Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to: identify the current and future challenges faced by university facilities managers; analyse their associated risk levels; and establish practical ways to address the identified key challenges. Design/methodology/approach -Personal interviews were conducted with 25 members of the Australasian university facilities managers (UFMs). The constructs generated at the pilot interviews were used to design a structured but open-ended questionnaire with which the Tertiary Education Facilities Managers Association (TEFMA) members were surveyed. The multi-attribute method was used in the data analysis. Findings -Results showed that the critical challenges currently facing the UFMs comprised issues relating to the following (in diminishing order of significance): inadequate funding, emergency management and business continuity planning, statutory compliance, sustainability and environmental stewardship, keeping up with rapid changes in technology, operational efficiency, identifying and meeting stakeholder needs, maintenance and manpower. Preparing for and responding to disaster/emergency was perceived as the most critical challenge of the future, perhaps, due to the recent natural disasters. Overall, poor funding was identified as the root of all other issues faced by the UFMs, hence suggested strategies for addressing the key challenges harped on financial improvement measures. Other key measures included optimized asset utilization, supporting business case for capital investment with demonstrable returns on investment, improving FM's strategic relevance through linking FM and corporate strategies, and investment in efficient technologies such as the building automation and management systems. Originality/value -The findings have contributed to filling an important knowledge gap by not only identifying the current and future challenges facing the UFMs, but also prioritising them based on their relative influences on the achievement of the strategic goals of the FM department. This way, the limited resources at the disposal of the UFMs could be disbursed more cost-effectively in addressing the critical challenges in line with their identified risk levels. This would be of practical benefit to the facilities and property managers in formulating appropriate responses to the identified critical constraints with a view to achieving more satisfactory outcomes in their operations.

The rapid expansion of urbanization resulted in the necessity of providing more spaces. Due to the insufficient internal spaces, external spaces were used to complement the functionality of spaces on the university campus. However, thermal comfort in the external spaces was much more difficult to control as compared to internal spaces. Thus, it was crucial to identify the parameters affecting thermal comfort. This study presented a fieldwork measurement and personal satisfaction survey to evaluate the microclimate characteristic of the external space as well as the satisfaction of occupants. Findings revealed there was a high level of thermal discomfort in the study spaces that encountered a strong impact from the parametric thermal environment. Hence, the recommendation to take thermal comfort into consideration during the design stage was proposed. The study concluded that a well-performed building would have a great level of thermal comfort and as a result, high frequency and satisfaction of usage of spaces could be achieved.

It has been argued that the “green” building has a better indoor environment quality than the conventional building. This concern for the poor indoor environment quality of the building will cause symptoms of “sick building syndrome” and will affect the health of occupants. In addition, energy efficiency is fundamental to attain sustainability in green buildings. But there is no evidence directly showing us that a green building is more comfortable and satisfactory than a conventional building. This research determines the difference in indoor environment quality (IEQ) of both buildings through finding out the parameters of IEQ and testing the occupants' perception and satisfaction. A green building and a conventional building will be targeted, and a list of questionnaires will be given to the occupants to obtain their perception and their satisfaction level. The responses from the occupants of the different buildings will be compared to look into the difference.

A particular region of interest that is relatively understudied is the relationship of urban green spaces and mental restoration through the perspective of multi-sensory design. In the Malaysian context, the topic of urban green spaces and mental restoration have largely been unexplored, and as a result, little is known about it in the local context, especially when it comes to a multi-sensory experience perspective. This study investigates the relationships between urban green spaces and mental restoration through the lens of multi-sensory approach based on the public's perception. A questionnaire survey was used to collect data regarding the users' perceptions of their mental restoration in the setting of Taman Aman. Preliminary results show that users perceive each sensory experience differently, with varying levels of agreement regarding which sensory aspect is most influential to their perceived level of mental restoration. In conclusion, the users' levels of mental restoration is positively affected by their multi-sensory experiences in the presence of an urban green space.

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