Off-site but not off-ground
Off-site construction facing the Anthropocene
Ingrid Taillandier speaks at the Maison de l'Architecture in Ile-de-France to share ITAR's experience of off-site construction: 2D, 3D; wood, concrete, mixed. Since its beginnings in 2006, ITAR has been using off-site construction to serve the individual: first the worker, then the architect, and finally the inhabitant, and not to serve markets or industry. We believe that prefabrication should not deprive housing of its "value of particularity".
Over and above the need for low-carbon, bio-sourced and short-circuit construction, the agency's work is driven by the desire to optimize materials, reduce lead times and achieve economies of scale in collective housing, and to be in a position to meet the production targets of 370,000 homes a year in France. It is our role as architects to maintain a qualitative approach to housing in all our decisions, and to restore a sense of "humanity" to the generic industrialization towards which we are once again being asked to strive. This review of our experience in off-site construction is an opportunity to look back at the values that underpin our commitment to this process, and how it is proving to be a tool for :
- Contribute to a territorial narrative
- Standardise without being generic
- Controlling deadlines and costs through iterative work