JOHOR BARU:The Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC) is taking a major step toward digital transformation by integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into the building plan approval process.
The move aims to expedite approvals for fire safety compliance while improving overall efficiency, particularly for the Fire and Rescue Department.
Southern Region MPC director Mohd Azwan Mohd Salleh said AI technology is increasingly being used in various government processes across the globe.
He said countries such as Singapore, Japan, and parts of Europe and North America have adopted AI for urban planning and building approvals.
Malaysia now joins this growing trend by introducing AI into its fire safety review process, he told the New Straits Times, when contacted today.
He said the manual process of reviewing fire safety documents in building plans typically took over two hours per submission.
With AI, this review time has been cut dramatically to just 10 minutes per plan, he said.
This reduction in time is expected to significantly speed up the approval process, especially in zones where fire and rescue departments receive between 30 and 90 applications per month.
"By automating repetitive tasks, AI will help the fire and rescue department to handle multiple submissions more efficiently without compromising the accuracy of safety checks.
"AI will allow us to focus on more complex cases requiring human judgment while eliminating bottlenecks in the approval chain," he said.
The AI system will automatically check building plans for compliance with fire safety regulations, flagging issues related to fire exits, suppression systems, and evacuation routes.
This will reduce human errors in plan reviews, ensuring that buildings adhere to fire safety standards before receiving approval.
The integration of AI is also expected to relieve fire officers from time-consuming administrative duties, allowing them to allocate more time to critical tasks such as premise inspections, rescue operations, and meetings.
This overall improvement in productivity will boost the department's ability to handle their diverse responsibilities efficiently.
Addressing concerns about data security, Azwan ensured that the AI system will be equipped with strong cybersecurity protocols.
He said sensitive building data will be protected using encryption, access control measures, and data anonymisation where applicable.
He added regular AI audits will ensure compliance with Malaysia's Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA).
The AI implementation marks a significant shift toward modernisation within government processes, setting a new standard for efficiency and accuracy in building approvals.
Azwan said the initiative is expected to contribute to faster development and construction timelines across Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Johor Fire and Rescue Department director Siti Rohani Nadir said the collaboration with MPC, will see it pioneering the use of AI to streamline the building plan approval process.
She said the system, once implemented, could reduce processing time fire safety building approvals from two weeks to just one day.