Expert advises FG on prefabricated steel housing prototypes for mass housing
Prototype
By Ella Anokam
Abuja, Aug. 16, 2018 (NAN) A housing and construction expert, Mr Chibunna Amaefula, has urged the Federal and State Governments to adopt the prefabricated steel housing type to achieve mass housing in the country.
Amaefula, Head of Technical, Metrotile Nigeria Limited, Abuja gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.
Amaefula, an architect spoke on the sideline of the ongoing 2018 ARCHIBUILT Expo on the environment, shelter, construction, building materials and technologies.
According to him, the prefabricated steel structure called Telluria Building System is made up of Aluminuim and Steel (Alusteel) and can be used for houses and public buildings.
The expert said that the housing type had advantages over the normal sandcrete due to its benefits including timeliness, affordability and durability, which could stand the test of time, especially in mass housing.
He described Telluria prefabricated housing as a technology, which could be used in rural areas for mass housing, “because of its fastness in terms of installation, adding that the house could be completed and occupied in one week.
“The Federal Government can use the building system for mass housing for timely delivery and affordability.
“The building is cost effective, safe, fast, sustainable and movable; you can dismantle it and position it in another area.
“When it comes to strength, it can serve as bullet proof and fire proof in terms of fire disaster.
“It also has mass concrete base at the foundation to fortify the strength of the building structure,’’ he said.
Amaefula further noted that its construction system was designed in such a way that the walls could be filled with sand, improving insulation and giving the structure additional solidity.
He added that for the affordability and timeliness should be considered while trying to bridge the housing deficit in the country because of the cost of sandcrete building and its long period of completion.
“The housing type is 20 per cent cheaper then sandcrete housing type because in sandcrete there will be moulding and laying of blocks, plastering, screeding, and painting with different labourers and artisans.
“But in Telluria prefabricated building system, everything has been already taken care of; just to install the structures and roofing then the occupants take over.
The expo has its theme as “Driving Nigeria Architecture through Technology’’. (NAN)
UU/ELLA/GOM/AFA
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Edited by Gregory Mmaduakolam/Felix Ajide