FRAMELESS STEEL

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 34, 3 November 1933, Page 4

FRAMELESS STEEL

Housing Innovation in

United States

USE OF SHEET METAL

A development in home construction, now under wayin Cleveland, in which fabricated sheet steel is used, factoryassembled into walls and floors, then electrically welded, will provide frameless steel houses, insulated and fireproof, at low costs. E. F. Mead, building manager of the Westinghouse Company, states that it is co-operating with the American Rolling Mills Company in the construction of the first home of this type in the village of Solon, just outside of Cleveland. A Press bulletin issued by the news department of the Westinghouse Company makes the following report on the project "The new method will probably change all existing practices in home construction, since all operations have been so simplified, so many advantages have developed by factory assembly of various units, that houses may be completed in about fifteen days.. The costs may be low, and they permit the installation of modern finishing materials and equipment, so that the workman may easily have a home ordinarily associated with living standards of the well-to-do business man. Box-Like Corrugations. “Sheet steel metal, with box-like corrugations, form the building walls.

The walls are fabricated in the factory in large sections, room-wide and storyhigh, with window frames and spandrels welded in. These sections are so light that one man can easily lift them. Rolled steel sheets, pressed into Z sections, are welded into floor forms at the factory. Then these sections are hauled to the building site like stage settings.

“A metal cap isj laid on the masonry foundation wall. Then the wall sections are raised, placed on the metal cap, and welded together. “Developments in electric-arc welding, states Mr. Mead, are responsible for much of the case of construction. Portable arc welders permit flexibility of assembly, in the factory and on the job. Spot welding, each weld requiring about ssec to complete, make the new building assembly as simple an operation as sewing cloth together. One welding outfit is all that is necessary for the erection of a home. Heavily Insulated. “The exterior of the house, heavily insulated against heat or cold, •will consist of celotex, lin in thickness, fastened to the sheet-metal walls. Over that will be nailed porcelain enamel shingles. These shingles, in colours, forever solve the painting problem. “Both shingles and celotex will be nailed to the walls. A tempered, spirally-threaded nail has been developed which can be driven more easily and rapidly into metal than ordinary nails can be driven into wood. “On the interior, wall board and piaster will be used. Bath and kitchen walls will be finished, in linoleum. “The steel floors will be coated with a layer of mastic, acting as a sounddeadener and also as an adhesive. Over this the floor covering will be laid. “Ceilings will consist of acoustical tile. The first framelcss steel house will have a flat roof, with a solarium built on top. The roof will also serve as a porch. Built-up asphalt will cover the steel and thin pieces of slate will provide a walking surface.”