Prefabricated building
A prefabricated building, informally a prefab, is a building that is manufactured and constructed using prefabrication. It consists of factory-made components or units that are transported and assembled on-site to form the complete building. Various materials were combined to create a part of the installation process.[1]
History
Buildings have been built in one place and reassembled in another throughout history. This was especially true for mobile activities, or for new settlements.
In 1855 during the Crimean War, after Florence Nightingale wrote a letter to The Times, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was commissioned to design a prefabricated modular hospital. In five months he designed the Renkioi Hospital: a 1,000 patient hospital, with innovations in sanitation, ventilation and a flushing toilet.[9] Fabricator William Eassie constructed the required 16 units in Gloucester Docks, shipped directly to the Dardanelles. Only used from March 1856 to September 1857, it reduced the death rate from 42% to 3.5%.
The world's first prefabricated, pre-cast panelled apartment blocks were pioneered in Liverpool. A process was invented by city engineer John Alexander Brodie, whose inventive genius also had him inventing the football goal net. The tram stables at Walton in Liverpool followed in 1906. The idea was not extensively adopted in Britain, however was widely adopted elsewhere, particularly in Eastern Europe.
Prefabricated homes were produced during the
Prefabricated housing was popular during the
Prefabs were aimed at families, and typically had an entrance hall, two bedrooms (parents and children), a bathroom (a room with a bath) — which was a novel innovation for many Britons at that time, a separate toilet, a living room and an equipped (not fitted in the modern sense) kitchen. Construction materials included steel, aluminium, timber or asbestos cement, depending on the type of dwelling. The aluminium Type B2 prefab was produced as four pre-assembled sections which could be transported by lorry anywhere in the country.[13]
The Universal House (pictured left & lounge diner right) was given to the Chiltern Open Air Museum after 40 years temporary use. The Mark 3 was manufactured by the Universal Housing Company Ltd, Rickmansworth.
The United States used prefabricated housing for troops during the war and for GIs returning home. Prefab classrooms were popular with UK schools increasing their rolls during the baby boom of the 1950s and 1960s.
Many buildings were designed with a five-ten year life span, but have far exceeded this, with a number surviving today. In 2002, for example, the city of Bristol still had residents living in 700 examples.[14] Many UK councils have been in the process of demolishing the last surviving examples of Second World War prefabs in order to comply with the British government's Decent Homes Standard, which came into effect in 2010. There has, however, been a recent revival in prefabricated methods of construction in order to compensate for the United Kingdom's current housing shortage.[citation needed]
Prefabs and the modernist movement
Architects are incorporating modern designs into the prefabricated houses of today. Prefab housing should no longer be compared to a mobile home in terms of appearance, but to that of a complex modernist design.[15] There has also been an increase in the use of "green" materials in the construction of these prefab houses. Consumers can easily select between different environmentally friendly finishes and wall systems. Since these homes are built in parts, it is easy for a home owner to add additional rooms or even solar panels to the roofs. Many prefab houses can be customized to the client's specific location and climate, making prefab homes much more flexible and modern than before.
There is a zeitgeist or trend in architectural circles and the spirit of the age favors the small carbon footprint of "prefab".
Efficiency
The process of building pre-fabricated buildings has become so efficient in China that a builder in Changsha built a ten-storey building in 28 hours and 45 minutes.[16] [17]
Sustainability
Prefabricated construction generates less carbon footprint, improves energy use and efficiency, and produces less waste, making it more sustainable and environmentally friendly, and compliant with sustainable design standards.[18][19]
Modular Architecture
The modular architecture allows, thanks to 3D modeling, the design and construction of the modular structure outside the site where it will be installed.[20] This offers several advantages such as more sustainable design, greater cost and time savings and standardization of design. [21] This is especially important for large-scale construction projects.[22]
In communist countries
Many eastern European countries had suffered physical damage during World War II and their economies were in a very poor state. There was a need to reconstruct cities which had been severely damaged due to the war. For example, Warsaw had been practically razed to the ground under the planned destruction of Warsaw by German forces after the 1944 Warsaw Uprising. The centre of Dresden, Germany, had been totally destroyed by the 1945 Allied bombardment. Stalingrad had been largely destroyed and only a small number of structures were left standing.
Prefabricated buildings served as an inexpensive and quick way to alleviate the massive housing shortages associated with the wartime destruction and large-scale urbanization and rural flight.
Prefabricated commercial buildings
McDonald's uses prefabricated structures for their buildings, and set a record of constructing a building and opening for business within 13 hours (on pre-prepared ground works).[23]
In the UK, the major supermarkets have each developed a modular unit system to shop building, based on the systems developed by German cost retailer Aldi and the Danish supermarket chain Netto.[24]
See also
- Kit house
- MAN steel house
- Modular building
- Prefabricated home
- Prefabrication
- Containerized housing unit
References
- .
- ^ Rui de Pina (2010). Newitt, Malyn (ed.). "Crónica de El-Rey D.João II" [The Foundation of the Castle and City of São Jorge da Mina]. The Portuguese in West Africa, 1415–1670. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- ^ Rollo, John (1801). A short account of the Royal Artillery Hospital at Woolwich: with some observations on the management of artillery soldiers, respecting the preservation of health. London: Mawman. pp. 32–33.
- ^ Prefab: From Utilitarian Home To Design Icon, by Jim Zarroli, Morning Edition, September 15, 2008, NPR
- ^ Channel 9 South Australia Pty Ltd > Postcards > Friend's Meeting House Archived 2012-03-17 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 8 September 2011
- ^ This reference has a contemporary sketch and recent photograph of the Friends' Meeting House
- ^ Lewis, Miles (1985). "The Diagnosis of Prefabricated Buildings" (PDF). Australian Historical Archaeology. 3: 58–68. Retrieved 2017-07-30.[permanent dead link]
- ISBN 1-870518-54-3.
- ^ Renkioi: Brunel's Forgotten Crimean War Hospital by Christopher Silver
- ^ ""Factory-Built Housing" by Chet Boddy, Mendocino, CA, licensed realtor and appraiser". Archived from the original on 2006-09-02. Retrieved 2006-08-30.
- ^ "Tarran Bungalows on the East Park Estate". Archived from the original on 2006-10-08. Retrieved 2006-08-30.
- ^ Belle Vale, Liverpool
- ^ "WalesPast | Housing in Wales". Archived from the original on 2006-05-18. Retrieved 2006-08-30.
- ^ Gillilan, Lesley (March 23, 2002). "The prefab four". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- ^ "Transportable Homes, Explained". Transportable home finance. Retrieved 2008-11-26.
- ^ "Chinese developer builds 10-storey building in Changsha in just over 28 hours". Hindustan Times. 2021-06-19. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
- ^ Timelapse: 10-story building goes up in nearly one day - CNN Video, 16 June 2021, retrieved 2021-06-19
- .
- .
- ^ Design From Modular Construction: An Introduction For Architects (PDF). The American Institute of Architects. p. 31.
- ^ Modular Architecture. Hydrodiseno.com. 2021-09-17. Retrieved 2022-09-22
- .
- ^ "Data" (PDF). projects.bre.co.uk.
- ^ "Prefabricated Supermarket Buildings". www.hts-ind.co.uk. 7 February 2017.