housing SMAQ

The starting point for the SMAQ project was a joint attempt by the firms ARTEC Architekten and WUP architektur to rethink residential construction. The aim was to develop a residential construction system that would respond to market conditions – short construction times, low cost, flexibility – without compromising on quality. On the contrary: spatial luxury, material quality, sustainability and flexibility with regard to changes in use are absolutely paramount here.

Together with raum&kommunikation and Bollinger+Grohmann, a system for a building using prefabricated elements was developed through several property developer competitions.
A residential hall with a ceiling height of 2.80 m, also made of prefabricated components – timber panel construction – is installed on a prefabricated primary structure of horizontal decks – reinforced concrete columns and hollow core slab ceilings. The development system is conceived as part of a vertical urban landscape, giving the compact flats plenty of space in front of their front doors and creating space in front of the facade through the balcony areas. The fire-resistant concrete ceilings allow for a rear-ventilated timber frame construction, resulting in floor plans that are economically efficient but versatile in terms of space and use.
The basis for this is a column-slab system borrowed from garage construction. A „shell shelf“ is easily erected, which is then filled with non-load-bearing wooden exterior walls in a further step. Due to the system, the interior work can be carried out with extreme flexibility – the only fixed points are a middle row of columns and the prefabricated shafts.