system devices should be well functioning and installed properly according to the
guideline.

e) Natural Lighting & Ventilation

Based on UBBL, by-law 39, the room designed shall be provided openings with natural
lighting minimum 10% of room floor area. The room shall have openings that allow free
airflow with a minimum 5% of the room floor area [2].

f) Other Requirements

Besides the requirements discussed above, buildings shall also comply with other
requirements such as perimeter planting, landscape area over the whole development
area, building plinth size, building height limit, minimum land size, etc. All the
requirements are different based on different building types.

Conclusion

Building owners or buyers should engage Professional Architect or Professional Engineer to

conduct a thorough building compliance assessment to determine whether the building they
own or planning to buy/ operate comply with all relevant legislation, regulations, or codes. This
helps the owners or buyers make the wiser judgment in their business planning, and also
eliminate the unnecessary difficulties in getting the business permits due to the building non-
compliance.

Michael ANG
Business Development Manager
IPM Professional Services Sdn Bhd

References:
[1] Manual Garis Panduan & Piawaian Perancangan Negeri Selangor (Edisi Kedua). (November 2010). Jabatan Perancangan
Bandar dan Desa Negeri Selangor.
[2] Laws of Malaysia, Act 133, Uniform Building By-Law (2006). MDC Publishers Sdn Bhd