Affordable Housing with Prefabricated construction technology in India: An approach to sustainable supply

Abstract

The housing shortage is a global problem, no country has yet achieved complete satisfaction in providing enough housing even to its urban population. There are a huge number of homeless people in the world that have nowhere to live or inadequately living in the slums with a lack of basic amenities [1]. The housing sector of India found itself in a paradoxical situation where 11 million houses are vacant in urban areas [2] despite the huge demand of 18.78 million urban housing in India [3]. This huge demand for urban housing led the government to initiate the “Housing for all” scheme in 2015, under which 20 million urban houses have to be constructed by 2022, this brings to around 8000 the number of units to be constructed per day [4]. The issue has reached a stage where such a huge demand cannot be addressed using traditional construction methods, as these procedures are time-intensive, wasteful, and have inherent quality control issues besides pollution & GHG emissions [5]. Hence, this advocates that there is a vital requirement of an efficient and quick-to-build method to meet the ever-increasing requirement of affordable housing in India.

As mankind progresses through the twenty-first century, sustainable development has become a global imperative. In the construction world, prefabricated construction is a relatively new idea and to achieve sustainability, the housing initiatives must be economically viable, socially acceptable, technically practicable, and environmentally suitable [6]. Prefab houses have the advantages of reducing time consumption and being environmentally friendly. Its benefits include site and health safety during construction, less wastage, improved quality of the indoor environment, and assurance of overall quality management. Prefabricated homes claim to be less damaged in natural disasters and also ensure long-lasting durability. It also helps in environment-friendly construction with low waste generation, less pollution, controlled use of water and other resources. The usage of prefabrication technology is theoretically in line to deliver a sustainable supply of affordable housing by embracing sustainable housing initiatives.

Despite the huge demand for affordable housing, prefabrication is yet to be adopted by the stakeholders because most of the developers are averse to invest in prefabricated building technologies and are hesitant to use prefabrication in new and ongoing projects because of its associated challenges and financial issues because many people perceive prefab homes are of sub-standard quality and it’s for the poor people’s, which makes them extremely difficult to resell. Although increased financing for prefab companies is encouraging but banks do not appear to be more interested in smaller clients who intend to utilise the non-traditional construction methods. Banks must also be more willing to provide financing to those who buy prefabricated homes [7].

This study aims to explore the issues associated with the adoption of prefabrication technology in the Indian context that needs to be addressed for the design of affordable housings.  A systematic review of the literature was conducted. Various publications from journals and conferences were used to compile a thematic analysis.

This research will help to understand the present scenario of prefabricated construction technology and its potential to supply sustainable affordable housing in developing nations like India. This research will also address the major challenges that need to be addressed in the present scenario to enable the adoption of prefabricated construction technology as an efficient method to fulfil the demand-supply gap in the housing sector of India. The key challenges identified in this study will further provide a base to conduct further researches by the developers and other construction agencies.

Despite having high potential, prefabricated construction is not a widely adopted mode of construction across India. The research findings indicate the major issues which are obstructing the stakeholders to adopt the prefabricated construction technology.  Adoption, implementation and widespread deployment of prefabrication are urgently required to improve the efficiency, quality, and speed of construction, as well as to raise public awareness. The prefabrication process has significance to propel the Indian affordable housing sector to the next level and to meet India’s ever-increasing demand for affordable housing.