Portable building

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Temporary buildings on site during construction at Birmingham New Street station in 2011 Birmingham New Street Station - Queens Drive - Portacabins (5336285722).jpg
Temporary buildings on site during construction at Birmingham New Street station in 2011
North Isles Motel in Cunnister, Shetland North Isles Motel - geograph.org.uk - 693160.jpg
North Isles Motel in Cunnister, Shetland

A portable, demountable or transportable building is a building designed and built to be movable rather than permanently located.

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Smaller version of portable buildings are also known as portable cabins. Portable cabins are prefabricated structures manufactured for uses such as site office, security cabin, accommodation, storage, toilets etc. Portable cabins are a cheaper alternative to traditional buildings and are useful when accommodation is required for an uncertain period of time.

A common modern design is sometimes called a modular building but portable buildings can be different in that they are more often used temporarily and taken away later. Portable buildings (e.g. yurts) have been used since prehistoric times. [1]

Many modern types of portable buildings are designed so that they can be carried to or from the site on a large lorry and slung on and off by a crane.

Modern usage

One of the most common types of portable building is the portable classroom building. Portables at Rock Creek Elementary School - Washington County, Oregon (2012).jpg
One of the most common types of portable building is the portable classroom building.

The first portable building under the trade name Portakabin was developed in 1961 in York, England by Donald Shepherd. [2]

Portable modular buildings have various uses. They are often seen, alone or in groups, as temporary site offices on building sites (where they are often stacked two high with metal stairs to reach the upper level; see also Construction trailer ). Other uses for these and other types of portable buildings are as guard shacks, in-plant offices (these are typically portable steel buildings), rural offices, on-site changing rooms, etc. Some portable buildings can be made very complex by joining units and forming large office blocks over several floors. These are often disguised as a normal building with brick style cladding and a traditional pitched roof. Tara Park, developed by Liverpool City Council, have even used portable buildings to create temporary/permanent domestic housing for communities. Still complying with UK building regulations and disabled access.

Due to population increases in many areas, portable buildings are sometimes brought in to schools to provide relief from overcrowding. Portable classroom buildings often include two classrooms separated by a partition wall and a toilet. Portable buildings can also serve as a portable car garage [3] or a storage unit for larger items. Businesses will often utilize portable buildings for bulk storage or construction equipment.

Alternative names

Portable cabins Portable cabin with office.jpg
Portable cabins

In Australia, small portable dwellings are often called dongas. [4] In Australia the word "demountable" in particular refers to portable classrooms. [5]

In the United Kingdom the words "Portakabin", "Portacabin", "Bunkabin" and "terrapin" are commonly used to describe these buildings. The use of these words as generic descriptions of portable buildings has caused contention amongst some manufacturers. [6]

The "Portakabin" spelling with a 'k' is a trademark owned by Shepherd Building Group's Portakabin Ltd to identify its range of relocatable and modular buildings but is often used as a generic trademark to mean any portable building of that general pattern. [7] The spelling with a 'c' normally refers to similar temporary buildings made by other companies; Portakabin Ltd argues that the spelling "portacabin" is a misspelling. [8]

"Terrapin" like Portakabin, is a portable building manufacturer, although the term "terrapin building" is often used to describe any modular or prefabricated building. [9] The use of “terrapin” dates back further than “Portakabin or “Portacabin” as the company has been trading for over 60 years. The phrase “terrapin classroom” [10] arose from the sudden need for additional classroom space following the post-World War II baby boom era, and is now common usage for any portable classroom.

In Canada, Australia, and elsewhere, portable buildings are sometimes referred to as "ATCO huts," after the Canadian energy company that manufactures a line of them in one of its business units. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

Trailer may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Modular building</span> Prefabricated building or house that consists of repeated sections

A modular building is a prefabricated building that consists of repeated sections called modules. Modularity involves constructing sections away from the building site, then delivering them to the intended site. Installation of the prefabricated sections is completed on site. Prefabricated sections are sometimes placed using a crane. The modules can be placed side-by-side, end-to-end, or stacked, allowing for a variety of configurations and styles. After placement, the modules are joined together using inter-module connections, also known as inter-connections. The inter-connections tie the individual modules together to form the overall building structure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portable toilet</span> Toilet that is easily moved around

A portable or mobile toilet is any type of toilet that can be moved around, some by one person, some by mechanical equipment such as a truck and crane. Most types do not require any pre-existing services or infrastructure, such as sewerage, and are completely self-contained. The portable toilet is used in a variety of situations, for example in urban slums of developing countries, at festivals, for camping, on boats, on construction sites, and at film locations and large outdoor gatherings where there are no other facilities. Most portable toilets are unisex single units with privacy ensured by a simple lock on the door. Some portable toilets are small molded plastic or fiberglass portable rooms with a lockable door and a receptacle to catch the human excreta in a container.

Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. Some researchers refer it to “various materials joined together to form a component of the final installation procedure“.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prefabricated home</span> Type of prefabricated building

Prefabricated homes, often referred to as prefab homes or simply prefabs, are specialist dwelling types of prefabricated building, which are manufactured off-site in advance, usually in standard sections that can be easily shipped and assembled. Some current prefab home designs include architectural details inspired by postmodernism or futurist architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manufactured housing</span> Type of prefabricated housing

Manufactured housing is a type of prefabricated housing that is largely assembled in factories and then transported to sites of use. The definition of the term in the United States is regulated by federal law : "Manufactured homes are built as dwelling units of at least 320 square feet (30 m2) in size with a permanent chassis to assure the initial and continued transportability of the home." The requirement to have a wheeled chassis permanently attached differentiates "manufactured housing" from other types of prefabricated homes, such as modular homes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garage (residential)</span> Walled, roofed structure for storing vehicles

A residential garage is a walled, roofed structure with a door for storing a vehicle or vehicles that may be part of or attached to a home, or a separate outbuilding or shed. Residential garages typically have space for one or two cars, although three-car garages are used. When a garage is attached to a house, the garage typically has an entry door into the house, called the person door or man door, in contrast with the wider and taller door for vehicles, called the garage door, which can be opened to permit the entry and exit of a vehicle and then closed to secure the vehicle. A garage protects a vehicle from precipitation, and, if it is equipped with a locking garage door, it also protects the vehicle(s) from theft and vandalism. Most garages also serve multifunction duty as workshops for a variety of projects, including painting, woodworking, and assembly. Garages also may be used for other purposes as well, such as storage or entertainment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hut</span> Dwelling

A hut is a small dwelling, which may be constructed of various local materials. Huts are a type of vernacular architecture because they are built of readily available materials such as wood, snow, ice, stone, grass, palm leaves, branches, clay, hides, fabric, or mud using techniques passed down through the generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portable classroom</span> Type of classroom

A portable classroom, is a type of portable building installed at a school to temporarily and quickly provide additional classroom space where there is a shortage of capacity. They are designed so they may be removed once the capacity situation abates, whether by a permanent addition to the school, another school being opened in the area, or a reduction in student population. Such buildings would be installed much like a mobile home, with utilities often being attached to a main building to provide light and heat for the room. Portable classrooms may also be used if permanent classrooms are uninhabitable, such as after a fire or during a major refurbishment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shipping container architecture</span> Buildings constructed using modules, like shipping containers

Shipping container architecture is a form of architecture that uses steel intermodal containers as the main structural element. It is also referred to as cargotecture or arkitainer, portmanteau words formed from "cargo" and "architecture". This form of architecture is often associated with the tiny-house movement as well as the sustainable living movement.

Nightcliff Primary School is one of the oldest primary schools in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. It is situated near the Nightcliff foreshore, where Darwin was defended from Japanese air raids in World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prefabricated building</span> Building constructed using prefabrication

A prefabricated building, informally a prefab, is a building that is manufactured and constructed using prefabrication. It consists of factory-made components or units that are transported and assembled on-site to form the complete building. Various materials were combined to create a part of the installation process.

Good Shepherd Lutheran College is a Prep to Year 12 campus that serves the families of the Noosa district. It is located in Noosaville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shepherd Building Group</span> Portable building business in York, England

Shepherd Building Group Ltd is a family owned business, based in York, that manufactures, leases and sells modular buildings in the UK and Europe. Its Portakabin and Portaloo brands are frequently treated as generic terms for modular buildings and toilets.

A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated boxes. In the context of international shipping trade, "container" or "shipping container" is virtually synonymous with "intermodal freight container", a container designed to be moved from one mode of transport to another without unloading and reloading.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Modular data center</span> Type of data centre

A modular data center system is a portable method of deploying data center capacity. A modular data center can be placed anywhere data capacity is needed.

A relocatable building is a partially or completely assembled building that was constructed in a building manufacturing facility using a modular construction process. They are designed to be reused or repurposed multiple times and transported to different locations. Relocatable buildings can offer more flexibility and a much quicker time to occupancy than conventionally built structures. They are essential in cases where speed, temporary swing space, and the ability to relocate are necessary. These buildings are cost effective, code compliant solutions for many markets.

Commercial Modular Buildings are code-compliant, non-residential structures that are 60% to 90% completed offsite in a factory-controlled environment. They are then transported or shipped to a final destination where the modules are then erected onto a concrete foundation to form a finished building. The word "modular" does not describe a building type or style; it simply describes a means of construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. Pratten and Co Ltd</span>

F. Pratten and Co Ltd, commonly known as Prattens, was a business located in Midsomer Norton that manufactured prefabricated buildings. Production included portable classrooms that were widely used after World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cronulla High School</span> School in Australia

Cronulla High School is a government-funded co-educational comprehensive and specialist secondary day school that is located in Cronulla, a southern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school was established in 1961, and has an enrolment of approximately 1,300 students from the grades Year 7 to Year 12.

References

  1. Houses in Motion: The Genesis, History and Development of the Portable Building by Robert H. Kronenburg ISBN   978-1-85490-395-2
  2. Glancey, Jonathan (3 April 1997). "Obituary: Donald Shepherd". The Independent. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  3. "Portable Garages – When On Earth Media". When On Earth. 2019-10-26. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
  4. Terzon, Emilia (23 September 2016). "Origin of the word donga 'a bit of a mystery' to Australian linguists". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  5. Modular Homes Designs
  6. Glancy, Jonathan (1997-04-02). "Obituary: Donald Shepherd". The Independent . Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  7. "Case details for Trade Mark 851268". UK Intellectual Property Office. 18 July 2008.
  8. "Portakabin or Portacabin?". Portakabin. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
  9. "The Patents and Designs Journal" (PDF). UK Intellectual Property Office. 17 July 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  10. "Gloucestershire Victoria County History 'Painswick: Education', A History of the County of Gloucester: Volume 11: Bisley and Longtree Hundreds, pp. 85-86". Gloucestershire County History Trust. 1976.
  11. "Canadian Energy Group ATCO Limited Backs Beach Petroleum Limited's Shale Gas Foray In Cooper Basin" (Press release). Beach Energy. 8 December 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2013.