Alternative Building Technologies for Low- Income Housing in Cape Town, South Africa An Interactive Qualifying Project Report Submitted to the Faculty of WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Science Submitted by: Brendan Grady Dante Muzila Kate O’Neill Arden Tanner Cape Town, South Africa Project Center Submitted on: Dec. 12, 2019 Submitted to: Professor Melissa Belz, Worcester Polytechnic Institute Professor Thidi Tshiguvho, Worcester Polytechnic Institute Duke Gumede Sponsor: City of Cape Town Department of Human Settlements This report represents the work of four WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review. For more information about the projects program at WPI, please see: http://www.wpi.edu/Academics/Projects Abstract Innovations in building materials are revolutionizing home-building, allowing homes to be constructed in a faster, cheaper, and more environmentally friendly manner. This project aimed to assist the City of Cape Town Department of Human Settlements (DHS) in implementing alternative building technologies in Breaking New Ground (BNG) housing projects. We interviewed BNG housing residents, DHS officials, and industry professionals, in addition to researching available alternative building technologies in South Africa. We identified areas in which BNG housing can be improved and how alternative materials can help the DHS better serve the needs of Cape Town’s low-income population. Furthermore, we provided guidance for how these technologies can be successfully implemented by the DHS. i Executive Summary BNG Development in Delft BNG Construction in Atlantis Purpose to increase the cost- rights of black South Africans, Africans (RDP Housing, 2017). In Cape Town, South Africa, efficiency, deliverability, and segregated neighborhoods, and In 2004, the RDP was updated thousands of families live in quality of government-built low- gave legal justification for the and renamed the Breaking New inadequate and informal housing income housing. Our team’s goal forcible removal of thousands of Ground (BNG) program to conditions where their health and was to help the DHS explore non-white South Africans provide free housing to low- physical well-being is put at risk different alternative building from their homes. Although income South Africans (Breaking every day. Our sponsor, the City technologies and recommend apartheid ended in 1994, it left a New Ground, 2004). However, of Cape Town Department of ways in which these technologies legacy of housing inequality and with over 350,000 households Human Settlements (DHS), is could be implemented and used inadequacy across the country awaiting BNG housing on the working to provide low-income to improve low-income (Clark, 2019). city’s housing registry, the housing and build formal housing. government struggles to satisfy communities to better the lives of Background In 1994, the Reconstruction and the high demand for affordable impoverished South The apartheid era had a Development Program (RDP) housing. Africans. The department views tremendous impact on housing in was created to alleviate poverty alternative building technologies South Africa and Cape Town. and social ailments by providing While government-built (ABTs) as a potential way Apartheid restricted the property low-income housing to housing often provides residents previously disadvantaged South with improved living conditions, ii residents still face a multitude of technologies. To achieve this and allowed the team to interviews we gained information problems in low-income housing goal, we focused determine where alternative about construction methods and developments. Overcrowding, on five objectives. building technologies could be the available alternative building improper construction, and 1. Evaluate safety implemented to make technologies in South Africa. structural defects commonly conditions in select BNG improvements. This helped us provide a more have adverse effects on people’s housing developments in informative report to the DHS. safety and health in these Cape Town The team also conducted semi- Outcomes communities (Buys, 2013). 2. Determine cost structured interviews with Finding 1: Most quality issues These conditions leave many feasibility of various various alternative building with BNG homes are not residents feeling dissatisfied with alternative building technologies suppliers and related to the building their home. technologies in comparison construction companies. These materials. BNG to conventional building interviews focused on addressing residents reported seven Alternative building technologies methods the qualities of the technologies, main maintenance issues with provide a wide range of benefits 3. Assess residents’ public perceptions, and cost. The their BNG home: faulty that could help improve the satisfaction with BNG cost data was compiled windows, broken doors, leaky quality of BNG housing and housing to conduct a cost analysis water faucets, leaky ceilings, better residents’ lives. However, 4. Determine public between conventional and cracks, mold, and faulty public resistance to ABTs exists perceptions of implementing alternative building toilets. Of these seven issues, because brick and mortar housing alternative building methods. Through these is the cultural norm in South technologies Africa. Many low-income South 5. Identify suitable Africans aspire to live in a brick alternative building and mortar house and expect technologies for future their BNG house to be built with Department of Human these conventional building Settlements projects. materials (Aigbayboa, 2018). In Methods addition, low-income To complete these objectives, the communities can be resistant to team conducted semi-structured ABTs because they perceive interviews with residents in them to be of lesser quality and four different BNG untrustworthy (Warrington, developments: Delft, 2013). Belhar, Fisantekraal, and Atlantis. BNG housing Project Objectives residents were asked a variety of The goal of this project was to questions with themes relating to help the DHS improve the satisfaction, safety, and public quality, safety, and cost- perceptions of building efficiency of BNG housing in materials. This information was Cape Town through the used to determine the current utilization of alternative building conditions of BNG housing iii only the cracked walls and mold found that while many BNG tradesmen allowing the DHS to opening the bidding process to can potentially be attributed to beneficiaries distrust the quality employ more unskilled laborers. anyone interested. We found that the house’s building technology of alternative building materials, While ABTs may reduce the total the current tendering process and materials. Certain ABTs can there is a general lack of number of people employed by a emphasizes three areas: supply help mitigate the occurrence of knowledge among BNG BNG project, they allow a chain, prior implementation of cracked walls and mold; residents of what an alternative greater percentage of the labor the proposed building however, the implementation of building material is. People are force to be comprised of technology, and cost of each ABTs will not solve the other distrustful of non-conventional unskilled laborers from the local housing unit. In all three of these reported maintenance issues building materials because they community. categories, conventional building because these issues are not have been primarily exposed to materials have an edge over the related to the houses’ building one type of housing (brick and Finding 5: The current available alternatives, often materials. mortar) and as a result are tendering process favors causing the DHS to award unaware of how ABTs can be conventional building tenders to bidders who use Finding 2: Residents have used to construct quality housing. materials and makes it difficult conventional building concerns for their personal However, the team found that for the DHS to implement methods. The tendering process health and safety in BNG negative perceptions of ABTs ABTs in BNG poses a major obstacle to the homes. Residents can be overcome, and people developments. The tendering DHS if they wish to implement overwhelmingly identified become more accepting of ABTs process was created to ensure alternative building technologies ventilation as the key issue they once they physically experience a that the DHS hires the most in future BNG projects. thought the government could house built from alternative suitable candidate for the improve in future BNG housing. methods. construction of BNG homes by Residents reported that they and their family members had fallen Finding 4: Before ill in the past because of the lack implementing ABTs the DHS of ventilation in their house. We must consider how ABTs may also found that residents have impact employment concerns regarding crime and opportunities on BNG gangsterism in their communities projects. The effect that ABTs because of South Africa’s high have on labor creates dueling crime rate. This is apparent from consequences for the DHS. The residents’ desires for a closed labor-saving qualities of ABTs yard and burglar bars to make conflict with the DHS’s goal of them feel safer. utilizing labor-intensive construction methods to provide Finding 3: Negative public economic stimulus to the