Affordable housing using industrialized construction: a market-based standardization of housing units in India

Achieving affordable and mass-housing using industrialized construction needs robust space standardization of housing units. However, such standardization may fall short of market acceptance and result in a bad investment. Therefore, linking the market trend in developing space standardization is crucial, yet much less reported in the literature. This paper aims to develop market-oriented space standards for the mid-income group in India. The main purpose of developing affordable space standards is to create a set of modular design prototypes that can be translated into mass construction through a component-based open and Industrialized Building System (IBS). The paper uses a market study to assess the market trends of existing housing space standards in the National Capital Region around Delhi. Following the literature review, the paper sequentially presents the context, analysis, results, recommendations, and discussions. Dimensions for activity spaces of the housing module with attachment options are proposed in the range of 43.7 sq.m to 95.04 sq. m, including five unit prototypes. The industry will benefit from the developed design standards to manufacture large-scale housing. This paper provides a framework for developing similar space standards for other income groups in different contexts.