Low Cost High Quality

The results of the Low Cost High Quality Research have been published in German.
—Sacha Menz, Dominik Bastianello: Vom Kostengünstigen Wohnungsbau zur Dichten Raumorganisation; Professur für Architektur und Bauprozess; Zürich, 2015 

Abstract

With the research focus ‘Low Cost – High Quality’, the Chair of Architecture and Building Process explores economic considerations in residential building practice. The Neues Bauen movement of the early twen tieth century stands as a key reference, pivotal in the advent of housing research and the relevance of costbenefit factors in building construction, which are acquiring new importance in light of increasing need for efficient resource management. The shifting dynamic in Swiss residential construction provides the opportunity to evaluate this trend. Whereas just a few years ago row houses and blocks with apartments leading off an external corridor were widespread, the dominant style of new housing is now apartment blocks with three or more units per floor grouped around a common access point. We can therefore examine the varying characteristics of different residential building types and their impact on production costs, as well as land and energy consumption. At present we are evaluating 20 completed residential projects in these terms, as well as by project-specific factors related to morphology, volumes, surface areas, parking, apartment types, construction, schedules, and project organisation. We are analyzing and compar ing the collected data in several related sub-studies, with particular emphasis on ascertaining principles for reliable, informative, and relevant comparisons between residential buildings.