DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.45213#0098
94
Materials
New building materials were expected to reduce the cost of mass housing construction and
make it affordable to lower-income social groups. The objective was to be attained in two ways,
through the introduction of lightweight materials and the unification and standardisation of build-
ing elements which would facilitate prefabrication and mass-production of houses. Large and light-
weight prefabricated elements used to fill in the building's frame construction greatly accelerated
the construction process.
Various types of lightweight concrete blocks were manufactured (aerated concrete, pumice
concrete) which allowed for quick construction of external walls as they were only 20 cm thick, in
contrast to traditional brick walls which were 50 cm thick. Heat insulation was provided by corkboard
or chipboard panels (Heraklith, Lignat or Tekton plates). Mounted on the inside instead of the out-
side of external walls, such panels did not prevent frost penetration through dampened walls which
resulted in their gradual deterioration. The flat roof was a modern novelty in housing construction
which also caused certain problems with making it waterproof. Various types of bituminous roofing
papers (Ruberoid, Papoleina) were used. Since the modern and functional flat was to be hygienic
and easy to maintain, traditional wooden floors covered with dust-collecting carpets were replaced
by linoleum.
In contrast to innovative structural solutions, new materials were not always successful. Prob-
lems started to appear after only several years. New materials were often improperly used and ex-
perimental technologies did not pass the test of time but, not deterred by some apparent failures,
the search for new materials and technological innovations continued.
Projects employing innovative technologies, still in the experimental phase, could not be cheap
at a time when neither big building materials industry nor house factories existed. As prototypes for
future mass-production houses, they were often more expensive than the average construction cost
of a similar house built using traditional methods.
Standardisation and unification, promoted for some time by the Standards Commission of Ger-
man Industry (Normenanschuss der Deutschen Industrie), had to be introduced not only to building
technology but also to living space design. The objective was - as Ernst May proclaimed at the 2nd
CIAM - mass-production of houses which "much the same as of other goods of mass consumption.
Prototypes have to be developed for sequential production. The emphasis should be on the mecha-
nisation of the construction process."232 This should result in delivering the ready-made flat to the
construction site and installing it within a few days. In order to achieve this goal, one should continue
searching for technological innovations, new lightweight building materials ensuring a good micro-
climate inside the flat and new efficient materials for wall and floor insulation. New building materials
were often pejoratively referred to as "substitute materials" but a house factory was founded in Frank-
furt-am-Mein under the auspices of the Rfg which specialised in large prefabricated filling slabs.
232 Helena SYRKUS, Spoleczne cele..., p.212.
Materials
New building materials were expected to reduce the cost of mass housing construction and
make it affordable to lower-income social groups. The objective was to be attained in two ways,
through the introduction of lightweight materials and the unification and standardisation of build-
ing elements which would facilitate prefabrication and mass-production of houses. Large and light-
weight prefabricated elements used to fill in the building's frame construction greatly accelerated
the construction process.
Various types of lightweight concrete blocks were manufactured (aerated concrete, pumice
concrete) which allowed for quick construction of external walls as they were only 20 cm thick, in
contrast to traditional brick walls which were 50 cm thick. Heat insulation was provided by corkboard
or chipboard panels (Heraklith, Lignat or Tekton plates). Mounted on the inside instead of the out-
side of external walls, such panels did not prevent frost penetration through dampened walls which
resulted in their gradual deterioration. The flat roof was a modern novelty in housing construction
which also caused certain problems with making it waterproof. Various types of bituminous roofing
papers (Ruberoid, Papoleina) were used. Since the modern and functional flat was to be hygienic
and easy to maintain, traditional wooden floors covered with dust-collecting carpets were replaced
by linoleum.
In contrast to innovative structural solutions, new materials were not always successful. Prob-
lems started to appear after only several years. New materials were often improperly used and ex-
perimental technologies did not pass the test of time but, not deterred by some apparent failures,
the search for new materials and technological innovations continued.
Projects employing innovative technologies, still in the experimental phase, could not be cheap
at a time when neither big building materials industry nor house factories existed. As prototypes for
future mass-production houses, they were often more expensive than the average construction cost
of a similar house built using traditional methods.
Standardisation and unification, promoted for some time by the Standards Commission of Ger-
man Industry (Normenanschuss der Deutschen Industrie), had to be introduced not only to building
technology but also to living space design. The objective was - as Ernst May proclaimed at the 2nd
CIAM - mass-production of houses which "much the same as of other goods of mass consumption.
Prototypes have to be developed for sequential production. The emphasis should be on the mecha-
nisation of the construction process."232 This should result in delivering the ready-made flat to the
construction site and installing it within a few days. In order to achieve this goal, one should continue
searching for technological innovations, new lightweight building materials ensuring a good micro-
climate inside the flat and new efficient materials for wall and floor insulation. New building materials
were often pejoratively referred to as "substitute materials" but a house factory was founded in Frank-
furt-am-Mein under the auspices of the Rfg which specialised in large prefabricated filling slabs.
232 Helena SYRKUS, Spoleczne cele..., p.212.