Strategies to stimulate quality Social Housing Project: Criteria, Regulations and Technology

This study is a critical summary of the results of three stages of research conducted under two broader research projects whose Spanish title can be translated as 'Singular Strategic Project: Industrialization of Sustainable Housing (INVISO)' and 'ETA Project. Strategies to stimulate industrialization in building construction (Housing Ministry)', a three-year study developed in the 'Eduardo Torroja Construction Science Institute (IETcc). The present communication has the scope of revealing the existence of a series of tools of possible usefulness in the project of collective social housing of quality. These tools can be considered in three levels: project criteria, official regulation and constructive technology. A significant example is contributed for each of these levels. The first level attempts a pragmatic update of the concept of 'Dimensional Coordination', formed of a series of indications in format of card, of direct and friendly use in the project process. The second level developes a tentative proposal for a seal on evaluation the industrialization and sustainability level in collective housing buildings (INVISO Seal). Whereas the study was able to draw from the considerable number of sustainability-related 'seals' that are presently in place, equivalent measures of the degree of industrialization in construction were practically non-existent, for what this proposal could be considered as worldwide pioneer. The third level cosiders an analysis of the set of constructive solutions with Spanish and European Technical Approvals (DIT, DIT+, ETA) granted up to the current moment. This analysis reflects the significant existence of constructive innovative and quality available solutions for the whole set of functional elements of a collective housing building. These three tools are checked with a practical test using two significant social housing buildings. Theoretical analysis and practical checking processes indicate the verification of the opportunity of the employment of these tools, innovative and stimulative of industrialized opened systems. It is considered that the results of this work are specially useful in the current context, due to the fact that they can help to establish strategies for the project of Collective Housing, being new building as in rehabilitation, of the present and the medium-term future.