John Roberts, Jennifer Hogg and Anton Fried
- Professor John Roberts, Dean. Faculty of Technology, Kingston University, Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, UK. KT1 2EE. Roberts@Kingston.ac.uk
- Jennifer Hogg, Research Student. Faculty of Technology, Kingston University, Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, UK. KT1 2EE. K958732@atlas.kingston.ac.uk
- Anton Fried, Reader. Faculty of Technology, Kingston University, Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, UK. KT1 2EE. Fried@Kingston.ac.uk
ABSTRACT
In recent years there has been an increased awareness for the need to improve both the brickwork construction process and quality achieved on site. The old idea of prefabrication as a means of achieving more predictable construction standards and a more reliable process is once again prevalent.
Currently very little use is made of prefabricated brickwork and the vast majority of brickwork is constructed using traditional skills employed directly on the building or engineering site. However, prefabrication does hold out the opportunity for significant improvements in overall building construction efficiency, quality and greater economy over traditional site constructed work.
A small number of one-off projects have recently demonstrated the technical feasibility of providing both loadbearing and cladding brickwork elements through the use of industrial production techniques employing either off-site factory production or on-site prefabrication. The Inland Revenue Building at Nottingham and the Powergen Building at Coventry are good examples of each approach. This paper reviews recent applications of prefabricated brickwork and the corresponding implications for future work.
Key words: Prefabrication, Masonry, Panels, Manufacture, Economics.
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