Exactly a year after its multicity tour began, the event was back in Ahmedabad for a second season of honouring stalwarts in the dominions of real estate, architecture and design. The conclave and awards were hosted in Ahmedabad on October 7 at Hyatt.

After a terrific run in in Pune in September 2022, FIRST CONSTRUCTION COUNCIL with CW made its way back to Ahmedabad for the CONSTRUCTION WORLD Design Build Conclave and Awards.

The event witnessed the creme de la creme of the real-estate sector, architects, design firms and government officials under one roof. With two dynamic panel discussions, partner presentations and keynote speeches, the event culminated with the ‘Stalwarts of the West - Gujarat’ awards.

Welcoming the dignitaries and a houseful audience, Pratap Padode, Editor-in-Chief, CW, said, “It’s great to be back in Ahmedabad city from where the journey of CWDB began. In 2021, too, despite the pandemic-induced slowdown we had a fullhouse and this year I am glad to welcome you all again. Ahmedabad has witnessed a lot of buzz in the real-estate segment; in the third quarter, the city has recorded a 44 per cent jump in residential sales on a year-on-year basis. Areas like Vatva, Nava Naroda and Shela have emerged as hotspots and people are gravitating towards a larger flat as opposed to last year’s trend. Unlike previous developments wherein the real-estate segment was driven by the IT sector alone, the inclination is fast changing. Construction and real estate are drawing foreign investments; 26 per cent of the $84 billion of FDI was witnessed in the housing sector.”

In his keynote address, Suresh Muchipalli, Head - HR, Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation, spoke on ‘How the Metro is redefining the city’s skyline’. He said, “Metro is not merely a joyride; it adds a lot of business sense in any city. In Ahmedabad, it has led to appreciation of land value and commercial spaces. Apart from Ahmedabad, we have witnessed a similar trend in Chennai and Delhi. Wherever the metro projects are onin Ahmedabad, an appreciation of 5 per cent to 15 per cent in the price of the project has been observed. As the population intensifies, mobility and accessibility will become even more important and metros will have a larger role to play in coming years. It is also important to note that metros are catering to areas that are not connected by the existing suburban rail system. For a city like Ahmedabad that is growing exponentially, metros will be a boon not just for real-estate players but for the people as well.” Fireside Chat: Real-Estate Market of Ahmedabad set to Boom

Moderated by Amit Jaitley, Executive Director - Project Management, Colliers, speakers on the panel included Taral Shah, Managing Director, Shivalik; Ravin Bhojani, Senior Director, Advisory & Transaction Services, CBRE; NK Patel, Managing Director, Sun Builders; and Pavan Bakeri, Managing Director, Bakeri Group.

Key takeaways:

Land prices in Ahmedabad have increased by almost 40 per cent last year, leading to an increase in projectprice.

In Ahmedabad, customers are ready to pay 7-8 per cent premium to purchase existing projects that have been completed by top-notch developers with a good track record.

The demand for Grade-A green buildings is set to increase and builders in Ahmedabad have an opportunity to cash in.

Southern Gandhinagar in Ahmedabad has emerged as a hotspot with over 200 projects in the affordable segment. West Ahmedabad near SHG Highway and Sardar Patel cross road ring junction and Asan Road will witness growth of exclusive commercial projects.

Sanand will emerge as an industrial hub. GIFT City will emerge as a centre for the finance industry.

The potential of Ahmedabad hosting the Olympics has generated considerable interest among real-estate players to build the necessary facilities and infrastructure for sports and hospitality.

The Gujarat government is toying with the idea of making an Olympic village in and around Vapa. So even though development in the area is stagnant from the real-estate point of view, the trajectory may changein future.

After the COVID-19 scenario, Ahmedabad has witnessed a surge for commercial spaces.The IT policy will only catalyse the process further through the leverage it offers.

The east and west as well as the north and south metro railway corridors have already started impacting the real-estate market in Ahmedabad.This development will continue to evolve, much to the relief of the people ad developers whose projects are away from the city.

Panel Discussion: Bridging the Design Thinking & Execution Gap

Moderated by Jagrut Patel, Founding Principal, Jagrut & Partners, the panel consisted of Brijesh Bhata, Founder and Principal, Groundwork Architecture;Rajesh Rasania, Founder, Metamorph Enterprise;JayashankarK, SeniorVice President - Technical and Customer Solutions,Ultratech;andYatin Pandya, Principal Architect and Founder, Footprints. E.A.R.T.H.

Key takeaways:

Design thinking is necessary as standardised solutions are not always feasible in addressing an issue. Design thinking makes way for a non-conventional solution to attain the desired result.

For projects where design thinking requires coordination across different geographies, a bottom’s up approach works best. Seamless coordination between different stakeholders is also required for design thinking to be precisely executed at the execution stage.

The six key parameters for any architectural design to be appropriate and holistic are timeless aesthetics, sociocultural appropriateness, environmental sustainability, economic affordability, functional efficiency and structural strength.

Values, concerns and priorities are necessary attributes that an architect should stay true to,not just for addressing the client’s needsbut those of society at large as well.

From loadbearing and framed structures to monolithic shear wall and precast construction, the building and construction industry has witnessed timely innovations.However, it remains unclear to what extent it has made projects affordable.

Owing to standardisation of processes in building and construction, core innovation is limited to projects based on customisation.In the rest, the scope of innovation is limited to peripheral technologies.

The contemporary cement sector is witnessing the inception of low carbon cement and dry mix products.

Site management in projects needs to be effective to reduce cost of overall construction. Apart fromproducts, processes need to be innovated keeping the context in mind.

Componentisation as a form of industrialisat ion can bring many versatile solutions to the fore and yet these can be mass produced.

The designer, architect and consultant need to be on the same page to ensure there are no gaps between design thinking and design execution; this will also enable cost savings.

Partner presentations

The event also witnessed independent partner presentations by Bimal Acharya, Vice President, UltraTech Cement; Sudhir Namboodiri, Specification Manager - C&C, Bostik India; and Chandra Prakash Singh, Vice President-Business Development, KEI. Speaking on Ultratech’s journey so far, Acharya said, “From 1 million tonne to becoming the third largest cement manufacturer in India, Ultratech has also ventured in the business of RMC, building solution stores, white cement and putty. The business diversity allows us to move closer to our vision of becoming the most preferred building solutions provider.” And commenting on KEI’s market penetration in Gujarat, Singh said,“In the Gandhinagar area of Ahmedabad alone we have worked with 60 clients and over 200 projects. We also have a large presence in Vadodara, Surat and Rajkot across Gujarat, a state that has been one of the major contributors to our sales.”

The Awards

The event concluded with the CONSTRUCTION WORLD Design-Build Awards that honoured the ‘Stalwarts of the West-Gujarat. Presented by Dr. Vatsal Patel, Technical Consultant, Gujrera,and Pratap Padode, the awards brought architects, builders, contractors and developers togetheron a common platform and awarded their noteworthy achievements.With regard to the FSI mandate in Gujarat, Dr. Vatsal pointed out, “Fixed-base FSI should be made a norm. For additional FSI in key areas, like in and around airports and other important infrastructure installations, a premium should be charged and it should be utilised for infrastructure development. This will enable the infrastructure industry and real-estate industry to grow together”.

The CONSTRUCTION WORLD Design-Build Conclave and Awards was Powered by Ultratech with KEI as Presenting Partner, Bostik India as Associate Partner, Housing.com as Knowledge Partner and Colliers India, CREDAI – Ahmedabad, Builders Association of India - Ahmedabad Chapter and The Gujarat Institute of Civil Engineers and Architects as Supporting Partners.