DEVELOPMENT OF INFILL AAC BLOCK WALL-SYSTEM FOR AFFORDABLE AND INDUSTRIALIZED HOUSING

Abstract

The value of our own home is vital for liveability. It not only provides shelter and security; it is a prominent criterion for social wellness. Nonetheless, it is considered a human right to have a house. During the rapid urbanisation, land value has increased enormously in developing countries in the last few decades. Countries like India have seen urbanisation combined with rapid population growth in Asia. With land prices soaring, limited parcels of land are used to construct houses in vertical directions. Due to the high demand for affordable housing in urban areas, it was required to think of out-of-the-box solutions to keep an eye on the price of housing. The traditional housing project construction methods are tiresome and require a longer duration to construct high-rise housing in urban areas. Therefore, new research developed an industrialised approach to reduce the gap between housing demand and supply. The intention was to fast-track the construction sector to increase the housing stock. ‘3 S systems’ is one of many such IBS technologies shortlisted by the government recently, which uses partial off-site construction components to deliver the houses in less time. However, there remain few research gaps faced by the industry. One such gap is the mass adoption of modular construction components, which can reduce the on-site casting requirements. The goal is to reduce manual activities during construction and implement factory-made components in a building. This requires assembling different components on-site; thus, modularity and standardisation are essential qualities these components must adhere to in order to construct a building in a fast-paced manner. This study includes a market study to gauge the buyer’s perspective on activity spaces in dwelling units and further analyse these market standards with norms and codes. After due validation, this analysis was used to derive modular space standards, an essential step toward fast-paced and industrialised construction. In its Housing for All mission (PMAY), the government of India identified twenty-four emerging technologies that can deliver faster and better-quality housing. The semi-prefabricated construction technology using Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) Blocks in the ‘3S System’ is one identified technology that has been tried and tested to deliver mass-housing. Industries test This on the ground to deliver large housing projects in less time and at an affordable cost. However, there is a scope for improvement in constructing the ‘3S System’. Since it uses partial pre-fabrication for assembling building components, some areas of construction activities can be improvised further. One such improvement possibility is with AAC block used to make service wall in high-rise housing projects. It includes reducing manual activity on the site to cut the blocks and insert the pipes for building services. It is intended to develop an Infill, modular, and interlocking (IMI) AAC block wall-system with design features such as an infill cavity for plumbing lines within the blocks. It will ensure time and cost savings by minimising manual activity and reducing waste of building materials. This will bring better workmanship, finishing, and durability to the connections and joinery of building components. It further improves the accessibility of plumbing lines in case repair work is required during the lifecycle of the building.