A Comparison Study on the Long-life Housing Development Histories and Plans of Collective Housing Based on the Open Building Theory in China and Japan

These days have seen the rise of open building theory through the development of SI housing system in China and Japan, as one of the strategies of long-life housing. In SI housing system, although the concept of levels has been well applied, and the resident decision are being considered before and after occupancy, some of the plans and designs don’t really meet resident requirements and likes, especially in China. As a result, some of the designs are not that effective as expected. There is no doubt that the open building theory is one of the good strategies towards long-life housing though, the realizing methods should be reconsidered, in order to meet the residents’ needs better.

As the local regulation, culture, society, etc. are greatly distinguished in China and Japan, the development histories of long-life housing and open building theory in China and Japan and the differences between them should be firstly investigated. In this article, the development histories of long-life housing and open building theory in China and Japan are introduced and compared, and that different social background influenced their development process and industrial models is confirmed. Besides, the supply method and plan differences of open building housing of two countries are compared and analysed. As a result, it is shown that different social backgrounds have an impact on the development of SI housing, that in Japan the SI structure system has been formed, while China has developed the SI supply system.