Towards Standardising Landscape Construction Quality in Malaysia: Integrating Design Content and Construction Workmanship for Holistic Assessment

Abstract

The landscape industry has been wrestling with the intellectual and practical challenge of quantifying landscape quality for decades. The non-existence of a holistic framework for assessing physical landscape quality has severely restricted the Malaysian construction industry in evaluating the design, construction and operational quality, thereby limiting long-term benefits from the landscape industry subsector. Numerous deficiencies in landscape implementation and management result in the landscape quality being deemed substandard in construction evaluations. The problem stems from several interrelated factors, particularly the lack of a structured quality measurement system and the absence of established standards in the landscape and construction sector. This gap has contributed to inconsistent project outcomes, a lack of quality standards and persistent misconceptions on landscape scope of work. Therefore, this study aims to identify key criteria required to establish a comprehensive landscape physical quality assessment (LPQA) model that integrates both intangible design content (macro elements) and tangible construction workmanship (micro elements). A mixed-methods explanatory sequential design was employed. A total of 238 industry professionals participated in a structured survey to evaluate the importance of various macro and micro indicators. Subsequently, a focus group discussion involving 17 experts was conducted to verify findings, refine indicator adequacy and identify emerging dimensions relevant to Malaysia’s landscape context. Findings reveal that design quality such as ecological sustainability, cultural and heritage values, territorial justice, collective memory and quality and health are highly significant macro-level contributors to physical landscape quality. At the micro level, construction workmanship, particularly bio-structural and bio-mechanical performance, emerged as a critical determinant of long-term quality. This study establishes a set of 27 key indicators and proposes a conceptual LPQA model to guide landscape quality benchmarking across diverse non-building projects in Malaysia. Strong correlations were found between macro elements and micro elements, affirming that high-quality landscapes require the integration of both design intent and construction execution.