Prefabricated Housing in Spain

The 1940s and 1950s: A Necessary Review of Traditional Construction

The reluctance of the new Franco government to adopt innovative techniques from abroad, combined with the deficits of the post-war period, the shortage of basic materials such as iron and cement and the lack of specialized labour, influenced the persistence of traditional construction techniques.

On the other hand, in the mid-1940s, there was a major growth in migration from the countryside to the city, which intensified the existing need to rebuild the homes destroyed during the Spanish Civil War, with the need to build low-cost housing to accommodate the workers crowded into shanty towns on the outskirts of large cities.

In the early 1950s, there was a growing interest and debate centred on new ways of building, making it evident that traditional building systems needed to be updated to provide a solution to the housing problem.

The 1960s and 1970s: From Lightweight Prefabrication to Precast Concrete

The first steps towards light prefabrication applied to the housing sector were taken at the beginning of the 1950s with the Neighbourhood Absorption Units promoted by the Obra Sindical del Hogar (OSH). Conceived as modular, with a certain degree of prefabrication that could be disassembled and transported, projects like the temporary shelters in Córdoba prioritized the use of lightweight industrial elements.

Subsequently, private initiative gave a major boost to the use of heavy prefabrication systems enclosed with large concrete panels, as well as industrialized tunnel formwork systems. The period was characterized by large-scale housing developments, which relied on imported technologies that entailed the payment of high costs in patent rights, such as the Estiot system used in the Bellvitge Housing Estate (Barcelona).

The Technical Institute of Construction and the Calls for Housing Competitions

In its efforts to find solutions to mass-produce housing to alleviate the serious shortage of social housing that was affecting Spain and Europe after the end of their respective war periods, the Eduardo Torroja Institute organized competitions to encourage industrialization in the construction of housing, in an attempt to improve prices, execution times and quality.

Pioneering Contributions from Spanish Experts

In an era marked by the limited technological possibilities of the industrial fabric, a scarcity of materials, and a lack of support from the administration, a series of experts with an undeniable research capacity, such as Miguel Fisac, Rafael de La-Hoz, GO-DB, Rafael Leoz and Alejandro de la Sota, among others, contributed to industrializing our construction landscape with their built work and writing.

Closing Reflections

The innovative national proposals for prefabrication in housing had little influence on what was actually built. The reality was closer to a “do-it-yourself” effort using industrialized elements than to the ideal of architecture manufactured in a workshop and subsequently assembled in series.

Nevertheless, we should acknowledge the joint work of architects and enterprising companies who incorporated industrialized elements to support their designs.

• In depth Prefabricated Housing in Spain