The Architect’s Prefabricated House

An architect’s show home? Affordable loft apartments? These need not be mutually exclusive concepts, as SchwörerHaus and the International Building Exhibition IBA Hamburg now prove with the “Case Study #1” residential building. Today Jutta Blankau, Senator for Urban Development and Environment, IBA Director Uli Hellweg, Johannes Schwörer, managing director of SchwörerHaus KG and architect Paolo Fusi mark the completion of the extraordinary residential block in Wilhelmsburg Central.

Hamburg, 6 March 2013 – “Affordable housing in a high-quality prefab home built to optimum energy standards – and access to your own green space: shortly before its opening, the IBA is once again demonstrating new directions in construction with this project. This type of work is exemplary“, said Jutta Blankau at the event to celebrate the completion of “Case Study #1”. Accompanied by Uli Hellweg, Johannes Schwörer, and Paolo Fusi, she then went on to unveil the plaques that designate the residential block as an IBA project.

“Case Study #1” provides six apartments ranging from 45 to 150 square metres over four floors. The basic concept of the town house, designed by Fusi & Ammann Architekten from Hamburg, was explained by the architect Paolo Fusi in person: it is based on square residential modules consisting of prefabricated elements, such as pre-stressed concrete ceilings, timber panels and precast concrete walls. The module’s inner spaces are structured along clear lines, with minimal design to allow maximum flexibility. Different layouts can be created using horizontal and vertical combinations which make tailored partitioning possible. Some of the apartments are split over several floors, and can be adapted to changing needs by adding partition walls at a later stage. All the apartments have access to their own garden or roof terrace. 

In a brief speech, IBA Director Uli Hellweg paid special tribute to the work of the architects: “International Building Exhibitions traditionally stand for ambitious architecture as well as innovative construction materials and methods – and these days we have to consider high energy standards as well. “Case Study #1” combines all of these requirements in exemplary fashion.”

This building by SchwörerHaus offers a conscious reinterpretation of the prefabricated home as a town house, and hence an alternative for suburban living. As Johannes Schwörer, managing director of SchwörerHaus KG (based in Hohenstein-Oberstetten, Swabia) explained: “For over 50 years our company has perfected the prefabricated construction of single family homes, complete with all the electrical, sanitary and heating installations, a system we wanted to transfer to multi-storey buildings. So the IBA Hamburg seemed the ideal context in which to do so. Our concept allows us to make reasonable cost estimates because nasty surprises on the building site are largely ruled out.”

“Case Study #1” is one of the IBA‘s “Smart Price Houses” in Wilhelmsburg Central – along with the recently completed “Case Study Hamburg” and the “Basic Building and DIY Builders” house, which is directly adjacent. As the “Building Exhibition within the Building Exhibition” the IBA Hamburg is showcasing a total of 17 experimental residential houses on an old railway goods site, demonstrating the future of building and living.

Photos of the building and the event can be accessed via the following link:

iba-hamburg.eyebase.com

Pin-code (please enter in the field on the right side of the screen): WctNXEDF

For queries please contact: IBA Hamburg GmbH, Rainer Müller, Head of Press Department, rainer.mueller@iba-hamburg.de,

Tel.: 040 / 226 227 335, or Anna Vietinghoff, Press Department, anna.vietinghoff@iba-hamburg.de, Tel: 040 / 226 227 – 331 or presse@iba-hamburg.de

Follow IBA Hamburg on Twitter as well: twitter.com/iba_hamburg

You can subscribe to the IBA Newsletter: www.iba-hamburg.de/newsletter