a. Cement: Is the building material usually greenish to gray in colour and sometimes light brown. It hardens in moist condition.

b. Concrete: Is a mixture of crushed stones, river sand and cement, with the right amount of water. It can be moulded into any shape. It is weak under tensile stress and strong under compression.

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c. Iron Sheets: Usually galvanised iron sheets or can be corrugated. These are the lightest roofing materials and can be obtained in length from 1.2 metres to 3.6 metres. Large lengths can be obtained on special order. They can also be used for walls when flat.

d. Grass Thatch: Traditional roofing material which works well at angles of 35° and more with thatch thickness of 12 centimetre to 15 centimetre. The thatch thickness increases with the decline in angle.

e. Tile: Roof Tiles- small rectangular roofing materials made from fine concrete quarry and slates. Floor Tiles can be PVC or baked clay. If they are baked clay, they are called quarry tiles. They have a rough glazed finish on the face and are about 6 millimeters thick or more.

f. Slates: Thin heavy flat stones formed from layers of mud under extreme heat and pressure after a length of time.

g. Burnt Brick: Brick moulded from seasoned clay and burnt to a temperature of 1,300 degrees Celsius.

h. Mud Brick: Kimberly brick or Adope brick are the technical terms. Brick made of mud and sun dried.

i. Concrete Blocks: Building units made out of a mixture of concrete can be fine concrete or coarse concrete.

j. Wood: Processed plank - material from tree trunks used in construction as timber.

k. Hardboard: Heavy thin boards usually 4 millimeters to 8 millimeters in width.

l. Mud Floor: Is usually from treated or seasoned clay mixed with cow dung. It makes a hard shiny floor. It is mostly found in traditional houses.

m. Wooden Floor: Usually floor above ground level and not popular here in Zambia due to our climate.

n. Marble: Used in high cost building. It can be in the form of tiles or slabs. It makes a high durable shine. Marble are cut from stone (marble stone) in flat sheet and polished to give a shiny finish.

o. Terrazo: Floors made out of concrete with a selected course aggregate of 13 millimeter or slightly less. The top is grinned flat with a machine and then polished. The floor finish is usually black or white.