Exploring the Potentialities of Industrialized Building System as an Appropriate Low-Income Housing Alternative in the Sudan

Abstract

Housing provision for the poor is one of the major challenges facing governments in developing countries including Sudan. The acute housing problem in Sudan can be due to a number of limitations including lack of finance, shortages of processed building materials, lack of experienced labor force, limited construction technologies, and poor transportation means. The aim of this research is to investigate the potential of industrialized building technology for low-cost housing provision in Sudan. The methodology consists of a theoretical background (2nd hand data - literature review) and 1st hand data (interviews, case study, and survey questionnaires); analysis, and evaluation. Finally, a survey questionnaire is used to apply the developed matrix through rating the performance of conventional and industrialised building systems according to each factor of the identified criteria. Data will be analysed quantitatively and qualitatively to identify the feasibility of either building system for housing the poor in Sudan. The study surveys are comprised of three aspects; developing the analysis framework, formulating and conducting/issuing, both the interviews and the questionnaires. The Multi-Criteria Comparative Feasibility Matrix (MCCFM) is the analysis tool adopted for comparative analysis between the two building systems. The survey is based on the MCCFM tool as the interviews add an aspect of importance and the questionnaires provide an aspect of performance. The survey is important as the factors must be analysed through the performance of either building system. The Data analysis objective is comprised of three aspects, thus; applying the analysis framework, graphing the results, and commentary, and analysis on the results. Applying the analysis framework entails the processing of the data obtained from the interviews and questionnaires and applying such data into the MCCFM analysis tool so that it derives a final value that reflects the value of the feasibility. The MCCFM multiplies the values of importance with the values of performance; this is done for each factor of the criteria and for each building system respectively. The conclusions score for each respective factor of each building system. This is done for each of the three matrices) government, contractor, and end-user). The score reflects the value of each building system with the respective criteria. These scores are summed up together to derive a final score for each perspective group, then those scores are summed together to derive a final score for the whole study. The building system with the highest score is deemed the best option. The study recommends that the government adopt industrial building technology as an effective and alternative solution for housing the poor in Sudan. The study also aims to support government initiatives to house the poor in Sudan. The research work presented in this study is real and has never been done before in Sudan. The results of the study are highly debatable because of its importance, its importance to government-subsidized housing objectives, its effective effects on the initiative, and its performance for low-income housing in Sudan. Keywords: Social housing, Conventional construction system, industrial construction system, analytical tools, sustainable development.