Professor Fernando Branco, guest member of the Strategic Council of the Portuguese Technological Platform of Construction (PTPC) and former member of the PTPC Executive Committee signs the summary report of the Platform’s 12th strategic forum, where he identifies a set of priorities around Housing. Professor Jorge de Brito is currently a member of the Strategic Council and Executive Committee of PTPC, representing IST-ID. Professor Dulce Franco Henriques is a member of PTPC’s Audit Board, representing ISEL. Some of the ideas of the mentioned report are published in the most recent issue of Jornal CONSTRUIR (issue 503, January/February/March 2024) in an article by Professor Fernando Branco.
The article highlights that some sectors of the Portuguese community really need MORE HOUSING (name of the government program)—students, young families, and economically disadvantaged people. The solution requires building, at controlled costs and quickly, thousands of new dwellings, requiring action in four vectors (land, financing, design and construction).
As for land, municipalities can make a survey of public property where construction is allowed, according to city planning. Financing can come from public entities, but private financing will have to be involved since much investment is required. Thus, a concession model should be applied (in this case, as profitability is known, private entities have lower risk as compared to highways). The design requires revising some Codes (e.g. RGEU) and applying concepts such as design for durability and sustainability, as well as quality categories. Furthermore, connecting design and execution, modular construction can be a real asset to lower building costs. Additionally, it is highlighted that the low design fees have led to the emigration of many designers, which needs to be stopped.