The adage change is constant holds profitable meaning for the real estate sector, which has witnessed a “sea change” in terms of construction with advancements of technology. Also, the improvements in masonry techniques has drastically slashed the time taken for building a structure.
Shedding more light on the said subject, Builders Association of India (BAI) housing and RERA committee chairperson Anand Gupta said that the technology has brought a sea change in the building construction work. “Earlier, even to construct a three-storey building, more than one year's time was required. Now, highrise buildings are getting constructed in just one-and-a-half year or so. The time period has drastically reduced due to the ready mix concrete that is easily available everywhere.”
The technological advancements have further proved to be a boon as they immensely help in time-saving, especially in a city like Mumbai where there are large slum clusters and old buildings, Gupta asserted. There are around 14,000 old dilapidated buildings just in south Mumbai, he added.
The effect of technology on the realty sector can also be gauged by the City and Industrial Development Corporation’s (CIDCO) significant achievement of building a 12-storey residential tower comprising 96 flats in just 96 days using the Precast Large Concrete Panel System. Gupta pointed out that this is the actual example of how the construction can be done in a faster way.
NAREDCO West vice chairman Hitesh Thakkar said, “Earlier, the molds to construct slabs of buildings were usually made of steel and plywood onsite. Now, these molds are company manufactured and made of aluminum. Following which, the slab construction work, including the walls, is done in just 10 days timeperiod; which was double earlier.”
The company manufactured aluminum molds that can be used multiple times in building. This has also helped the industry especially when it is facing an extreme skilled manpower crisis, Thakkar added.
Meanwhile, other experts believe that the technology should be used by the government to expedite the delayed project work, which will help tenants to get back their new houses as early as possible.
Advocate Sulaiman Bhimani, president and founder of the NGO Citizens Justice Forum, contended that if a private developer can construct buildings so easily and faster why can't the government appoint contractors and get the incomplete project ready.
“To make Mumbai slum-free and resolve the old building redevelopment issue, the government should join hands with developers and adopt new technology in collaboration with them and carry out the work,” he added.
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