Cost-effectiveness and affordability evaluation of a residential prototype built with compressed earth bricks, hybrid roofs and palm midribs
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Date
2023-03
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Type
Article
Publisher
Frontiers Media S.A.
Series Info
Frontiers Built Environment;9:1058782
Scientific Journal Rankings
Abstract
As a response to rising housing prices and the high cost of materials in the building
and construction industry, a rural prototype house (the Ecofordable House) was
built with alternative technologies. The house is located in the western desert zone
of Giza, Egypt, and features enhanced vernacular technologies with local
materials. Interlocking compressed stabilized earth brick walls, partially
reinforced, jack arch and funicular shell roofs, and date palm midribs were
employed in an attempt to reduce the usage of steel, fired bricks, cement, and
imported wood. The present research evaluates the house’s construction cost-
effectiveness and affordability through detailed real-world data and comparisons
of material quantities, labor, and costs with those of conventional methods. The
“price-to-income ratio” is used as an indicator of affordability. According to the
findings, walls cut costs by half, roofs by a quarter, and midribs by two-thirds; the
alternatives combined saved 45%, and the house saved a quarter of the cost after
adding common expenses. Moreover, less than one-third of steel, fired bricks, and
cement were utilized. In the Egyptian context of government-built houses, the
prototype would be affordable for most Egyptian income brackets while the
conventional house was expensive for the lowest three. The findings provide
empirical support for the economic advantages of enhanced vernacular
technologies as alternatives and address residential affordability in similar
contexts.
Description
Keywords
alternative building technologies,, cost-effectiveness,, affordability,, interlocking compressed stabilised earth bricks,, jack arch,, funicular shell,, date palm midrib