Upscale Malaysian Shopping Mall Ventilation Systems Explained

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1.0 Introduction
Publika is an upscale neighbourhood shopping mall located in Solaris
Dutamas, Sri Hartamas; it is a sprawling up-and-coming residential
development. Aimed at a young expatriate clientele, the creative and artsy
complex has a number of high-end clothing boutiques, novelty stores and
F&B venues.
It has a very modern look with steel and glass art pieces hanging from the
ceiling, a skylight that lets in plenty of natural light, geometric, wire benches
and small stores with high-quality merchandise. The mall also plays host to a
variety of entertainment offerings such as art galleries (like Galeri Chandan
and Segaris Art Centre on the fourth floor), a park, several spas (such as
Hammam Spa on the fourth floor) and more.
Figure 1: The Publika, source from
http://honeydewpoint.blogspot.com/2013/01/swine-
cafe-publika-boulevard.html
Figure 2: The map shows the location of Publika, souce from
https://movementinspired.wordpress.com/tag/publika/

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2.0 Ventilation
Ventilation is the process where the air in the space undergoes circulation,
replacement, or purification to make the condition of the space more
favorable. It will provide the adequate fresh air by extracting and/or supplying
of air into the space and distributes it evenly. Ventilation helps to remove
unpleasant smells and excessive moisture and heat in order to fulfill the
comfort of building occupants. There are normally two different types of
ventilation systems running in a building such as natural ventilation and
mechanical ventilation.
2.1 Natural Ventilation
Natural ventilation is the ventilation that requires no help from the mechanical
system. As so, it is the most energy efficient ventilation system, and it uses
only the natural forces like wind and thermal buoyancy. Therefore, natural
ventilation will need the special and specific design features for the building in
order to ensure that it runs effectively by driving the air in and out from the
particular building.
Figure 3: The natural ventilation in a building. Source from (Craig, 2012)

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2.2 Mechanical Ventilation
Mechanical ventilation involves the use of mechanical system such as fans
and air-conditioning. These systems are installed in the building to supply air
into, or exhaust air from the building itself (Atkinson, Chartier & Pessoa-Silva,
2009).
2.2.1 Fans
Fan is one of the mechanical ventilation systems. It provides the motive for air
movement by imparting static energy and kinetic energy. There are few
factors that will affect its capacity for the air movement, for instance, the type
of fan, the size and shape, the number of blade and the speed of the fan.
There are four main types of fan, such as:
1. Cross-flow or tangential fan
2. Propeller fan
3. Axial flow fan
4. Centrifugal fan
2.2.2 Air-conditioning
Air-conditioner is the second type of mechanical ventilation systems, which it
is used to alter temperature of the air within the building to provide a more
comfortable condition for the occupants. It removes the thermal energy from a
low-temperature region and transfers heat to a high-temperature region via a
medium or refrigerant like gas or liquid. There are 3 common types of air-
conditioning systems used nowadays such as the unitary system, package
system and centralized system.

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2.2.2.1 Unitary system
The unitary air-conditioning (UAC) consists of the window unit and also the
split unit and it is predominantly used for households or small spaces due to
its small to medium cooling load. The window unit is called single package
system, which all the components are integrated into a comprehensive unit.
This makes the window unit the cheapest type of air conditioners and thus it is
commonly used. Whereas, the split unit is designed as two separate parts,
which are located indoor and outdoor respectively. The compressor,
condenser and expansion valve are placed at the outdoor while the
evaporator, cooling coil and cooling fan are the indoor parts. Besides, the
unitary system is one of the most energy efficiency systems as it saves
energy due to its small cooling load and thus saves money on the electricity
bills.
2.2.2.2 Package System
Package system carries a greater cooling load compared to the unitary
system. Therefore, this system is fitted to cool more than two rooms or a
larger space in a building (Khemani, 2013) like restaurants and small halls. In
Figure 5: The Split Unit System, Source
from (LG LA090HYV Ductless Air
Conditioning, 2015)
Figure 4: The Single Package System,
Source from (Protoniner, 2008)

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this system, the evaporator, condenser and compressor are all placed and
packaged in an enclosed cabinet and it is normally located on top the roof.
Furthermore, the package system is designed into three different types of unit
in order to fit into the spaces with different conditions, and there are the self-
contained unit, air-cooled unit and water-cooled unit. The self-contained unit is
similar to the window unit but with a greater cooling load.
While, the air-cooled unit comprises of two parts, which are the indoor unit
and outdoor unit. The indoor unit consists of the fan and evaporator coil and
the outdoor unit will include the compressor, condenser and expansion valve.
Both these units are connected by the insulated refrigerant pipes and the
outdoor unit will normally be placed at the open space like roof in order to
allow the refrigeration system cooled by the atmospheric air.
Figure 6: The components in the outdoor unit,
source from (Khemani, 2013)
Figure 7: How air-cooled unit runs in a house,
source from (Khemani, 2013)

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The water-cooled unit requires the water to be supplied continuously in order
to run the system (Khemani, 2013). In this system, the condenser is cooled by
the water and thus a cooling tower is needed outside the building to cool the
hot water down. Moreover, the compressor and condenser are located at the
bottom of this unit and followed by evaporator and cooling coil. While, the air-
handling unit is placed above the cooling coil and it consists of the centrifugal
blower and air filter. And, the centrifugal blower is used to cool the rooms as it
has the capacity to handle large amount of air needed (Khemani, 2013).
2.2.2.3 Centralized System
The centralized system is usually integrated with the design of new building
and it is not suitable to be installed in the existing building. This system is fit to
be used in the large building such as hotels, theaters, airports, hospitals and
shopping malls, which have multiple floors and a lot of rooms. This system
can cool the whole building at once and it is more economically viable
compared to a building, which is fixed with window units and split units in each
Figure 8: The components in the water-cooled
unit, source from (Khemani, 2013)

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and every room (Osman, 2013). Beside that, a large plant room is needed to
place the large compressor, condenser, thermostatic expansion valve and
evaporator. In this system, the water is first chilled by the refrigerant in the
chilled water plant and then is delivered to all the rooms via the ducting
systems (Khemani, 2009). “Furthermore, the volume of chilled air that is
required by each room is depends on the designs of openings and ducting
systems and there are no individual cooling coils and/or other parts of the
refrigeration system in the rooms” (Khemani, 2009).
Figure 9: The water
chiller, source from
(Khemani, 2009)
Figure 10: The
centralized system in
a building, source from
(Khemani, 2009)

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2.3 Diffusers
The diffuser is also one of the most important parts in the air-conditioning
system as it delivers the conditioning air to the particular rooms. It comes with
different patterns and shapes and it is designed to control the characteristics
of the distribution of chilled air. Different types of diffusers are used at different
places in order to suit the volume of air distributing needed and the direction
of airflow. Besides, the diffusers are used to ensure the chilled air is evenly
distributed to all the corners in the room. There are 8 types of diffusers that
are commonly used in the industry, such as: -
- Perforated-face diffuser
- Cone diffuser
- Multi-direction diffuser
- Swirl diffuser
- Linear diffuser
- Nozzles diffuser
- Floor outlet diffuser
- Side-wall inlet diffuser
2.4 Zoning & Control
Zoning is part of the air-conditioning system and it plays a vital role in the
system. It is a process where a house or building is divided into separate
zones with different cooling needs. Zoning will provide the occupants with
more control over the cooling and heating system by permitting the individual
control of temperature in each of the zones in order to fit the individual comfort
needs of each zones. In this case, there are four types of controls involve in
the zoning such as: -
- Single zone constant volume
- Multi zone constant volume
- Single zone variable air volume (SZ-VAV)
- Multi zone variable air volume (MZ-VAV)

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2.5 The application of air-conditioning system in Publika
2.5.1 Centralized System
As we know there are different types of Air-conditioning systems such as the
Unitary System, Package System etc. In Publika the type of air conditioning
system used is the Centralized System, which was directly in corporated in
the buildings design.
A centralized air con system are those in which the cooling water is generated
in a chiller at one base location and distributed to Air Handling units located
through out the entire building spaces.
A centralized system basically has few sub systems within it. These are
namely:
 Chilled water plant
 Condenser water system
 Air-delivery system
The chilled water system supplies chilled water for the cooling needs of all
the building’s AHUs. Condenser water system absorbs the heat from indoor
space and rejects it to water in the cooling tower. Air-delivery system is a
system that has air intake, filters it to remove particles and supplies it through
supply ducts.
Figure 11: A centralized system consisting of a cooling tower on the roof, a
water chiller system and piping for warm and cool air, source from
http://tabengineers.com/experimental/verification-of-air-changes-zone-
pressurization/

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2.5.2 Water Chiller System
A reservoir holds a water and glycol mi xture that is circulated
throughout the building through pipes. Inside each room, there are
air handlers, which work i n the same way as traditional air
conditioni ng. The cold water is run over cooling coils i nside the air
handler and a fan blows the air from the room over the coils.
Water returns from air handler to the reservoirs and if the water
temperature reaches a certai n level, the chiller turns on and runs
the water and cools it to the appropriate temperature. In PUBLIKA
one of the mai ntenance employees informed us that i n a day, the
water chilled uses about 600,000 Liters of water.
2.5.3 Multi Zone Variable Air Volume System
In large buildings the Air condition systems must meet different needs of
different spaces. Different zones of a building have different heating and
cooling needs. Looking at PUBLIKA and knowing it has more than 10 AHUs,
the building must definitely be separated in different zones.
A Multi Zone Variable Air Volume (VAV) is most suitable for this large
building. A multi zone system was designed to meet varying needs of different
zones. It has a different air supply duct to each zone in abuilding. There is a
heating and cooling coil in the central Air handling Unit and both coils are in
operation at the same time. As seen in the figure 12 below heating and
cooling occur at the same time. The supply air to each zone is mixed to a
temperature somewhere in between hot and the cold supply air.
VAV systems were developed to be more energy efficient and meet different
cooling and heating needs of different building zones. They are easy to install
and to operate. Ducts provide cooling to the zones. The thermostats control
amount of air delivered to each zone through dampers. These dampers are
the ones that differentiate the volume of air to each zone according to the
cooling needs.

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In PUBLIKA, not all the rooms and spaces are of the same size. Depending
on the size of the shops and spaces, different areas will have different cooling
needs. This means that the amount of air supplied to one room cannot
necessarily be the same as the air supplied to another room. Some rooms will
require more air supply due to big area and some will require small air supply.
Figure 12: A Multi zone system with a heating and cooling coil and
mixing damper to mix the warm and cool air before supplying to the
zones, source from http://www.achrnews.com/articles/98592-variable-
air-volume-systems
Figure 13: A simple VAV system where there is a fan after the cooling
coil to provide variable air to a certain zone, source from
http://www.achrnews.com/articles/98592-variable-air-volume-systems

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2.5.4 Diffusers
Diffusers are used as a part of a room’s air distribution system. In PUBLIKA
there are few types of diffusers used in different areas throughout the entire
building.
Along the PUBLIKA walkways there are two types of air conditioning diffusers
used, these are namely Cone diffusers and Linear diffusers. The circular
cones used supply air evenly in a horizontal and vertical direction. On the
other hand the Linear diffusers the direction of discharged air can be adapted
to the space conditions. In PUBLIKA they are seen to be used near the
elevator area to avoid interference with ceiling pattern.
Inside the shops, main type of diffuser used is the Box-shaped cone diffuser,
which supply air in a vertical and horizontal direction. In the shops as seen in
the pictures, some shops have the diffusers covered up with a perforated
ceiling for a more attractive and decorative look, but other shops prefer to
leave them hanging without any cover. This allows you to see the ducting
from the AHU connecting to the diffuser directly.
Figure 14,15 & 16: The diffusers available in Publika. They are Cone diffusers
and Linear diffusers. Source from the photos taken on site.

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In other open areas inside PUBLIKA, such as along the walls facing the
escalators as seen in the figure 19, there are cone diffusers mounted on the
walls to ensure constant supply of air. This is to ensure that all spaces receive
a certain amount of cool air to keep the comfort level steady.
Figure 17 & 18: The types of diffusers used in the shops. Source from the
photos taken on site.
Figure 19: The cone diffusers are mounted on wall.
Source from the photos taken on site.

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2.5.5 Ducting
Ducting is used in heating, ventilation and air conditioning. It can be made out
of Galvanized steel, Aluminium, fabric ducting etc.
In PUBLIKA, the ducting system is not so clear and cannot be determined
through observing with just bare eyes. As seen in Figure 20, the ducting
material used cannot be identified as it is covered with Asbestos Paper duct
wrap. The asbestos is used as an insulator for the ducting work to prevent
heat loss.
Figure 20: The ducting, Source from the photos taken
on site.

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3.0 Vertical Transportation
The various means of travelling between floors in a building are described by
vertical transportation. During designing buildings with more than one story
vertical transportation must be considered in order to ensure all occupants of
the building can go from one floor to another and escape safety in the event of
fire. Base on a limit to how far people are willing to walk up stairs, using
elevator is desirable for buildings with more than four stories. Another option
is escalator, which is very suitable for transporting high volume of population
such as airports and shopping malls, however it is not recommended for high-
rise building due to taking a lot of space.
3.1 Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves
people or goods between floors of a building. There are many factors about
elevator that are important in designing a building vertical transportation such
as number of elevator and their arrangement, round trip time, flow rate,
interval, lift travel, lift speed and lift performance. Basically there are two types
of elevators including electric and hydraulic.

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Electric elevators are most widely used and use cable to lift the car and
movement is depending on the electrical power. Electric elevator is vertical
transporting equipment for serving two or more landing levels for both
passengers and goods. This type of elevator runs partially between rigid guide
rail vertically or vertical by less than 15°. This system includes control system,
electric motor, sheave, and counterweight and guide rails. Electric elevators
are either gear drive or gearless drive.
In hydraulic elevators there is a piston at the bottom of the elevator to push
the elevator up as electric motor forces oil or another hydraulic fluid into the
piston to support the elevator. The elevator descends as a valve releases the
fluid from the piston. Longer cylinders are required due to impractical for very
high lift hoist ways, but they are cheaper compare to electric elevators. This
type of elevator is suitable for low-rise building with stories between 2 to 8
with maximum speed of 200 feet per minute. There are three types of
hydraulic elevator, conventional, holeless and ropes.
3.2 Escalator
Escalators are mechanized moving stairways that allow movement of high
volume of people quickly and efficiently between floors of a building. It is
mostly used in public places such as department stores, exhibition halls, air
terminals and railway stations.

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Escalators are often installed in pairs, with an up escalator and a down
escalator adjacent to each other, while a single escalator mat be changed to
go up or down according to the direction of heavier traffic at different times of
the day. Arrangement of escalators is the most important factor in designing
vertical transportation system in buildings with high volume of population
movement. The arrangements of escalators are either one way traffic (single
bank with traffic in one direction or interrupted traffic in one direction) or two
ways traffic (parallel or criss cross).
Escalator main components:
1. Electric Control
2. Drive
3. Main Shaft
4. Handrail Drive
5. Balustrade
6. Main Truss
7. Steps
8. Step Chains
9. Handrail Compensation
10.Chain Tensioning Device
11.Comb Plates
12.Handrail Return
Figure 25: Escalator components, source from: http://www.robsonforensic.com/articles/escalator -
anatomy-expert-diagram-to-assist-in-forensic-discussions

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3.3 Application of vertical transportation in Publika
Publika shopping mall is a modern construction that every detail has been
considered perfectly in the building and vertical transportation system has
been designed base on the needs of occupants and users. However there are
some weaknesses and points that could be improved. This shopping mall has
five different levels and provides vertical transportation by electric elevators
and escalators with different types of arrangements.
3.3.1 Elevator
The type of elevator used in Publika for vertical transportation is electric, as
expected, which is most widely used. There are ten different elevator
locations each with three adjacent elevators, which one of them is fire
elevator, designed for users comfort. The arrangement of these ten locations
is very well organized so it can provide users least distance to the elevators.
All of the elevators are distributed in the plan of Publika shopping mall give
vertical transportation to users from every floor including parking. The
elevators in this shopping mall can stop in every floor level transportable by
elevator and there is no limitation for reducing number of stops during busy
hours. Each elevator car has the capacity of 15 people. The passenger
transfer time is 2 seconds and the door closing time is 3 seconds.
Figure 26: Electric elevators located in Publika shopping
mall for vertical transportation, source from pictures
captured on site

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3.3.2 Escalator
In shopping malls like Publika escalators and their arrangement is very
important. There are many different escalator locations different base on the
level in Publika that includes both one way and two way traffics escalator.
Basically escalators used in this shopping mall are divided into two types.
First, those escalators within the shopping mall for one floor to another without
connection to parking space. The arrangement for these escalators is either
single bank with traffic in one direction or single bank with interrupted traffic in
one direction. The second type of escalators base on our division are those
that connect shopping mall to parking space. The second arrangement used
for escalator is parallel two-way traffic, which is suitable for heavy traffic flow.
All the escalators in Publika are equipped with sensors which stops escalators
when no one is using them which helps in energy saving.
Figure 27: Plan view of Publika, red circles show location of elevators, source from pictures
captured on site
Figure 28, 29 & 30: Escalators arrangement in Publika, from left to right: single bank with interrupted traffic
in one direction, single bank with traffic in one direction and parallel two way traffic. Source from pictures
captured on site.

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3.4 Recommendation
Publika shopping mall has been designed perfectly in every details and it is
the same with designing vertical transportation system. However after
analyzing publika, there are some recommendations for this building to
improve the vertical transportation system.
3.4.1 Elevator
The first recommendation for vertical transportation system and specifically
elevator is using hydraulic elevator instead of electric elevator. And the
second recommendation is that like escalator system, elevators could be
dividing into 2 categories, the first, the car only stops at first three floors and
the second, the car that stops at last two floors.
Justification: For buildings with up to five floors, the cost effectiveness of
hydraulic elevators is virtually unbeatable. Furthermore, there are many
advantages such as simple and economical assembly, low-maintenance drive
technology, more safety, less noise and ease of design for Architects. The
second recommendation reduces number of stops and avoids busyness of
elevators in pick hours.
3.4.2 Escalator
The recommendation for the escalators in Publika shopping mall is that
number of escalators could be reduced, as there are too many escalators in
this building; however the plan is a bit messy about the location of the
escalators.
Justification: As location for escalators used in publika are a bit messy and
there are too many number of them, a well-organized plan could reduce the
number of escalators and integrate them into specific locations that bring
convenience for users and in addition save in energy. There is confusion for
users about the level they are due to using escalator, which justifies
weakness in designing escalators and vertical transportation.

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4.0 Fire Protection System
Fire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of
potentially destructive fires in a building. There are 3 factors to start a fire,
which are fuel, oxygen and heat. Fire protection system consists of two
methods, which are passive and active. The passive fire protection method
means integral component of the structural fire protection in a building. The
function is to contain fire or slow the spread of the fire. Examples of the
component are fire-resistant walls and floors. The second method is called
active method. This method requires mechanical, electric or electronic
activation. The examples are fire alarms and detectors.
4.1 The components of Fire Protection System
4.1.1 Fire Extinguisher
There are few systems in a fire protection system. The first system is fire
extinguisher. Fire extinguisher is intended for initial outbreak of fire. Usually,
this item will be located close to the proximity of fire hazard. The location of
this item shall be not more than 20 meter from a potential fire hazard. It must
be easily spotted so that people can see it easily.
4.1.2 External Fire Hydrant
Next, is external fire hydrant. Every building shall be served at least 1 hydrant
located 91.5 meter from the nearest point of fire brigade access. The system
of pipework is connected directly to the water supply. The hydrant outlet must
not be lesser than 6m from the building. The next system is hose reel. The
function of hose reel is for occupants to use during early stage of fire. This
item must be in a position where it can be used without exposing user to
danger from fire. Usually the normal place for this item is at the staircase.
4.1.3 Dry Riser
The next item is dry riser. It is an internal fire hydrant for firemen. It is a
straight vertical pipe fixed to the highest point in a building. This system
consists of few components, which are landing valve and breaching inlet. The
breaching inlet is usually installed at the bottom of the riser in a metal box.

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4.1.4 Wet Riser
The next item is wet riser. This system is similar to dry riser but this riser is
constantly filled with water. The system works when air release valve
automatically opens to release air and closes when riser is full of water.
4.1.5 Sprinkler System
The following system is sprinkler system. The function of this system is to
detect, control, extinguishes fire and warn the occupants when there’s fire.
Sprinkle system means automatic fire system, which uses a range of
designed pipework. It is fixed inside a building and uses water as a fire-
fighting agent. The basic components of this system are pipework, sprinkler
head, control valve, pumps and water storage tank. The sprinkler pump’s
function is to draw water form the storage tank to feed the sprinkler network.
There are two sets of pump, which are duty and standby. There are few steps
for the sprinkler system to work. The typical sprinkler head consist of a plug
held by a glass bulb filled with glycerin-based liquid that expands when
heated. This liquid is designed to expand and break the tube at certain
temperature. The plug is then forced out by the pressurized water behind it.
The water will continue to flow until the main valve is shut off.
4.1.6 Automatic Co2 System
Last but not least, automatic co2 system. The purpose is to protect electrical
equipment.
4.2 The Fire Detection System
The fire protection system is designed to provide warning of fire and to allow
appropriate fire fighting. Each fire alarm system are designed to meet the
requirement of every building.
There are two types of protection, which are life protection and property
protection. Life protection provides for the protection of life, safety of
occupants and caters detection of fire. The purpose is to initiate the alarm and

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provide sufficient time for occupants to escape. Property protection is about
providing the protection of property. The purpose of this protection is to
indicate the location of fire within the premise.
4.2.1 Manual Call Point
There is one important device for occupants, which is manual call point.
Manual call point is a device, which enables personal to raise an alarm in an
event of fire by pressing a fangible element to activate it.
4.2.2 Smoke Detector
One of the elements for fire protection system is fire detection system. There
are few types of fire detection system. The first one is smoke detector.
Obviously the system/s function is to detect smoke. This system is used for
open are under flat horizontal ceiling. The number of detectors should not be
less than one in 100 meter square. There are 2 types of smoke detector which
are ionized smoke detector and light scattering detector. Ionized smoke
detector works by ionizing air by radiation. When the smoke enters the
chamber, it will automatically reduce the current and eventually affect the
alarm. Light scattering detector works when smoke enters the unit. The light is
scattered by reflection of the smoke to fall on a photoelectric cell which
energies the alarm.
4.2.3 Heat Detector
The second detector is heat detector. Usually, bi-metal coil detector is used.
This system uses electrical connection. When there’s heat the bi-metallic strip
will move upward thus opens the electric circuit. The last detection system is
laser beam detector. This system is an economic solution to provision fire
detection in large areas. Obscuration caused by heat & smoke deflects the
beam to deenergies the receiving cell which activates the alarm.
4.3 Voice communication System
The next element for fire protection system is voice communication system.
There shall be two separate communication system for large and high-rise
buildings.

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4.4 Escape Route Pressurization
Next, the escape route which uses pressurization. The function is to keep
protected escaped route of a building clear of smoke. This system introduces
sufficient fresh air to maintain a positive pressure. After a fire is detected the
power supply to floor will be shut down. Then, smoke extract system will be in
operation on the floor that is on fire. The voice communications will instruct
occupants to evacuate the building as soon as they can. This happens for the
first three minutes after fire is detected.
4.5 Compartments
The next element is compartments. For high-rise building, architect will design
it by sub dividing the building into compartments. For terrace or semi-d
building the architect will design it by division between adjoining building.
Fireman lift is very important in a fire protection system. It shall be served at
all floors and shall be located within a separately protected shaft.
4.6 Material for Fire Safety
There are few materials that is used for fire safety. The first one is concrete.
Reinforced concrete will be the main resistant if it covers the vulnerable steel.
Timber is capable of being damage in an occasion of fire. Charring will act as
an insulation shield.
Based on the facts given about fire protection system. All the construction
industry workers know that fire is really dangerous for occupants. Providing
the best fire protection system in a building is a must in a construction of a
building.

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4.7 The application of fire protection system in Publika
Publika is a three story shopping mall located somewhere in Dutamas. It is a
well-designed shopping mall with good fire protection system. There are few
aspects in a fire protection system that will be discussed.
The first one is fire extinguisher. The fire extinguisher that is in Publika is an
Eversafe Fire Extinguisher with ABC powder and weights about 9kg. It is
located neatly in a small room next to the exit.
The second one is external fire hydrant. In this building we found out that the
fire hydrant is yellow in color and is located 5 meters from entrance and 3
meter from excess road. It is spaced around 80m from another fire hydrant.
Figure 31: The small room for fire
extinguisher, Source : Photo taken
from site
Figure 32: The fire extinguisher,
Source : photo taken from site

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Next, is hose reel. In Publika, the hose reel is also located in a small room
with a hose reel sticker on the door. It is the same room as the fire
extinguisher. This is for occupants to use it without exposing them to danger
from fire. There are 8 rooms in each floor which means 24 small rooms for
hose reel in total.
The next one is the sprinkler system. The sprinkler system looks pretty
decent. The tank is located in another building, which is really close to
Publika. The distance between the sprinkler head is around 2 to 3 meters.
There are even sprinkler heads under the escalator.
Figure 33: The distance from
entrance to external fire hydrant,
Source : Photo taken from site
Figure 34: The fire hydrant,
Figure 35: Hose reel, Source : Photo
taken from site
Figure 36: Hose reel, Source ;
Photo taken from site
Figure 37: Sprinkler head, Source :
Figure 38: Sprinkler head under
escalator, Source : Photo taken
from site

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Next is manual call point. In Publika, this item is red in color and is really easy
to spot. It is located near the exit next to the small room or the hose reel room.
It is a high technology system.
The next system is the smoke detector system. In this building, the type of the
smoke detector is light scattering detector. It is located in open area under the
flat horizontal ceiling. When smoke enters the unit, the light is scattered by
reflection of the smoke. Next, the heat detector used is a brand of EST and
the point of each heat detector are 4 meters.
Figure 39: Manual call point, Source
: Photo taken from site
Figure 40: Manual call point location,

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Next is voice communication system. The phone is located at the staircase
area in every 2 floor. The communication room is located somewhere in the
basement.
The following system is the passive fire protection. All of the exits are decent.
Publika provides six escape route on each floor and the exit sign can clearly
be seen. The tread of the staircase is also more than 225m and the dimension
is consistent.
Figure 41: Light scattering
detector, Source : Photo taken
from site
Figure 42: EST heat detector
,Source : Photo taken from site
Figure 43: Communication
phone, Source : Photo taken
from site

29
The fire compartmentation of Publika is only located at the basement. The
opening length is around 6 meters and the height is around 3 to 4 meters. The
fire compartmentation’s wall is red in color and the material of the wall is
concrete. The compartentation wall is located around the escalator. This will
help prevent the fire from spreading upwards and also near the area. There is
also an emergency door for the occupants to use.
Figure 44: Exit sign, Source : Photo
taken from site
Figure 45: Exit sign from distance,

30
The last part is material for fire safety. In publika, the material used is
concrete, steel and also timber. There is a lot of steelwork for column and it is
painted nicely for appearance. There’s a bit of timber covering on the wall, this
Figure 46: Fire compartmentation wall,
Figure 47: Compartmentation wall
near escalator , Source : Photo
taken from site

31
will slow down the fire from destroying the concrete. Publika is a well
designed building with a good fire protection system. The architecture of the
exterior and interior of the building is amazing.
4.8 Recommendation
4.8.1 Fire hydrant
The external fire hydrant is located 5 meters away from the entrance of
Pubilka and 3 meters away from the access road and the distance to the other
fire hydrant is around 80m. There are valet parking provided for the ‘VIP’
customer and because the parking spot is limited, they allowed the customer
to park at the single yellow line nearby to the fire hydrant, which is restricted
to gain more profit especially during the nighttime. As there are a lot of pubs
and bars around Publika, the place will crowded with a lot of people. The
problem is, the space of the road is not wide enough and because of ‘VIP’
customer sake to save their time finding parking without thinking the of the
‘safety first’ despite it is actually for only one car to pass by. As a result, if
some of the shop got fire, the fire engine is unable to access to the road and
the cars might blocking the way to use the fire hydrant although the people
will drive off their car immediately but still will drag the time for the rescue and
causing high damages and unexpected injuries. I strongly recommend that
they should not provide any illegal valet parking nearby the fire hydrant.
4.8.2 Compartments
The compartments in Pubilka is only located at certain area. Based on the
observation, the compartments is only located at the Lower Ground floor. As
there are a lot of shops in Publika, once the shops that located at above
ground floor caught fire, the fire might spread easily due to lack of
compartments on above ground level. Furthermore, there are a lot of
restaurants and kitchens on the Lower Ground floor that will increase the
Figure 48: Publika Shopping Mall, Source : Photo taken from site

32
percentage of catching fire easily. According to Uniform Building by Law
137(1), in any building not exceeding 30 meters in height, any floor, which is
more than 9 meters above ground level, which separates one storey from
another storey, other than a floor, which is either within a maisonette, or a
mezzanine floor shall be constructed as a compartment floor. I strongly
recommend that they should construct two or more compartments on every
floor to prevent the spreading of fire.
4.8.3 Wet Riser System
Based on the observation, Publika is using wet riser system. From the data
collection from the main office in Publika, they mentioned that the water tank
is located at the other building. This is to say that it needs longer time to pump
the water to the sprinkler to splash out if the building is on fire. According to
Uniform Building by Law 231(2), the wet riser systems shall be designed and
installed in accordance with M.S. 1489 such that all parts of the floor are
within 45 meters from a landing valve. I strongly recommend that Publika
should have their own riser tank in their own building.

33
5.0 Electrical Supply
The design of electrical systems can be as simple as a flashlight cell
connected through two wires to a light bulb or as involved as the space
shuttle. Electrical systems are groups of electrical components connected to
carry out some operation. For example, an electric power system is one kind
of network that supplies power to housing areas and industry, this power
system is known as the grid and the system works by divided into the
generators that supply the power, the transmission system that carries the
power from the generators to the load centres and the distribution system that
distributes the power to area like nearby housing areas and industries.
5.1 TNB Substation
There are many components under electrical supply of our site, Publika. The
power transmitted from power plant to the TNB sub-station. The substations
change voltage from high to low, or the opposite, or perform any of a few
other critical capacities. TNB provides the electric supply for our site, Publika.
Inside the substation may include transformer to change voltage levels
between high transmission voltages and lower distribution voltages, or at the
interconnection of two different transmission voltages. Due to some
permission issues, we can’t enter to get more detail information.
However, inside the substation, transformer is an electrical device that
transfers electrical energy between two or more circuits
through electromagnetic induction Commonly, transformers are used to
increase or decrease the voltages of alternating current in electric power

34
applications. For example, power stations in Malaysia produce high currents
electricity. High currents electricity transmission would encounter a large
resistance in the transmission wire and will cause a lot of its energy loss as
heat.
5.2 Main switchboards
Then, the power will then transmitted to the main switchboards of the building
as our site, Publika. This switchboard is the part that directly supplied by the
main source of electrical power and intended to distribute electrical energy to
the unit’s services. However Publika has some precautions for installation of
main switchboards. For example, install main switchboards on a raised
platform. The place that the main switchboards installed must have good
ventilation, illumination and affected by minimum vibration. Besides that, no
water or oil pipes should pass above main switchboards.
5.3 TNB meters
In publika, those TNB meters are located in the electric rooms, which normally
not allow outsiders to enter. These meters can be used as standby meters
incase if theres any problem happens to the meter they using, so TNB still can
get accurate usage of electricity used by the Publika.
5,4 Distribution Panel
Then the power will be transmitted to the distribution panel which also known
as a fuse box, is a component of an electricity supply system which is a
smaller panel board that has the similar function with the main switch board
that divides an electrical power feed into subsidiary circuits, while providing a
protective fuse or circuit breaker for each circuit in a common enclosure.
Distribution panels also known as an assembly point of switches and circuit
protection devices which serves final distribution point to the building. Each
distribution panels in Publika consisting of the meter and an incoming supply
differential circuit breaker, which includes an overcurrent trip. This circuit
breaker is freely accessible to the consumer. The distribution panel
consisting of one enclosure which used as opening for the panel, service
connection which contain incoming supply circuit breaker, overcurrent

35
protection and isolation, protection against direct and indirect contact and
protection against fire, remote control: switches and energy management.
The distribution panels in Publika are installed and mounted on the wall of
electric rooms.
5.5 Branch circuit
After that, branch circuit is the part of an electric wiring system that extends
from any set of outlets as far back as the fuse box, supplying and protecting
them. It consists of the conductors between the final overcurrent protection
device and outlets like the receptacle outlets, lighting outlets, or other outlets.
The branch circuit wire system used in Publika called multi-wire branch
circuits. Multi-wire branch circuits will be circuits that have more than one
ungrounded channel sharing a typical grounded transmitter. These circuits are
extremely helpful in that they utilize less material, bring about a lower circuit
voltage drop, and at last result in expense funds. There’s one precaution while
installing multi-wire branch circuit conductors that make sure they are
originate from the same panel board or distribution equipment to prevent
inductive heating and reduce conductor impedance for fault currents.
5.6 Application of electricity supply in Publika
According to the information provided by the management stuffs of Publika,
Publika is a big shopping mall which have a much higher electrical load than
the smaller buildings. Therefore, the electrical required is more and much
compare to those smaller buildings. So, Publika purchase electricity at high
rate of voltages because it comes at a cheaper rate. The electricity came from
the transformer outside the mall then transmitted to main switch boards. As
the explanation above, the role of the main switch boards is to distribute
electricity safely and efficiently to the services throughout the building. The
main switch boards have different types of safety features and one of the
important safety feature is circuit breaker which is an automatically operated
electrical switch designed to protect the circuit from damage caused by
overload or short circuit. The function of the circuit breaker is to detect a fault
condition and interrupt current flow. Then the electric power will then distribute
to the different closets in Publika through the circuit.

36
5.7 Under UBBL Section 253(1):
Emergency power system shall be provided to supply illumination and power
automatically in the event of failure of the normal supply or in the event of
accident to elements of the system supplying power and illumination essential
for safety to life and property.
In Publika, their emergency power supply system meets the entire
requirement that stated in UBBL section 253(1). They do prepare standby
power supply system to provide electricity power if a power failure happens.
5.8 List of photographs
Figure 49: Distribution
Panel in car park ,Source :
Figure 51: Electrical
panels, Source : Photo
taken from site
Figure 50: Main switch
boards in electric room
, Source : Photo taken from
site

37
6.0
Conclusion
After went to the site visit at Publika and got explanations from the stuffs, we
can clearly know about the systems that have in the Publika and how are they
functioning. But there are still some problems found throughout the visit,
according to our knowledge and research, we recommend fire protection
system in our site, Publika to build their own riser tank rather than using the
water, which located at other building. In case there’s a fire happens in
Publika, they need a longer time to get the water source to extinguish the fire.
According to Uniform Building by Law 231(2), the wet riser systems shall be
designed and installed in accordance with M.S. 1489 such that all parts of the
floor are within 45 meters from a landing valve. However for the mechanical
and air-conditioning system, we recommend that the current system is good
enough for Publika because they meets the requirement required for a
building. It’s important for the workers to have a proper and constant
maintenance to make sure Publika can operate safely.
Figure 52: Electric room at
ground floor, Source :
Figure 53: Distribution
panel for certain floor,
Source : Photo taken from
site

38
7.0 Reference List
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 LG LA090HYV Ductless Air Conditioning. (2015). Retrieved May 22,
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 Protoniner. (2008, November 14). Home Air. Retrieved May 22, 2015,
from http://homeairtoday.blogspot.com/2008/11/roof-mounted-home-
air-conditioning-units.html
 Khemani, H. (2013, January 31). Types of Air Conditioning Systems:
Window, Split, Packaged and Central. Retrieved May 23, 2015, from
http://www.brighthubengineering.com/hvac/897-types-of-air-
conditioning-systems/
 Khemani, H. (2013, January 31). What is Packaged Air Conditioner?
Types of Packged Air Condtioners. Retrieved May 25, 2015, from

39
http://www.brighthubengineering.com/hvac/61457-packaged-air-
conditioners-types-of-packaged-ac/
 Osman, N. I. (2013, September 10). Air conditioning system. Retrieved
May 25, 2015, from http://www.slideshare.net/NooruleInieOsman/air-
conditioning-system
 Khemani, H. (2009, September 26). Central Air-Conditioning Plants:
Direct Expansion and Chilled Water. Retrieved May 27, 2015, from
http://www.brighthubengineering.com/hvac/906-central-air-
conditioning-plants/
 Achrnews.com,. (2006). Variable Air Volume Systems. Retrieved 23
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airvolume-systems
 Bergman Draper Ladenburg Hart,. (2012). How to Identify Asbestos
Duct Wrap | Asbestos in Duct Wrap. Retrieved 23 June 2015, from
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 Surna,. (2014). Chilled-Water Cooling Basics | Surna. Retrieved 23
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(2015, April 16). Retrieved June 23, 2015, from http://www.electrical
installation.org/enwiki/Residential_electrical_installation_-
_Distribution_boards_components

40
 SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION. (1985, December 19). Retrieved June
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f7f0-4547-9124-27a3cee67bdc
 Escalator Anatomy – Expert Diagram to Assist in Forensic Discussions.
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