Jamie Durie A home built by Archiblox in Flinders, Victoria, combining a family-friendly layout with architectural attributes
PREFAB
Home delivery “We are entering the now generation,” says architect Bill McCorkell. You might think he’s referring to the tech industry, but he’s perfectly poised to fulfil all the wants and needs of our instant gratification generation when it comes to home building. If you haven’t explored the 12- to 24-week build time offered by prefab construction and you’ve been exhausted by the tiresome process of conventional building, then volumetric prefab could be the answer, delivering an almost instant abode. “It’s all about controlling the project from start to finish”, says McCorkell. The fact that modules are built in a controlled environment with skilled and time-efficient tradesmen means there are no weather delays, more streamlined construction methods and economies of scale when it comes to materials. These advantages plus avoiding sitespecific time constraints means nesters are getting the benefits of reduced costs while having a home delivered to their site complete with joinery, tiles, paint and carpets, ready to plug in power and plumbing, in around a third of the time of a normal building operation. But isn’t this a poor man’s version of contemporary architecture? How much can you really achieve in a 14m x 4.2m cube – the maximum size that can be loaded onto a truck? Isn’t it much better to have complete creative freedom on the site? There is a perception that prefab still has some of the stigma attached to it that kit homes did in the ’80s because they are compartmentalised spaces primarily based on an economy lifestyle. On the other hand, the biggest ideas sometimes emerge from the smallest spaces. When a creator gets pushed into a corner they come out punching. Space is so valuable that every square inch is carefully thought through to achieve maximum return on investment and the highest level of sophistication per square metre rate. The team from Archiblox, McCorkell’s company, has this down to a fine art. The property pictured, in Flinders, Victoria, is laid out in a
FEBRUARY 8-9, 2020
| THE WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN
family-friendly way yet with all of the architectural attributes you would expect from high-end custom homes. The ceilings are raked and wood lined, exuding the warmth of natural materials. Even the fireplace, added post installation, is solid brick. Modscape in Melbourne and Sydney is also seeing a surge in interest in such dwellings. “We got back from holidays a week ago and it was like someone just turned the tap on,” says co-founder Stefan Seketa. “We are building bigger, better and more elaborate homes.” He points out that custom-designed architecture costs from $2800 to $5000 per square metre. A home is built in 12 weeks under the watchful eyes of 14 design staff and in-house architects. “Our highlight was seeing the entire house arrive onsite in 24 hours,” says one client. Modscape is now building a full-size home every 14 days. Rob Colquhoun (ex Lendlease) of PreBuilt in Melbourne says they are also executing great innovations and experimenting with the European building technique CLT, or Cross Laminated Timber. All the trades are in-house and can plug in their skills on multiple projects in the one location, streamlining the process. Parkwood Homes in Somersby offers very affordable options, with prices starting at $140,562 for a modest two-bedroom, two-module home of 67.6sq m, which is just over $2000 per square metre. A four- to six-bedroom 232.4sq m home for more than $400,000 works out to be a very cost-effective $1753 per square metre. From a lightweight, future-friendly material point of view, the cladding, lining, flooring and roofing options with this type of home building are endless. CSR is creating solar-powered roof tiles, and can produce exterior weatherproof non-combustible cladding in any colour. Austral bricks is making textile masonry blocks, famous in the 1950s, which combine security, ventilation and aesthetic properties. The range of materials can be used with either a steel or wood frame. What this all means is that those at the other end of the scale with larger budgets get more bang for their buck without annoying the neighbours with long construction periods and the attendant noise and traffic problems. It’s the future of building: less time, less waste, a more efficient use of dollars, and reduced impact on both the environment and those around us.
MANSIONAUSTRALIA.COM.AU
21
