Table Of ContentUniversita’ di Camerino
School Of Advanced Studies SAS
Scuola Di Architettura Eduardo Vittoria sede di Ascoli Piceno
S
THE CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS INDUSTRIES
FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Appropriate and Innovative Local Building Materials and Technologies for
H ousing in the Sudan
dottorato di ricerca in Architettura e
Design
Curriculum in
Disegno Industriale e Architettura
Sperimentale DIAS
Ciclo XXIII
Coordinatore
Prof Michele Talia
Responsabile
Prof. Massimo Perriccioli
Dottorando
Akram Ahmed Elkhalifa
Tutor
Prof. Massimo Perriccioli
Co-Tutor
Dr. Mohamed Yagoub Shaddad
UNIVERSITA’ DI CAMERINO
School of Advanced Studies SAS
Scuola di Architettura e Disegn Eduardo Vittoria
sede di Ascoli Piceno
THE CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS
INDUSTRIES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES:
Appropriate and Innovative Local Building Materials and Technologies for
Housing in the Sudan
Dottorato di ricerca in Architettura e Design
Curriculum in Disegno Industriale e Architettura Sperimentale DIAS
Ciclo XXIII
Coordinatore
Prof. Michele Talia
Tutor: Prof. Massimo Perriccioli Dottorando: Akram Ahmed Elkhalifa
Co-Tutor: Dr. Mohamed Yagoub Shaddad
Copyright School of Advanced Studies, Università degli Studi di Camerino 2011
Tutti i diritti sono riservati:
nessuna parte diquesta pubblicazione può essere riprodotta in alcun modo (comprese fotocopie
e microflms) senza il permesso scritto del Dottorando di ricerca in Architettura e Disegno
Industriale
Scuola di Dottorato XXIII ciclo
Dottorato di Ricerca in Architettura e Design
Curriculum in Disegno Industriale e Architettura Sperimentale DIAS
XXIII Ciclo
Coordinatore
Prof. Michele Talia
Dottorando
Akram Ahmed Elkhalifa
Coordinatore del Dottorato
Prof. Michele Talia
Responsabile
Prof. Massimo Perriccioli
Tutor/Supervisor
Prof. Massimo Perriccioli
Co-Tutor
Dr. Mohamed Yagoub Shaddad
Dedication
To my father, mother, brothers and sister
To my wife and children
To my friends
and
To all those who are dreaming of a better future
I dedicate this work
The Construction & Building Materials Industries for Sustainable Development in Developing Countries:
ii
Appropriate and Innovative Local Building Materials and Technologies for Housing in the Sudan
Acknowledgement
I humbly thank Allah Almighty, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful who provides me with
uncountable blessings and gifts for equipping me with the capability and patience to pursue my
PhD.
Completing a PhD is of course a long journey throughout a battlefield, and I would not have
been able to come to its end without the support and assistance of many people. I am
attempting to convey my appreciation for those people who directly or indirectly contributed to
the completion of my PhD.
Firstly, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisors, Prof. Massimo Perriccioli from
the University of Camerino and Dr. Mohammed Yagoub Shaddad from the University of
Khartoum who were abundantly helpful and offered invaluable assistance, support and
guidance throughout my study. I would like to thank them for their leadership, enthusiasm,
encouragement and resolute dedication to my work and for ploughing through several stages of
my study and for making critical suggestions. The deepest gratitude is also due to Prof. Cristina
Miceli the director of the School of Advanced Studies (SAS), Dr Alessandra Zampetti from the
admission office and Dr. Fiorella Piano from the international office for their continuous
assistance and support.
I would like to record my deeply-felt gratitude to my PhD colleagues at the School of
Architecture, University of Camerino for their thoughtful and unconditional support since my
arrival to Ascoli Piceno in Italy. I am eternally obliged to Luca Frattari, Matteo Jommi, Maria
Teresa Cusanno from the cycle XXIII, Laura Ridolfi, Claudio Martini, Angela Giovanna Leuzzi,
Irene Virgili from the cycle XXII, Monica Rossi and Mostafa Rabea.
Acknowledgement is due to my colleagues at the Faculty of Architecture, University of
Khartoum, Dr. Tallal Abdelbasit, Ibrahim Zakaria, Amal Balila and Ingi Elhadi for their advice
and their willingness to share their bright thoughts and efforts with me. Their input was very
fruitful for shaping up my ideas and research.
I would like to thank a number of people who have contributed to the final result of my study in
many different ways. I convey special acknowledgement to Dr. Muna Jibreel from the Institute of
Technological Research (ITR) and Dr. Samar Bannaga from the White Nile Sugar Company for
supplying me with a lot of information for my study and guiding me to many resources for
relevant data. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my colleagues at the Building Research
and Roads Institute, University of Khartoum for the all the information they provided. Special
thanks go to Dr. Mohammed Hussien who provided exceptional support and guidance.
Acknowledgment iii
I also benefited from the outstanding work performed by the National Fund for Housing and
Reconstruction (NFHR) to establish an up-to-date database for firms working in the field of
construction and real estate in the Sudan. Many thanks go in particular to the General Director,
Dr. Gulam Eldin Osman; the Executive Manager, Mr. Abdelrahman Ayoubai; the Engineering
Consultant, Eng. Khalwati Elshareif; and the Administrative Consultant, Mr. Omer Karrar.
Collective and individual acknowledgments are also owed to the staff of the NFHR whose
contribution has been memorable. Special thanks go to Obay, Amir, Sufian, Mohamed Yousif
and all the members of the team who participated in the data collection for the establishment of
the database.
It is a pleasure to pay tribute also to Rasha Ali, Nafeesa Kamal, Areej Salah and Soha
Mohammed who helped in the circulation and collection of the questionnaires. Special thanks
should be given to Mr. Abdelmoneim Ahmed Abdelwahab who guided me through some of the
fundamentals of statistics for his invaluable contribution during the stage of data analysis.
I would like to express my sincere thanks to the staff of Practical Action-Sudan for the useful
information I received from their organization and for providing me with the access to their
library and resource center. I would like to thank in particular the General Director of the
Organization, Mr. Moahmmed Majzoub; the Technology Development and Promotion Manager,
Mr. Liam Morgan; and the resource center officer, Ms. Maisa Abdellatif for all the time they
devoted for me. Gratitude is also expressed to Dr. Marie Besancon, Dr. Ahmed Elnazeer Elgoni
and Dr. Osman Elkheir for the valuable data they provided and the assistant they offered.
I would like also to convey thanks to the Ministry of Higher Education and the University of
Khartoum for covering some of the financial liabilities and living expenses during my stay in
Italy. Therefore, I would like to thank the director of the Teaching Assistants Administration,
University of Khartoum, Dr. Faisal Abdelwahab and his deputy Mrs. Islah Shaban. Special
thanks go to the Director of the Training Administration, Ministry of Higher Education Mr.
Abdelgadir Mohammed and his assistants, Mrs. Fatima, Mr. Ahmed Mosmar, Mr. Ahmed
Hassan, Mr. Abdelraheem Eldabi and Ahmed Abdelgadir. I would like to express my gratitude to
the staff of the Sudanese Embassy in Rome for the continuous support I received from them
while I was in Italy.
I am extremely indebted to the Faculty of Architecture, University of Khartoum for covering the
costs of the survey I conducted for this study through the DelPHE project which is carried jointly
with the University of Reading, UK. Special thanks are sent to the Dean of the Faculty, Dr.
Gamal Mahmoud for his invaluable support and encouragement. My deepest gratitude goes to
Dr. Abbas Elmualim and Dr. Tabarak Ballal from the University of Reading for their useful
discussions and the comments I received from them on my research.
The Construction & Building Materials Industries for Sustainable Development in Developing Countries:
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Appropriate and Innovative Local Building Materials and Technologies for Housing in the Sudan
It is a pleasure to express my gratitude wholeheartedly to all who offered me assistance during
my stay in Ascoli Piceno. The warmest feelings are expressed to the family of Dr. Omer Khatab
(my Egyptian Friend) for kind hospitality and generosity they showed. I would like to express my
heartfelt feelings to Mrs. Anna Monini who was standing by my side all the time, and so did her
family. The warmest gratitude is sent to Mr. Paride Guapo and Sergio Frattari and their families
for their endless support.
Finally, words alone cannot express the appreciation and thanks I owe to my wife Leena Albeeli
for her dedication, encouragement, assistance, understanding, unwavering faith and endless
love, through the entire period of my study. The smiles of my two children Yamin and Feras who
were born during my study add joy to my life. I wish to express my love and gratitude to my
beloved family; my father, mother, sister and brothers for their inseparable support and prayers.
I am deeply indebted to them for their continued support.
Finally, I would like to thank all those who have contributed to this study in a way or another as
well as expressing my apology for not mentioning them personally one by one.
v
Author’s Information
Academic Qualifications and Experience
The author obtains an experience of more than 11 years in the field of construction in the
Sudan. He joined the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture (now
the Faculty of Architecture) at the University of Khartoum in1995 after he successfully finished
the higher secondary school attaining the ninth position among all academic section candidates
(approx. 105,000 examinees) from all around the country.
Following his graduation, the author worked as an assistant architect at both Promang
Consultants and Project Management Bureau (PMB), two of the leading companies in the field
of engineering consultancy, where he gained some practical experience in the field. The author
combined between practicing architecture and education by joining the academic field as a
teaching assistant at the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture,
University of Khartoum in the year 2001.
After acquiring an experience of two years, in both the academic and professional fields, the
author joined the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Sweden as a M.Sc. student in
September 2002. In April 2004 he successfully finished his M.Sc. program in the built
environment with specialization in Real Estate Management. Accordingly, he became the first
Sudanese architect specialized in this field.
After attaining his M.Sc. degree, the author has been promoted to a lecturer in the Faculty of
Architecture, University of Khartoum since 2004. Between 2004 and 2007 the author has
worked as a part-time lecturer in Architecture for different Sudanese universities including:
Computer Man College for Computer Studies (CMC), Tahnoon Technological College and
College of Technological Sciences (CTS). He had also participated in the delivery of the M.Sc.
program in urban planning which was provided by the Center for Engineering and Technical
Studies (CETS).
Since 2004 the author has participated in many projects of different nature, size and complexity
including: conference centers (Academy of Medical Science and Technology Conference
Center), hospitals (i.e., Radiotherapy & Oncology Hospital, Khartoum), hotels, parks, office
buildings, residential complexes and individual houses. His specialization in the field of real
estate investment and appraisal enabled him to perform a number of technical and financial
feasibility studies for projects owned by many well-recognized organizations in different fields in
the Sudan including: University of Khartoum (5 projects), the University of Medical Science and
Technology, International University of Africa, University of Khartoum Consultancy Corporation
The Construction & Building Materials Industries for Sustainable Development in Developing Countries:
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Appropriate and Innovative Local Building Materials and Technologies for Housing in the Sudan
(7 projects), Al-Awgaaf Islamic Corporation, AL-Baraka Bank (3 projects), Arabic Research
Councils Union, Al-Muhajir Furnished Apartments Co. LTD, Sudanese Mobile Company
(MobiTel, now known as Zain) and National Students Welfare Fund (NSWF). Besides, the
author performed many feasibility studies and appraisal tasks for a number of private
companies, businessmen and individuals.
Memberships
• Member of the International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and
Construction (CIB)
• Member of the Sudanese Engineering Council (SEC)
• Member of the Sudanese Architects Society (SIA)
• Member of Real Estate Encyclopedia Establishment Committee at the National Fund for
Housing and Rehabilitation
• Ministry of Planning Building Inspectors Course Coordinator
• Member of Baghdadi Trust Investment and Development Committee, U of K
• Member of Khartoum University Properties Investment Committee
Publications
1. Appropriate Technology for Housing in Sudan: Evaluation of Selected Innovative Building
Materials and Technologies. Proceedings of the Second International Conference on
“Sustainable Architecture and Urban Development (SAUD 2010)”, organized by the Center
for the Study of Architecture in the Arab Region (CSAAR), 12th-14th July 2010, Amman,
Jordan.
2. Technology Transfer for Sustainable Housing in Sudan. Proceedings of the Second
International Conference on “Sustainable Architecture and Urban Development (SAUD
2010)”, organized by the Center for the Study of Architecture in the Arab Region (CSAAR),
12th-14th July 2010, Amman, Jordan.
3. The Construction and Building Materials Industries in Sudan. Proceedings of the CIB World
Building Congress 2010: Building a Better World. 10th - 13th May 2010, Salford Quays,
United Kingdom.
4. Technology Transfer for Housing in Sudan: Answering a felt need. Proceedings of a
conference on “Healthy, Economical, and Sustainable Housing in Medium and Large Cities”,
organized by The Arab Institute for Urban Development and the Ministry of Physical
Planning and Public Utilities, Northern State, Dongola, Sudan, 10th - 13th March 2010
