PETALING JAYA: The Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda) is optimistic contractors will tap the RM500 million promotional fund for the industrialised building system (IBS).
“Once the SME Bank gets the green light from the government, they will start assisting local companies,” said Deputy President Datuk Soam Heng Choon, adding that companies should come forward and take advantage of the fund.
IBS is a special construction technique where components are manufactured in a controlled environment, either at the site or off site.
However, the technique had yet to catch up in a big way as IBS-based materials are more expensive versus conventional materials, he said after the signing of a memorandum of collaboration (MOC) between Rehda and CIDB Malaysia to promote low-carbon and sustainable practices in the housing and construction industry.
In order to enhance the use of technology in the sector, the RM500 IBS Promotion Fund, administered by SME Bank, was established to provide soft loans to developers and contractors who handle projects less than RM5 million.
“If we get more people to be involved in it (using IBS). We can standardise the components and the price will eventually reduce,” he said.
On prospects for the property market this year, Soam said it was expected to be soft “not because there is no demand for property but because buyers failed to secure the financing they want.” He said in some cases, buyers want 90 per cent financing but they are only offered 80 per cent by financial institutions, hence they are not able to buy a property. — Bernama