moladi plastic shutter formwork used in construction of affordable earthquake proof homes

New Building System

2011-03-27T02:09:00.000-07:00

New Building System New construction technology

Description - New Building System New construction technology - moladi new building construction system

New Building System
moladi construction technology

Keywords - New building construction technology, Cast Wall, New Building System, building technology, construction technology, building construction technology, building, new building system, construction, moladi technology, building cost, new construction technology, cast wall, fast, New Building System, moladi construction technology

Building houses to resist earthquakes

2011-03-12T14:10:00.000-08:00

Building houses to resist earthquakes

Prefab houses floating after tsunami struck Japan

It is as vital to ensure that the building can also withstand the tsunami that will follow if at the coast
Keywords - japan prefab homes, earthquakes, houses, construction, wood, survival, home building, safety, moladi, proof, tsunami, float, danger

Affordable Housing Solutions

2010-12-26T01:20:00.000-08:00

Affordable Housing Solutions

Affordable Housing Solutions housing construction projects

Affordable housing solution

For more information visit http://www.moladi.net/

Keywords - Affordable Housing Solutions, housing developments, affordable housing construction, moladi, formwork, construction technology, government housing, affordable African housing projects, government affordable housing projects, affordable bulk housing developments, Affordable Housing technology solution to global housing backlog, affordable housing for the masses, affordable housing construction technology, affordable housing construction application, affordable housing backlog

Moladi – an affordable housing solution for the poor

2010-12-25T13:03:00.000-08:00

Moladi – an affordable housing solution for the poor

Moladi – an affordable housing solution for the poor? Case study now available.

Written by carina
Monday, 13 December 2010 18:51

Pierre Coetzer is an associate at Reciprocity, a development consultancy based in Cape Town. He holds an MA in International Relations and Public Affairs from the University of Louvain (UCL) in Belgium, and a BA in Business Management from ICHEC in Brussels. He has seven years experience in Finance and Investment banking with Arthur Andersen in Luxembourg and Euroclear Bank in Brussels. He moved to Cape Town in 2007 to work as an independent analyst on socio-economic and political issues affecting countries in transition, with a special focus on Southern Africa. Within Reciprocity, Pierre is mainly in charge of researching, writing and publishing factsheets on inclusive business models and other initiatives aimed at expanding choice and opportunity for people at the base of the economic pyramid. He holds dual South African and French citizenship and is fluent in French, Afrikaans, English, and German.

Moladi is a South African company that utilizes a unique plastic injection molded technology to produce cast-in-place mortar structures. The process allows unskilled laborers to use indigenous materials to quickly and cheaply construct high standard permanent buildings that are earthquake, cyclone and tsunami resistant.
To download the Moladi case study from the GIM database, please click here.

What has been your personal experience going through the GIM training and case research process?
The GIM training was an excellent experience as it allowed me to get a clear understanding of the needs and wants of the GIM team and meet with several of the key personalities involved in the process. The research process back in South Africa took a while to gain momentum, as it took some time to convince Moladi to become a subject of a case study. Once the site visit and interviews had taken place, however, it was much easier to liaise with the company’s founder, and visualize the technology and understand what gave Moladi so much potential.
What is Moladi’s basic value proposition and what makes its financial model sustainable?
Moladi produces and sells a revolutionary construction technology based on pre-cast plastic panels, which are then assembled into casts into which concrete is poured to form extremely solid walls. The openings for windows, sewage and electricity are all pre-cast and don’t need to be cut out later on. One the basic frame of the building is cast, a roof is installed and the unit is ready for use. The technology can be used to build schools and clinics, for example, and this has great potential all over the developing world. By far the most interesting application, however, is for low-cost housing: a functional 40m2 unit can be built for the equivalent of US $ 6,500 – 7,000, a much lower amount than the equivalent built with traditional brick-and-mortar methods. Moladi makes its money by selling this technology to contractors in building projects around the developing world.
What have been the biggest challenges hindering Moladi’s development and growth?
It was clear, speaking to the founder, that political factors played a big role in hindering Moladi’s development and growth inside the country. Low-cost housing projects in South Africa are steeped in politics and winning tenders sometimes has more to do with political connections than with the quality of the offering. This might explain why Moladi has been much more successful in winning contracts outside of its home market: it has been very successful in other emerging markets such as Nigeria, Ghana, Mexico and India.
Another challenge is perhaps the founder’s fear of losing control over his company. Viewed from the outside, Moladi could probably gain significant scale by partnering with an outside investor.
What are the main challenges in terms of providing housing for the poor in South Africa and also more broadly in developing countries?
The main challenge is political. Housing policies and urban planning in South Africa are still heavily influenced by factors inherited from apartheid, and despite one of the world’s biggest housing programmes, driven by government, shantytowns and slums keep growing in size near the big cities. It may even be misguided to think that the solution resides in more formal housing in the wrong places and futile attempts to “eradicate” slums (as some of the official terminology would have it).
Better long term solutions may involve accepting that “slums” are likely to remain part of the urban landscape of developing countries for some time to come, and resources could be better spent at providing access to services such as efficient energy, sanitation, sewage, and the gradual upgrading of shacks. This is not to say that shacks are preferable to formal housing, of course, but current housing policies in many parts of the world sometimes fail to take into account the dynamics that drive people to build shacks where they do, and why.
Moladi should maybe seize on the opportunities presented by the upgrading of informal dwellings, as its wall-building technology could prove to be affordable, job-creating and very reliable.
What are the promises in terms of human development of access to affordable housing?
A house provides security and shelter, two of the most important pillars of material human well-being (the third and fourth being health and income). So gaining access to affordable (and adequate) housing is a fundamental indicator of human development. However, it must be said that owning a house is not automatically a step out of poverty: the maintenance costs of a formal dwelling compared to a shack can actually aggravate poverty in some cases. This is why, in South Africa at least, so many people who are allocated a low-cost house in terms of the government housing programme rent it out to others and move back into a shack: from an economic point of view, this is a perfectly rational decision that maximizes return on assets. In the long run, of course, access to affordable adequate housing promises to significantly improve the lives of the poor and form one basis of material progress.

Keywords - UNDP, moladi, hennie botes, housing for the poor, affordable housing, wall-building technology, poverty, Pierre Coetzer, concrete homes, human settlements

Affordable housing units for Ghana

2010-12-25T10:15:00.000-08:00

Affordable housing units for Ghana

Affordable housing units for Ghana

Hennie Botes - CEO moladi

Mr Botes - MD of Moladi In most cities in Ghana, low-income earners cannot afford good quality housing. They either rent usually in poor quality overcrowded dwellings or build in illegal settlements. They cannot get conventional housing finance because their homes are in illegal settlements and they lack the income or formal documentation that housing finance agencies require. In order to address this problem and provide affordable housing units for Ghanaians, Moladi, an international low cost housing construction company based in South Africa is gearing up to launch an affordable housing unit in Ghana. The company has successfully built housing units using the moladi plastic construction concrete framework for over two decades. The company which arrived in the country last week said it has already conducted a number of feasibility studies on the country's housing sector. The company has developed a technology for producing low cost housing, mainly intended for third world countries, by a patented process of reusable plastic formwork. The process involves creating a mould in the form of the complete house. This wall mould is then filled with an aerated form of mortar. The process is also claimed to be faster than traditional methods. Moladi has been a pioneer in the development of alternative housing systems, since its inception in 1986, with housing projects having been built successfully in over 15 countries over the past 22 years. The Managing Director of the company, Hennie Botes, told the media in Accra that moladi system involves the use of a removable, reusable, recyclable and lightweight plastic formwork mould to produce a durable and permanent structure, which has been subject to numerous tests and independent reports. “As the system is not pre-fabricated off the building site or dependant on skilled labour, the use of the moladi system allows for local, unskilled labour to be employed,” he stated Women, who have traditionally been either reluctant or discouraged from working within the male-dominated sector, are encouraged to participate in the non-labour intensive building process, Mr Botes added. He explained further that the process involves assembling a mould the size of the designed house, with all the electrical services, plumbing and steel reinforcing located within the wall structure, which is filled with a South African Bureau of Standards approved lightweight mortar to form all the walls of the house simultaneously. The method, he noted, eliminates the time and labour intensive work of chasing, beam filling, plastering and generates no waste.

By Felix Dela Klutse

Keywords - Affordable housing, housing units, housing Ghana, low-income, quality housing, settlements, human settlements, moladi formwork system, reusable plastic formwork, Hennie Botes, recyclable

Build cheap houses - moladi builds cost effective

2010-12-25T04:26:00.000-08:00

Build houses cheaply cheap houses not cheap but cost effectively

Build cheap houses - moladi builds cost effective

Build houses cheaply cheap houses not cheap but cost effectively
Cheap houses Cheap homes Cheap housing construction - not poor quality

New moladi WEBSITE
Build houses cheaply

moladi Affordable low cost - not cheap house building system

About - moladi Patent Building Construction System

Uses of moladi Patent Building Construction System
Build low cost homes
Build low cost houses
Build low cost classrooms
Build double storey homes
Construct multi storey homes
Construct quality walls fast
Cheap not nasty
Optimizing time and eliminating waste
cost of housing
reduce cost to build houses

moladi Affordable low cost - not cheap house building system
Keywords - Build houses cheaply, cheap houses, not cheap but cost effectively, moladi, reduce waste, quality, eliminating waste, cost housing

Train the unemployed to build homes for the homeless

2010-12-18T13:23:00.000-08:00

Train the unemployed to build homes for the homeless

Talk about an exciting time to be involved with the BoP. Since the world’s wealthiest philanthropist Bill Gates gave his speech about "creative capitalism" in Davos.
Now Mr. Gates is arguing that capitalism, appropriately pursued, is in fact the best hope to bring services and improve productivity and create opportunity for the world's 4 billion poor - and that, accordingly, the world needs to invest much more heavily in the micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises that are close to the poor. If Mr. Gates puts the muscle of his foundation behind such enterprise development - which we have long argued is the principal bottleneck to a successful BOP business approach - then perhaps the world will really change.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is often depicted as a pyramid consisting of five levels: the four lower levels are grouped together as being associated with physiological needs, while the top level is termed growth needs associated with psychological needs. Deficiency needs must be met first. Once these are met, seeking to satisfy growth needs drives personal growth.

Physiological needs
These are the basic animal needs for such things as food, warmth, shelter, sex, water, and other body needs
The higher needs in this hierarchy only come into focus when the lower needs in the pyramid are satisfied. Once an individual has moved upwards to the next level, needs in the lower level will no longer be prioritized.”
The objective of moladi is to address this fundamental need SHELTER.
How?
Lack of resources, insufficient funds, skills shortage, time constraints, work flow control and waste are key challenges embodied in affordable low cost housing shortages. Our construction technology addresses these issues and this is why individuals and organisations recognise and implement moladi as the solution to shelter and housing needs throughout the world

Esteem needs (Ego)
All humans have a need to be respected, to have self-esteem, self-respect, and to respect others. People need to engage themselves to gain recognition and have an activity or activities that give the person a sense of contribution, to feel accepted and self-valued, be it in a profession or hobby. Imbalances at this level can result in low self-esteem, inferiority complexes. People with low self-esteem need respect from others. They may seek fame or glory, which again depends on others. However confidence, competence and achievement only need one person and everyone else is inconsequential to one's own success. It may be noted, however, that many people with low self-esteem will not be able to improve their view of themselves simply by receiving fame, respect, and glory externally, but must first accept themselves internally.
The objective of moladi is to address this fundamental need ESTEEM.
How?
We supply low cost housing technology and support transfer of know-how to empower individuals to achieve worth, by meaningful action to raise those at the “bottom of the pyramid” to a higher level.

moladi utilizes a unique plastic injection molded technology to produce cast-in-place mortar structures. The process allows unskilled laborers to use indigenous materials to quickly and cheaply construct high standard permanent buildings that are earthquake, cyclone and tsunami resistant. With the intended purpose of "housing the nations", the construction technology addresses four key challenges embodied in the low cost housing shortages facing developing countries, namely: lack of resources, insufficient funds, shortage of skills, and time constraints.

Train the unemployed to build homes for the homeless. Read more at http://www.moladi.net/

Keywords - Train the unemployed to build homes for the homeless, Training, train, unemployed, build, homes, homeless, BoP, Maslow, shelter, Physiological needs, bill gates, bottom of the pyramid

Formwork construction-moladi

2010-12-18T09:54:00.000-08:00

Formwork construction-moladi

moladi provide and assist with the full range of requirements involved in the transfer and use of a proven low construction cost technology. We supply technology and support transfer of know-how to empower individuals to achieve worth, by meaningful action to raise those at the "bottom of the pyramid" to a higher level, supplying low cost housing technology.
Cost effective
Affordable homes
Building system
Reinforced structures
Unskilled labour
Reduce carbon footprint
Environmentally friendly building materials
Reuse
Recycle
Green product
Non-toxic building materials
Thermal properties
Speed
Logistics
Quality
Plastic formwork
Alternative building technology
Construction technology
Beyond the brick

Keywords - formwork construction, moladi, Construction technology, Plastic formwork , Create job creators, Create jobs, Create employment, Building system, low cost housing technology

Building houses for the poor

2010-12-09T06:28:00.000-08:00

Building houses for the poor

Housing the poor housing for the poor shelter for the poor

moladi has been supplying its comprehensive formwork construction system, to house the poor, of which the moladi formwork is merely a constituent of this technology, for the past 23 years to house the poor. As a result, we do not simply supply modular plastic formwork, but a holistic building technology, that has been specifically designed and is proven too benefit the end user with its simplicity and ease of use, in order to bring affordable housing to the poor people.

Keywords - Housing the poor housing for the poor shelter for the poor, Building houses for the poor, affordable housing, technology, bop, poor, needy, construct, moladi, shelter, concrete homes

ICF | Insitu Construction Formwork | moladi concrete forms

2009-10-03T11:47:00.000-07:00

ICF Insitu Construction Formwork concrete forms

moladi has been supplying its comprehensive Insitu Construction Formwork - ICF concrete forms construction system, of which the moladi formwork is merely a constituent of this technology, for the past 22 years. As a result, we do not simply supply modular plastic formwork, but a holistic building technology, that has been specifically designed and is proven too benefit the end user with its simplicity and ease of use. moladi has developed a mass cast house system to construct durable structures of quality in the shortest possible time, as speed in wall construction is important. This system has developed into a construction technology that addresses four key challenges embodied in the low cost and affordable housing shortages facing developing countries namely:

lack of resources
insufficient funds
skills shortage
time constraint
work flow control
time constraints
waste

Traditional bricks or blocks are moulded in a small mould and then laboriously stacked by an artisan, sandwiched with mortar to create a wall. The electrical and water pipes are placed by grinding and chasing into the wall. The wall is then plastered to cover the pipes and services, as well as the brickwork, to create a level and smooth surface. A few disadvantages of brick or block construction are:

Labour intensive
Compressive capacity only
Skilled labour
Mortar shrinkage
Thermal expansion and contraction
Leveling
Erratic supplies = erratic delivery
Waste
Rework
Slow delivery
Inconsistent quality
Unpredictable cash flow
Increased cost

The patented technology is cost effective due to its repetitive application. It is affordable due to the fact that the formwork is used on a repetitive basis for up to 50 reuses per kit; this results in the cost of the formwork being amortized over the construction of 50 units. Reducing cost of shipping and transport of formwork panelsBy combing the re-usable, patented, recyclable lightweight plastic injection moulded formwork system, with a South African Bureau of Standards approved lightweight aerated mortar, Agrément Certificate 94/231, a full scale mould of the designed house is configured with all the services, both plumbing and electrical, are cast in situ as a monolithic reinforced walling system. Chasing, beam filling, plastering and wastage are eliminated, producing a fast track, cost effective, transferable construction technology - speeding up mass housing construction.

Key Points:
Holistic building technology
Ease of use
Monolithic reinforced walling system
Fast track, cost effective, transferable construction technology
Use as ICF Insitu Construction Formwork concrete forms, Insitu Construction Formwork, icf, panel, building system, concrete, forms

http://www.moladi.net/

Concrete Homes Magazine Online - Benefits

2009-02-03T13:34:00.001-08:00

Concrete Homes Magazine Online - Benefits

Benefits of Concrete Homes
Why build with concrete? Simply put, it's a better way to build a better home. Here are some of the tangible benefits of building with concrete (click the links for more information):

• Beautiful
Concrete can create any shape or size home that you can imagine

• Built to Last
A concrete home is a solid investment for your family both in terms of value and safety

• Energy Efficient
A concrete home can keep you comfortable year-round and reduce your utility bills

• Low Maintenance
A concrete home requires far less work to keep it looking new

• Environmentally Friendly
Building concrete homes helps save our precious forests

• Quiet and Comfortable
The quiet comfort of concrete makes a concrete home a solid investment in lifestyle

• Solid Investments
A concrete home is a solid investment for your family in terms of value and safety

That's the Beauty of Today's Concrete
There's more than one way to build your concrete home; insulating concrete forms, concrete masonry, aerated concrete, tilt-up concrete, and precast concrete. With volatile wood prices, logging's high environmental price tag, and a growing shortage of high quality lumber, concrete offers a variety of products and construction techniques to provide cost effective, quality alternatives to wood-frame home construction.

All of these systems share the same basic virtues of concrete — beauty, strength, durability, low maintenance, energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, and peace and quiet. The concrete building technique that is right for you depends on the labor force and predominant building practices in your area. Whatever your choice, you can rest assured that your beautiful concrete home is built to last.

Information provided courtesy of the Portland Cement Association.

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Beauty That's More Than Skin Deep
Drive up to a new home today and you probably cannot tell how that home was constructed. That's because the "skin" covering a home - whether it's stucco, brick, wood or vinyl siding - provides the same finished appearance whether it's placed over wood-frame or concrete construction.

How can you tell what type of construction is behind a home's veneer? The walls in an unfinished garage or basement may give you a clue. But the benefits of solid concrete construction aren't apparent at first glance. They only show up years after the home is purchased - in the form of lower maintenance costs and lower energy bills. So, to be sure you make the right home buying decision, always ask the seller or builder what type of construction is behind that beautiful exterior.

Unlimited Possibilities
Concrete can create any shape or size home you can imagine. Because concrete takes any shape or form, it can create an unlimited variety of curves and angles. Concrete's strength can be used to create large open spaces - offering total flexibility in designing your home's floor plan.

Timeless Designs
Whether a Victorian gingerbread home or a Colonial mansion, concrete homes are quiet, easy-to-maintain and safe from fire, hurricanes, termites, and wood rot. Concrete also can be used to create classic, low maintenance floors with patterns similar to classic stonework but with a look all their own.

Contemporary Designs
Should your tastes lean toward traditional or contemporary, the strength and flexibility of concrete can create a home that looks like the 21st Century and, with minimum maintenance, will hold its beauty and value throughout the next century.

Concrete homes are low maintenance and energy efficient—a solid investment for any family.

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Security That's A Solid Investment
Buying a home can be the single largest investment of your life. If that home is constructed with concrete walls, your investment is naturally protected from the structural damage that can be caused by the effects of nature. As the owner of a concrete home, you'll benefit from lower annual maintenance and energy costs while living in a home that provides a secure haven for your family.

The solid investment value of a concrete home is just one of the reasons to ask what type of construction is behind a home's stucco, siding or brick veneer. If the answer isn't "concrete," your investment may be compromised by maintenance and repair costs that could have been avoided or minimized.

Worry-free Living
Fire can endanger the lives of everyone in the family and destroy those things that cannot be replaced. Insurance companies recognize concrete as being safer than any other form of construction when fire threatens a home. Living in a concrete home can bring peace of mind to homeowners concerned about fire.

Safe and Sound
When disaster threatens in the form of hurricanes, tornadoes or wild fires, your family will be safer in a home constructed with concrete walls. It's no accident that concrete is the material of choice for modern day fortresses and disaster shelters. This strong, durable material stands up to the fury of nature; including the more subtle threats of rot, rust, and termites. Today's strongest residential wall systems are made of concrete.

The Quiet Comfort of Home
Besides being stronger and more durable, the mass of a concrete wall provides an added benefit - a reduction in noise entering the home. So be sure to select a sound-proof concrete home when you're looking for a little peace and quiet.

Buying a home is the single largest investment of your life. Invest wisely... in a beautiful concrete home.

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Solid Construction + Better Insulation = Lower Utility Bills
It doesn't take an Einstein to understand why concrete homes are more energy efficient than wood-frame homes. The mass of concrete slows down the passage of heat moving through the wall. This means that, with the same insulation, a concrete home stays warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer than a wood-frame home. Also, a concrete wall doesn't have as many air leaks as a wood-frame wall - and air leakage accounts for a large percentage of energy loss in the home.

Besides having the advantage of mass, today's concrete home building systems all utilize cost effective, highly efficient insulation to keep your home dry and comfortable year round while enjoying the benefits of lower utility bills.

Solid Construction
Concrete forms an integral wall: solid, continuous and airtight. By comparison, a wood-frame wall is a collection of components: studs, sheet rock, sheathing, and insulation. Each joint and connection is a potential air leak. As the air passes through these leaks, it takes your heating and air conditioning with it.

Space Age Insulation
Today's concrete home benefits greatly from progress made in home insulation over the past 20 years. Many insulated concrete wall systems use polystyrene blocks or panels as the concrete formwork into which reinforcing steel and concrete are placed. These polystyrene forms are left in place to give your home an exceptional R-value. For concrete masonry homes, insulation choices range from foiled backed batts to polystyrene panels. Standard hollow masonry units can be filled with insulating materials.

Smart Design = Savings
When designing today's concrete home, smart builders are able to realize considerable savings by using concrete's energy efficiency to justify smaller heating and air conditioning systems. This results in a comfortable home with smaller heating and air conditioning bills. The bottom line is savings are up front and continue through the life of a home.

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Concrete's Low Maintenance = Ownership Made Easy
The beauty of a concrete home is that it requires far less work on the part of the homeowner to keep it looking like new. The three most common causes of exterior wall maintenance are termites, rotting, and paint peeling or fading. Concrete homes are rarely, if ever, affected by termites or rot. Contemporary concrete homes have either wood siding, stucco or brick facade, concrete textures, or other concrete products as finishes; all do not require paint.

This translates into a concrete home costing less to own than a wood-frame or wood veneer home.

Standing Up To The Elements
Part of maintaining a home over the course of its lifetime involves repair of damage from such elements of nature as rain, wind, and termites. A concrete wall is more resistant to the wind and rain of hurricanes, tornadoes, and other major windstorms. When Hurricane Andrew roared through South Florida, concrete homes protected families far better than their wood-frame counterparts. Homes built with concrete walls can also be designed to withstand the destructive forces of earthquakes.

Termites and dry rot are more subtle than hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes, but they can be just as costly. While an infestation of termites can cause severe structural damage to a wood-frame house, the structural walls of a concrete home are safe from their destructive efforts. Dry rot is actually a disease, common to timber and caused by fungi. Dry rot does not affect concrete and is not a worry for the owners of a concrete home.

Timeless Designs
Whether a Victorian gingerbread home or a Colonial mansion, concrete homes are quiet, easy-to-maintain and safe from fire, hurricanes, termites, and wood rot. Concrete also can be used to create classic, low maintenance floors with patterns similar to classic stonework but with a look all their own.

Fire Prevention
Concrete homes are more resistant to fire than wood-frame homes. This gives your family a better chance of avoiding injury due to fire. Even if a concrete home does catch on fire, the damage does not seriously affect the structure of the walls, making repair a simpler task.

Today's Concrete Home
The concrete home building systems available today have evolved to the point where you can design your home to require minimum maintenance while providing maximum protection. In addition, it will still look new for years after it is built.

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Concrete...The Natural Building Material
In this age of vanishing resources, we must choose our building materials more wisely, balancing the expenditure of natural resources with the benefits of a material over its useful life. Concrete draws upon some of the earth's most common and abundant minerals for its raw materials. The amount of land used to extract the materials needed to make concrete is only a fraction of that used to cut down our forests for lumber.

Concrete homes are more energy efficient than wood-frame homes and therefore require less energy to heat and cool. This reduces the amount of so-called green house gases produced by power-generation plants.

Concrete Uses Recycled Materials
Portland cement, which makes up about 10 percent of concrete, is manufactured from limestone, clay, and sand. Scrap tires and other combustible waste that would otherwise take valuable land in land fills are often used as a fuel source in the cement manufacturing process. Sources of aggregates are diverse and plentiful: sand, gravel, crushed stone, and an ever-increasing array of consumer and industrial waste products - fly ash from coal burning electric power plants and blast furnace slag from steel mills. Crushed concrete from demolition is often used as aggregate for concrete. Concrete's nearly inert matrix of materials makes it an ideal recycling medium, with absolutely no degradation of strength or performance.

Unlimited Possibilities
Concrete can create any shape or size home you can imagine. Because concrete takes any shape or form, it can create an unlimited variety of curves and angles. Concrete's strength can be used to create large open spaces; offering total flexibility in designing your home's floor plan.

Healthy Living
Practically inert and not requiring volatile organic-based preservatives like wood, concrete promotes a healthier indoor atmosphere. Concrete promotes a healthier indoor atmosphere, since it is practically inert, and requires no volatile organic-based preservatives like wood does. It's naturally waterproof and fire-resistant, so it doesn't need special coatings or sealers. Concrete can also be easily cleaned with organic, non-toxic substances.

Built To Last
Since wood rots and decays, and is extremely susceptible to natural disasters, it is central to a wasteful construction cycle of frequent disposal and replacement. Concrete, on the other hand, requires little or no maintenance, stands up to hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and fires. It can't be eaten by termites and won't rust or rot. Concrete's sheer durability over decades of use goes a long way towards waste reduction.

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The Peace And Quiet Of Concrete
Land for homebuilding is becoming more scarce and we're forced to build our homes closer together and near noise sources like highways, railways, and airports. Concrete homes provide the necessary sound reducing qualities to provide the kind of quiet comfort we all look for in a home.

The greater mass of concrete walls can reduce sound penetrating through a wall by over 80 percent when compared to wood-frame construction. Although some sound will penetrate the windows, a concrete home is often two-thirds quieter than a wood-frame home.

Comfortable Living
Because concrete homes are built with solid concrete walls they are more air-tight than wood-frame. The continuous layer of rigid insulation used in concrete construction provides a consistent thermal barrier unlike wood-frame and batt insulation which has gaps in the insulation. This reduces drafts and cold spots inside your home resulting in more comfortable living spaces throughout your home.

Thermal Mass = Even Temperature
The mass of the concrete also has the heat-absorbing property called thermal mass. This smoothes out swings in temperature over time. It keeps the house from overheating or getting suddenly cold when the furnace or air conditioner cycles on and off throughout the day. It also helps keep the house cool in the summer and warm in the winter resulting in year-round comfort.

Lower Energy Bills
The same qualities that bring you the quiet comfort of a concrete home - thermal mass and consistency of insulation - also saves money. Concrete homes can often reduce energy bills by over 50 percent compared to wood-frame homes. It's not often an investment pays that kind of a return.

Make an investment in lifestyle with a quiet concrete home and save money on energy bills at the same time.

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Savings That Add Up Year After Year
Buying a home is probably the single largest investment you'll ever make. Invest wisely. A beautiful concrete home will pay you back in terms of operating cost, resale value, and quality of living. Over the long run, benefits like energy efficiency, disaster and fire resistance, and durability reduce the cost of owning a home. Reduced noise and more even temperatures mean quiet comfort that you can enjoy year round.

Lower Utility Bills
Concrete homes save energy in two ways. The mass of the concrete slows down the passage of heat or cold moving through the wall. With the same insulation, a concrete home stays warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. Also, concrete walls are more air-tight than wood-frame walls. Since leaks account for a large percentage of energy loss in the home, concrete homes enjoy savings in energy consumption. That adds up to lower utility bills. A survey, conducted by Dr. Peter VanderWerf at Boston University, found that using insulating concrete forms (ICFs) reduces energy used for heating by about 44 percent and for cooling by about 32 percent.

Reduced Insurance Premiums
Concrete homes resist fire. They're stronger than wood frame homes and safer during tornadoes, hurricanes, and earthquakes. Insurance for concrete homes is often 15 percent to 25 percent lower. One insurance agent in St. Louis, Missouri, offers discounts on homeowners insurance policies of up to 25 percent for ICF homes. No one, however, can put a price on the peace of mind that comes with owning a concrete home.

Quiet Comfort
Concrete homes make the world go away; a haven from traffic and the neighbor's leaf blower. The mass of a concrete wall makes it an effective barrier to sound. Although some sound will penetrate the windows, a concrete home is often two-thirds quieter than a wood-frame home.

The Quality Payback
Concrete homes cost a little more than wood-frame homes. But lower energy bills and insurance premiums can offset the slightly higher mortgage payment. The real payback is in quality; the intangible benefits of a quieter and more comfortable home.

Concrete Homes Magazine Online - Benefits

2009-02-03T13:34:00.000-08:00

Plastic shutter or formwork used in construction

2008-09-21T01:30:00.000-07:00

According to the United Nations, approximately 1.6 billion people live in substandard housing and 100 million are homeless. The Inter-American Development Bank reports that 10 to 15 million households in Latin America live in substandard housing conditions. Representative of the extent of worldwide poverty is the enormous demand for low and middle-cost housing worldwide. The global construction industry trying to address this housing shortfall is faced with depleting resources, heightened environmental concerns, high costs and deteriorating product quality. Conventional and traditional construction industries are unable to adequately address the growing demand for low-cost housing.

A company specialising in inexpensive construction technology for mass housing schemes has just established a new factory in Port Elizabeth.The inventor, Hennie Botes, said that the decision to open the factory was based on reducing production costs, in order to capture the affordable and low-income housing market. According to Botes this is achieved by consolidating the supply chain involved in the construction of a whole house, and to offer a comprehensive supply entity.
Botes said that the concept came to him in 1986 while building a wall around his first home. The building process took up quite a bit of time and he investigated alternatives to reduce the construction time and still create a good quality wall.

According to Botes Moladi is a low construction cost technology and has nothing to do with low-cost housing systems. The principle can be applied to any house, whether low-cost housing or for up market developments.The concept is unique in that it forms all the walls in a building simultaneously. It is can be adapted to various design specifications, whether they are schools, homes, clinics or factories whist maintaining design aesthetics for social acceptability.

moladi, a South African Company and International supplier for the past 22 years, the pioneer of a one-step casting process for the construction of homes,"...Simply cast a whole house in a day, employing unskilled labour, reducing time, waste and cost, eliminating chasing for plumbing and electrical pipe work, plastering and beam filling, resulting in a wall stronger than brick. A cost effective, holistic design and build technology that far outweighs poorly designed costly concrete-block and masonry structures…

Lack of resources, insufficient funds, skills shortage, time constraints, work flow control and waste are key challenges embodied in affordable housing shortages. Our technology addresses these issues and this is why individuals and organisations recognise moladi as the solution to housing needs throughout the world. We supply technology and support transfer of know-how by means of on site training, internationally. South Africa has an official backlog of 2, 500, 000 units – what a challenge and opportunity to create jobs? Not to mention addressing the backlog in classrooms.