A housing partnership between industry and the South Australian Government agency Renewal SA is aiming to improve Adelaide's property affordability by cutting construction costs.

The apartment construction cost demonstration project has seen Renewal SA allocate a site suitable for a four-storey building of 20 apartments, with the builder and designers aiming to showcase efficient construction methods and choice of building materials.

One of the companies involved, Mossop Construction and Interiors, said an emphasis was being put on environmental measures, as well as the project's costs and building time.

"The success of this project will showcase to the industry the ability to deliver another type of affordable housing option to the market, which is especially important when trying to work with urban infill within established suburbs," managing director Neil Mossop said.

The company said the 20 apartments at Woodville West in Adelaide's western suburbs would aim to achieve a construction cost of $1,800 to $2,000 per square metre.

Another local company Normus Urban Projects is building 25 properties at Woodville West, made up of single and two-storey homes which are planned to sell from about $315,000.

Studio Nine Architects is another firm involved and says it is focused on achieving highly efficient design and building techniques.

"This has been achieved without compromising on ... natural light, cross-ventilation, privacy and security," managing director John Galluccio said.

South Australian Housing and Urban Development Minister Stephen Mullighan hoped some new benchmarks for residential housing would be achieved.

"Typical apartment construction rates can be up to double the cost per square metre of a single-storey detached home, creating challenges to make them affordable, particularly outside of the CBD," he said.

"The demonstration project found a number of principles can help to reduce construction costs on these types of projects, in particular early and ongoing collaboration between the designer and builder."

The latest building projects at Woodville West are expected to support more than 60 jobs, he said.