AFFORDABLE HOUSING,BUILD BANGLADESH

status: national competition 2019,SPECIAL MENTION

BUA =68000 sft approx.

Housing is the fundamental necessity to any population regardless of social or financial stratifications. But affordable public housing projects are difficult to come out as success models yet. It is interconnected to many diverse factors that eventually modulate the outcome, in ways beyond preliminary assumptions. Issues emerging from milieus other than architecture or physical planning even become strong predicaments. From row houses during industrial revolution to post war schemes in Europe (Ville Radieuse, plattenbau in Germany) followed by various housing projects in Latin America (PREVI, housing by ELEMENTAL) to the Aranya
project in the Indian subcontinent, million houses program in Sri Lanka, the
Metabolist approach in the far east, all the global challenges to provide housing were no doubt a daunting undertaking. Decades after implementation, housing projects gave more in-depth knowledge that might help us tackle issues & scenarios unforeseen. It is rather a dichotomy even up to present time, without no singular solution. The concept for the Build Bangladesh project intends to address some of the issues that might take us out of the quagmire of the housing situation. Nonetheless, it might not be ignored, that the diurnal cycle of man cannot change & only upon ensuring an inspiring & healthy livelihood can we ensure an efficient society. An open system can tackle some of the critical issues where Anomaly
due to diversity may be a blessing over time. An ownership of a small piece of land is not necessarily only statutory or legal, tenants acquire a rather intangible ownership & association with space over time. this creates possibilities for a
family. It allows growth, both physical as economical and can change in time accordingly
towards solving the problem of habitation.
From shanty huts & agglomeration of social housing units to modern day apartment blocks, no single
solution, which is universally acceptable and applicable has been formulated yet for the housing
industry in general. Solving the problem of housing due to its affordability, availability and
accessibility has been a significant challenge due to its multifaceted nature. On one hand it has to be
within accessible, financial & technical means, while on the other hand it needs to ensure proper
domestic, social & community environment.
financial policy: an equity based system of payment synchronized to construction sequence might
help users lessen the financial burden. also it would create sense of ownership. rather than bulk
investment that paves the way for opportunists, land grabbers etc. (monopolization by wealthy
investors is also a practical threat that creates social disparity & imbalance). also proper allocation of
housing units to genuine target users is a substantial challenge to be met, as privileged groups tend
to acquire excess units. (they rent it out creating social imbalance within the premise & fails to serve
the target group eventually.) On the other hand, bulk investment is an alluring opportunity from the
builder’s perspective which is hard to ignore. A long term lease system (paid in monthly installments slightly higher than monthly rent) might be a viable model.

inevitable triangle of work, home & school
Housing schemes ought to be within access & well connected to work area & schools. The inevitable
triangle of work, home & schools needs to be balanced to as small as possible (literally,
dimension wise smaller the triangle, the better)
: a hypothetical situation might be to use a kind of referral/seconding system from the
users, proper background checking by authority & sharing this information to new or existing
buyer/user. This can eliminate any ill intention of unilaterally favoring any vested group & nepotism.
compulsory engagement of health insurance of all members within the community &
integrated with national database. This will create dependency to stay within the community and
also discourage vested groups to push in.
diversity: common costs of the premise can be subsidized. (by renting out certain units for
/guest houses, renting multipurpose spaces, room sharing, resort type operation of partial blocks
etc.)
expansion, growth & scalability: financial ability increases, tenants tend to move out or
rent out their premise, so social equity & sense of ownership can prevent such if it is matched with
options to physically expand the household. Lateral expansion is anticipated in the scheme. The
planning is modular & partition walls are not difficult to dismantle. Internal stairs are to be metal onsite fabricated -easy to relocate/remove .
Master planning & details:
cluster vs. shared wall:
all the blocks are faced NS to maximize natural ventilation & shared wall system helps reduce direct
solar heat gain from EW, not to mention the significant reduction in internal walls that parity wall type
assemblage gives. The housing units are modular in design and uses repetitive elements for
construction. It is based on a kind of tubular house system which is narrow, yet allows all amenities
of household to perform with grace.
clustered units need large land sizes, and has the limitation to go higher than g+2 & splits
open spaces into segments, thus becoming less effective where plot sizes are not big
enough. the proposed approach sums up all the green spaces to form a larger lot that can be
used for different recreational uses. Clustered housing shows some promises of community
participation, which in the proposed design is well accommodated.
in this type of solution, toilets, kitchens do not occupy the precious & very limited peripheral surface
of individual units .as a result they are internally arranged.
A simple and inexpensive air turbine based ventilator should suffice.
the tubular concept also lets walls & services to be shared that not only cuts cost but also reduces
services to be installed & maintained with greater efficiency.
Use of hollow machine made blocks, thermal heat gain would be less. Also, as side walls are mostly
protected by adjacent units, further heat gain is lessened.
the design intends to reduce building weight by means of height reduction, span reduction, light weight material,
partial prefabricated units, hollow blocks etc.
– lower structural & lessened foundation costs. (the sub terrain service channel also
functions as a hollow foundation pad.)
-reduce structural slab sections, that would lessen rebar & concrete.
-reduce electrical & plumbing costs by repetitive & simplified installation techniques.
-reduce needs of a/c & lift. (saves 150tk -250 tk/sft)
-avoid plastering &painting. (a major maintenance issue)
-use of trowel finish floor so no need of floor tiles, terrazzo etc. (saves approx. 60 tk/sft)
-ensure quality control of material & specification by partial pre fabrication & industrial
elements, mock up prototypes etc.)
-allow lateral growth of units. Vertical growth up to six stories depending upon foundation &
subsoil.
-to introduce partial prefabrication, that relieves dependency on heavy lifting equipment and
also ensures reduction of construction time (reduce project overhead.)
(PREVI module by James sterling)
-choice of fenestration is user dependent.(cost ><choice)
-door shutter & frame options:
-choice of floor finish can be user dependent(avoid using tiles to reduce cost)
Structural frame: the structure is proposed to be R.C.C frame system with hollow block infill /
Ferrocement panel floor slabs. This type of slab construction has already been tested by HBRI
(House & Building Research Institute) in Bangladesh as prototypes. Precast concrete floor panels
and lightweight floor slabs in filled with hollow block could significantly cut weight, cost &
time of construction.
parity wall type linear planning has been chosen over clustering composition and planning as the
latter is less efficient in terms of construction elements & allocation of services. The proposed
system is more efficient when there is limited land area & is highly efficient up to four to five
stories.
flexibility in planning& execution: different configurations can be planned based on orientation,
symmetries, subdivision, addition based on ad hoc or pre designed basis. spaces can be used
intelligently like overhead cabinets, bunk systems, flexible partition systems can be incorporated to
foster changing needs of a house hold. Social spaces can be created to function also as cloth drying
areas, laundry& washing areas by means of washing machines that saves both time &water, as it
would be commonly used & maintained it would be a viable means of assisting each household.
phased construction is also possible to match site conditions.
trees &vegetation: existing trees and vegetation if not unfortunately be spared, it would be
compensated by means of new plantation along the periphery or in the front open space in a
planned way. Roof top green can be useful to reduce direct solar heat gain.
building services: often neglected, the crux to long term building performance, is easy service
access & flexible alterations. Many clustered formations designed decades ago are now in a
dilapidated chaos of service lines. A central service spine runs as a spine below each block that works
both as a load bearing hollow foundation, service access, storage etc.
Toilets & kitchens can share service lines (plumbing, ventilation &electrical) by means of shafts that
are also important structural members. This minimizes cost of maintenance too.
renewable sources. Used PET bottles cut & wrapped in geo-textile might be a technique to
conserve rain water. solar panels are not suggested due to high initial costs, lack of yearlong
sunshine (as our skies are overcast for a significant time of the year and also dust accumulation
reduces further efficiency to the PV cell which actually is not efficient enough to capture the amount
of energy available during a sunny day). NiCd batteries or other forms of storage devices that may
be charged during daytime to supply power for night time also is expensive & not environmentally
friendly to dispose of. It is rather effective in only remote off grid scenarios.
using LED lights can drastically reduce electricity consumption, community washing machines can
reduce water usage & efficient ventilation system can reduce further artificial cooling loads.
rather we have ample rainfall during most of the year, that can be harvested in a pool type reservoir
that can be used for bathing, swimming, washing etc.
rain/surface runoff water can be percolated& collected via French drains to the pool also or used
for gardening, washing water etc.
Lightweight materials & screen walls: hollow blocks are used to reduce use of burnt bricks that
deplete the top soil & is responsible for significant environmental pollutions. Hollow blocks not only
reduce weight & cost but also provide good thermal & acoustic insulation compared to equivalent
weight of brick.
ease of construction: partial prefabrication can provide flexibility, easy transportation and fast
assemblage. Common walls provide a rigid grid which becomes the basic structure of the whole
settlement and defines each property too.
growth & malleability: after construction, the whole complex is anticipated to be
transformed by the inhabitants to a degree not foreseeable now, yet thoughtful adaptations are not
restricted as far as it doesn’t disturb the essence & aesthetic of the project. success is not in the
transformation of a typology, rather it is in the process of replication & diversification of it.
Bottom up methods aimed towards cultural expression does not necessarily ensure proper living
conditions, neither does an entirely top down design ensure exactitude. Rather an active & sincere
effort from the government & entrepreneurs & patronage from architects can only shift from a
stereotypical approach -towards a housing that capitalizes on the flexibility of evolutionary
organic nature of informal settlements and the ethos originated from the marriage of
modernist ideologies pragmatic enough to be socially motivated.
any housing would be fully understood when the typology is repeated later on in the vicinity
or in other contexts, through its evolution through time. it is absolutely imperative to make a
modular prototype with certain incremental provisions, if mass housing is to spread in different
locations of Bangladesh as a model of success.