Architects meet and design for clients with unique needs, and visions for their projects. One aspect that clients are particular about is the cost of the project. 

It is a common understanding amongst the architecture community that delivering a project, with all the design requirements while staying under budget is a mammoth task. 

Low-cost building materials make this task easier, aiding the overall design, and reducing the cost, resulting in client satisfaction.

The building material can be classified into:

Raw, and Natural Material

• Bamboo
• Compressed Earth Bricks
• Reinforced Mud Bricks

Prefabricated Material

• Concrete Blocks
• Fly Ash Hollow Bricks
• Aerated Autoclave Cement
• Shipment Containers

Low-Cost Raw, and Natural Material

1. Bamboo

• A green, and sustainable material, bamboo is abundantly available in India.
• Bamboo can be used for structural, and aesthetic purposes.
• Its flexibility is advantageous in seismic regions.
• Bamboo is also fire-proof and can be treated to be termite-proof.
• Bamboo is also available as corrugated sheets for roofing.
• Aesthetically, bamboo adds an earthy and soothing touch to the design.

2. Compressed Earth Bricks

• Also known as Adobe bricks, these bricks are made out of the soil of that region and reinforced using lime and cement.
• Sustainable, fire-proof, and lightweight, they are quite possibly the most efficient low-cost material.
• They are thick and are used for exterior walls.
• They are one of the least expensive building materials too.
• Since it can be made on-site using the soil there, it reduces transportation costs as well.

3. Reinforced Mud Bricks

• Mud bricks gain strength even through natural reinforcements such as straw and coconut.
• Coconut and straw add strength and sturdiness to the unadulterated (untreated) soil.
• Other fibers such as rice husk, bagasse, oat straw, and corn straw are also added with cement to make them corrosion resistant.
• A sulphur coating is added to the bricks to make them waterproof.
• These bricks are used in houses to make them durable and weatherproof.

Prefabricated Material

1. Concrete Blocks

• These blocks are manufactured to specific dimensions as per requirements.
• They can be hollow or dense.
• The blocks are made out of Portland cement, water, stone, or quartz.
• They are lightweight, sturdy, and fire-proof.
• They are usually used for foundations, basement walls, and partition walls.
• Steel rods can be used for additional reinforcement.
• They are naturally termite-proof and insulative.

2. Fly Ash Hollow Bricks

• These are made out of fly ash, stone powder, or sand. Slag and cement, or gypsum are used as adhesives.
• They are used for load-bearing walls of low-ascent structures.
• Additionally, mineral buildups, glass, and water are added to improve the water-proof and insulative properties of the structure.

3. Aerated Autoclave Cement (AAC)

• Autoclaves are machinery that adjust the temperature and pressure to alter the physical and chemical properties of the objects placed in them.
• AAC is made out of gypsum, lime, quartz sand, water, and aluminium powder.
• It is then heated in an autoclave, where the necessary heat and pressure are applied to give the blocks structural integrity.
• They are heat-safe and lightweight, and thus used for both exterior and interior walls.
• The material is eco-friendly as it creates 30% less waste than normal concrete.

4. Shipment Containers

• Shipping containers are a popular low-cost material among the users researching recyclable material.
• The smallest of containers can provide a space of 100 sq feet.
• These can be pre-assembled and placed upon a ready foundation.
• The assembly can be done as per the requirements and gives creative liberty. 
• The containers can be imagined as Lego® blocks, with physical limitations.

5. Prefabricated Houses

• In an age where the cost of cement, and brick, and mortar is increasing, pre-fabricated houses have become a go-to solution.
• The houses are made of steel framing, wooden boards, and concrete floors.
• Factory-made doors, windows, ceilings, and walls are added to the frame.
• Based on the necessities, the walls, ceilings, and other features can be altered to specification.
• Though the materials used are considerably expensive, in the big picture, the production, transportation, and labour costs are brought down.
• Electrical, plumbing, and miscellaneous work are also done at the casting stage, thus, the post-construction time is also cut down.

Low-cost materials hit the spot when a design demands aesthetics, time, cost, and sustainability, as we have seen from the above discussion.

With scientific research underway to develop more low-cost building materials and the direction it is leaning towards, we believe in a promising future where low-cost building materials are used in iconic and game-changing designs.