UPM hopes developers would like its house-building research

SERDANG: Universiti Putra Malaysia hopes that more housing developers would look into its latest research that allows houses to be build without columns.
Its Housing Research Centre chief Prof Datuk Abang Abdullah Abang Ali said 28 such units had been made available for the 2014 flood victims in Dabong, Kelantan.
Each unit is 600ft² and comes with three bedrooms and two bathrooms, he said.
"The structure uses concrete blocks that can be likened to Lego, and allows a house to be built in seven days depending on its design.
"The lightest block weighs 3kg and heaviest at 14kg," he said, adding that each house was built at RM35,000.
"The main idea of 'Putra Block' is the elimination of the mortar layers.
"The blocks are interconnected through the provision of protrusions and grooves. Being light, the interlocking hollow blocks can be assembled much faster than the conventional mortar masonry construction. This will speed up construction," he told reporters today after launching of their research here.
Also present was Triple A Engineering Sdn Bhd managing director Azhar Azwari Annuar, who said that a proposal to build about 500 single-storey houses using the blocks has been submitted to the Terengganu state government for review.
He added the blocks are Sirim certified.