Sustainable Construction of Multiple D&B Bridge Projects in Sabah

In recent years, the “sustainability” in infrastructure projects is a mandatory issue to assure longterm
ecosystem functions, as well as enhancing the quality of life in urban / rural communities.
These values will be achieved through the systematic management of multiple projects
developed in rural areas. Selected infrastructure projects are being implemented by Design
and Build (D&B) procurement system in Sabah (East Malaysia). In these development projects,
45 Bridges in bridge replacement projects are being executed simultaneously by the author’s
Design and Build firm. The former were awarded in 5 packages in the first phase of Bridge
replacement project for PWD. The latter are constructed for Ministry of Rural development. The
company manages such projects by using established systems for design, contract, contract
administration, construction execution and supervision. Engineers from qualified engineering
bodies are selected and appointed for In-house design team / supervision team. Discussion
and inputs in selecting critical bridge components including (i) Methods of pile foundation,
(2) Selection of suitable beam technologies, (3) No. of spans, etc are explained. Majority of
the construction works are executed directly by the main contractor with appointed specialist
contractors for piling works and beam production. The objectives of this paper are to give
solutions for the sustainable management and investigate for improvement in management of
multiple D&B projects.
Keywords: Sustainable construction, Multiple projects, Design and Build and Specialist works.