More Done With Less

Tay: In Jade Hills, we have a vast landscape area which requires a lot of manpower to maintain. So one of the ways that we try to make it more sustainable is through mechanisation.

Lessons-learnt database

In its pursuit of excellence, Gamuda Land knows that it has to constantly strive to be better. Hence it has created a “lessons learnt” database which captures post-mortem data from its various developments including on-product design, material selection, contractor evaluation, purchasers’ feedback and operational issues.

The data is reviewed on a half-yearly basis and shared among all business units within the group to improve on planning, design and the future maintenance of their township developments.

“Take landscaping and planting of trees as an example, if these are not done right from the beginning, the trees would damage roads or drainage or even encroach into the houses once they become mature.

“But in Jade Hills, we learnt from our experience in our other developments such a Kota

Kemuning, Valencia and Horizon Hills, that we need to carefully select plants and trees that require low maintenance,” Tay explains.

This has not only ensured the sustainability of the greenery but will also make it easier for the local council to manage when the public spaces and infrastructure are handed over to them, he adds.

Furthermore, in order to keep the cost manageable and to minimise workload considering that more new precincts will be coming up in future, Gamuda Land Property Services has introduced mechanical trimmers for the maintenance of plants.

The infrastructure in the 11-year-old Jade Hills still looks fresh and new.

“In Jade Hills, we have a vast landscape area which requires a lot of manpower to maintain. So one of the ways that we try to make it more sustainable is through mechanisation. This is also part of our cost optimisation initiatives,” he says, citing trimming of shrubs as an example — the task often requires two persons over a week to complete but with the trimmers, it only requires one person to do the work in half the time.

How well the township is being managed is evident in the capital appreciation of the houses there. According to Gamuda Land, a terraced home in Phase 3B was transacted at RM1.17 million in September 2015, a 53% increase from the developer price of RM776,000 in 2011.

Tay says the team plans to leverage more on technology going forward, especially mobile applications and security enhancement technologies.

Gamuda Land Property Services has already introduced the Gamuda Land Residence Management App to enhance security without inconveniencing residents.

“The mobile app allows residents to pre-register their visitors and this will reduce the amount of time for security checks to less than two minutes,” he elaborates.

He says the next security enhancement that the team is planning would be Perimeter Intrusion Detection Systems (PIDS) and electric fencing in vulnerable areas of the township.

“To remain sustainable, we must be able to do more with less — consistently,” he says.

The highlights of the Awards:

Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin on good property management: