Building a house from an empty plot to a signed-off, move-in-ready home involves far more than just drawing floor plans. It's a chain of design decisions, software handoffs, and regulatory approvals — and most guides only cover the design software half of that chain. This guide walks through the complete A-to-Z workflow for a residential project in Malaysia, mapping exactly where SketchUp, AutoCAD, and Revit LT (bundled with AutoCAD LT via the AutoCAD Revit LT Suite) each earn their place — and highlights the authorities, approvals, and other professionals most software-focused guides leave out entirely.
From Empty Plot to Move-In Ready | Software + Authorities, A to Z |
The Full Workflow at a Glance
Stage |
Primary Software |
Key Authority / Party Involved |
| 1. Site & Land Analysis | SketchUp | Licensed Land Surveyor (Jurukur Tanah Berlesen) |
| 2. Concept & Schematic Design | SketchUp → Revit LT | Client sign-off |
| 3. Design Development | Revit LT | C&S Engineer, M&E Engineer (BEM-registered) |
| 4. Authority Submission | AutoCAD LT | Local Authority (PBT) via OSC 3.0, Bomba, JPS, TNB, IWK |
| 5. Construction Documentation | Revit LT + AutoCAD LT | Quantity Surveyor, Contractor |
| 6. Tender & Contract | AutoCAD LT, Revit LT schedules | CIDB-registered Contractor |
| 7. Construction Administration | SketchUp, AutoCAD LT | Site supervision, PSP inspections |
| 8. As-Built & Handover | Revit LT, AutoCAD LT | CCC issuance by PSP |
Stage-by-Stage: Where Each Tool Fits
Stage 1: Site & Land Analysis
Before any design begins, a licensed land surveyor (Jurukur Tanah Berlesen) produces the topographical survey and land title verification — this is a separate registered profession from the architect, and its output (survey data, boundary coordinates, contour levels) becomes the base your design sits on. Once that survey is in hand, SketchUp is the fastest way to block out the site's constraints: sun path, prevailing wind, boundary setbacks, and how a massing option sits on the actual contours, before committing to detailed modeling.
Stage 2: Concept & Schematic Design
SketchUp earns its keep here — fast push/pull massing, quick material studies, and client-friendly 3D visuals that don't require the client to interpret a floor plan. Once a concept direction is approved, the design typically moves into Revit LT to start building an intelligent 3D model with real walls, floors, and rooms rather than just surface geometry — this is the handoff point where "digital clay" becomes structured BIM data.
Stage 3: Design Development
Revit LT carries the bulk of this stage — refining room layouts, generating preliminary schedules, and producing coordinated plans, sections, and elevations that update automatically as the design changes. This is also when the C&S (Civil & Structural) Engineer and M&E (Mechanical & Electrical) Engineer, both registered with the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM), come on board to develop the structural and services design in parallel — typically working in their own AutoCAD-based tools, coordinated against the architectural drawings your firm issues.
Stage 4: Authority Submission
This is where AutoCAD LT (included in the same Suite as Revit LT) becomes essential. Malaysian local authorities (PBT) require building plan submissions in specific formats — site plans, key plans, floor plans, sections, and elevations — submitted through the OSC 3.0 (One Stop Centre) digital portal, followed by hardcopy submission. Only a registered architect (or PE) acting as Principal Submitting Person (PSP) can legally submit these. Beyond the local authority itself, several External Technical Agencies typically need to review and approve in parallel:
Agency |
What They Approve |
| Bomba (Fire & Rescue Dept) | Passive fire safety plans — escape routes, fire access, compartmentation |
| JPS (Drainage & Irrigation Dept) | Site drainage plans and stormwater management |
| TNB (electricity utility) | Electrical supply infrastructure and connection points |
| IWK / local water authority (e.g. Air Selangor) | Sewerage and water supply connection |
Why AutoCAD LT specifically for this stage: authority reviewers are used to reviewing standard DWG-format 2D drawings, and AutoCAD LT's precise 2D drafting and annotation tools make it straightforward to produce submission drawings exactly matching each PBT's checklist and layer/formatting conventions — something Revit LT can export to, but AutoCAD LT was purpose-built for.
Stage 5: Construction Documentation
Once the building plan is approved, detailed working drawings follow — Revit LT generates the coordinated set (plans, sections, elevations, door/window schedules) directly from the same model used for submission, while AutoCAD LT handles bespoke 2D construction details (staircase details, custom joinery, unusual junctions) that are often faster to draft directly in 2D than to model in 3D for a single house.
Stage 6: Tender & Contract Documentation
Drawing sets from Revit LT and AutoCAD LT go out to CIDB-registered contractors for pricing. Revit LT's schedules provide a useful starting point for quantities, though for a full Bill of Quantities most firms still work with a Quantity Surveyor separately.
Stage 7: Construction Administration
During construction, AutoCAD LT handles issued-for-construction drawing revisions and site instruction sketches, while SketchUp is often the fastest way to visually explain a proposed change to a client or contractor on-site without opening the full BIM model. The architect (as PSP) also conducts periodic site inspections as part of the compliance process.
Stage 8: As-Built & Handover
Final as-built drawings are updated in Revit LT and AutoCAD LT to reflect what was actually built (site conditions often deviate slightly from the original design). These as-built drawings support the Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) — issued by the PSP since the CCC system replaced the old Certificate of Fitness for Occupation (CF) in 2007 — which legally confirms the building is safe for occupation.
What Many Firms Overlook
Beyond the core design-and-submit workflow, several authorities, registrations, and process details commonly catch firms off guard — especially smaller studios handling residential work without a dedicated compliance team:
| 1 | LAM (Lembaga Arkitek Malaysia / Board of Architects Malaysia) governs who may legally practice as an architect and sign submissions in Malaysia — separate from PAM (Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia), the professional membership body. Only LAM-registered architects (or PE equivalents) can act as PSP. |
| 2 | Soil investigation is a separate, often forgotten prerequisite. Before the C&S engineer can finalize foundation design, a geotechnical soil investigation report is typically required — commissioned early enough that it doesn't bottleneck the structural design stage. |
| 3 | UBBL 1984 compliance isn't optional detailing — it's baked into every drawing. Staircase widths, natural lighting/ventilation ratios, fire escape distances, and setback requirements under the Uniform Building By-Laws 1984 must be checked against every submission drawing, not just reviewed once at the end. |
| 4 | If this is a licensed housing developer project rather than a private bungalow, the entire regulatory layer changes. Projects sold to buyers before completion fall under the Housing Development Act 1966, requiring a Developer's License and Advertising Permit (APDL) from KPKT (Ministry of Housing and Local Government), plus statutory Schedule G/H Sale and Purchase Agreements — a materially different process from a one-off private residence. |
| 5 | The CCC is signed and issued by the PSP, not the local authority — but the local authority still keeps oversight. Since 2007, the architect or PE acting as PSP personally certifies the building is safe and issues the CCC via Form F, based on their own site inspections and consultants' sign-offs. The local authority no longer inspects and approves occupancy itself the way it did under the old CFO system, but it retains the right to conduct random inspections and can direct the PSP to withhold the CCC if problems are found. This is a genuine shift in liability: real criminal penalties, including fines up to RM250,000 or imprisonment, apply to a PSP under Section 70(27)(c) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974 if a CCC is issued improperly. |
| 6 | CIDB registration applies to contractors, not just the design team. Any contractor pricing or executing the works needs a valid CIDB registration matching the project's grade/category — worth verifying before tender award, not after. |
| 7 | Green Building Index (GBI) or other sustainability certification is optional but increasingly requested by clients. If pursued, it adds its own documentation and design criteria layer that should be planned for from the schematic design stage, not retrofitted later. |
Software Role Summary
Software |
Best Used For |
Not Ideal For |
| SketchUp | Fast massing, site studies, client-facing visuals, on-site quick sketches | Authority-compliant submission drawings, coordinated documentation |
| Revit LT | Coordinated 3D modeling, schedules, design development through construction documentation | Multi-person simultaneous editing (no worksharing), MEP coordination |
| AutoCAD LT | Authority submission drawings, bespoke 2D details, precise annotation to PBT standards | 3D coordination, automatic schedule generation |
Because Revit LT and AutoCAD LT come bundled together in the AutoCAD Revit LT Suite, a small residential-focused practice gets both the 3D BIM workflow and the 2D authority-submission workflow under one license — well matched to a single-architect or small-studio residential project where Revit's worksharing and MEP tools genuinely aren't needed.
Beyond These Three: Where the Software Stack Can Extend
SketchUp, AutoCAD LT, and Revit LT cover a genuinely complete workflow for a straightforward single-residence project. Two more pieces are worth knowing about too, since they solve real gaps in the same workflow:
Gap |
What Fills It |
Learn More |
| A perpetual-license alternative for the 2D authority-submission stage | ZWCAD — full DWG compatibility with AutoCAD LT, but genuinely owned outright instead of rented via subscription. | View ZWCAD Licenses |
| Turning digital drawings into the physical prints every submission and site set still needs | HP DesignJet large-format plotters, sized to A1/A0 authority submission and site drawing sets. | View HP DesignJet Plotters |
The DPI Recommendation
A residential project's software stack only works if it's matched to the regulatory reality around it — a beautifully modeled Revit LT house still needs AutoCAD-format submission drawings that satisfy the local authority's exact checklist, and still needs a PSP who understands where their liability actually sits under the CCC system. As an authorized Autodesk reseller, DPI Technology can help your firm set up the right software combination for residential work, and once your drawings are ready, pairing them with the right HP DesignJet plotter completes the workflow for both authority submission prints and site drawing sets.
This article provides a general overview of the residential design and approval workflow in Malaysia for informational purposes and is not legal or professional advice. Specific requirements vary by local authority, project type, and state — always confirm current requirements with your local authority (PBT), LAM, and relevant technical agencies before relying on this as a project checklist.