Demand-Oriented Design Strategies for Low Environmental Impact Housing in the Tropics

Abstract

This study aims to propose design strategies for low environmental impact (low-EI) housing in the tropics while incorporating user needs to increase its acceptance in the market. The Fuzzy Delphi method (FDM) is adopted initially to draw the user needs for contemporary housing, after which the crucial design factors are identified. The analytic network process (ANP) and house of quality (HOQ) are further utilized to incorporate weightings of user needs into crucial design factors to establish appropriate design strategies. The results show “utility” (0.177), “durability” (0.169), and “comfort” (0.168) are the three greatest user needs for housing. After incorporating the weightings of user needs into design factors, building layout (0.334) and materials (0.302) turned out to be the most important considerations during the planning phase of the design procedure. Correspondingly, during the detailed design phase in the procedure, the most important factors are “low-EI material” (0.195), “orientation” (0.176), “building relationship” (0.158), and “energy-saving material” (0.107). The findings stress the significance of architectural programming and passive design for wider acceptance of low-EI housing in the tropics.