Human Settlements Review - Parliamentary Monitoring Group

Human Settlements Review, Volume 1, Number 1, 2010
levels of development Perhaps this will allow
for “zozo” (shack) yards in the townships
to become legitimate, more developed
businesses and allow them to enter the
affordable housing market with a more
advance product
3.1.2 Differentiating levels
Buildings need to clearly and visibly identify
different levels and systems hence making
it possible for future residents to understand
which sections are permanent and which
may be removed. This results in the creation
of the primary level, base building or support
structure, allowing for the manipulation of the
secondary levels of partitioning and furniture.
The standard practice of constructing cellular
rooms out of load bearing masonry needs to
be changed to enable a layperson to easily
distinguish between load-bearing and non
load-bearing walls should alterations be
required. A partitioning system consisting of
dry walls, sliding doors and sliding panels may,
for example, be used where moveable panels
are required to address privacy issues at night.
These same moveable panels may be moved
away to create a spacious environment during
the day. In addition to allowing for easy interior
alteration on a daily basis, the transformation
of family units into communal living facilities for
a longer-term set-up may also be achieved.
Storage options may also serve as room
dividers. In multi-family housing partitioning
walls and some features of the units may be
pre-designed/fixed with services strategically
located to allow for maximum variation.
By “disentangling” the wet core, supports and
infill of an individual unit, the house could be
changeable without affecting bathrooms and
kitchens, which are incorporated as a part of
the support structure. Service lines needs to
be considered in terms of economical factors
(i.e. shortest possible route for piping) and also
with regards to possible future extensions and
changes that should not interrupt the services.
The placement of a building on a site may
offer opportunities or limitations in extension.
Special considerations for circulation space, to
allow vertical and horizontal extension, may be
also be taken into account.
“Supports” may be constructed according
to local building style and regulations,
while building interiors change more rapidly
(Habraken 1998: 7). Variety in the quality of
infill/fit-out level can thus be achieved. The
infill/fit-out level refers to equipment, non-load
bearing partitions, pipes, cables and ducts.
The “support” or “base building” needs to
address different scenarios throughout the
lifetime of the building and that this must be
tested by thorough and rigorous design; this is
not a bland structural frame and should portray
architectural quality and have the potential for
interesting design variations that relate to the
context and add quality to the surrounding area.
3.1.3 Material selection and technical
detailing
The ability to adapt a building is, for the largest
part, determined by two parameters; whether
or not the construction can be disassembled
and reconfigured or re-used; and the amount
of effort that is needed to do this. Therefore,
the most crucial aspect of “Design for
Disassembly” (DfD) is the detailing of the
connections between a building’s different
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