The major cost of construction is incurred on building materials and most of these building materials are cement products. The ever increasing price of cement coupled with the rise in the price of other construction materials make the construction cost far from the reach of the low and the middle income group of urban dwellers.

This has led to research initiatives aimed at finding alternative durable and affordable construction materials for housing construction. One such material is the compressed stabilised earth block, an improved form of one of the oldest materials used in building construction, adobe. Unfortunately the quality of compressed stabilised earth blocks in some construction schemes is far from adequate and often materials are wasted in the production process.

To extend the use of compressed stabilised earth building blocks to all types of housing e.g. low-cost housing in rural and urban areas and middle income housing in urban areas, production techniques need to be further improved so as to achieve better quality and reduce production costs.