Room to breathe —and room to overheat.

The heat is almost always the west and afternoon sun loading unshaded glazing and walls. Before adding more air-conditioning, the fix is to cut the heat that gets in: external shading over west and rear openings, the right glass specification, and — where the layout allows — orienting living spaces away from the worst exposure and letting a cross-breeze carry heat out. Shade and ventilation reduce the load first, so the A/C you then size is smaller and cheaper to run. ELS plans this before finishes, not after you have already fought it for a season.

Full aluminium or honeycomb aluminium, with weather-tolerant hardware — supplied and installed by ALUMAX. An outdoor or utility kitchen takes the heaviest wok cooking and is exposed to rain, sun and humidity, which is the harshest environment in the whole house for a cabinet. Board carcasses swell and standard hinges corrode outdoors within a year or two. Aluminium does not swell when it stays wet, and the hardware is chosen to survive the exposure. It is the one place where paying for the right material is not optional.

By deciding camera and access positions and routing their cabling on the plan, before plaster goes up. On a larger, detached property the perimeter is longer and there are usually several access points, so CCTV, alarm and access-control wiring — and the power for them — should be concealed in conduit that is run with the electrical first fix. Bolt the cameras on afterwards and you are left with surface trunking around the house. ELS coordinates the routes and device positions; the equipment itself is supplied and licensed by a security specialist, which we scope separately.

Yes, if it is treated as a real room from the start rather than a leftover slab. That means planning shade against the sun and driven rain, drainage so the floor never holds water, weatherproof finishes and cabinetry, and power and lighting routed to it early. Done that way, a covered outdoor area becomes the room a Sarawak family actually lives in — for cooking, eating and gathering in the cooler part of the day. Done as an afterthought, it stays a hot, wet slab nobody uses. The difference is decided in the plan.

By ventilating the internals instead of sealing them. A large walk-in wardrobe or dressing room is a big, still, closed volume — exactly where Sarawak humidity condenses and mould takes hold, especially against an external or bathroom-adjacent wall. The fit-out is specified for airflow: ventilated backs and bases, gaps that let air move, moisture-tolerant materials, and hardware chosen for humidity. Where needed we coordinate active measures too. The aim is a wardrobe that breathes, so your clothes are not sitting in a damp box.

The Design + Specification service starts from RM1,500 (excl. SST), depending on scope — a detached house with outdoor kitchens, covered areas and a security scope sits at the higher end. Site measurement is from RM300 in Sibu and RM500 outstation, creditable on confirmation. The fee covers the layout, the sun and material specification and the coordination; the final build cost is confirmed after measurement, material selection and an approved scope. Prices exclude SST.