The Interbuild House
Published in Wood SA & Timber Times October 2010
The Interbuild House was designed and built for The Wood Foundation and The Institute of Timber Frame Builders’ exhibition stand for the Interbuild Africa 2010 Expo in Johannesburg.
While everyone has seen the beauty of timber homes in magazines and movies, in South Africa, where timber homes currently make up a miniscule percentage of the total number of residential homes, one can readily assume that the majority of visitors to the expo had never actually been inside one. With this in mind the Interbuild House was conceived to showcase the versatility and warmth of timber used in construction.
Typically the architectural design of a home is informed by contextual issues stemming from the site combined with the specific requirements of the client. Contextual issues to consider usually include topography, orientation, access, views and local weather conditions. Client requirements to consider include accommodation requirements as well as lifestyle preferences. In the case of the Interbuild House, however, being built inside the MTN Expo Centre at NASREC, with the ‘occupants’ of the home being visitors passing through, an additional set of design criteria – that of designing for an expo – had to be considered. In terms of exhibition stand design theory, an exhibit should have a central, primary message; be easy to navigate; provide for an interactive experience; allow visitors to learn and come away with useful information and be specific to the audience. As with the general layout of any exhibition, which is a series of interconnected passages without dead-ends to allow easy ‘wandering about’ by visitors, so should a large ‘walk- through’ exhibit have many points of access to encourage the flow through of visitors. With this in mind the Interbuild House, though only 60 sq.m in area, had 4 access doors. Also with visitors approaching from any direction, all sides had to be equally appealing.
A total of 22 sponsors provided the various materials and fittings, and a variety of different internal and external claddings were used to showcase the numerous finishes available when building a timber home. The main ‘living’ area, with predominantly wooden finishes internally, had a high vaulted ceiling with exposed trusses, both to showcase the attractiveness of the structural elements as well as to increase the sense of space by using large volumes in a relatively small area. The bedroom with smooth plastered walls – dispelling the idea that timber frame homes are all wooden – was so inviting that several visitors, weary after a long day, were tempted to have a quick nap.
None of this would have been possible without the builder, Werner Slabbert, of Eco Log Homes, who completed the project in what must be a record time. The components were manufactured and the house pre-assembled off site. With careful attention to detail it was then taken apart and re-assembled inside the exhibition centre in just two and a half days.
In terms of achieving its goals, by all accounts the Interbuild House was a success. It was a popular exhibit and over 4500 sets of brochures were handed out. Visitors got to experience the warmth and beauty of a timber home first hand, and with the number of high profile volunteers from various organisations related to the timber industry manning the exhibit, they would certainly have come away with useful information.
The future of the house? …The Interbuild House will become a permanent show house at the Waterstone Lifestyle Centre, North Riding, Gauteng.
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