Ninth International Conference on The Constructed Environment

Abstract

South Africa is experiencing a major backlog with respect to the delivery of low-income housing. With a constantly changing environment, and an increasing population and urban migration rates, a degree of transformation needs to be considered. The country needs to produce better quality housing at a quicker rate, and the possibility of achieving this through the current methodology, which happens to be traditional masonry construction, is slim. It is, therefore, important to research and investigate workable solutions through alternative methods of construction and building technologies that are gradually making inroads, with specific focus on off-site prefabrication and on-site assembly. Research found that these off-site methods are suitable to South Africa, and that the prefabricated market has the skills and capacity to deliver, with the possibility of this method being cost competitive in terms of traditional masonry construction. The research followed a qualitative phenomenological approach, whereby a set of semi-structured interviews were used to collect the responses of key stakeholders, which were then analysed accordingly. The platforms to further knowledge and skills development in the construction industry should be drawn from other sectors, and the change implemented needs to take government objectives and socio-economic considerations into account, ensuring the new methods get the necessary acceptance from all involved.