A MODERN NEED

Evening Star, Issue 22444, 15 September 1936, Page 2

A MODERN NEED

LOWER HOUSING COSTS FACTORY PRODUCTION SUGGESTED “ I believe that the time is not far distant when the production of houses for the bulk of the people will be put on a factory bais,” said Mr 11. H. Hammond, at a meeting of members of the New Zealand Institute of Architects. He mentioned that under the Swedish housing system, the walls of the houses were put together in a factory and delivered in sections, including windows, floors, and doors, which reduced the cost of transport, eliminated waste, and shortened the time of the erection of tho walls and roof. Housing costs in New Zealand could be reduced by adopting organised contracts, so-operative effort, and standardisation. Modern methods of combination, co-operation, and standardisation had produced astonishing results in almost every other commercial activity, and there was surely scope in housing. Mr Hammond submitted the following suggestions;— (1) The building of a,s much of the house as possible in the factory on the principles of shop manufacture. This would eliminate waste of material and labour similar to the savings made in other highly-developed manufacturing industries. The results would be achieved, largely by standardisation, quantity production, and machine manufacture. This would also have the effect of making employment and production more continuous throughout the year. (2) The standardisation of structural parts, but maintaining flexibility of design. (3) Tho securing of highly-skilled talent for the planning and construction of the dwellings, which can seldom be obtained in the individual production of the cheap house. It was worthy of note that in connection with the low-cost housing schemes in America, England, and the Continent, the best architectural talent is employed in the planning of tho houses. (4) The revision of by-laws to permit of economic planning and construction, at the same time adopting good building and housing codes which would be productive of good standards for all types of houses. Research on a comprehensive scale, both technical and economic, would do much in the matter of reducing building costs. Such research should deal with materials, and with methods of building, including standardisation and the investigation of new methods. MOISTURE PENETRATION IN WALLS With a view to determining what combination of materials and types of construction were most resistant to leakage when exposed to rain a series of interesting experiments was conducted by the National Bureau of Standards in England. Measurements were taken of the rate of penetration through brick work walls 50in high, 40in long, and from Sin to 12in thick. Each specimen of wall differed one from another in regard to thickness, kind of brick or mortar, and quality of workmanship. In the walls of A class workmanship the joints were well filled with mortar, the method being laid down in a specification for high-quality brick work. In B class workmanship the method was similar to that in common use for the construction of buildings where adequate inspection was lacking. For example, the interior ioints were not well filled, and no more mortar was used than was required for an acceptable appearance. During the experiments water was applied by means of a spray placed at the top of a wall, thus causing the formation of a continuous film of water on the exposed surface. The changes studied included the time for moisture to penetrate through the wall, the rate of leakage through the wall, and the amount of moisture absorbed. The results obtained revealed that workmanship was of major importance regardr ing tho rate of penetration of moisture. None of the walls of A class workmanship leaked, while the other walls allowed the passage of water in measurable amounts. Where moisture passed through the walls of A class workmanship the passage was caused by capillary attraction. With hardburned bricks with very low absorption moisture was more rapid through the mortar than the bricks. With soft-burned bricks the reverse obtained. The greater leakage occurred with walls of hard-burned bricks laid by B class workmanship. USES OF CONCRETE With the object of making known the latest developments in regard to the uses of concrete in every field of the building industry, a recent meeting in Melbourne decided to adopt a proposal to form a Concrete Association in Victoria. Except for a spasmodic effort or two, those engaged in the manufacture of concrete products and in the application of the material to structural ends had previously accomplished little in the direction of correlating various interests and activities in Victoria. Now it is expected that the industry will soon be assisted by a service organisation constituted to disseminate information to members as well as to the public at large. Reference was made at the meeting to the work of the Cement and Marketing Company Ltd and the Reinforced Concrete Association in England, and the Portland Cement Association in America, which, it was said, were not altogether functioning for sectional interests but for the industry as a whole, ft was agreed that the association in Victoria should embrace the many and varied branches of the industry, including professions as well as trades, with the dual object of keeping members posted with new departures in the uses of concrete and popularising the material among builders and the building public. It was also decided that a provisional committee should obtain, from overseas associations whatever details are available relative to the constitution and aims of a central bureau or chamber.

Chewing gum is the theme of the largest illuminated sign in the world. To advertise the peptic qualities of a well-known product, a steel frame weighing 140 tons has been erected 40ft above Broadway, New York. This enormous structure is 75ft in height and 200 ft long. It cost about £IO.OOO to build, and the annual rental of the building roof is also £IO,OOO. The cost of electricity for the 29,508 lamps used in the “ ad.” and the 1,084 Neon tubes will be nearly £3,000 a year.