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PREFABRICATION

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Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. The term is used to distinguish this process from the more conventional construction practice of transporting the basic materials to the construction site where all assembly is carried out. The term prefabrication also applies to the manufacturing of things other than structures at a fixed site. It is frequently used when fabrication of a section of a machine or any movable structure is shifted from the main manufacturing site to another location, and the section is supplied assembled and ready to fit. It is not generally used to refer to electrical or electronic components of a machine, or mechanical parts such as pumps, gearboxes and compressors which are usually supplied as separate items, but to sections of the body of the machine which in the past were fabricated with the whole machine. Prefabricated parts of the body of the machine may be called 'sub-assemblies' to distinguish them from the other components.
Contents
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1 The process and theory of prefabrication 2 History 3 Current uses 4 Advantages of prefabrication 5 Disadvantages 6 Off-site fabrication 7 References 8 See also 9 External links

The process and theory of prefabrication[edit source]


An example from house-building illustrates the process of prefabrication. The conventional method of building a house is to transport bricks, timber, cement, sand, steel and construction aggregate, etc. to the site, and to construct the house on site from these materials. In prefabricated construction, only the foundations are constructed in this way, while sections of walls, floors and roof are prefabricated (assembled) in a factory (possibly with window and door frames included), transported to the site, lifted into place by a crane and bolted together. Prefabrication is used in the manufacture of ships, aircraft and all kinds of vehicles and machines where sections previously assembled at the final point of manufacture are assembled elsewhere instead, before being delivered for final assembly. The theory behind the method is that time and cost is saved if similar construction tasks can be grouped, and assembly line techniques can be employed in prefabrication at a location where skilled labour is available, while congestion at the assembly site, which wastes time, can be reduced. The method finds application particularly where the structure is composed of repeating units or forms, or where multiple copies of the same basic structure are being constructed. Prefabrication avoids the need to transport so many skilled workers to the construction site, and other restricting conditions such as a lack of power, lack of water, exposure to harsh weather or a hazardous environment are avoided. Against these advantages must be weighed the cost of transporting prefabricated sections and lifting them into position as they will usually be larger, more fragile and more difficult to handle than the materials and components of which they are made.

History[edit source]

"Loren" Iron House, at Old Gippstown inMoe, Australia

Prefabrication has been used since ancient times. For example, it is claimed that the world's oldest known engineered roadway, the Sweet Trackconstructed in England around 3800 BC, employed prefabricated timber sections brought to the site rather than assembled on-site.[citation needed] Sinhalese kings of ancient Sri Lanka have used prefabricated buildings technology to erect giant structures, which dates back as far as 2000 years, where some sections were prepared separately and then fitted together, specially in the Kingdom of Anuradhapura and Kingdom of Polonnaruwa In 19th century Australia a large number of prefabricated houses were imported from the United Kingdom. The method was widely used in the construction of prefabricated housing in the 20th century, such as in the United Kingdom to replace houses bombed during World War II. Assembling sections in factories saved time on-site and reduced cost. However the quality was low, and when such prefabricated housing was left in use for longer than its designed life, it acquired a certain stigma.[citation needed]. The Crystal Palace, erected in London in 1851, was a highly visible example of iron and glass prefabricated construction; it was followed on a smaller scale by Oxford Rewley Road railway station.

Current uses[edit source]

A house being built with prefabricated concrete panels.

The most widely used form of prefabrication in building and civil engineering is the use of prefabricated concrete and prefabricated steel sections in structures where a particular part or form is repeated many times. It can be difficult to construct the formwork required to mould concrete components on site, and delivering wet concrete to the site before it starts to set requires precise time management. Pouring concrete

sections in a factory brings the advantages of being able to re-use moulds and the concrete can be mixed on the spot without having to be transported to and pumped wet on a congested construction site. Prefabricating steel sections reduces on-site cutting and welding costs as well as the associated hazards. Prefabrication techniques are used in the construction of apartment blocks, and housing developments with repeated housing units. The quality of prefabricated housing units had increased to the point that they may not be distinguishable from traditionally built units to those that live in them. The technique is also used in office blocks, warehouses and factory buildings. Prefabricated steel and glass sections are widely used for the exterior of large buildings. Detached houses, cottages, log cabin, saunas, etc. are also sold with prefabricated elements. Prefabrication of modular wall elements allows building of complex thermal insulation, window frame components, etc. on an assembly line, which tends to improve quality over on-site construction of each individual wall or frame. Wood construction in particular benefits from the improved quality. However, tradition often favors building by hand in many countries, and the image of prefab as a "cheap" method only slows its adoption. However, current practice already allows the modifying the floor plan according to the customer's requirements and selecting the surfacing material, e.g. a personalized brick facade can be masoned even if the load-supporting elements are timber. Prefabrication saves engineering time on the construction site in civil engineering projects. This can be vital to the success of projects such as bridges and avalanche galleries, where weather conditions may only allow brief periods of construction. Prefabricated bridge elements and systems offer bridge designers and contractors significant advantages in terms of construction time, safety, environmental impact, constructibility, and cost. Prefabrication can also help minimize the impact on traffic from bridge building. Additionally, small, commonly used structures such as concrete pylons are in most cases prefabricated. Radio towers for mobile phone and other services often consist of multiple prefabricated sections. Modern lattice towers and guyed masts are also commonly assembled of prefabricated elements. Prefabrication has become widely used in the assembly of aircraft and spacecraft, with components such as wings and fuselage sections often being manufactured in different countries or states from the final assembly site. However this is sometimes for political rather than commercial reasons - e.g. Airbus

Advantages of prefabrication[edit source]


High capacity- enabling the realization of important projects Factory made products Shorter construction time- less than half of conventional cast in situ construction Independent of adverse weather conditions during construction Continuing erection in winter time until -20 C Quality surveillance system Opportutnities for good architecture Healthy buildings Reduced energy consumption Environmentally friendly way of building with optimum use of materials, recycling of waste products, less noise and dust etc.


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Cost effective solutions Reduction in construction time Safety in construction Increase in the quality of construction. Reduction of construction waste

Disadvantages[edit source]
1. Leaks can form at joints in prefabricated components. 2. Transportation costs may be higher for voluminous prefabricated sections than for the materials of which they are made, which can often be packed more efficiently. 3. Large prefabricated sections require heavy-duty cranes and precision measurement and handling to place in position. 4. Larger groups of buildings from the same type of prefabricated elements tend to look drab and monotonous. 5. Local jobs may be lost, if the work done to fabricate the components being located in a place far away from the place of construction. This means that there are less locals working on any construction project at any time, because fabrication is outsourced.

Off-site fabrication[edit source]


Off-Site fabrication is a process that incorporates prefabrication and pre-assembly. The process involves the design and manufacture of units or modules, usually remote from the work site, and the installation at the site to form the permanent works at the site. In its fullest sense, off-site fabrication requires a project strategy that will change the orientation of the project process fromconstruction to manufacture to installation. Examples of off-site fabrication are wall panels for homes, wooden truss bridge spans, airport control stations.

HDB Prefabricated Building System A Sustainable & Green Technology


INTRODUCTION

With over three decades of experience in precast concrete technology, HDB has succeeded in developing and refining its own concoction of semi-precast system that is able to meet the demands of the local environment and weather condition. It also enables HDB to achieve high quality and construction productivity in the development of these high-rise buildings. Being the pioneer and leader in prefabrication technology in Singapore, HDB has since maintained the precast implementation level at about 70% for each project.

ADVANTAGES Increase Buildability Improve Labour Productivity Provide quality & affordable homes Enhance Site Safety - Omission of external scaffold - Reduce accident rate as workers need not work along the periphery of the buildings Reduce Impact on Environment One of the major considerations as to why precast concrete is preferred over cast-in-situ construction is because of precasts many environmental attributes: Precast plants reuse formwork, thereby reducing construction waste that would otherwise be generated at a construction site. Precast concrete manufacturing under factory environment can optimise materials usage, reduces wastages and wastes creation, and both the concrete itself and steel reinforcement inside it are recyclable. Because the precast components are modular and standardised, they are installed in a quicker fashion and result in reduced construction time, energy usage and emissions from on-site equipment. Precast concrete products are valued for its inherent quality, value and permanence.

prefabrication, the assembly of buildings or their components at a location other than the building site. The method controls construction costs by economizing on time, wages, and materials. Prefabricated units may include doors, stairs, window walls, wall panels, floor panels, roof trusses, room-sized components, and even entire buildings. The concept and practice of prefabrication in one form or another has been part of human experience for centuries; the modern sense of prefabrication, however, dates from about 1905. Until the invention of the gasoline-powered truck, prefabricated unitsas distinct from precut building materials such as stones and logswere of ultralight construction. Since World War I the prefabrication of more massive building elements has developed in accordance with the fluctuation of building activity in the United States, the Soviet Union, and western Europe. Prefabrication requires the cooperation of architects, suppliers, and builders regarding the size of basic modular units. In the American building industry, for example, the 4 8-foot panel is a standard unit. Building plans are drafted using 8-foot ceilings, and floor plans are described in multiples of four. Suppliers of prefabricated wall units build wall frames in dimensions of 8 feet high by 4, 8, 16, or 24 feet long. Insulation, plumbing, electrical wiring, ventilation systems, doors, and windows are all constructed to fit within the 4 8-foot modular unit. Another prefabricated unit widely used in light construction is the roof truss, which is manufactured and stockpiled according to angle of pitch and horizontal length in 4-foot increments. On the scale of institutional and office buildings and works of civil engineering, such as bridges and dams, rigid frameworks of steel with spans up to 120 feet (37 m) are prefabricated. The skins of large buildings are often modular units of porcelainized steel. Stairwells are delivered in prefabricated steel units. Raceways and ducts for electrical wiring, plumbing, and ventilation are built into the metal deck panels used in floors and roofs. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in New York City (with a span of 4,260 feet [1,298 m]) is made of 60 prefabricated units weighing 400 tons each.

Precast concrete components include slabs, beams, stairways, modular boxes, and even kitchens and bathrooms complete with precast concrete fixtures. A prefabricated building component that is mass-produced in an assembly line can be made in a shorter time for lower cost than a similar element fabricated by highly paid skilled labourers at a building site. Many contemporary building components also require specialized equipment for their construction that cannot be economically moved from one building site to another. Savings in material costs and assembly time are facilitated by locating the prefabrication operation at a permanent site. Materials that have become highly specialized, with attendant fluctuations in price

and availability, can be stockpiled at prefabrication shops or factories. In addition, the standardization of building components makes it possible for construction to take place where the raw material is least expensive. The major drawback to prefabrication is the dilution of responsibility. A unit that is designed in one area of the country may be prefabricated in another and shipped to yet a third area, which may or may not have adequate criteria for inspecting materials that are not locally produced. This fragmentation of control factors increases the probability of structural failure.

Prefabrication and Modularization: Increasing Productivity in the Construction Industry

The new SmartMarket Report, Prefabrication and Modularization: Increasing Productivity in the Construction Industry, provides insight into the role that prefabrication/modularization can have on improving productivity in constructionincluding impacts on project schedule, costs, safety, quality and waste reduction. Though techniques that have been around for decades, prefabrication/modularization are seeing a renaissance as technologies, such as BIM, have enabled better integration of prefabricated/modular components; as changes in design such as the emergence of green have made certain advantages of prefabrication/modularization more important; and as innovative offsite techniques have emerged. With more detail in the report, the study found the following key benefits of prefabrication/modularization:

66% report that project schedules are decreased 35% by four weeks or more. 65% report that project budgets are decreased 41% by 6% or more. 77% report that construction site waste is decreased44% by 5% or more.

Download a free copy today to view this 52-page report, which includes new market research data, insights from industry leaders and project case studies demonstrating ways prefabrication and modularization can improve productivity and provide significant benefits to owners.

FAST DELIVERY AND ASSEMBLAGE WITHIN MINIMUM REQUIRED WORK

QUALITY CONTROL AT ALREA EXCELLENT SEISMIC - DY INSTALLED ELEMENTS IN CHARACTERISTICS -

It

The elements are produced in the factories, roundly in a given cycles, and the deadlines for production are extremely short. Teams of assemblers are highly skilled and compatible.
GOOD IMMUNITY ON EXTERNAL AND CH EMICAL CONDITIONS - Serial production

dictates the optimum relation between position of the armature and protection layer of the concrete.

- All elements are examined after the production, samples of the concrete are controlled at the Institute of Civil Engineering in Tuzla, and practically there is no defect possibility. Since the last year, the company established its own quality control department.
THE FACTORY

is proven that the behavior of prefabricated buildings at seismic disturbances is excellent.


GOOD FIRE PROTECTIO N BECAUSE OF PROTECTION LAYE R ARMATURE (REINFORCEMENT) SIMPLICITY FOR MAINTAINING A FACILIT LOW PRICE - Based

WIDECAPABILITY FOR CONSTRUCTION WORK RANGING OPPORTUNITIES F DURING THE ENTIRE YEAR OR PROJECTION AND CONSTRUCTION OF MUL ECONOMY - The excellent utilization of TIPURPOSE FACILITIES

materials and large spans of elements lowering the number of nasal elements ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTE and supports, as well as the amount of RISTICS - Prefabricated construction protect the installed material in the structures. environment because the production itself does not pollute the environment. In construction we do not use wooden sheaths because by not using this method we are reducing the exploitation of forests.

on earlier mentioned advantages and savings in sheaths, materials, transport and assemblage it is easy to conclude that prefabricated constructions are significantly cheaper than the traditional ones.
AESTHETICS -

Application of this system does not limit the architectural design and the creativity.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Prefabricated Construction Components


Joshua Mendez Law News 2012-10-08

Prefabricated construction is a relatively new way to get buildings up fast. Many parts of the building are pre-made in factories in order to cut down on construction time and lower the overall cost of a project. Previously this method was used almost exclusively for small homes, but in recent years, prefabricated construction components have become available for other structures as well, including tunnels, bridges, and culverts. So the question becomes, are prefabricated construction components right for your project? The following run down of advantages and disadvantages may help you make the call. Advantages

Faster constructionBecause parts are largely assembled in separate factories and then transported to the construction site, overall building time is much faster. This can allow construction companies to work on more projects and potentially, earn more money.

Financing for customersMost homes and buildings built in the modular fashion must be paid for up front which can ensure that construction teams receive payment in full right away. Environmentally friendlyPrefabricated buildings are often less wasteful than other construction projects. This may help to avoid unnecessary materials costs as well. Return customersIf the building owner decides to move their prefabricated building, they may hire the construction company that assembled the structure to disassemble and rebuild the structure in a new location. Disadvantages Less flexibilityWorking a construction project that involves a prefabricated structure can create an extremely structured timeline which makes it harder for construction teams to deal with unexpected obstacles.

Manufacturer reliabilityIn some cases, the manufacturer of the parts may not be reliable or fail to provide construction elements that are satisfactory. This can create complications for the construction company.

The specifications of the buildings site may put restrictions on certain aspects of the structure which can be difficult to incorporate because the structures main components were put together in a diff erent location.

Less time spent on each projectAs stated above, prefabricated buildings require a lot less time to build which can cut down on the total profit of each project. This may lead to losses for some companies that are not prepared to fill the extra time with further assignments.

Increased dangersMost construction teams are familiar with the materials that they regularly work with, but prefabricated buildings can create unique dangers because they are put together by a completely separate organization. Construction accidents can leave workers dealing with serious injuries and health complications. In some cases, victims must work with a construction accident attorney to handle the legal complications of the accident. After considering the way that prefabricated building projects may benefit or disadvantage a companys profitability, it can be easier to decide if this type of building component is desirable. It is important to note however, that this type of construction is growing in some parts of the country more than others. If you live in an area where prefabricated structures are less popular, it may not be worth your time to train a team in how to work with this type of product. On the other hand, if prefabricated construction projects are booming in your region, offering this type of service may be necessary to remain competitive with similar construction companies in the area. Many construction companies find it is beneficial to research possible contracts with the manufacturers of prefabricated building components. By creating a situation in which they recommend your services to their customersor even working out an exclusive contractthose that are serious about getting into this field of construction may be able to ensure that they have a reliable customer base. Carlos is an experienced legal blogger interested in various areas of law including construction accidents, premises liability, and product liability.

Disadvantages of Prefabricated Structures

Prefabricated buildings cost a lot to transport to distant building sites.

Prefabricated homes, or modular homes, are those structures that are built and packaged in a factory for transportation to a permanent site, where they are assembled. The main difference between prefabricated structures and conventional construction is the fact that most of the basic materials in prefabricated structures have either been sub-assembled or completely assembled in the controlled environment of a factory.

1. Limit to Customization
o

Most prefabricated building manufacturers have a set number of designs that serve as a framework for some level of customization. However, there is a limit to the level of customization that can be safely applied to these designs. If the customer's preference cannot be accommodated by the available design, the customer has two options. The first option is to amend the preferred design to fit into something that can be incorporated into the available designs. The second option is to have the modular company design something specifically for the customer. This is a very expensive option because the prefabrication company would have to go back to the drawing board to design something exclusively for the customer.

Transportation Costs
o

The cost of transporting a prefabricated building, from the factory to the construction site, goes up significantly the further away the construction site is from the factory. According to the Modular Today website, the ideal proximity of the construction site to the factory is 300 miles. Anything outside of this radius will only cause the cost of assembling the prefabricated building to escalate beyond what the owner may have budgeted.

Negative Stereotypes
o

Prefabricated buildings do not have the same type of prestige that conventional buildings offer. This is because of their relatively lower costs and the belief that prefabricated structures are not as solid as site-built structures. This leads to concerns about the safety of

such homes in the event of tornadoes or other extreme weather. Another concern is the effect of transportation on manufactured homes with regard to their structural stability.

Financing
o

Owners of prefabricated buildings may encounter some problems when it comes to financing their buildings. Often, they have to pay off the builder completely before the building is completed or as the work is being done. According to Modular Today, the homeowner may be able to obtain a construction loan from the prefabricated home dealer. The homeowner may also find it hard to refinance his homes if the building was not constructed on a permanent site that belongs to him.

Technik Wall Case study


prefabricated facade monowall system Technik Wall is a prefabricated facade solution that incorporates the rainscreen cladding, insulation and interior wall finish as an all-in-one monowall system. This highly cost effective system has superb thermal performance and can be finished with virtually any outer facade finish. The core benefits are: Outstanding thermal performance: Achieves low U values, from 0.23 W/m K to 0.15W/m2K depending on wall thickness. All in one monowall construction. Incorporates exterior rainscreen, insulation and interior wall finish in preassembled panel. Cost neutral when compared to conventional curtain wall and masonry systems. Rapid installation on site: 180m per installation team per day. Panels are prefabricated off site to factory tolerances following quality management systems. Architect can specify virtually any outer rainscreen facade finish. No wet trades on site. Panels are lifted directly off lorry and mounted directly onto the facade. Efficient delivery system results in fewer lorry movements and deliveries to site. Large overall panel size results in fewer panel joints compared to conventional curtain wall and unitised cladding panel. Achieves grade A rating according to the Green Guide to Specification with low impact rainscreen finishes. System incorporates high recycled material content. Thin panels result in more interior floor space compared with traditional wall cladding systems. Panels come windows and doors pre-fitted to panel. Interior mist coat paint finish preapplied. 116 minute resistance to fire. System has passed accredited tests at the Buildings Research Establishment (BRE).

With 200mm of insulation Technik Wall has a higher thermal performance for the same thickness of system compared with curtain walling or brick and block. Increasing the thickness of the insulation achieves lower U-values. 0.18W/m K can be achieved for a 20% glazed area. The outer rainscreen, sub-frame, insulation and a gypsum based interior skin, pre -painted with a mist coat finish. The panels can be assembled with windows, doors, solar shading louvres and electrical services pre-installed, ready for rapid installation on site. Technik Wall arrives on site as large prefabricated panels, which need only to be craned into position and fixed. This means a team can install up to 180 square metres a day, resulting in significant savings in program time. Manufactured off-site to factory tolerances, once on site, installation is clean, there are no wet-trades and no mess associated with other construction methods. The system can incorporate virtually any facade finish. BREEAM and the Code for Sustainable Homes use the Green Guide to Specification as a basis for examining environmental impact. Technik Wall achieves a top A grade according to the Green Guide to Specification rating system, when combined with low embodied impact rainscreen materials, such as western red cedar timber and cement board. A high density internal wall finish is also used, this material is manufactured from re-cycled paper, recycled gypsum and reprocessed water. This primary component contains 95% recycled material content.

Construction Begins on NYCs First Prefab Steel and Concrete Residential Development

Prefabrication has long been heralded as a possible way to infill New Yorks vacant sites; however, it has only recently become a solid practical solution rather than an experimental concept. Riding the crest of the wave of new prefabricated housing is GLUCK+ (formerly Peter Gluck & Partners), in collaboration with developers Jeffrey Brown and Kimberly Frank. Together they have begun construction on one of New Yorks first prefabricated steel and concrete residential buildings. Read more about this and New Yorks recent wave of prefabricated buildings after the break

GLUCK+
Dubbed Broadway Stack, the 38,000 square foot building will contain 28 high quality, moderate income apartments atop 4,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan. At the moment, 5,000 square feet worth of traditional foundations and services exists on-site, awaiting the imminent arrival of fifty-six prefabricated modules from a factory in Pennsylvania. The assembly of these modules into a seven-story building will take four weeks, with an additional three months after for connecting utilities, assembling the facade and adding the finishing touches. Members of the project team will be on-site to provide viewing of the assembly during the week of April 15.

Prefabrication has become popular in recent years due to the efficiency and quality it affords. The result generally leads to lower construction costs, less waste, less energy consumption, less noise and pollution on site, and tighter quality control. It also provides a convenient way to build on some of New Yorks smaller sites, which dont have the space to host traditional construction. Plus the reduction in cost means that high quality housing can be made available to lower income New Yorkers.

New York is going through somewhat of a prefabrication renaissance, although this is first of many. Also in the pipeline is the winning prefabricated apartment building of Bloombergs adAPT NYC competition, which is intended to serve as a 21st century model of New York housing. Meanwhile, SHoP Architects B2

Bklyn residential residential towers, currently under construction in Brooklyn, plans to be one of the worlds tallest pre-fab buildings, standing at 32 stories upon completion.

Rubi Offices / Bailo Rull ADD+ Arquitectura

Architects: ADD+ Arquitectura Manuel Bailo Esteve, Rosa Rull Bertran Location: Barcelona, Spain Client: MTC INVERSIONSs Project year: 2008 Photographs: Jos Hevia

The project has been planned understanding the closer environment and the relation between the city and the landscape. The project is situated on a place where the urban conditions are loosing the density and the compactness in front of one river of the city.

The location of the project invites to focus the views to the landscape, and propose to choose those green views from every part of the offices.

The constructive solution consists to use a precast

concrete for all the building. For the structural part

the project we have used conventional precast solutions. But for the faade we have designed special flat piece and special no flat piece witch control the views to the landscape. The different disposition of those specials pieces generates a special space between inside an outside.

The core access has been designed like a interior artificial garden operating as access to real landscape.

Pentimento House / Jose Mara Sez & David Barragn

Architects: Jose Mara Sez and David Barragn Client: Desire Marn Location: La Morita, Tumbaco, Quito-Ecuador Collaborators: Alejandra Andrade Builder: Jaime Quinga Prefabricated Elements: Hctor Snchez Engineering: Csar Izurieta Material Aspect: concrete, wood, glass Status: Complete: 2006 Photographers: Raed Gindeya, Jose Mara Sez

Bearing Flowerpots A garden and a client without fear. An architecture to be naked to connect with their surroundings. Built with a single piece of prefabricated concrete, which can be placed in four different ways (assembly) which solves structure, wall, furniture, ladders, even a garden facade that is the origin of the project. Outside is a neutral grid that is camouflaged like a fence or hedge. Inside, each wall is different and it fits its scale needs, function, position, etc.

A concrete platform serves as its foundation and adapts to the topography bypassing the trees or incorporating them. On the platform rises the prefabricated system. The pieces are inserted into steel rods anchored with epoxy glue to the platform. These rods and elements of work between pieces generate a tight structure of small columns and lintels especially well suited to the seismicity of the area.

The interstices between prefabricated are left open at some points and close in others with a transparent or translucent acrylic and wooden strips, becoming vegetation and light filters. Inside, the same cracks help to support some wood pieces that become shelves, seating, tables and steps.

The house ignores possible finishes. The foundation slab melts with black pigment and hardener to become the finished floor final. The Flowerpots stays in its precast concrete finished as in its interior and exterior. The wood in the interior and vegetation in the exterior are always an important part of the project. On the top floor the lookout becomes the main space and robs its attention for any secondary element, allowing the passage of air and light, aligning the views of the distant mountains. Its role concentrates to link the user with the surrounding environment. The Blessing of the Low Budget

Economy, simplicity and clarity. Forced to find the answer in terms of the assignment, limiting the budget happily leads us in that direction: stripped of accessory search, aggressively for the reduction and simplify the constructive process. Working with the light, nature, temperate climate and available materials. Few materials and the clarity to use them.

Liberating austerity, allowing the enjoyment, the sensory and the connection with nature. Architecture Synthesis, which is held in a small number of its own laws. A single piece, a single constructive action of stacking the flowerpots. An architecture diluted in nature, the outside is a vertical extension of the garden and inside the minimalist furniture. A flowerpots wall which converges the environment and the user.

Event: Pratt Explores the Importance of Cold War Era Pre-Fabricated Building Systems

Pratt Institutes School of Architecture will present COLD war COOL digital, an exhibition of 20 scaled prototypes of modernist, pre-fabricated, and globally-distributed Cold War era housing systems that were created using contemporary 3D printing technologies (opening reception 2/18 at 6:15, details below). The exhibition will investigate architectural modernism and its global influence and will connect with contemporary prototype pre-fabrication methods and digital research in housing and skyscraper design. A symposium that explores the technical, aesthetic, and political aspects of prototyping and pre-construction in architecture will be held tonight in conjunction with the exhibition. Continue reading for more details

Peter Tannenbaum
The work presented in COLD war COOL digital is of significance as approximately 190 million apartments were built using pre-fabricated concrete panel building systems during the Cold War years. The use of these prefabricated systems ushered in a new construction paradigm that transferred building efforts from the construction site to the factory and resulted in housing blocks that were functional, cheap, and quick to assemble. These systems were exported and adapted internationally, which reveals their diversity and variability within worldwide cross-cultural relationships of exchange and influence. Films and other forms of documentation from the Cold War era will be exhibited to provide the context in which these buildings were produced.

Peter Tannenbaum
SYMPOSIUM: COLD war COOL digital: variable, pre-constructed, consequential

Thursday, February 28 at 6PM Higgins Hall Auditorium, 61 St. James Place, Brooklyn Moderator: Catherine Ingraham, curator, COLD war COOL digital, and professor, Pratt Institute School of Architecture

Panelists: Pedro Ignacio Alonso, professor, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and program director, Architectural Association School of Architecture; Adrian Forty, professor, Bartlett School of Architecture, University of London; James Garrison, adjunct associate professor, Pratt Institute School of Architecture; Hugo PalmarolaSagredo, doctoral candidate, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico; and Tom Wiscombe, professor, Southern California Institute of Architecture EXHIBITION: COLD war COOL digital

February 19-March 20, 2013 Hazel and Robert Siegel Gallery Higgins Hall, 61 St. James Place, Brooklyn

Gallery Hours: Monday-Saturday, 9 AM to 5 PM Curator: Catherine Ingraham, professor, Pratt Institute School of Architecture Exhibition By: Pedro Ignacio Alonso, professor, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and program director, Architectural Association School of Architecture, and Hugo Palmarola Sagredo, doctoral candidate, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico

Sponsors: 3D Systems Corporation; ZCorp; Pratt Institutes School of Architecture; the Universidad Catolica de Chile; Chilean Arts and Culture Council; and the Architectural Association

PRE - ENGINEERED BUILDINGS

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