GB2063954A

GB2063954A - Lathing of a building framework

Info

Publication number: GB2063954A
Application number: GB8033906A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1979-10-25
Filing date: 1980-10-21
Publication date: 1981-06-10
Also published as: DE3039626A1; AR227897A1; ZW22580A1; BR8006867A; GB2063954B; AU6319880A

Abstract

A structure which consists of prefabricated door, window and wall elements is erected on a prepared site. The spaces between selected elements are spanned by one, or two skins of carrier sheets, (110) and a settable cementitious covering material is applied to the carriers to form continuous seamless wall surfaces. Cavity walls formed in this way may optimally hold a filler. The carrier sheets (110) may be interengageable and may be impervious to water. Energised reinforcing wires 118 may be provided. Service conduits may be laid between the lathing corrugations and where a void is provided between skins this may be ventilated to the inside or outside. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Structure erection This invention relates to the erection of structures.

Continuously increasing building costs have focused renewed attention on industrialized building techniques. One technique which is used involves the prefabrication of building elements and rigid wall panels and the erection of these elements on site to form a structure. However the fact that such elements on site to form a structure.

However the fact that such structures nearly always have seams or join lines formed by adjacent wall panels has mitigated against the unreserved acceptance of such techniques.

The invention provides a method of erecting a structure which includes the steps of locating structural elements which comprise at least prefabricated door, window and wall elements at selected positions on a prepared site, spanning the spaces between selected structural elements with carrier means, and applying a covering material to at least one side of the carrier means to form a continuous wall surface.

Preferably a door element defines a doorway and a portion of a wall to which carrier means is applied. Similarly a window element defines a window opening and a portion of a wall to which carrier means is applied, and a wall element defines a wall portion to which carrier means is applied.

The wall surface may be formed by applying a covering material to one or both sides of the carrier means.

In a different construction the spaces between the selected structural elements are spanned by two substantially parallel carrier means which are spaced from each other, and the wall surface is formed by applying the covering material to the outer side of each of the carrier means. Thus the spaced carrier means to which the covering material is applied from a cavity wall. Ties, spacers, etc may be provided between the carrier means to fix their spacing.

The method further includes the step of locating a filler in the cavity wall. The filler may be located in the cavity after the erection of the carrier means, or the spaced carrier means may be supplied prefabricated with a factory-inserted filler between them.

The filter may be sand, vermiculite, ash, a cementitious mixture, a plastics material such as polystyrene or any other suitable material or mixture, including insulation material, and reinforcing material may simultaneously be inserted into the cavity.

The covering material may be a settable material such as a cementitious material, gypsum, plastics, asbestos, or any other suitable material, or a combination of such materials, e.g. concrete, plaster, or a mixture of plastics and plaster or concrete. For example use could be made of a cementitious material with a lightweight aggregate such as polystyrene beads. The important consideration is that the covering material must be easy to apply and thereafter set in position to provide a continuous, seamless, weatherproof surface at least for exterior wall surfaces.

The covering material may be applied manually or mechanically e.g. as with a guniting or plastering machine.

The site may be prepared by casting a floor slab or foundation and the structural elements may be fixed to the slab or foundation at the selected positions.

A principal feature of the invention is that the positions of the window and door elements are not determined by modular considerations, as is usually the case with prefabricated building techniques, but may be placed at any desired position. These elements provide the structural strength but where the spacing between two of these elements exceeds a given maximum a wall element is located between the two elements to support the carrier means and to ensure adequate structural strength.

Since the wall surfaces are effectively prepared on site it follows that the carrier means may be employed as desired to span variable or irregular spacings between the different elements.

It is preferred however to space the structural elements from one another in such a way that roof girders which are placed on the walls are supported directly by the structural elements.

Alternatively the spacing of the girders may be varied to ensure that the girders are directly supported by the structural elements. It is also possible to place one or more beams or plates, which may be perforated for ventilation purposes, on top of the wall, between adjacent elements, to support the girders. If the wall is filled with concrete the girders may be placed directly on the wall where desired.

It is also within the scope of the method of the invention to apply a reinforcing material e.g. a mesh, rods, wires or the like, to the structure before the application of the covering material.

The reinforcing material may be pre-stressed to provide a structure with a pre-stressed concrete shell.

Services, conduits, e.g. electrical conduits and plumbing, may be installed prior to the application of the covering material adjacent the carrier means.

The cavity walls which may be constructed with the method of the invention are well defined.

Thus unless they contain a filler the cavities are unobstructed and may be used for ventilation purposes. To this end the cavities may be placed in communication with the interior or exterior of the structure through suitably located vents.

The invention also provides a structure which comprises a plurality of structural elements including prefabricated door, window and wall elements which are located at selected positions on a prepared site, carrier means spanning the spaces between selected structural elements, and covering material which is applied to at least one side of the carrier means to form a continuous wall surface.

Preferably the carrier means is substantially moisture proof.

Further according to the invention the carrier means includes keying formations for securely bonding the covering material to the carrier means.

Further according to the invention the carrier means comprises a plurality of sections with adjacent sections being interengageable.

The carrier means may be made from continuous sheet material e.g. a plastics material.

Alternatively the carrier means may have a waterproofing medium applied to it on one or both sides. Thus the carrier means may be metallic with a plastics film coating on its surface.

It is also possible, though, to make the carrier means with an apertured, perforated, grid- or lattice-like, or similar structure.

The structural elements may be made from any suitable material e.g. plastic, fibre glass, aluminium or steel, etc, or a combination thereof.

The invention is further described by way of examples with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of portion of a structure erected in accordance with the invention, Figures 2, 3 and 4 are views in elevation of a wall element, a door element and a window element, respectively, used in the structure of the invention, Figure 5 is an enlarged plan view of a structure in accordance with the invention, Figure 6 is a sectional view in elevation, also on an enlarged scale, of a portion of a structure according to the invention, and Figures 7 and 8 are fragmentary views in perspective and elevation, respectively, of a wall including a different carrier according to the invention.

Figure 1 illustrates a portion of a structure according to the invention. The structure is erected on a precast concrete slab 10, or a foundation. The structure includes a window element 12, a door element 14, a number of wall elements 16 and a bathroom element 17. The wall elements are used for exterior and for interior walls. As shown in Figure 1 use is made of a relatively narrow wall element 1 8 for interconnecting some of the wall elements 1 6.

Spaces 20 between some of the adjacent window, door and wall elements are spanned by a carrier and then covered with a suitable material such as plaster, as is hereinafter described, and a continuous wall is therefore formed for the structure.

The bathroom element 17 is prefabricated under factory conditions and is shipped to the building site in a "ready-to-use" form. The bathroom includes all conventional sanitary fittings and, to be made operational, only requires connections to be made at key points to a mains water supply, a drain outlet, a vent outlet and to an electrical supply.

The bathroom element 17 in this example also forms that portion of an adjacent kitchen which houses a kitchen sink and a washing machine connection, and the water supply and drain connections of the bathroom extend to the kitchen.

Figure 2 illustrates a typical wall element 1 6.

The wall element includes a rectangular outer rolled mild steel frame 22 with a diagonal braces 24. A carrier 26 is applied in sheet form to one or both sides of the frame. The carrier in this example of the invention consists of a metal grid made for example of expanded metal.

Figure 3 illustrates a door element 14. The door element consists of a rectangular mild steel frame 28 which defines a door way 30 of standard dimensions with the section over the door way being covered with a sheet of the carrier 26. If desired strips of the carrier could be fixed to the sides of the frame 28.

Figure 4 illustrates a window element 12. The window element is constructed in a similar way to the wall and door elements and includes a metal frame 32 which defines a window 34. The areas above and below the window are covered with sheets of the carrier 26. Again it is possible to have strips of the carrier 26 on either side of the frame 32. These strips facilitate the bonding of the window element in situ in the structure.

The wall, floor and window elements are in the interests of economy made in a range of predetermined sizes. It is not however essential to the invention to have these elements made in precisely determined sizes and where the application can be economically justified the sizes and shapes of the elements may be varied according to requirements. Consequently although the invention lends itself to mass production techniques it is unnecessary, in order to derive all the advantages of the invention, to design a structure on a modular approach.

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate the construction of a structure according to the invention in detail. The concrete slab 10 is firstly cast on a prepared site and once the concrete has set the window elements 12, the door elements 14 and the wall elements 1 6 are fixed to the slab at selected positions as indicated by the plan of the structure.

These elements may be fixed simply by bolting them directly to the slab and in this respect use may be made for example of explosive powered fixing elements. The spacing between the various structural elements is not important and the door and window elements may be placed where desired according to the requirements of the plan of the structure. However where the spacing between any two elements exceeds a predetermined amount it is desirable to insert one of the wall elements 16 or 18 between two such structural elements to ensure adequate strength of the resultant structure. Ideally the positioning of the various structural elements is such that they provide direct support for roof girders which are subsequently placed on the walls formed by the structural elements.Alternatively the spacings between the roof girders may be varied, within design limits, to ensure that they bear directly on the structural elements.

Once the structural elements have been correctly positioned the spaces 20 between adjacent elements are covered with the carrier material 26. Depending on requirements the carrier 26 may be on the exterior surface only of the resulting walls or on the exterior and interior surfaces. In the latter instance a wall with a cavity 36 is defined. Suitable insulation or filler material e.g. of fibre board 38, or no-fines concrete, may be located in the cavities. Similarly the insulation or filler is located in the prefabricated wall elements.

The arrangement of the various structural elements is such that where necessary they engage with one another e.g. as shown in Figure 5, where two outer wall elements 1 6 interlock with the relatively narrow wall element 18, and a thinner inner wall element 40 abuts one end of an outer wall element 1 6.

The carrier material 26 consequently covers the entire exterior surface of the wall excluding the window and door openings. Similarly if desired the carrier material covers the corresponding interior wall surface. A settable covering material e.g. of plaster is then applied to the carrier. The covering material may be applied with conventional manual techniques or by mechanical means e.g. guniting or plaster machines. The net result is the same, namely that continuous seamless weather impervious wall surfaces are formed when the covering material sets.

The cavities which are formed in the structure of the invention are particularly well defined and may be used for ventilation purposes. As shown in Figure 6 one or more vents 42 may be formed through the wall of the structure to place the cavity in communication with the interior or the exterior of the structure.

Girders 44 are placed on the walls. Preferably the undersides of these girders, over the interior of the structure, define a ceiling surface which is plastered at the same time as the interior walls of the structure. Alternatively ceiling boards could be fixed to the girders in a conventional manner. The ceiling could also be formed by means of a carrier which is fixed to the girders and plastered.

The invention thus provides a method of erecting a structure which ensures that the resultant structure has an attractive finish which is not marred by seams or joins. In addition the method of the invention offers unlimited flexibility in the placing of doors and windows. It also enables unskilled labour to be used on site to erect the structural elements which are prefabricated under factory conditions.

The labour requirements on site are reduced substantially compared to the labour requirements for structures which are erected in a conventional way. This is because the structural elements, which are prefabricated, define substantial parts of the structure. In addition, the manufacture of the structural elements under factory conditions may be accomplished with unskilled or semi-skilled The carrier 26 which is attached to the various structural elements may be used as shuttering which is used for constructing cast walls. In this variation of the invention the carrier is attached to the structural elements on either side of the elements so as to form a mould for concrete. The concrete e.g. no-fines concrete is then poured between the parallel sheets of the carrier which acts as shuttering.Once the concrete has set plaster is applied, to the carrier, on either or both sides of the cast wall.

The structural elements employed in the invention may be designed in different thicknesses according to the thickness of the wall which it is desired to form. For example the structural elements which are employed for external walls are approximately twice the thickness, when viewed in plan, of the structural elements which are used for internal walls.

In the construction of structures which would normally not be used for dwellings e.g. garages it is possible to achieve considerable savings by erecting the structural elements and spanning the spaces between them with a single carrier sheet.

The carrier is then plastered on both sides.

With this form of the invention it is not possible to form cavity walls, or walls of more than a given thickness, but the resultant structure is adequate for buildings such as garages.

The invention has been described with reference to the construction of cavity walls and the on-site insertion into the cavities of a filler e.g.

an ash/cement mixture, insulation, etc.

In a variation of the invention the space between two parallel carriers is prefilled with a filler and the assembly of carriers and fillers is erected between the structural elements.

The spaced carriers have ties between them to ensure that they do not bulge outwardly. A wall portion formed in this way may therefore be substantially similar to the element 16 of Figure 2, but containing the filler. When a wall element of this type is erected then, if there are any gaps in the wall these are covered with carrier material and a filler is subsequently inserted. The whole structure is then plastered, as before, to obtain a continuous finish.

Figure 7 illustrates, partly sectioned, a wall which includes a different carrier 110 in accordance with the invention.

The carrier 110 is formed from plastic or metal sheet material and is waterproof. The carrier may alternatively be extruded from a suitable material e.g. steel, aluminium or plastics. If the carrier is made from metal it may be coated with an agent e.g. plastic film to increase its corrosion-resistant properties.

The carrier 110 has a number of parallel, horizontally extending channel-like formations 112 which project to one side of the general plane of the carrier. On the other side of the carrier the formations define cavities 114.

Spaced projections 11 6 are located between each pair of adjacent formations 112 and reinforcing wires 118 are fixed to the projections.

The use of the reinforcing wires is not essential and they may be dispensed with particularly when the carrier has an inherent adequate stiffness or if the carrier is reinforced in any other suitable way.

The carrier 110 is secured to vertically extending support strips 120 which are carried by posts 122. The posts are erected on the prepared site and the support strips are fixed thereto by means of screws 124 or other suitable fasteners.

It is alternatively within the scope of the invention to form each support strip integrally with a post.

The posts could form the side frame members of the various structural elements 12 to 1 6.

The support strips should be made from a similar material to the carrier i.e., they should be waterproof and corrosion-resistant.

The support strips include a plurality of spaced formations 126 which are engageable with a press fit with the cavities 114 of the carrier. This engagement is facilitated if the cavities are engaged sequentially with the formations. For example the uppermost cavity is first engaged, then the adjacent cavity, and so on down the carrier.

Figure 8 illustrates that adjacent carriers 110 A and 110 B are engageable with each other in the horizontal direction by overlapping and interengaging the terminal formations 112 A and 112 B respectively.

In so far as vertical joints are concerned these may be effected by engaging the abutting ends of adjacent carriers with a common support strip 120 which preferably is fixed to a post 122.

However they can also be made in a manner analogous to that described in respect of the horizontal joints viz. by overlapping the vertical edges of adjacent carriers. This enhances the waterproofing qualities of the joint and the support strips 120, which may be located at positions other than at the vertical joints, need not themsleves be waterproof.

Once the carriers have been erected in the manner described, and according to requirement, plaster 128 or any other suitable covering material is applied to the carriers and finished in the normal way to give a continuous weatherproof finish.

The formations 112 provide a good key for the plaster which is reinforced by means of the wires 118.

The invention has been described with particular reference to the erection of a plurality of separate or individual structural elements. It has been found in practice that the invention can be effectively implemented when the structural elements are assembled at the factory with the carrier so that in essence complete walls are constructed. A wall of this type consists of one or more structural elements surrounded by the carrier material which in turn is set into a frame which defines the perimeter of the wall, and may in addition contain factory inserted filler material.

The prefabricated walls are thus erected on site, interconnected and plastered in the manner described. This variation of the invention utilizes to the full the benefits of factory prefabrication and minimises on site labour requirements.

Claims

1. A method of erecting a structure which includes the steps of locating structural elements which comprise at least prefabricated door, window and wall elements at selected positions on a prepared site, spanning the spaces between selected structural elements with carrier means, and applying a covering material to at least one side of the carrier means to form a continuous wall surface.

2. A method according to claim 1 in which the spaces between the selected structural elements are spanned by two substantially parallel carrier means which are spaced from each other, and the covering material is applied to the outer sides of the carrier means.

3. A method according to claim 2 wherein a filler is located between the parallel carrier means.

4. A method according to any of claims 1 to 3 which includes the step of interengaging adjacent sections of the carrier means.

5. A structure which comprises a plurality of structural elements including prefabricated door, window and wall elements which are located at selected positions on a prepared site, carrier means spanning the spaces between selected structural elements, and covering material which is applied to at least one side of the carrier means to form a continuous wall surface.

6. A structure according to claim 5 wherein the spaces between the selected structural elements are spanned by two substantially parallel carrier means which are spaced from each other.

7. A structure according to claim 6 in which a filler is located between the parallel carrier means

8. A structure according to any one of claims 5 to 7 wherein the carrier means is substantially moisture proof.

9. A structure according to any one of claims 5 to 8 wherein the carrier means includes keying formations for securely bonding the covering material to the carrier means.

10. A structure according to any one of claims 5 to 9 wherein the carrier means comprises a plurality of sections with adjacent sections being interengaged.