Tall Order

With a growing number of high-rises, supporting them with the right products can be a daunting task for developers. Vendor companies, though, are rising to the occasion.

- Mitalee Kurdekar

Building vertical cities in the form of high-rise buildings is no more a luxury, but has come to be a requirement of our times. The need for optimal utilisation of scarce urban space means that vertical cities are here to stay, necessitating a change in approach on the part of all stakeholders engaged in high-rise building activities.

The need of the hour, on the part of developers, product and service vendors, as well as ultimate users, is to demonstrate greater awareness of potential issues involved in high-rise construction, and then conduct appropriate due diligence. It is interesting to note how innovative ideas flow from collaborative engagement, resulting in the emergence of new thinking and solutions.

Developers have demonstrated a clarity in their preference for high-rise construction, which makes life simpler for other stakeholders, who can then align their research and development efforts and channel them in this direction. Speaking on the subject, Raman Sapru, president, EPC, Omkar Realtors & Developers, says, “New technologies, cost-effective construction and affordability, have created the spurt in demand for high-rises in metros. In case of tier-II cities, the key drivers are the movement of people from metros to these cities and the owning cost. Increase in competition has made developers offer attractive schemes and better amenities to the purchasers. This has created demand for high-rises in both metros and tier-II cities.”

Alluding to this relatively new phenomenon of focussing on tier-II cities,