Housing Built on The Double-Quick Courtesy of: George Michelson
Pre-assembled window frames and studs cut to lenght can be seen piled in the foreground.
On a 600-unit housing development to accomodate personnel as the Navy Yard, practically the only tool the carpenters used in the field was a hammer. The explanation of this unusual operation was complete pre-cutting of all lumber, each piece being plainly marked when cut and stacked near the fabrication yard. When the foundations were ready, the lumber was hauled to point of use followed by plumbing, roofing, and electrical materials. Erecting these homes was utilized by a production line method, which a crew doing only one operation on a house, then passing on to the next home.
Pre-cutting and assembly line techniques were adopted by the contractors to conserve material and to meet an expected shortage of skilled help in an area where little construction had been done in the last ten years. This solution of the labor problem was based on the expectation that an unskilled man would become efficient quickly by working at the same job day after day.
Here is the floor plan of a two-unit house
The single unit plan is similar with the exception of one bedroom window being moved to what is shown here as the "party wall". The 600 dwelling units of the development are made up of 150 single units, 24' 4" x 28', and 225 two-family units, 24' 4" x 55' 8". Each unit has a living room, kitchen, two bedrooms and a bathroom. No basement is provided but full outside walls are carried below the frost line. A storage space of 10' x 10' is floored in the attic with access through a 30" x 30" scuttle. Heat is oil-fired hot air and electricity is used for cooking and refrigeration.
A carpenter shop 150' x 30' was set up for the purpose of milling the framing lumber and building up some sections of each house. Excavation for water and sewer lines and for the outside walls of each house was carried to a depth of 4'. Truck-mixed concrete was used for an 18" x 12" deep footing under the exterior wall with 18" square footings for the interior columns.
Bricklayers then placed concrete block walls and columns to the height required to accommodate the building to the existing ground. The material for a complete floor system was collected on a truck at the storage yard and hauled to the building site and then piled as close to the work area as possible. As soon as the floor was laid the framing for the rest of the structure was brought to the site and piled. Shipments of material from the warehouse or the lumber yard were made in accordance with definite scheduled. Use of this method of controlling materials proved that building mechanics can be trained to follow schedules and that waste can be eliminated.
A carpenter shop 150' x 30' was set up for the purpose of milling the framing lumber and building up some sections of each house. Excavation for water and sewer lines and for the outside walls of each house was carried to a depth of 4'. Truck-mixed concrete was used for an 18" x 12" deep footing under the exterior wall with 18" square footings for the interior columns.
Bricklayers then placed concrete block walls and columns to the height required to accommodate the building to the existing ground. The material for a complete floor system was collected on a truck at the storage yard and hauled to the building site and then piled as close to the work area as possible. As soon as the floor was laid the framing for the rest of the structure was brought to the site and piled. Shipments of material from the warehouse or the lumber yard were made in accordance with definite scheduled. Use of this method of controlling materials proved that building mechanics can be trained to follow schedules and that waste can be eliminated.
The contractor for this $2,308,000.00 competitive bid project was J. Slotnik Company, Boston, Mass- Albert L. Nelson was the general superintendent with David A. Kline as his assistant. Great care was exercised in locating these one-family houses on the site to take advantage of the rolling contour of the terrain. All existing trees were carefully protected during the construction phase.
