PREFABRICATION

Grey River Argus, 20 October 1943, Page 6

PREFABRICATION

NATIONAL HOUSING. In the course of his analysis of the national housing situation, Mr. Gordon F. Wilson, Chief Architect, Housing Department, states: — The designing of planning systems that will make full use of the increased production possibilities without being held within this rigidly and inflexibility requires all of the creative ability that architects, engineers, builders and town planners can bring to bear on the problem. From the experience the Housing Department has had both in housing and the development of prefabrication, a planning system has been evolved and subdivided into three phases. The first phase is the design of the site layout. That is, in deciding the position and shape of the streets, the division and shape of individual house sites and the best place for such community requirements as schools, clinics, shops and recreation buildings. On this site plan with its circulation, grouping and spacing of the various units, depends to a large measure the complete success of the whole scheme. The second phase in the development is the designing of individual or master house units for the cardinal points of the compass. These plans are most carefully studied, every detail being analysed for functional and structual use and simplicity. It is from these master plans that thousands of houses will be built. The third development consists of building up a series of house designs based on the master plan with two, three, and four sleeping rooms and with .the resulting different elevations in which further variations can be made by _ a change in roof design, the position of the windows, material finish and lastly by that all important factor, colour. It is with these house designs that the great bulk of the individual siting will be done. Each house being placed as a part or a note in the whole design conception.

A small scale application of such a system can be seen in the five experimental houses erected at Lower Hutt. The construction need not result in the loss of structual soundness, equally there need be no loss of aesthetic values. Each elevation of every house has been designed to have good proportion, balance and harmony. However, the rear architectural effect is obtained by the study of the whole street .rather than that of each individual house. The whole street is a composition in which the road formation, house design and the planting of trees, shrubs, flowers and lawns play an equal part. The quality of the work as a whole will not date and as the trees and shrubs grow' and the whole scene mellows, its attractiveness will increase year by year, and in so doing will also maintain its economic value