Barriers and Opportunities in Digitalizing Energy Management Systems in the Built Environment of Malaysian Public Universities

The digital transformation of energy systems in the built environment has emerged as a critical strategy to improve efficiency, sustainability, and operational resilience, particularly within institutional infrastructures such as public universities. Motivated by the increasing demand for smart energy solutions, this study investigates, for the first time to our knowledge, the barriers and progress related to the digitalization of energy management systems across Malaysian public universities. Despite global momentum, digital uptake in Malaysia’s higher education sector remains slow, and research on institution-specific challenges is limited. This study aims to identify the key internal and external barriers that hinder energy-related digitalization efforts within university campuses, and assess the implementation progress across various digital verticals, particularly energy management and building automation. A structured survey was distributed to facility directors, energy managers, and sustainability officers at 13 public universities. Responses were quantitatively analyzed using ranking and scoring frameworks. The findings reveal that high costs, limited funding, and inadequate governmental incentives are the most pressing obstacles, highlighting a strong correlation between financial limitations and stalled progress. Energy management and building automation emerged as the most developed digital domains, while health and well-being monitoring lag significantly behind. This research contributes valuable insights for policymakers, energy solution providers, and institutional planners in aligning digitalization strategies with national sustainability objectives. It directly supports SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 13 (Climate Action) by advancing digital energy transformation in Malaysia’s higher education sector.