Abstract
Innovative building systems have been adopted to ease the low-cost housing shortage currently faced in South Africa. However, the adoption rate of these systems is still low due to the uncertainty in their structural performance as compared to conventional building systems. Determining appropriate and reliable structural performance criteria for innovative building systems is crucial to address this issue. This study aims to address this gap in the literature by conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the development of structural performance criteria for innovative building systems. The study employs a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods, including numerical simulations, to provide insights into the structural behaviour of these systems. The study also considers current building codes and regulations and the unique challenges of various climatic conditions. The result of this study provides a critical evaluation of the current state of knowledge on structural performance criteria for innovative building systems and identifies areas for improvement. The structural reliability index has been used to provide insights into the influence of code parameters on the performance of the structure. The findings will also contribute to developing updated criteria for assessing these systems, which could lead to a greater adoption rate of innovative building systems and improve the quality of low-cost housing solutions. The study recommends further studies on the material properties for more specific criteria and structural reliability performance calculations.