Evaluation of Experts’ Preferences for Selection of Suitable Industrialized Building Systems

Abstract

Experts’ preferences for building material selection are a largely under-explored part of a material research. This study evaluates the experts’ preferences to identify the suitable industrialized building system for application in Addis Ababa. Ten industrialized building systems were considered as alternatives for comparison. These systems have been used in a housing development in different parts of the world. A relevant literature review and contextual analysis were conducted. An analytical hierarchy process and an Expert Choice Comparion platform were employed as a research technique and tool to evaluate the professionals’ level of preferences with regard to the housing systems. The findings revealed the most important preferential attributes and the suitable industrialized building systems for an application in housing development. The decision criteria and the experts’ preferential method used in this study can help decision-makers and housing developers in developing countries make effective evaluations and decisions.