STRATEGIES BY THE CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES IN MALAYSIA TO SURVIVE FROM THE IMPACTS OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

Many construction firms in Malaysia suffer a significant setback when the economy crashes due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Following the imposition of restricted movement orders in Malaysia, most construction projects in the country have been put on hold or delayed. This paper identifies the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on the construction companies in Malaysia, and the appropriate strategies to be adopted by the construction companies to survive from the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic. The main data used in this paper were from literature reviews and questionnaire survey. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software is used for data analysis to achieve the objectives of this study. The major findings indicate that the significant impacts of Covid-19 pandemic are project delay, tight Covid-19 regulatory compliance, and enhance of site safety due to SOPs. The strategies adopted by the construction companies, among others, are stricter site management to reduce material waste, and stricter financial management. This research is deemed to be appropriate to facilitate the construction companies in Malaysia several strategies they can adopt for them to may remain significant to the industry.