Chapter 3 - Prefabricated Housing Defined The difficult circumstances the residents of Sacramento County face to find affordable housing is the reason to explore the mass production of prefabricated housing. Every resident in the County deserves the basic need of shelter to have a more vigorous life. Even though there are different classifications of prefabrication, this report will focus upon two distinct ways this technology can be applied for housing. First, if applied to the development of communities or in-fill, the modular system or panelized system of prefabricated housing can be a solution to the current housing problem because it can be built faster and cheaper than conventional construction. Second, abandoned or dilapidated buildings can be renovated with prefabricated components, such as kitchen and bathroom components.29
Brief History of Prefabricated Housing Prefabricated housing is a construction method that has been in existence since the 17th century. The migration of people from one country to another created a need for costeffective housing that can be constructed quickly and ideally portable enough to salvage when it is time to move on. In 1624, the shipping of temporary housing for fishing fleets from a country of origin was primarily panelized wood houses from England.30 The method of construction usually implemented the notching of building corners to assist in the expedient and efficient building of these structures. Throughout the next several centuries, the use of wood and the discovery of cast-iron during the Industrial Revolution continued the exploration of this construction technique. The first prefabricated cast-iron house was completed in England in 1830.31 House kits provided temporary housing for miners during the California gold rush of 1849.32 Architectural monuments such as the Crystal Palace designed by Sir Joseph Paxton (see Figure 2.1) and the Eiffel Tower by 29
Sam Davis, The Architecture of Affordable Housing (United States of America: University of California Press, 1995), 68. 30 Herbers, 14. 31 Ibid. 32 Ibid.
Prefabricated Housing: A Solution for Affordable Housing in Sacramento County
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