It was back in January 2014 when the project Pearce Avenue first landed on our desks for initial evaluation and pricing. We had recently started work on a separate project for the same design practice RB Studio Architects, and so we were asked to look at Pearce Avenue and establish whether it would be feasible to construct this building using the STREIF closed panel timber frame system, as the client was interested in off site construction due to the speed and cost certainty in comparison to more traditional methods of construction.
The design was for a 2.5 storey five bedroom dwelling to be constructed as a replacement home for the client on the existing site. Due to the size of the house and the fact it was quite a tight plot on a small residential street our initial concern was whether we would be able to gain access with both our articulated lorries, (used to transport the German timber frame homes which are up to 16m long) and the crane (which lifts the timber wall panels and roof/floor cassettes into position) without blocking the road to the other residents. After an initial evaluation it was established that although access was tight there was space for both a lorry and crane on site so we then moved onto a more detailed evaluation of the dwelling. As the building was formed with multiple roof types, mezzanine floors, large voids and fully glazed gables all creating added complexity to the design of the closed panel timber frame structure, it therefore took some clever engineering from the design team in Germany to finalise a design that everyone was happy with, which worked on both paper and in practice and was still cost effective.
The design process started towards the back end of 2014 and continued into the New Year with handover to the factory in February 2015. Work started on the off site manufacturing process in our factory in Germany in March 2015 with delivery to site of the first timber wall panels of this German timber frame home in April 2015.
Due to the location of the site, right on the edge of Poole Harbour it was critical that the weather was favourable for the first week of erection, so we could get the main structural envelope erected and secure. Fortunately it turned out that we were blessed with a couple of weeks of excellent weather enabling our site teams from Germany and the UK to establish a weather tight building in under two weeks, which is pretty impressive for a timber frame buildings of this complexity. After our second fix operations were completed the German timber frame building was then handed back to the Main Contractor to fit out.
As you can see if you head to our projects page for a full photo montage plus a photo feature video of the construction, Pearce Avenue is a modern dwelling using simple contrasting finishes to create clean lines which accentuate the large gable windows and double height glazing.
As far as prefabricated houses go we feel this is a pretty stunning example creating an impressive family home with wonderful views out across Poole harbour. If you have a dream home you want to become a reality and are interested in using a sustainable building system to create a home which is future proofed for the next generation then please contact us to discuss how we can help you.
