National Standards for Prefabricated Housing
The national standards related to prefabricated housing mainly include design service life, prefabricated component standards, and other relevant regulations, as detailed below:
Regarding design service life, according to the General Rules for Design of Civil Buildings (GB 50352) and the Unified Standard for Reliability Design of Building Structures (GB 50068), the design service life for ordinary buildings (including prefabricated slab buildings) is clearly defined as 50 years. This standard applies to most civil buildings, including those using prefabricated components, aiming to ensure that the buildings meet structural safety and applicability requirements under normal use and maintenance conditions. The determination of the design service life is based on the durability of structural materials, environmental impact levels, and functional requirements, serving as a crucial basis for the entire lifecycle management of buildings.
In terms of standards for prefabricated components in prefabricated buildings, the Office of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has organized the drafting of the national standard Appearance Quality Requirements and Dimensional Deviation Limits for Prefabricated Concrete Components in Prefabricated Buildings (Draft for Public Comments). This standard is currently in the stage of public consultation, with the deadline for feedback on comments set for October 13, 2025. The draft proposes specific limit requirements for the appearance quality (such as cracks, honeycombing, pitting, and other defects) and dimensional deviations (length, width, height, position of embedded parts, etc.) of prefabricated concrete components, aiming to standardize the production and acceptance of prefabricated components in prefabricated buildings and improve project quality. Once officially released, this standard will become an important technical basis for the production, testing, and construction of prefabricated components.
Regarding other regulations, national regulations on prefabricated slab buildings also cover areas such as fire safety, the use of building materials, and building planning approval. For example, it is required that prefabricated buildings must use building materials that comply with national standards to ensure structural safety and durability; the use of flammable foam sandwich panels is strictly prohibited in crowded places (such as schools, hospitals, shopping malls, etc.) to reduce fire risks. Additionally, the planning approval of prefabricated buildings must comply with urban and rural planning requirements to ensure reasonable building layout and complete functionality. These regulations reflect the national emphasis on the entire lifecycle safety management of prefabricated housing, covering all aspects from design, production, construction, to use.
