A Facebook post by Ar. David Yek Tak Wai and my rebuttals

In early April I was pleasantly surprised to see a Facebook post by a highly respected architect. He had copy-pasted many of my blog posts and many of his architect friends had commented on his post.

Here are some of the main points he highlighted and my rebuttal.

 

David Yek Tak Wai:

Ian Cheong this story is strange … I mean who will use ABS pipe at the external? Everyone uses the flexible HDPE pipes …

Just for information to non-technical people: (1) You don't use ABS pipes for external lawn. ABS is recycled plastic that is rigid and stiff with joints capable to be dismantle when pressure is applied. You need the flexible and robust HDPE pipes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-density_polyethylene) that you plant down the soil above the sewer or wastewater discharge. In fact the sewer is so deep down that it is illogical to go beneath it, counter gravity.

Response: My complaint here was that the ABS pipes were laid only 2 to 3 inches from the surface. It should have been buried deeper. This is the M&E engineers work and he confirmed that as per Jabatan Air the pipes should have been buried deeper.

I agree with Ar. Yek Tak Wai that the recycled ABS pipes are stiff and easily broken when high pressure is applied. This is exactly what happened at S9 Vistana Heights which is not a low cost housing project.

The 12mm (half inch) ABS pipe used to deliver water from the one-inch pipe to the kitchen sink was unable to withstand the pressure of 8 bars and had split even before the keys were handed to me. If the water pressure was not reduced after the second pipe repair, there may have been more breakage of the pipes. Read my post on the pipe bursts complete with a video and photos LINK.

David Yek Tak Wai

Ian Cheong the Arch’s statement lagi ‘terror’ … I totally am speechless …  perhaps it is time to hang out the arch to dry …

My response: I have said enough of the architect in question.

YP Wong

Actually, not that buyers blame architect, a lot of times, developer will just put the blame on architects and hide behind them, and also behind engineers, whom a lot of times too willing to certify things without even looking because they want business from developers. Of course one must sue everyone because that is what lawyers suggest for reasons you know i know. Bottom line the laws have too much ambiguity, enforcement are terribly bend towards the powerful, so now what Nga Kor Ming 倪可敏 and KPKT Malaysia will do?

Response: In the case of Vistana Heights project it is I who blamed the architect, consulting engineer and surveyor for fabricating the as-built survey plan and amended development plan. To say the least, this is very unbecoming of these professionals.  I have complained to Lembaga Jurukur Sabah, Board of Engineers, and Lembaga Arkitek Malaysia about the misconduct of these professionals and awaiting their investigation to be completed.

‘Certifying things’ for the sake of wanting business from developers is what should be discouraged. There should be a sense of professionalism in these professionals. The professional bodies should take the requisite action when a complaint is lodged.

Yes, enforcement are terribly bent towards the powerful. However, like a Chinese saying goes, there is nothing that is difficult under the sun. (Tian xia wu nan shi, zhi pa you xin ren). It does not matter how powerful these professionals think they are.

As for suing, that would be my last recourse.

David Yek Tak Wai

YP Wong cannot deny, there is some truth in what you say… and again a lot of assumptions that put my profession into hot soup. I hope Nga Kor Ming 倪可敏 and KPKT Malaysia is listening to the grass roots…

Response: KKTP (Sabah equivalent of KPKT) is already taking action. I don’t think there will be a need to approach KPKT’s Nga Kor Ming or the PM’s department. I will cross the bridge when I get there.

Any architect worth his salt should discuss the problems highlighted here and ensure that such slip-shot work is not repeated.

David Yek Tak Wai

Driveway too steep? That is the scope of the Civil and Structural Engineers (C&S) to conform accessibility from the road levels into the driveway including the general platform levels. Again, Architect is at fault?

My rebuttal: We all know that it is the C&S engineer who is responsible for road levels and driveway. I believe, it is the architect who prepares the Certificate of Practical Completion. It is my opinion that prior to issuance of the Certificate there should have been a physical inspection of the works. It would have been obvious that a saloon car would be unable to access the driveway.

The architect should examine the site properly before or during the building of a structure. It is my opinion that architects should not rely on information supplied by a third party and should always make their own inquiries.

Perhaps Ar. Yek Tak Wai will be able to educate us on who is the Principal Submitting Person (PSP) in the case of this project. We know that the As-built Survey is prepared by the Licensed surveyor but should it not be studied by the PSP before submitting? Surely an architect is expected to be more responsible than an office boy who collects documents and delivers them.

If the Housing Development Act states that the purchasers must give consent in writing for any amendment to the original development plan why were plans altered without this consent? What is the point in having the Housing Act if architects/ PSPs ignore the Housing Act and do according to their whims and fancies? 

An architect is obliged to follow The Architects Act as well as The Housing Development Act. Any architect worth his salt may give his or her opinion.

 

David Yek Tak Wai

Architect did not respond? Foremost, there is a privity of contract between home owners and developer, not the Architect. How do you wish him to response? The Architect is right to refer any complaint back to the developer. He owes the homeowners no contractual obligation.

My rebuttal: My main question was on the driveway – what is the maximum gradient allowed for a driveway? The internet says it should be no more than 12%. In some website it says that the gradient should not be more than 25%. Does the architect have to get permission from the developer to answer a technical question such as this?

The Sales and Purchase Agreement states that the developer’s architect or engineers shall assist in determining disputes. The developer did not respond to my emails and I turned to the architect to help resolve matters raised.

Architects have a significant social responsibility to the communities they serve and must provide reasonable care, competence, knowledge, skill and judgement not only to their clients but to the public as well. Perhaps, Ar. Yek Tak Wai will be gracious enough to discuss the responsibility of architects to the public at one of the seminars he attends/ conducts.

David Yek Tak Wai

Writing to the PAM Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia or PAM Sabah Chapter instead of the board? The institute is a ‘social club’ for architects, not a ‘complaint department’. The Board of Architects (Lembaga Arkitek Malaysia LAM) is a ‘complaint department’. How do you wish the ‘club’ to answer you?

My rebuttal: PAM could have answered and said that they are not the body for complaints. Instead of that they replied that they cannot make any comment as there is a court case between the purchaser and the developer. My question on what has a court case between the purchase and the developer on Liquidated Ascertained Damage (LAD) got to do with construction defects was not replied.

I am a lay person and like many would not know which body of architects to complain to. PAM could have directed me to Lembaga Arkitek which would have saved me a lot of time.

The developers lawyer, Ronny Cham and Co, disinformed PAM (Sabah) in their letter dated 29.9.2022. The chairman of the Practice Sub Committee, Ar. Haji Shahriman Abdullah, forwarded the letter to PAM HQ without verifying the authenticity of the contents of the letter. It does not matter whether PAM is a social club or otherwise, I expect a club of professionals to have a little responsibility to the complaining party. PAM (Sabah) did not have the decency to reply my email nor forward me the copy of the letter from the lawyer to them.

‘People who pride themselves on their "complexity" and deride others for being "simplistic" should realize that the truth is often not very complicated.’

A little about Ar. Yek Tai Wai

This guy has achieved a great deal and there are too many things to write about his achievements but here are just a few I saw on his Facebook page in the last 2 months:

i.                     He is invited to speak at international conferences

ii.                   He contributes several articles for his fellow professionals

iii.                 He is invited to participate in simulation sessions internationally

iv.                 He was recently admitted to the Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration

v.                   His name is among the list of panel of International Arbitrators in Brunei Arbitration Center.