Cost effective

construction techniques
Seminar presentation
By-sayali darakh
2nd yr. B.arch
Mit,a:bad
Guided by-ar.prof.madhura yadav
 Background -
The important need and everyone's dream
to have there own home with individual
needs.
Since India is a developing country, the
economy haves importance. The housing is
so impacted with the cost based
construction.
So, there are various cost effective
techniques of construction. Lots of them are
also energy efficient and easily adoptable.
 Justification-
Essential requirement to human existence is a
HOME next only to food and clothing. A
breakthrough for application of sustainable and
cost effective technologies for better housing in
rural and urban areas is an urgent need
considering spiraling construction costs.

There is a need for the adoption of strong, durable,

environment friendly, ecologically appropriate,
energy efficient and yet cost effective materials
and appropriate technologies in construction.
 Introduction-
ar. Laurie baker is one who worked on cost
effective construction techniques as its best.
Baker showed, in fact, that sustainable
technologies when adopted with care and
creativity, could lead to a unique architectural
expression, one that moved the expert and the
layman alike.
Proper materials is the basic need to develop
any construction technique.
Brick, wood, stone are three major materials
which can be used in India for any type of
construction.
 Factors affecting
construction cost estimation-
Building Cost-
The building construction cost can be divided into
two parts namely:
Building material cost : 65 to 70 %
Labor cost : 65 to 70 %

Size-Thesmaller the project in terms of scope or

the number of square feet, the more it will cost per
square foot.

Type-Differenttypes of project have different

levels of complexity and detail.
 Special Construction
Complexity can greatly increase the cost of
the project. For exp-Renovation, especially if
it requires altering or moving structural
components, can be costly because it
necessitates demolition as well as building.
Special construction may also be necessary
to shield surrounding spaces from noise, fire
and other hazards.
Project accessibility
Labor Rates
Material Costs
General Economic Pressures
Time of Year
 These were the
factors affecting the
budget of making any
structure but we are
here to know more
about the
construction
techniques- the
techniques which
helps us in reducing
the cost of structure.
So, lets move towards
the techniques
Cost-effective building materials and construction
technologies Research and development bodies in India
are-

Central Building Research Institute (CBRI),

Structural Engineering Research Centre

(SERC),

Centre for Application of Science and

Technology to Rural Areas (CASTRA),

Regional Research Laboratories (RRL),

National Environmental Engineering Research

Institute (NEERI)
 a)Stabilized compressed earth
blocks are made of mud stabilized
with 5% cement/lime etc. and
compacted in block making
MATERIALS machine with no burning. A good
walling material as burnt bricks and
is economical, stronger, energy
saving and simple to manufacture.

b) Fly ash gypsum stabilized
mud blocks are much stronger
with less water absorption and
cheaper than cement stabilized
blocks. With 5 to 10% flyash- G,
30% saving in cement could be
achieved in addition to utilization of
the waste product like flyash.
 c) Flyash- lime gypsum products
manufactured by blending flyash lime
and calcined gypsum for making a useful
product named Fal-G , and can be used a
cementations material for mortar/plaster
MATERIALS and for masonry blocks of any desired
strength. It can also be used for road
pavements and plain concrete in the form
of Fal-G concrete.

d) Clay red mud burnt bricks

produced from alumina red mud or
bauxite, an industrial waste of aluminium
producing plants in combination with
clay. Posses all the physical properties of
normal clay bricks and solves the
problem of disposal of the waste product
and environmental pollution. In addition,
they have good architectural value as
facing bricks due to their pleasing hues of
color.
 e)Precast stone blocks of larger size
than normal bricks are manufactured by
using waste stone pieces of various sizes
with lean cement concrete and enable a
rationalized use of natural locally
MATERIALS available materials. Shaping stones in
this manner, enables speedy construction
saves on cement, reduces thickness of
stone walls and effects overall saving by
eliminating plasters on internal/external
wall surfaces.

f) Precast concrete blocks made to

similar dimension of stone blocks without
large size stone pieces, but using coarse
and fine graded cement. They have
excellent properties comparable to other
masonry blocks, are cheaper and
facilitate speedy construction and
especially suitable where quality clay for
bricks making is not available.
Cost
effective
appropriate
technologies
are-
Foundation- Random rubble masonry in
mud/cement mortar placed
in excavation over thick
sand bed. Rubble pointing
above ground level in
stabilized cement mortar.
Use of lean cement
concrete mix 1:8:16 for
base with brick masonry in
1:6 cement mortar
footings.
Use of lean cement
concrete mix as above for
base and over burned
bricks masonry in cement
lime mortar (1:2:12)
footings.
Arch foundations in place
of spread foundations
 Foundation costs-
Normally the foundation cost comes to about
10 to 15% of the total building .
It is recommended to adopt a foundation depth
of 2 ft.(0.6m) for normal soil like gravely soil,
red soils etc.
It is suggested to adopt arch foundation in
ordinary soils.
In case of black cotton and other soft soils, it is
recommend to use under ream pile foundation
which saves about 20 to 25% in cost over the
conventional method of construction.
 Arch foundation-
This type of foundation was
used in olden times where
in spread foundation is
replaced by inverted arch .
It reduces the construction
cost up to 40%
Advantage of this is-In soft
soils that the depth of
foundation can be greatly
reduced; disadvantage is
that the end piers have to
be specially strengthened
by buttresses so as to avoid
the thrust to arch action
tending to rapture the piers
junction.
Plinth It is recommended to
adopt 1 ft. height above
ground level for the plinth
and may be constructed
with a cement mortar of
1:6.
The plinth slab of 4 to 6
which is normally adopted
can be avoided and in its
place brick on edge can be
used for reducing the cost.
By adopting this procedure
the cost of plinth
foundation can be reduced
by about 35 to 50%.
 walls
Brick work in 1:6 cement mortar using bricks from
black cotton and inferior soil stabilized with fly-
ash.
Rat-trap bond brick work in 1:2:12 cement lime
mortar/1:1.5:3 cement sand mortar.
Hollow concrete block masonry in cement mortar.
Compressed mud blocks masonry in mud mortar.
Stabilized mud blocks masonry (4% cement or
lime) in stabilized mud mortar.
Sand lime brick walls in 1:6 cement mortar.
FAL-G sand block with 1:6 cement mortar.
 While laying bricks, the
manner in which they
overlap is called the
bond.
The rat-trap bond is
laid by placing the bricks
on their sides having a
cavity of 4? (100 mm),
with alternate course of
stretchers and
headers.The headers
and stretchers are
staggered in subsequent
layers to give more
strength to the walls.
 This technology has about
25% overall-saving on cost
of a building of traditional 9"
construction. The structure
has proven its strength to go
up to three floors with the
support of brick columns. With
this technique there is
reduction in cost of the wall by
25% as with conventional
English bond (9thk wall)
350 bricks are required per
cu. m whereas in Rat-trap
bond only 280 bricks are
required and also the
reduced number of joints
reduces the mortar
consumption.
Brick jali THE COMMON BURNT BRICK IS
ONE OF MANS GREAT
INVENTIONS. ALL OVER THE
WORLD, WITH ONLY A FEW
EXCEPTIONS, NEARLY ALL
BRICKS ARE ROUGHLY THE
SAME SHAPE AND SIZE - THAT
IS ABOUT 9 X 4.5 X 3 INCHES.

INMANY OF THESE
SITUATIONS LISTED ABOVE A
JALI IS JUST AS EFFECTIVE.
FAR FROM BEING A LOT MORE
COSTLY THAN THE BASIC
WALL, IF MADE OF BRICK IT
CAN BE LESS COSTLY THAN
THE HOUSE WALL!
 BRICK JALI
More uses- CAN BE
USED
INSTEAD OF
PARAPET
WALL OR
BOUNDARY
WALLS...
LETSWATC
H OUT FOR
SOME
EXAMPLES..
..
 Instead of using
regular walling
system of lintel
and window
system ,jali work
can help cost
estimation.

Climate
consideration and
use of local
materials helps
maintaining
economy than the
general rcc
 More methods-

Soil cement block technology

this method of construction of wall is by soil cement blocks in
place of burnt bricks masonry. It is an energy efficient method
of construction where soil mixed with 5% and above cement
and pressed in hand operated machine and cured well and
then used in the masonry. The overall economy that could be
achieved with the soil cement technology is about 15 to 20%
compared to conventional method of construction.

Concrete block walling

In view of high energy consumption by burnt brick it is
suggested to use concrete block (block hollow and solid)
which consumes about only 1/3 of the energy of the burnt
bricks in its production. Concrete block masonry saves mortar
consumption, speedy construction of wall resulting in higher
output of labor, plastering can be avoided thereby an overall saving of
10 to 25% can be achieved.
Roofs Domes and vaults in
brick or stabilized mud
block with appropriate
mortar.
Upgraded thatch roof on
appropriate frame work.
Pre-cast RCC L panel
Precast RCC cored units
in M15 concrete.
Precast RCC channel
units in M15 concrete
Precast Waffle units in
M15 concrete
Burnt clay tube roofing
in vault form.
 Roofs/ intermediate slabs
Filler slabs
Partly precast RCC planks and joist in M15 concrete.
Partly precast RCC joist and brick panels
Partly precast RCC in hollow concrete blocks
Thin RCC ribbed slabs
Ferrocement channels
Brick funicular shell on edge beam
Bamboo reinforced concrete
Brick funicular shells with RCC edge beams
Brick jack arched over RCC joist
Precast RCC cored units in M15 concrete.
Precast RCC channel units in M15 concrete
Ferrocemen Provide an economic
t solution to RCC slab by
providing 30 to 40%
channel/she cost reduction on
floor/roof unit over RCC
ll unit slabs without
compromising the
strength. These being
precast, construction is
speedy, economical due
to avoidance of
shuttering and facilitate
quality control.
Jack arch
roof/floor
They are easy to
construct, save
on cement and
steel, are more
appropriate in hot
climates. These
can be
constructed using
compressed earth
blocks also as
alternative to
bricks for further
economy.
 The filler slab is based on the principle
that for roofs which are simply
supported, the upper part of the slab

Filler slab- is subjected to compressive forces and

the lower part of the slab experience
tensile forces. Concrete is very good in
technique withstanding compressive forces and
steel bears the load due to tensile
forces. Thus the lower tensile region of
the slab does not need any concrete
except for holding the steel
reinforcements together.

Therefore in a conventional RCC slab

lot of concrete is wasted and it needs
extra reinforcement due to added load
of the concrete which can otherwise
be replaced by low-cost and light
weight filler materials, which will
reduce the dead weight as well as the
cost of the slab to 25% (as 40%
less steel is used and 30% less
concrete)


The The filler slab is a mechanism to

replace the concrete in the tension

mechanism
zone. The filler material, thus, is not a
structural part of the slab. By reducing
the quantity and weight of material,
the roof become less expensive, yet
retains the strength of the
conventional slab. The most popular
filler material is the roofing tile.
Mangalore tiles are placed between
steel ribs and concrete is poured into
the gap to make a filler slab. The
structure requires less steel and
cement and it is also a good heat
insulator.

Conventional tests by different

institutions and laboratories has
proved the load bearing capacity of
filler slab and found it no less in
performance from the conventional
R.C.C. slab. Since filler roof tiles are
firmly bonded to and covered by
concrete, it does not collapse under
the impact of say, a coconut falling on
 Benefits-
Saving on cost
The savings on cost can be from 15 per cent to 25 per
cent. But designing a filler slab requires a structural
engineer to determine the spacing between the
reinforcement bars.
Thermal insulation
The air pocket formed by the contours of the tiles makes
an excellent thermal insulation layer. The design
integrity of a filler slab involves careful planning taking
into account the negative zones and reinforcement
areas.
 Patterned
ceilings-

Filler slabs provide aesthetically

pleasing patterned ceilings. In
most houses, the filler material is
left open without plastering to form
aesthetic design symmetry but
some residents prefer to cover the
space with Plaster of Paris coating.
Spanning elements for
Brick arches : Flat, semi
openings circular and segmented
Precast thin lintel and
lintel cum chajja
Brick arch with sand
stone chajja

Door cum window frames

Ferro cement chajjas
Precast RCC frames with
wood insert
Resin bonded saw dust
frame
Polyvinyl chloride frame
Fiber reinforced plastic
frame
 More methods-
Doors and windows
It is suggested not to use wood for doors and
windows and in its place concrete or steel section
frames shall be used for achieving saving in cost
up to 30 to 40%.Similiarly for shutters
commercially available block boards, fibre or
wooden practical boards etc., shall be used for
reducing the cost by about 25.

Lintels and Chajjas

The traditional R.C.C. lintels which are costly can
be replaced by brick arches for small spans and
save construction cost up to 30 to 40% over the
traditional method of construction.

Opening in the form of
arch with local material-
Arches are an
economical and
aesthetic means of
spanning openings.
Arches can be a cost
effective alternative to
the lintels.
The traditional RCC
lintels which are costly
can be replaced by
brick arches for small
spans and save
construction cost up
to 3040% over the
traditional method of
construction.
 Plantation timber styles
Door panels with particle board
inserts.
Medium density fiber
board doors.
Cement bonded particle
board
Plantation timber style
with rice husk board
inserts
Red mud polymer panel
doors.
High density Ferrocement doors
fi berboard Polyvinyl chloride doors
doors panels.
Finishing Work-The cost of
finishing items
like sanitary,
electricity,
painting etc.,
varies depending
upon the type
and quality of
products used in
the building and
its cost reduction
is left to the
individual choice
and liking.
Ar. Lourie baker and
his works- The
HAMLET-
lourie
bakers
home

Interior of
living room Baker
workin
Surface
g
treatment
on site
By Using
Waste
 Concluding summery-
Is the circulation space economical &
functional & not wasteful? (i.e. passages,
corridors, stairs, access verandas & so on).

Study local climate & make use of wind

directions (to reduce power consumption)
& aspect(To prevent unnecessary heat
absorption).

Make proper use of land gradients

contours, natural existing features.
 As much as possible use energy free, or
energy-less materials, that is, material, for
which very little energy is used in their
manufacture (e.g. cement & lime are made
from the same basic materials but cement
uses 100 times more energy) .The result for
mortars & plasters is equal.

Remember that what is good for Kerala is

not necessarily good for Kashmir. What works
well in Bihar may be disastrous in Rajasthan
etc. Study local indigenous architecture &
use its principles even when using modern
materials indigenous architecture represents
thousands of years of R&D.
 Avoid currently fashionable gimmicks. They are
almost always an addition that may be eye-
catching but are invariably an extra expense
and unjustifiable.

Use local plentifully available inexpensive

(comparatively) materials .Avoid importing
(from other districts) much as possible.

Insist on accurate mixes & mixing of plasters,

mortars, concretes. Dont use over rich mixtures

Dont forget to apply common sense to all you

design & do.
 REFERANCES-
http://www.gharexpert.com
http://www.fs.fed.us
http://www.greenstone.org
http://manajemenproyekindonesia.com/
http://sepindia.org/
http://lauriebaker.net/
Low cost housing- an analogical study of
the current practices & technologies by-
vastu shilpa foundation
Thank you