THE THREE LITTLE PIGS : THE SHIFTING PERCEPTION OF TIMBER PREFABRICATED CONSTRUCTION IN BRITAIN ESSAY 3 : HISTORY AND THEORY AN ESSAY SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MPHIL IN ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN 2013-2015 JACK STAFFORD | SELWYN COLLEGE | JANUARY 2014 | 3045 WORDS
CONTENTS PAGE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 5 ABSTRACT 7 INTRODUCTION 10 EVOLUTION 13 CURRENT 20 A NEW PERCEPTION 23 A PREFABRICATED FUTURE 31 ENDNOTES 34 LIST OF FIGURES 35 BIBLIOGRAPHY 37 APPENDICES 36
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Ingrid Schrรถder and Alex Warnock - Smith for their continued discussions, interest and guidance with my essay.
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ABSTRACT TIMBER A contextual background of the demising timber construction industry is assessed from perception of the past through to the current status, with analysis drawn in regards to the future of an already troubled industry. This essay will assess whether there is a need to redefine the parameters for the typology of living in an attempt to respond to the impending mass housing crisis of the 21st century.
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INTRODUCTION The need to mass produce objects has always been a part of society. Thousands of years ago, the human race created systems of shelter for hunter-gatherers, transported them to remote locations and devised some of the first processes of construction to assemble enclosure. Thus began the instinctive creation of prefabricated architecture.
As our population grows we will need to increase our housing stock and mass produce more homes to respond to the demand. The strength of the prefabricated house lies in its popularity, its cheapness and the industrial base from which it operates. These are precisely the areas in which modern architecture is weakest. 1
The perception of mass production and prefabricated elements for shelter in today’s society has been tarnished by mistakes of the past and as a result, the continuing development has become obstructed. Britain is still reluctant to define new methods of construction. If we do not begin to address the existing procurements of mass produced housing, we will not be able to respond to the future demand.
Some companies are utilising timber in new and interesting ways, developing new methods of construction, but are constrained by a prerequisite set of parameters and may not provide a sustainable method for the future of timber construction.
The profession of the architect has become driven by a market for brand image and a popular culture of design aesthetic. For some industry sectors this has been an effective way to promote development, but for others, it has begun to interfere with the physical innovation of space, particularly of one that we spend the most amount of our time in; the home. The process of invention does not stop when the typical form is reached; if it did, the market would stagnate. 1
The evolutionary discourse in brick and concrete may offer some insight into where timber construction lost its momentum for innovation. This document will begin to assess the shifting perception of timber prefabricated construction in Britain and deduce whether the previous
history and evolution of mass produced architecture has facilitated or impeded a continuing innovation for timber prefabricated construction. This research will become a core approach to document my area of focus, placing it within the historical and theoretical context and will look at the current state of perception within the industry. The intention is to build a contextual background, within the confines of the demising timber construction industry, to assess whether there is a need redefine the parameters for the typology of living.
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FUCK OFF BIG IMAGE OF SOMETHING
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EVOLUTION ‘If we set ourselves against the past, we can then appreciate the fact that new formulas have been found which only need exploitation to bring about (if we are wise enough to break with routine) a genuine liberation from the constraints we have till now been subjected to. There has been a revolution in methods of construction’. 2 Major shifts in society have changed the purpose of shelter, and our interpretation of what architecture needs to provide. The production of enclosure originated from tradition techniques that were passed down through generations, creating the earliest convention to what can now be thought of as a process of construction. It wasn’t until political democracy and places for social interaction developed that a need for community buildings and places of trade, commerce and conversation were considered. Simple timber construction techniques for community barn raising were devised to allow communities to fabricate pieces of wood at local saw mills, transport them to the building location and erect the building themselves on site. As ambition and requirement for enclosure developed, the process of construction became constrained by the materials that were being used. Using an analogy from the traditional fable ‘the three little pigs’, the intentions were the easiest thing to do at the time and partly through the restrictive nature of transportation and skilled craftsmanship, the need to build bigger, taller, wider and larger spanning structures was confined by the parameters of timber. The resulting development of steel for the building industry changed how we constructed building. Coupled with the invention of railways and the industrial revolution, a new pathway for architecture was conceived. The earliest example of a prefabricated structure was Coalbrookdale Iron Bridge, Shropshire in 1779, the bridge is universally recognised as the symbol of the industrial revolution. 3 Sections of the bridge were cast in the local
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blacksmiths, using jointing techniques inspired by traditional timber construction, (mortice and tenon and blind dovetail joints) and then transported to site for assembly. The success of this process led to a design of houses, churches and hospitals that were exported to the colonies in the mid 19th century. 4 This is the earliest example of how prefabricated architecture could contribute to the built environment. Through technological advances within civilisation during and after the industrial revolution different ways of processing materials into prefabricated elements began to
appear. Modularised construction methods and an ability to rationalise buildings into parts became paramount to the continuing development of buildings, made easier by the invention of timber trusses, glulam beams, laser cutting and an initial concept for cassette panels. It wasn’t until the world wars that prefabricating architecture became a viable option to help cope with the increasing demand for housing. After the wars there was a shortage of skilled labour and resources were scarce, manifesting in a rationalising of timber for housing and a dictation of where timber could
be used within the design. 1 The 1944 housing act, set out by the Labour Party Government of Winston Churchill was envisaged as a way to respond to the housing crisis after the second world war. 5 After the Blitz, there was a gap between expectations and actual provision which contributed to the perception of poor programme. 1 ÂŁ150 million was proposed as an investment in mass produced housing where 125,000 homes were prefabricated and sent to all parts of the country. 5 The obvious choice at the time was for the prefabricated houses to be
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made from lightweight timber construction so that they could be easily transported and assembled. They were designed to be a temporary housing provision for the population, but many people did not want to leave their personally dubbed ‘prefabs’, even when better housing provisions were built. Some people chose to live in their post war prefabricated housing for the rest of their lives. 6 Drawing again from the analogy of ‘the three little pigs’, the post war prefabricated housing initiative provided a better response to the need for mass produced housing, but still one that was still not entirely fit for purpose. It is as this point that timber construction weakened as a major construction method for mass produced housing in Britain and brick and concrete became the main precedent. The post war factories were later adapted to prefabricate concrete precast panels and in 1945 there was an introduction of entirely new forms of cladding, brick panels and stressed skin metal panels. 12 The use of steel and concrete brought new conquests, which were the index of a greater capacity for construction, and of an architecture in which the old codes had been overturned. 2 Whilst brick and concrete took leadership over the housing industry the development plateaued as current perception had dictated it to be of superlative justification for purpose. Using the analogy of ‘the three little pigs’, the use of brick provided the solution and seemed like the best fit for purpose. It had been utilised so extensively that it became a foundation in Britain upon which an entirely utopian material existence for mass produced housing is still based. The abundant supply of brick and concrete resources produced a complacent and perceived understanding that we had met an optimum aesthetic for mass produced housing.
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CURRENT As with the choice of material, the perception of mass produced housing is only beginning to move away from the idea that we have reached a state of design equilibrium. The apparent demise of the timber construction industry in Britain was heavily poisoned in 1983 by a BBC ‘World in Action’ report that heavily slandered the timber construction industry. 7 It focused on past applications from the 1960s and of poor timber housing systems where the problems were created by poor workmanship on site rather than deficiencies within the design. The mistakes of the past damaged the perception of mass produced housing and it was seen to lessen wider acceptance as a mainstream procurement option. 1 The current discourse of prefabricated timber architecture has become tainted by the past applications of the industry as a whole and has produced a negative social perception for all types of prefabricated architecture. There are many private companies who are building prefabricated homes but none are contributing to the wider scale industry problem of housing as a mass product. The mass produced housing of the 21st century has become a commodified entity to increase profits. Within this strand of the housing industry there is a reluctance to try any new methods
of construction, as the current status of the industry is stranded at a stage that could only obstruct its continuing development. Housing companies do not want to risk spending money on prefabricated alternatives with no guarantee that it will not affect their profit. This reluctance and safeguarding has meant that interesting house builders are avoiding Britain until the attitude of the construction industry and the current prejudices against the prefabricated perception of design changes. If we set ourselves against the past, we can then appreciate the fact that new formulas have been found which only need exploitation to bring about (if we are wise enough to break with routine) a genuine liberation from the constraints we have till now been subjected to. 2 The real question is how do you begin to challenge an industry that is producing houses that the public want and to what benefit will this provide to all stakeholders? Why do we need to change things?
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A NEW PERCEPTION In other industries, product development and fabrication has developed to allow the consumer to push the boundaries of interaction and experience. Everything around us has become quantifiable, consumable and replaceable as opposed to past homogenised ideas of production. Nature has become commodified and buildings, dwellings and architectural enclosure have become products, greedily dictated by the need and desires of the consumer. Market driven campaigns have created a mask over how we perceive ‘the home’ and, in time, the current methods of construction and perception could eradicate any possibility of coping with the impending housing crisis. To confront the current perception, a new innovation in the timber construction industry would only become a worthwhile contribution if it were able to improve on the existing market options. In order to challenge the
perceptions of a material or process the foundations of the idea and the initial intention of concept need to be challenged. Development is not always the same thing as progress. By always asking why we are doing this or that we can find new paths. By refusing to accept a pattern simply because it is well established, we make progress. 13 It has been common place within architecture that if we cannot classify a new approach to something then we deem it irrelevant. From this analysis it is clear that, as Vitruvius pronounced, whenever we want to redefine architecture, we return to history. 8 If the fundamentals of the prefabricated construction industry were questioned then what would be the advantageous effects on different stakeholders if a shift in perception was to occur, leaving behind the past ideals of brick and concrete and towards a dominance of timber construction? For the industry as a whole, there could exist
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a sense of control within the innovation of a new type of system from the seed to building. Through careful planning and regulation, resources could be managed to ensure a continuing supply of timber for all aspects of the timber construction industry. This would create more employment within the whole building sector and as 65% of the jobs of the future are not created, it would become a positive and sustainable multiplier for the country. 9 If there were only a few companies offering the new innovation (which could be regulated to follow predefined guidelines) in the timber prefabricated housing industry then there would be a homogenised market dominance. For industry house builders, a new kit of modular timber components would mean that sources could become much more easily quantifiable and the amount of wastage
could be better managed. This would also lead to tighter margins of control throughout the whole process and minimise mistakes on site. Prefabricated housing could also provide opportunities to engage with the customer earlier on in the process such that they are involved before construction and can have an opinion on their finished home. This would not necessarily need to be a face-toface design consultation, but more of an automated and interactive experience for the customer, whereby a set of predefined options could be provided. From a business point of view you could also secure deposits earlier on and have a higher cash flow. A prefabricated method to supply adaptable living arrangements for consumers will also establish a long term relationship with the customer and, if the system permitted it, could become an excellent basis for future adaptation.
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If timber construction was to become the main competitor in the mass produced housing market then it would benefit mostly on the consumer. The reduced labor cost, time and inconvenience from the standard methods of construction would benefit the price associated with the end product and offer a much more transparent view of how the money is being spent. Every part of the process could be accurately costed and quantified based on need, providing an option to move away from houses built by developers through the use of a new catalogue for housing production.
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A PREFABRICATED FUTURE This essay has established that a shift in perception resulted in the timber construction industry to move from a lively and fluent application for public need, to becoming an appendage to the mass produced housing market in Britain. Through new and innovative approaches, timber prefabricated construction could become a market leader in the future of our housing industry. Any potential steps forward for the industry are dictated by perception. How a customer views a product is one of the most important aspects to any type of market change. As one of the most pioneering legends of industry, Steve Jobs, said ‘a lot of the time people don’t know what they want until you show it to them’. 11 If we are to challenge past and current perceptions of mass production housing then we need to instill a subtle comparison between current mass produced alternatives and how timber construction will provide a better alternative. Prejudices prescribed by past attempts to solve occurring crises of mass production housing will need to be confronted. Industry has created its tools. Business has modified its habits and customs. Construction has found new means. Architecture finds itself confronted with new laws… Such tools are capable of adding to human welfare and
of lightening human toil. If these new conditions are set against the past, you have revolution. 2 Within my studio design work I have been looking at shifting the character of the house to predominantly represent a configuration of space rather than to be defined by the outwards appearance. Form and function of the building will need to precede the conception that aesthetic quality is of higher importance. If the house is considered as an arrangement of objects then a new precedent could assist timber in becoming a strong contender in the mass produced housing market. The findings from this essay have shown the effects that past, current and projected perception can have on the way we think about enclosure and the role that the timber construction could play in an attempt to change our perceived intentions for the future. A question remains of how a prefabricated timber alternative could effect the integration of living in relation to the urban planning of the city. A kit of parts working together in an
attempt to make sense of the whole is perfectly viable for individual houses, but what would the effects be on a community if all of the buildings were to be adapted, modified and personalised? Prefabricated buildings could become introverted, parochial environments, only responding to the separate desires of the individual and not how the building sits within the context of a community and the city. Ultimately, the answer remains with perception. If a catalogue of projected ideas was created for prefabricated living then ideas about how we should communally live within the city could become integrated within the process of procurement.
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The architect of the future must take responsibility for the initial change to the way we think about the timber construction industry. Wood and timber prefabrication methods will continue to evolve based on the ingenuity of the designers, manufactures, fabricators and builders. Experts in manufacturing and fabrication are continually emerging in the discipline, but rarely in the design fields. 12 To define a new purpose we need to consider all of the implications and take ownership over the small details of perception that will need to work together in an attempt to make sense of an overall shift in opinion. As taught in The Three Little Pigs, ‘the
way to get along in the world is to do things as well as you can’ (Appendix 1), the means by which we use timber construction as architects needs to be modernised. How the change is perceived could revolutionise the way that the timber construction industry sits within society. It is therefore not the timber specialists, timber technologists, biologists or performance specialists who are being put to the test here, but instead, first and foremost, the architects. 14
Creation must be considered as fabrication; construction as assemble; process as product. New ideas about how we can begin to establish a new social and political propaganda and market must be considered to create a new identity for the mass produced housing industry. A new identity creates new products, a new market and new opportunities for architects in the 21st century.
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ENDNOTES 1. (Phillipson, 2011) 2. (Corbusier, 1931) 3.
(Read, 1974)
4.
(Petre, 1889)
5.
(Ministry of Works, 1944)
6.
(British Pathe, 1945)
7.
(Grengrass, 1983)
8.
(Vitruvis, 2011)
9.
(Wolfe, 2013)
10.
(Davies, 2005)
11.
(Jobs, 1998)
12.
(Smith, 2010)
13.
(Ingvar, 2013)
14.
(Deplazes, 2005)
15.
(Halliwell-Phillipps, 1886)
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LIST OF FIGURES FRONT & BACK COVERS : Corres (2012). 30 High Resolution Plywood Texture. Retrieved January, 4, 2014 from, http://naldzgraphics.net/textures/plywood-texture/ PAGE 8 - 9 : Caylamax Recycling (2012). Lumber Yard. Retrieved January, 5, 2014 from, http://caylamaxrecycling.com.au/site/wp-content/plugins/doptg/uploads/ jFWqqpXYjSCL7sFwtr9ccsAHc5L4FMx9Mykdyq9Psf6z3Ra6p8nZ9fWnedsYTPgSE.JPG PAGE 11 : Momousa (2012). Timber Lumber Yard. Retrieved January, 7, 2014 from http://momousa-first.tumblr.com/post/31607966246/alfred-eisenstaedt-a-manstanding-in-the PAGE 12 : Candidtraveller (2012). Five Majestic UK Photo Opportunities. Retrieved January 4, 2014 from, http://candidtraveller.com/2012/08/06/five-majestic-uk-photo-opportunities/ PAGE 15 : Ministry of Works (1944). Temporary Housing Programme. London : His Majesty’s Stationery Office. PAGE 16 : Witter-Rieder (2008). Chiltern Open Air Museum Amersham Prefab. Retrieved January, 4, 2014 from, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chiltern_Open_Air_Museum_Amersham_Prefab.JPG PAGE 18-19 : Sixthland (2006). Timber yard, Mitcham. Retrieved January, 4, 2014 from, http://www.flickr.com/photos/thesixthland/119331063/ PAGE 21 : Xauxa (2007). Solna Brick wall Stretcher bond variation1. Retrieved January, 5, 2014 from, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Solna_Brick_wall_Stretcher_bond_variation1.jpg http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zU8OPI-qc7w/T3OBNLKFXdI/AAAAAAAABWI/yPoift-v1lA/ s1600/IMG_0221.JPG
PAGE 22 : Oosoom (2008). Saville Building roof interior gridshell. Retrieved January, 9, 2014 from, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saville_Building_roof_interior_gridshell.jpg PAGE 24 : Poift (2011). Oak Frame. Retrieved January, 9, 2014 from, http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zU8OPI-qc7w/ T3OBNLKFXdI/AAAAAAAABWI/yPoift-v1lA/s1600/ IMG_0221.JPG PAGE 27 : Chataigner (2013). The day starts. Retrieved January, 5, 2014 from, https://www.sharypic.com/ouisharefest/p/518368c7373e005a58000001 PAGE 28-29 : Kengo Kuma and Associates (2013). Pavilion. Retrieved October, 22, 2013 from, http://kkaa.co.jp/ works PAGE 30 : Eno-Swales (2012). SC-Gable_prefab. Retrieved January, 9, 2014 from, http://homepages.phonecoop. coop/eno-swales/SBWS/Assets/pics/sc-gable-prefab. jpg PAGE 34 : Yorkshire (2012). Timber Joint. Retrieved January, 6, 2014 from http://yorkshirecncjoinery.co.uk/ wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Gersa18.jpg
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BIBLIOGRAPHY British Pathe (1944). A Home of the Future. Retrieved December, 15, 2013 from, http://www.britishpathe.com/video/a-home-of-the-future/query/homes+of+the+future
Read, B. (1974). Men of Iron: A Tale of Coalbrookdale and the Making in Shropshire of the First Iron Bridge in 1779. England: World’s Work.
Corbusier, L. (1931). Towards a New Architecture. New York: Dover Publications, INC.
Smith, R E. (2010). Prefab Architecture. A Guide to Modular Design and Construction. New Jersey : John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Davies, C. (2005). The Prefabricated Home. London : Reaktion Books Ltd. Deplazes, A (2005). Constructing Architecture. Basel : Birkhäuser - Publishers for Architecture. Greengrass, P. (1983). World in Action : The System Builders Season 19, Episode 27. Retrieved December, 16, 2013. Halliwell - Phillipps (1886). The Nursery Rhymes of England. London : Richards. Ingvar, K. (2013). The Testament of a Furniture Dealer. Retrieved October, 18, 2013 from, http://www.ikea.com/ms/ en_US/pdf/reports-downloads/the-testament-of-a-furniture-dealer.pdf Jobs, S. (1998). Steve Jobs on Apple’s Resurgence : “Not A One-man Show”. Retrieved December, 23, 2013 from, http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/ may1998/nf80512d.htm Ministry of Works. (1944). Temporary Housing Programme. London : His Majesty’s Stationery Office. Petre, H W. (1889). Half a Century of British Colonisation : 1836 to 1887. London : Effingham Wilson. Phillipson, M. (2001). DTI Construction Industry Directorate Project Report : Current Practice and Potential Uses of Prefabrication. Scotland : BRE.
Vitruvius. (2001). Ten Books on Architecture. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. Wolfe, I. (2013). 65 Percent of Today’s Students Will Be Employed in Jobs That Don’t Exist Yet. Retrieved December, 18, 2013 from, http://www.successperformancesolutions.com/2013/65-percent-of-todays-students-will-beemployed-in-jobs-that-dont-exist-yet/
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APPENDICES Once upon a time there were three little pigs and the time came for them to leave home and seek their fortunes. Before they left, their mother told them “ Whatever you do, do it the best that you can because that’s the way to get along in the world.” The first little pig built his house out of straw because it was the easiest thing to do. The second little pig built his house out of sticks. This was a little bit stronger than a straw house. The third little pig built his house out of bricks. One night the big bad wolf, who dearly loved to eat fat little piggies, came along and saw the first little pig in his house of straw. He said “Let me in, Let me in, little pig or I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house in!” “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin”, said the little pig. But of course the wolf did blow the house in and ate the first little pig. The wolf then came to the house of sticks. “Let me in, Let me in little pig or I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house in” “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin”, said the little pig. But the wolf blew that house in too, and ate the second little pig. The wolf then came to the house of bricks. “ Let me in, let me in” cried the wolf “Or I’ll huff and I’ll puff till I blow your house in”
“Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin” said the pigs. Well, the wolf huffed and puffed but he could not blow down that brick house. But the wolf was a sly old wolf and he climbed up on the roof to look for a way into the brick house. The little pig saw the wolf climb up on the roof and lit a roaring fire in the fireplace and placed on it a large kettle of water. When the wolf finally found the hole in the chimney he crawled down and KERSPLASH right into that kettle of water and that was the end of his troubles with the big bad wolf. The next day the little pig invited his mother over . She said “You see it is just as I told you. The way to get along in the world is to do things as well as you can.” vFortunately for that little pig, he learned that lesson. And he just lived happily ever after. 15
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