Noah Gilliver
Contents Page Page Title Number Introduction 001-002 The Walter Segal Method Method Typology and User Benefits
003-005
WikiHouse Project 005-008 Method Typology and User Benefits U-Build System 009-011 Method Typology and User Benefits Mapped Out Data 012 Community 013 Information Sharing 014 Motivation 015 Skills 016 A Final Notice 017-018
Image List 019 Reference List 020
A Laser Cut Model House, Craft Shapes, 2019
001
Introduction Since the start of Human history, we have required somewhere to live. Originally people would create these homes themselves and working with others to make communities. More recently we have professionals whose job it is to build all the homes for everyone. However, for a small subsection of homeowners, they will go through self-provisioning to create their own home. Personally, I found that defining self-provision as “where the household itself that acts as promotor and the developer” (Duncan, Rowe, 1992) is closest to reality. Self Provisioning in some capacity (Duncan, Rowe, 1992) exists within most countries, with France having up to 50% of their housing provided by the citizens whereas within the UK self-provisioning is only as high as 6% (Duncan, Rowe, 1992). The reason for this difference could be seated in culture and about how the government within the UK have positioned it but I think that it is due to a lack of knowledge. So I will look at better methods to self-build to see if that is what is holding the UK market back. “Self Provision” covers both the extremes of Self Promoted at one end where the client contracts out all work to professionals who will build the home and at the other extreme Self Built where the client contracts out as little as possible and builds the large majority of the work themselves (Fig 1). For this essay, I will mostly be focusing on Self Built however as self-promoters could get a contractor, it can also apply just not as directly.
Fig 1: A Graph to show selfpromotion against self-built, drawn by the author
High Cost
Self Promoted
High Labour
Low Labour
Self Built
Low Cost
002
For self-provision, there have been some exciting developments from Google Sketchup, easy to use but professional level 3d modelling, software to councils moving toward more self-built homes with self-built schemes. It is becoming the era of the selfbuilt however I think that Computer Numerical Control or CNC holds the most promise. CNC is defined as “Where machine tools and/or workpiece are controlled by a computer� (Escudier, Atkins 2019). With the ability to cut out projects at a high level of detail quickly and repeatedly means that methods can be developed to create entire buildings in a reduced time scale compared to a traditional construction method (Fig 2). When talking about where and how people live we have to talk about who they live with both within the walls of their home and within their local community. It comes as no shock to any resident that these local communities are weaker than they were with higher and higher boundaries between people. However, self provisioners have created their own communities that are physical and now as we move forward with our methods of construction, digital. They support each other through the process, share information and build together. These communities trade-in non-tangible details where labour is traded for skills and knowledge. The experienced members of the group which are nearing completion train up the next generation of builders who are starting construction, who then can then perpetuate the cycle further. With Self builders being the client and the developer, people are more invested in creating the best home possible so they are quick to adopt other methods and draw in skills from other groups. Changes can be made quickly if a shorter or cheaper route is found so adaptation within the community is rapid and often. Once a method has been used it is quickly adopted by the community if its benefits are numerous however if there are issues with how it is being implemented and utilised. Within the community, there is a large volume of professionals from every background so these issues are quickly resolved and pushed forward where the traditional contractors pick it up and commercialise it. However, the self-building community has already restarted the cycle, hence why CNC is revolutionising this group.
Labour Intensive Traditional Build
Complexitity
Time Consumption
Durability
Fig 2: A Graph to show how traditional a build costs, takes time and is complex. Drawn By Author
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The Walter Segal Method
“All you need to do is to be able to cut a straight line with a saw and drill a straight hole” Walter Segal
Fig 3: “Segal was impressed by the potential of people building their own houses”, James Drew Turner
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Method
With the aim for anyone to produce their own house from concept to delivery; the design part of the build needs to be accessible. Using graph paper (Fig 4) means that people don’t worry about the implications of designing on it (Grahamme & Wilkhu, 2017) and as the graph paper is considered to be an ordinary tool so it means that the average public feels more familiar with using it and also allows people to make mistakes during the design process and adapting to suit their needs as the design is never locked in with a formal drawing. The use of a simple construction method means that the components that go into it have to be widely accessible to everyone. Using a timber-framed structure and joining them using metal bolts leads to a strong construction that is easy to build and detail (Grahamme & Wilkhu, 2017). So this means that with this style it is learnt quickly and can be replicated with accuracy over a large period.
Fig 4: Designing a Segal method House, Drawn by Author
A major part of the Segal method was eliminating “Wet� Trades, this is a process which takes a dry material and adds water, for example, plaster and mortar. (Grahame, 2015) These types of jobs require extensive training and generally are in high demand within the UK so can take a while to get to the site. Due to the extensive training, very few people can do the job to a high enough standard to self-build using these. Hence removing the requirement for these trades expands the usage of the system to more people. For his method, he focused on easy methods that can be easily mastered so anyone could use them .
005 With the foundations normally taking up a large volume of time and budget it is critical that a straightforward method is chosen. From this concrete piles are ideal as they are uncomplicated in methodology (Grahamme & Wilkhu, 2017) however it does take a large amount of labour to form. Once they are dug, however, the laying of the concrete is easy and requires very low-technology machines. Either the concrete can be made on-site with a mixer or you can order in a load of concrete if the community is ready for it. So this allows the self-builders to avoid having to contract out any work if they wanted to do it all themselves and save on the cost however increase their own labour. This also reduces the difficulty of construction (Fig 5) as using this simple method means that specialist contractors do not have to be involved.
Typology The typology of the Segal Method is housing as he envisioned the method being used so people can produce their own homes. Constructing their own homes and others surrounding them creates a unified street that has a style and socially linked where the residents have a community surrounding them.
User Benefits The benefits to the user are that the homes are purpose-built for them so they can adapt the design and construction to suit them even after completion. This purpose-built nature means that they can live in the same place for longer and grow their social connections. This is also assisted by the adaptability of construction so if more or different spaces are required it can easily be changed to suit the users’ needs, therefore reducing the need to move away from an area. So the community that is in the area is fairly stable and means people can grow together and have stable connections.
Labour Intensive Traditional Build
Walter Segal Method
Complexitity
Time Consumption
Durability
Fig 5: A Graph to show how traditional a build against the Segal method
006
WikiHouse Project
“The future of Building. By everyone. For everyone” Architecture 00
Fig 6: A-barn, Scotland Architecture 00, In Wikihouse Projects, Architecture 00, 2019
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Method Wiki House was originally designed by Architecture 00, they originally created a list of pieces that can be used for the projects however they then made it open source so anyone can change and edit it. This means when you design your building you have to have a knowledge of the system; the more you know the easier the build will be. They have tried to make it more accessible through the use of easy to understand software such as Google Sketchup. This is meant to open the system up to larger groups of people with fewer software skills and reduce the bar of entry. The system focuses on componentry that builds larger frames which can be slotted together to create a structure (Open Systems Lab, 2018). These components try not to limit the forms, however, due to the nature of standardised components, it means that it will always limit to the form however it creates a challenge to self-builders to work with the structure and still have interesting forms. Once a form has been decided on it is broken down to the frames and then the components. These are then laid out onto sheets of material (mostly Plywood or OSB) then sent to a CNC milling factory or done on-site by a flying factory (Open Systems Lab, 2018). For larger-scale projects, you may have a community of factories come together to complete the order if time is a requirement. This means that the selfbuilder can choose what method is best for them. Creating this flexibility with the construction allows more options as you may not mind on speed however the cost is important so you can choose an operator who can complete the job to your requirements. Once on-site with the components, construction can start. The main idea is that the components slot together with minimal prior knowledge. This is ideal for participation builds where you may have large volumes of unskilled labour, for example, small enterprises or local groups. (Open Systems Lab, 2018). With these components, there is also the opportunity for reuse as if a building falls out of use it can be disassembled and the parts used in a different structure. This combines with the low CO2 cost and embodied energy of the structure to give a very low carbon footprint. (Architecture 00, 2019)
Digital Design CNC Cutting Assembly Fig 7: The production cycle for wiki house, Architecture 00, 2019
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Typology Currently, Wiki House is mostly focused on two types of projects that people have completed. Private Housing and Public Gathering spaces, this is mostly due to the fact these need to keep costing down and have people who can participate in the construction and production.
User Benefits Compared to traditional construction methods Wiki House is cheaper as it uses low-cost material per m2. The cost is also reduced as it uses low skill labour which is cheaper than skilled workers, for example, bricklayers and roofers. This aims to provide an option for self-builders with a low budget who cannot afford a traditional construction method but still want a customisable option. (Architecture 00, 2019) With Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM) taking a key role in the WikiHouse, it allows people to learn skills that otherwise are limited to small groups of professionals. With this knowledge passed on people can then start to use these skills to manufacture what they need for day to day life as well. This allows them to improve their living conditions and furniture for less money but at an increased time to achieve the same goal. However, the Wiki house and the open-source nature of it means that most other projects, furniture or building, may have Wbeen already planned out and printable.
Labour Intensive Traditional Build
Wiki House
Complexitity
Time Consumption
Durability
Fig 8: A graph comparing WikiHouse and a traditional build, Drawn By Author
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U - Build System ”Designed By Architects, Approved by Engineers, Built by You” Studio Bark
Fig 9: Mill Construction Site, Studio Bark, 2018 Images to show a project during construction
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Method With the self-builder approaching the architects and giving them a brief (U-Build, 2020). This is highly conventional in nature and resembles a traditional selfprovisioned project. The architects will then design the building to be built on-site and hand it back to the self-builder who will then move onto the construction process. This means that the self-builder has a highly designed build and has professional support through the process. They can work with the architects and create a building that is both stunning and within the builders capacity. The main concept for this type of system is that you would get a print farm to cut out your boxes pre-construction or you get a flying factory to arrive on-site and cut the wood directly to save travel time of the boxes (Studio Bark, 2019). These standard parts mean that the boxes can be cut out on mass so when a client wants to create a building the parts are ready and just require transportation. This reduces construction time and cost per box as they can be cut out more effectively. Once you have the parts on-site you can combine them to form the boxes and then filled with insulation. These boxes are small enough for two people to handle and move around, yet still, be strong enough to be structurally sound. This means that very little structural work is required as the boxes are strong enough to selfsupport and money can be saved as less work needs to be done. This could also remove a professional from the team reducing the cost of the project as a structural engineer’s role becomes severely reduced. Once you have the boxes created and filled with insulation you move onto the creation of the shell. The boxes are designed to be locked together with a bolt and nut and once you have the shell up and ready it is tightened into a square (Studio Bark, 2019). This is ideal as it takes a simple construction method that any able-bodied person can do and allows them to self build. With the low rise nature of the projects, it generally means that only a scaffold tower is required. This is beneficial as it is easy to put together and can be easily moved and rearranged to suit the purpose. This scaffold tower also aligns with the purpose of reducing the number of professionals as scaffolders are not required on-site, as a scaffold tower can be assembled by the selfbuilders.
Fig 10: U - Build Boxes being constructed, Made by Author
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Typology
User Benefits
The current method is mostly used for studios however there is a project which is an entirely self-built home (U-build, 2020). As more people use the system I propose that more people will build homes like this one however I do not think U-build will move on from two-story structures as it starts to move toward the limitation of just a plywood structure without reinforcements.
Although the system has many limitations it also includes many benefits with having the most design opportunities for the user. With how simple the system is most concepts can be made so it allows the user to design exactly what they want for purpose.
Labour Intensive Traditional Build
U-Build System
Complexitity
Time Consumption
Durability
Fig 11: A graph to show U-build compared to traditional build, Drawn By Author
With U-build being developed by an architecture and engineering practice together it provides the knowledge that it is fixed and completed. This means that during construction there will not be any issues as Studio Bark have thought it out and resolved it during their prototyping phase. This does give the user some peace of mind as they know it has been tested and resolved. With the simple nature of the U-Build boxes, this means that once you have the boxes the construction process is simple and very quick. Normally only limited by the user and time to assemble a single unit. This can be resolved with storing complete units ready for construction so very few limitations are placed on speed.
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Mapped Out Data Fig 12: The Graph comparing all Self Build Methods, Drawn By Author Labour Intensive Traditional Build
Walter Segal Method
Wiki House
U-Build System
Complexitity
Time Consumption
Durability
Fig 13: A Map To compare the number of and location of projects, Drawn By Author
Segal Method WikiHouse U-Build
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Community The reason the Segal method came to be was an aim to create communities that were working together to produce their street and then could rely on each other after because they had been through the self-build process together. The Process ends up being the bonding factor that holds the community together. Whereas, with wiki house, the community may never meet each other in person however they become digital communities who share information online freely and learn from each other. This means that information which normally is a commodity can be shared and allows people to try new things and upskill themselves. With the use of the cyclical nature of the open-source, every development is added to the project and a database is collected. This community extends to the people who own digital production facilities such as print farms or flying factories. Print farms are teams of CNC mills that work together to produce large scale orders. Some of them are sharing the Some print farms may share a building where several companies work together but mostly they are only within the same city or region. Flying factories differ from this as it is a CNC mill and running requirements are placed into a container which can be placed on-site and plugged in. Which then can produce the components as required. As U-build was derived from an architecture studio it does carry ‘studio culture’ with it. Studio culture aims to share information and work together to resolve any issues that arise. As it derives from an architecture studio this means that it is a product which is required to be sold. So the information cannot move freely as they may want to as it would devalue their work. This means that even if the architect wants to adopt the builder into the design team there is still a boundary between them; the self-builder is still a client. However, as they are a client, the service they provide means the system is very refined and the support surrounding the client is professional and plentiful. This means that the traditional contract still works, but self-builders require more support and more drawings since they might not be able to read plans or sections. However, it is critical that the self-builder understands as they will be acting as the contractor on site. With all of these methods, a community is created as the nature of building your own home means that no one can do it alone. This community does change depending on the system and location. The WikiHouse having their community online and having access to each other without physically being near each other. On the other hand, the Segal method has created a tight physical community on the two roads where people feel like they can work together to create the homes they want. Finally, with U-build the system has both an online and physical community as most communication is done online, however, the system originates from a studio with a physical community within it.
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Information Sharing For the Segal Method, the information is shared in a linear way from a book to the user who then applies the knowledge to the practical scale. This knowledge is locked in place unless the user writes their own book or publication which then updates the information. However, if they don’t their experience isn’t added to a collective so some mistakes can be repeated. The system can end up being stagnant and end up stuck and not used. This can mean that it becomes out of date or seems irrelevant. This then means people won’t use it and go back to traditional construction methods. On the other hand, with this system, you do need the knowledge to be able to read plans and sections to construct a functioning house which is not a skill all users have as they have not been trained in it. This can slow down the production cycle as you need to learn to read these drawings first, then move onto design. This also acts as a barrier to entry for the whole self-building movement as these “Standard” drawings require some level of training to read and more training to implement them. With Wikihouse the information it creates cycles back around to the other users as it is open source. The original plans were open-source; it leads to a shared development between all users and adaptations and extra files just get added to the collection of wiki house objects. Open-source means that the feedback from one build adds to the next project so the process grows and rapidly iterates. This means it can quickly adapt and is available to all to change and reuse. The information within the U-Build system is resolved as Studio Bark has worked on it so the system is fairly finished. This means that clients should not find issues with the system and if they do they have a support team to guide them through the process. This refinement is beneficial as it reduces the chance of error due to the system having issues as it has been tested by a varied board of professionals. CNC has changed how information is shared between users both CNC operators and selfbuilders. The distance between professional and amateur is the closing through access to the information online. Hence the general public is more informed than ever before. It also changes the flow of information, as part of the digital era is cyclical information which feedbacks into itself and is shared within the community and to others. This style of learning is very informal compared to the traditional style. The Segal method focuses on the same principles as information is shared between users. However due to the limitations of the technology it was not widely shared between builders. With the projects in close proximity to each other, sharing two streets in London, this meant information can be shared directly between users.
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Motivation Walter Segal aimed to create communities using self-provision as a tool that brings people together. He wanted communities to create space for each other and work together to improve their lives. Using his method to skill-up the whole community, it means that they could then help to create a larger self-build group that shares information and collectively works toward a better build. This has only worked in a couple of niche areas where like-minded individuals work together to form streets. Unfortunately, this has not worked on a larger scale with people requiring large amounts of labour only a community can access. So self-builders end up isolated and turning to traditional construction methods. Wiki House opened up a conversation about digital design and CNC as viable methods for construction. Although the original design was simple the open-source nature of the system allows it to leap forward after each project. Starting with traditional professionals looking into it then passing it down to self-builders. Traditional professionals are those people who are already in the construction industry, for example, engineers or architects. These specialists have the skills to develop the system further while making fewer mistakes. Once the system has been more developed you can then give it to self-builders and they can find their issues with it which can be resolved and added as they will have skills which the traditional professionals might lack.
U-build has the goal of mass participation, the aim for this type of project is limited by the systems around the land acquisition. Participation within the u-build system works as there is a range of jobs to be done. From high-intensity jobs like the assembly of the building, down to the lower difficulty of cutting insulation and fitting it to boxes. Anyone who wants to help can, from children to the elderly, as they can complete smaller parts of the whole. The issue is that the project only succeeds at participation. Whereas it could champion collaboration between the users and architects. If the user was brought into the design team as the “builder� as opposed to a client, more could be achieved as a closer understanding to the builder’s personal abilities can be used to produce a better scheme. Currently how U-build projects are designed limits the potential as they are treated as clients and not as an equal to the architects.
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Skills The Segal Method’s aim is for everyone to self build so it means that the skills required to start to have to be very low or as close to zero as possible. Yet with a low skill base, you have to maintain quality over a long time and over a large volume of homes, generally a street. So a key point is to skill up the community and give them the required knowledge base to improve their social standing through the production and creation of their own homes. Wiki House teaches its builders different skills than that of a traditional build; CAD and CAM become critical to the build, to produce the components to be used. Through learning these skills you also change how you will learn, moving towards less formal and more self-taught methods. CAD requires to seek out information online and learn through questions and mistakes. This style of learning is necessary for digital design as in lots of situations you can’t find a class or book that can teach you. A problem with Wiki-House is that it assumes you have set up your CNC machine correctly and/or ordered the right parts from a digital factory. If this critical step is done incorrectly there will be large issues throughout the build. If the CNC is set up wrong the components will misalign or just not go together, with the risk of recutting sheets of materials if it is off by a large enough amount. The skills you acquire through using the U-Build Boxes are limited to a simple construction process that most people have come across, with nuts and bolts being the focus of the construction. This leaves options to change the spaces but it fails to train the user in anything more complex, creating a reliance on the system provided. This creates an issue that when the builder wants to try something more complex they have to go and learn another method of construction before trying the more complex shape, such as curves or non-linear shapes. The benefit of the basic construction method for U-build is that it squares itself off and the margin of error is larger. Therefore it matters less if the self-builder is not as accurate which an amateur might worry about. However, CNC does make it very easy to be accurate as the cuts are being made by a computer-controlled router. So as long as it is correctly set up you will be accurate and precise.
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A Final Notice Through the use of technology, we can adapt the way we design buildings to be more sustainable, quicker and cheaper. This does take a few pioneering projects to show the potential of a system and how it is possible only through the use of that technology. For example, gridshells and computer modelling allowed complex forms to be created and tested before even being on-site. This allowed architects to generate more designs without fear of it being impossible. I hope that both U-build and Wikihouse show the untapped potential of CNC manufacturing for architecture. However, I also think that we are yet to have a project that will show how key they are moving forward. From these small scale pioneering projects we can then let the self-builders adopt the method from the industry so they can use it and push it to its limits. Giving people the system allows them to create communities around them and allows groups of likeminded people to work together. Through the internet, these people do not even have to be in the same place or time zone. Better methods of use and assembly can be shared between these users and a better method is created. This global collaboration between users means that everyone can make and design. Once more groups or individuals have tried the system and worked out the issues it will end up becoming resolved and useful to everyone, not just self-builders. The wider public can then just print the parts they want. As furniture moves towards a component style and construction where you can print anything out. This will get people using digital tools and making more comfortable solutions for themselves. With these digital tools, we can look at this as design becoming a collective process. Architects should be aiming to remove themselves from being a key driver in design and letting clients and users create what they require. The quote “Stop pretending you are an artist because you’re not” (Holert, 2011) can also be applied to architects. As a profession, we try to hold ourselves above others claiming we have something that others would perceive as impossible. Whereas we are actually “tools” (Holert, 2011) to be used by clients to distribute the design process and facilitate the creation of a building. The knowledge we have is unique to Architects and that knowledge is what the client wants access to when working with us. For suggestions about how this can function we should look towards other “trades”. This is because they use their skill set to assist in the creation of space and buildings. As architects for this digital age, we need to become specialists in production methods such as CNC. Architects who feel uncomfortable with using these tools should be learning and using them as with the digital era and the next industrial revolution, CNC are becoming key to producing products, not just buildings. A two-axis CNC should be a basic tool any architect should know how to use as the costing being comparable to a traditional tool however with the CNC machine having significantly more features. As a traditional tool can do a single task, for example, a drill can only drill, a CNC router can do many different tasks from flattening wood, cutting shapes, engraving to name a few. As technology moves forward the entry requirements to manufacturing reduces and allows all of us to make and produce. As architects, we need to know how these work so we can create solutions for people. With building design becoming a shared skill, production architects will become very important as they will understand how to facilitate great space creation. Today we can let users change and USE our idea to design a better project.
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Design is never finished, the person shaping it merely changes.
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List Of Figures and Refernces for them Laser Cut Model House : Just Craft Shapes, 2019, Laser Cut Miniature 3d House, https://www.justcraftshapes.co.uk/laser-cut-miniature-3d-house Fig 1: A Graph to show self-promotion against self-built, drawn by the author Fig 2: A Graph to show how traditional a build costs, takes time and is complex. Drawn By Author Fig 3: “Segal was impressed by the potential of people building their own houses”, James Drew Turner James drew Turner Walter’s way. In Alice Grahame, Sept 2015, “This isn’t at all like London”: life in Walter Segal’s self-build ‘anarchist’ estate. The Guardian, Fig 4: Designing a Segal method House, Drawn by Author Fig 5: A Graph to show how traditional a build against the Segal method Fig 6: A-barn, Scotland Architecture 00, In Wikihouse Projects, Architecture 00, 2019 Architecture 00 A-Barn, Scotland In Studio 00. 2019. Projects https://www.wikihouse. cc/Projects Fig 7: The production cycle for wiki house, Architecture 00, 2019 Wikihouse about, Archiecture 00, 2019, https://www.wikihouse.cc/About Fig 8: A graph comparing WikiHouse and a traditional build, Drawn By Author Fig 9: Mill Construction Site, Studio Bark, 2018 Studio bark [@studio bark], 18 June 2018, mill lane construction site https://twitter. com/studiobark/status/1008634998264619008, 07-04-20 Fig 10: U - Build Boxes being constructed, Made by Author Fig 11: A graph to show U-build compared to traditional build, Drawn By Author Fig 12: The Graph comparing all Self Build Methods, Drawn By Author Fig 13: A Map To compare the number of and location of projects, Drawn By Author
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Reference List S.S Duncan, A. Rowe, (1992) Self Provided Housing, Urban Studies, Vol 30 Number 8, 1331-1354, DOI: 10.1080/00420989320081291 Marcel Escudier, Tony Atkins, (2019) A Dictionary of Mechanical Engineering (2 ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN: 9780199587438 Alice Grahamme & Tacan Wilkhu, 2017, Walters Way & Segal Close: the architect Walter Segal and London’s self-build communities: a look at two of London’s most unusual streets, Zurich: Park Books Alice Grahame, Sept 2015, “This isn’t at all like London”: life in Walter Segal’s self-build ‘anarchist’ estate. The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/ sep/16/anarchism-community-walter-segal-self-build-south-london-estate Open Systems Lab, 2018, Using WikiHouse, https://files.cargocollective.com/c229869/ WHouse_Guide_1.1.pdf Studio 00. 2019. Mission. https://www.wikihouse.cc/Mission U-Build, 2020. U-build by studio bark is a revolutionary self-build system, https://ubuild.org/ Studio Bark, 2019, A U-builder’s self-build Diary, https://studiobark.co.uk/a-ubuilders-self-build-diary/ Channel 4, April 2019, Grand Designs The Street: Episode 4 - Chris & Roxie, Peter & Anita, https://www.channel4.com/programmes/grand-designs-the-street/ondemand/58244-004 Tom Holert, 2011, Civic City Cahier 3: Distributed Agency, Design’s Potentiality, Bedford Press, https://www.academia.edu/7936237/Distributed_Agency_Designs_ Potentiality_Civic_City_Cahier_3_London_Bedford_Press_2011