1. Teamwork is essential to engineering problem solving.

What information would you use to

support the view? (25 Marks)

- Teamwork in the engineering profession is very essential to solve a problem and achieve goal.
Most engineers will find themselves working in teams of engineers, most of who are trained in
more-or-less the same specialty. A crucial part of managing people is getting them to be as
productive as possible, whilst working in teams. Teamwork is defined as a series of activities
where two or more people work collaboratively towards a common aim. In engineering, team can
be best described as "a small group of people with complimentary skills who are committed to a
common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually
accountable. Certain time, professional will get into arguments or conflict due to certain reasons.
These reasons might be difference in working style, personality, cultural difference and so on. As a
team leader or project manager, it is important to avoid the occurrence of such conflicts. He/she
should avoid bias when working in team, give everyone chance to talk/ heard and etc. A team's
performance level may be determined by the interactions between individual attributes,
communication, the working environment and the team's ability to effectively complete project
tasks. In order to fully understand a team, a project manager generally considers five main issues
in team building which are interdependence, goal specification, cohesiveness, rules and norms and
communication.
The main advantages of working in team for engineering problem solving are integration, better
decision making, commitment to the implementation and enhanced evaluation of the
implementation. With a team of members, it becomes possible to speed up and make more viable
the thinking process. With a focus on the mission, goals can be aligned. It may be beneficial to
bring in several individuals from the various departments of a given company or organization and
have them present their department's missions and goals. Once this is completed, those missions
and goals can be consolidated and aligned with one another. This makes it easier, potentially, to
find viable solutions that all can use. This allows for a competitive and functional strategy. With a
group-oriented view of the structure of a company or organization, communication, products and
services can be strategized to become more efficient and more creative. Another things that
motivates individuals to adopt a group-based model is that the individual has internalized the
group goals. Of course, this is necessary, because without internalizing goals and intentions, it
becomes difficult to implement them. Individuals may also see personal gain when a group is
successful, whether it is a fiscal bonus, credibility or something else. They gain from the success
of the group. Being in a group also helps create an open-minded culture. With just one or two
people in a group being creative and open-minded, it becomes easier for the rest of the group to be
the same way. This encourages both individual and group growth. Just by nature of the group-
based culture, in breaking down communication silos and keeping people accountable, open-
minded can be the rule of thumb, thus facilitating the critical thinking process. All in all, a group
can be an effective means of engaging in the necessary component of critical thinking. With all
group members engaged in the process, individual expertise can be collected for the betterment of
the group's goals and intentions. Further, everyone is held accountable, and is made more aware of
biases and assumptions that may cloud their overall decision-making. Also, with everyone being
given proper feedback from the rest of the group, it enables to individual to better engage in
metacognitive processing, helping them become a better and more productive critical thinker,
whether on their own or within the group. A group can thus be an effective tool in the critical
thinking process.

2. Discuss the social and environmental implications of sustainable development in Malaysia. (25
Marks)

- In recent years, Malaysia has been transformed from an agro-based economy to a manufacturing
economy. Malaysia is the fastest growing economies amongst ASEAN countries. This rapid
growth rate is attributed mainly in the ability to exploit the very environmental resource base
available for the country. Environmental resources exploitation is the important factor for the
economic growth but this also led to a steady increase in environmental degradation. This
environmental degradation is becoming more serious and frequent in last half decade and would
impact the country wellbeing and quality of life.
Malaysia started its journey on sustainable development since 1970s when the New Economic
Policy (NEP) was introduced in 1970 to eradicate poverty and restructure societal imbalance. All
the subsequent 5-year Malaysia development plans have underscored the elements of sustainable
development encompassing sustainable economic growth, growth with equitable distribution to all
sections of society, access to basic infrastructure and utilities, access to education and healthcare
services and mainstreamed environmental conservation. In 2009, Malaysia formulated the New
Economic Model (NEM) which further cemented Malaysia’s commitment to pursue sustainable
development based on three pillars, namely high income, inclusivity and sustainability, which
mirrors the three elements of the SDG, namely economy, social and environment. The NEM
provides the basis for 5-year Malaysia development plan until 2020. The current 5-year Malaysia
plan i.e. the 11th Malaysia Plan (2016-2020) is premised on the three pillars of NEM. The theme
of 11th Malaysia plan is “Anchoring Growth on People” where people will be the centerpiece of
all development efforts and to ensure that no section of society is left behind in participating and
benefiting from the nation’s development. In practical terms, sustainable development entails:
Rising material wellbeing of the poor, at a pace that narrows the proportionate gap with the rich;
continued scope for improved material wellbeing of the rich; sustainable functioning of the Earth’s
ecosystems, including Conservation of the Earth’s biodiversity.
-For social implications, it means to enhance the standard of living, education, community, equal
opportunity and so on. In ninth Malaysia Plan for example, it divided in four thrusts (1,2,3,4). In
thrust 1, it involves new land development, replanting program, land consolidation and
rehabilitation. For upscaling manufacturing and related services may contribute in promoting new
sources of Industrial Growth. In the area of tourism, the strategic thrust includes sustainable
tourism development towards strengthening Malaysia’s position as preferred global tourism
development. Thrust 3 addresses the distributional agenda that to be pursued more firmly
so as to ensure the achievement of a more equitable distribution of the benefits of
economic development by all Malaysians by creating a more balanced and equitable participation
among and within ethnic groups primarily through capacity building and raising of
competitiveness. Meanwhile, thrust 4, focus on how to improve the standards and
sustainability of quality of life Malaysian Citizens. It involves improving infrastructure,
utilities and urban transportation, sustainable energy development, achieving better health,
providing of quality housing and urban services and promoting environmental stewardship
through environmental management and land use planning. One of the good example is The Urban
Indicators Network (MURNInet) 20 developed by the Federal Department of Town and Country
Planning Peninsular Malaysia, Ministry of Housing and Local Government Malaysia. MURNInet
was created based on a computer network designed to analyze present urban conditions, effects of
development, to survey temporal changes and formulate sustainable urban scenarios for the future
based on fixed standards. The indicators will help to measure the minimum quality and life
standard that has to be achieved by each town or city in Malaysia.
-For environmental implications, it involves managing natural resources use, environmental
management, pollution prevention and so on. In the National Physical Plan (NPP) for
example, is in par with the Sustainable Development Goal 15(SDG 15) which is to protect,
restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests,
combat desertification, and halt and reserve degradation and halt biodiversity loss. To govern
the climate issues in Malaysia, National Policy On Climate Change (NPCC) has been
established to mainstream the climate changes. This policy through wise management of
resources and enhanced environmental conservation will result in strengthening the
economic competitiveness and improved quality of life. Another good example is The
Malaysian Industry Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) made its first debut in the
International Greentech & Eco Products Exhibition & Conference Malaysia 2014 (IGEM 2014) to
promote our activities in green high technology industries and the Science to Action (S2A)
program. In IGEM2015; MIGHT hosted the MIGHT Open Forum during 3 days exhibition and
was attended by the trade visitors and speakers of IGEM 201521.

3. Can you assess the value or importance of sustainable development? Based on your knowledge
and understanding, how would you explain that Sustainable Development Goals are achieved? (25
Marks)

-Sustainable development is the practice of using guidelines for environmentally responsible and
energy savings to create new development projects and to maintain and retrofit older projects. It
can include using green materials in new construction, designing projects that can harvest their
own energy to reduce load on a power grid, or that incorporate green space in order to
counterbalance the green space removed to build the onsite facilities. There is a heavy emphasis on
making sure that what is built can be maintained and repaired in a way that minimizes the
degradation of the original development so that the lifespan of a facility is longer than normal.
-The sustainable development is so important that it gives so many advantages to us.
a) Protect Technological Resources
The people coming into this world are coming into an increasingly technological age, where more
people than ever are relying on technology for nearly every aspect of their lives. Of course, these
technologies are not built out of thin air and good intentions. They require a significant array of
minerals and other other inputs simply to be manufactured. This doesn't account for the amount of
resources required to develop them in the first place.
b) Provide Basic Human Needs
A rising population will also make use of the bare essentials of life such as food, water, and
shelter. The provision of these essentials is based almost entirely around having an infrastructure
that can sustain them for the long-term. If energy is continually developed on finite fossil fuels
instead of sustainable options, the cost and environmental toll of supplying even basic needs can
become staggering.
c) Agricultural Necessity
Agriculture will have to catch up with that growing population as well, figuring out ways to feed
around 3 billion more people than it currently does. If the same unsustainable tilling, seeding,
watering, spraying and harvesting methods are used into the future, they can become very costly as
fossil fuel resources run out.
d) Accommodate City Development
As populations rise, cities will need to become larger to accommodate the influx of new residents.
If these cities are developed non-sustainably, they will become more and more expensive to build
and maintain over time. This is because the resources being used to develop the cities will be finite
fossil fuels that will only get more expensive as they run out over time. The higher volume of these
fuels required to produce energy for this larger population will also negatively impact the air
quality of cities. If cities use sustainable development practices, they can conceivably make way
for new housing and business developments indefinitely
e) Control Climate Change
Climate change is another issue that can be at least partially remedied through sustainable
development. Sustainable development practices would mandate a lower use of fossil fuels, which
are not sustainable and which produce greenhouse gases. As the population rises, more people will
be requiring more energy and will be putting an even greater strain on the world climate.
f) Provide Financial Stability
Sustainable development can also produce more financially sustainable economiesthroughout the
world. Resource-poor economies will gain access to free and accessible energy through
renewables while also having the opportunity to train workers for jobs that won't be displaced by
the basic reality of finite resources. Jobs built around the "old" model of unsustainable
development simply have no place in economies of the future. This has nothing to do with politics
or ethics, but rather the bare mechanics of how economies price out finite resources over time.
Industries built around a reliance upon a resource that will not be accessible into the future will
ultimately fail, leaving sustainable development as the only option moving forward.
- Sustainability is the foundation for today’s leading global framework for international
cooperation – the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs). Each of the 17 SDGs has specific targets to be achieved by 2030. The goals and
targets are universal, meaning they apply to all countries around the world, not just poor countries.
Reaching the goals requires action on all fronts – governments, businesses, civil society and people
everywhere all have a role to play.
-These organizations primarily focus on the least developed and low-income countries where
poverty is rife. They aim to eradicate poverty across the board by expanding social protection
programs like school feeding, cash transfers, targeted food assistance, social insurance and labor
market programs such as skill training, old age pensions, wage subsidies, unemployment
insurance, disability pensions and so on. It also advocates for enhanced health financing, increased
research and development, strengthening the capacity of every country engaged in health risk
prevention and management. Provision of clean water and sanitation, enhancing infrastructure and
so to rural area or least developed country.
-Development of sustainable energy such as wind, hydro and solar energy. Wind energy is energy
harnessed from the motion of wind using wind turbine or windmills. Wind energy is renewable,
which means it’s never ending and can be used to substitute energy at the grid. This makes it a
good sustainable development practice. This is energy harnessed from the sun using solar panels.
It’s advantageous since it’s absolutely free and its supply is infinite. These factors make it
beneficial to consumers and good for Mother Nature because it doesn’t contribute to emission of
greenhouse gasses.
-Green space and crop rotation. Green spaces are locations where plants and animals are left to
flourish. Parks also fall into the category of green spaces. Green spaces provide people remarkable
opportunity to take pleasure in outdoor recreation, more so in big cities, where resting space is
hard to come by. Green spaces also help regulate climate and quality of air, insulates rivers and
streams from polluted runoff and lowers energy usage by dealing with the warming impacts of
paved surfaces. Crop rotation is the practice of planting different crops in the same farm to
enhance soil fertility and assist control diseases and insects. Crop rotation is beneficial in many
ways; most importantly, it’s chemical free. This means using this farming practice maintains
integrity of your soil, making it a sustainable development practice.

4. In Malaysia, EIA is required under section 34A, Environmental Quality Act, 1974, which
specifies the legal requirements in respect of EIA for Prescribed Activities. What are some of the
activities that involve in EIA? (25 Marks)
-Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a study to identify, predict, evaluate and communicate
information about the impact on the environmental of a proposed project and to detail out the
mitigating measures prior to project approval and implementation. EIA is a planning mechanism
for preventing environmental problems. It makes sure that all the potential consequences of the
purpose project can be address at the early state in project planning. The objectives of EIA are to
examine and select the best from the options available; to identify and incorporate into the project
plan appropriate abatement and mitigating measures; to predict residual environmental impacts; to
determine the significance of the residual environmental impacts predicted and to identify the
environmental cost and the benefits of the project to the community.
All prescribed activities need to obtain EIA approval from the Director General of Environment
prior to the giving of approval by the relevant Federal or State Government authority for the
implementation of the project. The Approving Authority is the Government Authority that has the
task of deciding, whether or not a project should proceed. Every industrial proposal should be
examined by the investor to see whether an environmental impact assessment (EIA) needs to be
conducted. A prospective investor should therefore first of all determine whether or not a proposed
venture is categorised as „prescribed activity‟ as stipulated in the Environmental Quality
(Prescribed Activities) (Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 1987. An EIA study needs to be
conducted and the EIA report has to be submitted to the Director General of Environmental
Quality for approval. The project is not allowed to proceed unless approval of the EIA report has
been granted if categorised in prescribed activity. Some of the prescribed activities have been
required to go through the Detailed EIA Procedures which involves public participation. 19
prescribed activities involved are;
a) Agriculture- Land development schemes covering an area of 500 hectares or more to bring
forest land into agriculture production.
b) Airport- Construction of airports (having an airstrip of 2,500 meters or longer)
c) Drainage and Irrigation-Construction of dams and man-made lakes and artificial
enlargement of lakes with surface areas of 200 hectares or more.
d) Land Reclamation-Coastal reclamation involving an area of 50 hectares or more
e) Fisheries- Harbour expansion involving an increase of 50 per cent or more in fish landing
capacity per annum.
f) Forestry- Conversion of hill forest land to other land use covering an area of 50 hectares or
more
g) Housing- Housing development covering an area of 50 hectares or more
h) Industry-Chemical -Where production capacity of each product or of combined products is
greater than 100 tonnes / day.
i) Infrastructure-Construction of hospitals without fall into beachfronts used for recreational
purposes, construction of expressway, highway and townships
j) Ports-Construction of ports
k) Mining-Mining of minerals in new areas where the mining lease covers a total area in
excess of 250 hectares
l) Petroleum-Oil and gas fields development
m) Power Generation And Transmission-Construction of steam generated power stations
burning fossil fuels and having a capacity of more than 10 megawatts.
 n) Quarries- Proposed quarrying of aggregate, limestone, silica quartzite, sandstone, marble
and decorative building stone within 3 kilometres of any existing residential, commercial
or industrial areas, or any area for which a licence, permit or approval has been granted for
residential, commercial or industrial development.
o) Railways- Construction of new routes
p) Transportation-Construction of Mass Rapid Transport projects
q) Resort and Recreational Development-Construction of coastal resort facilities or hotels
with more than 80 rooms
r) Waste treatment and disposal- Construction of incineration plant, recovery plant, treatment
plant and storage facility
s) Water supply-Construction of dams, impounding reservoirs with a surface area of 200
hectares or more

References

http://ethics.wikia.com/wiki/Engineering_Teamwork

http://www.advice-manufacturing.com/Teamwork-in-Engineering.html

https://www.universalclass.com/articles/business/critical-thinking-skills/advantages-of-teamwork-
in-problem-solving-strategies.htm