History Wooden panel (Structural Panel) / element houses developed from so called timber-frame homes or homes built from posts and beams. This process was accelerated by increasing standardization of building solutions and construction advantages – production of panelled walls, floors and roof does not depend upon weather conditions, because they are produced inside of production premises preserving dry conditions. First house of this kind was designed by architect Walter Gropius in the year 1931 by the order of one German company. From 1945 building of panel homes started to spread over in the USA. In Lithuania these kinds of houses are built from the 80’s of 20th century. New construction technologies provide new qualities to panel houses. Advantages of panel – frame houses Our houses are ecologic and warm, assembled fast (within couple weeks). Mounting and assembling could be done in any season; there are minimal so called wet production processes. Fast mounting does not require temporary premises or big storage rooms on a site. There is a possibility to disassemble, which is important for temporary premises. The homes could be finished by the homeowners themselves. Elements (walls, floors and roof) of wooden panel house are prefabricated and preassembled from structural panels in our specialized workshops. It allows us to achieve high quality of work, because when the works are carried out inside of premises, elements of the house are affected by unfavourable weather, it is easier to control working conditions and there are more possibilities to use special equipment. Projects of dwelling houses We produce typical, repeated buildings as well as dwellings according to individual customer drawings. We implement projects created by architects, prepare structural working drawings and we can take you on a virtual tour before it has been produced and assembled. Mounting The houses are usually mounted straight from the trucks or containers by means of a crane, which is as a rule needed for the first 2-3 days or could be even a week, if the house is bigger. Average size building fits into two – three trucks. For the assembly of a house, modern sealing materials, galvanized fasteners and anchors (for anchoring to the foundation) are used. Our houses can be mounted and assembled by other subcontractors - construction companies or even homeowners themselves. Foundation If a basement is not needed or the ground waters are high, drilled pile foundation fits perfectly for the panel house. Engineering systems are laid inside of the foundation and later connected with those inside of the walls according to the project. Our prefabricated walls are supplied with preinstalled corrugated plastic conduits for further electrical wiring to be done locally on a site by electrician (please refer to the chapter with the composition of walls). Main elements of preassembled house These are panels (Structural Panels) and framed elements. The panel consists of a timber frame – precut planed softwood corresponding the European Standard EN 338 Structural Timber Strength Classes C14-40, humidity 15±3%. The elements are insulated with the fireproof mineral wool. The frame is hammered from both sides with modern materials and based upon the agreement with the customer, it can be covered by painted decoration cladding, which can be attached in our workshop. Vapour insulation/barrier is installed on the inner side of the wall. Based on the electrical plan, which is usually generated and supplied by the customer, corrugated plastic conduits are preinstalled inside of the walls for further wiring of electrical cables and connections of electrical sockets, boxes, switches, etc installations to be done locally on a site by electrician. Some certain requirements of planning and special demands determine optimal sizes of panels. It should be noted that structural features of bigger size panels are better: mounting is carried out faster, less timber is consumed, there are less connection joints in the walls, spatial toughness of the house is preserved. The thickness of supplied elements is based upon required rated resistance, but it can be made thinner or thicker taking into the account expected resistance and planned external decoration. The panels are produced up to 3,20 m height and 13,50 m length. The following elements of the house are produced from prefabricated panels: external walls, internal walls, floor spans and roof panels up to the roof cover. Usually, based on the customer requests and demands, Skydmedis delivers sets of panel-frame houses with preinstalled windows, entrance doors, roof covering, etc. 1. Composition of external wall panels As a standard, gypsum plasterboard, which has a fire factor of 1 hour, or wooden cladding planks and non-flammable PE vapour barrier film are installed from the inside of wall panel. Oriented strand board (OSB) or wooden cladding planks along with the wind protection film are installed from outside of wall panels. Mineral wool insulation is preinstalled between the vertical studs inside of panels. Other compositions of walls are also possible based upon requirements set by the country code and individual. 2. Composition of internal wall panels – partitioning and load-bearing walls Timber frame is made from 95÷125 mm and 145÷195 mm thickness planed off studs respectively, mineral wool insulation is preinstalled for sound isolation. Panels are covered by plasterboards or other above mentioned materials. 3. Floor – ceiling platform is produced from panels, which are made from 60x220 or 80x220 mm cross-section beams (depending upon planned static loads). On the upper side of the panel 22mm OSB is attached to improve the stiffness. In order to achieve minimal sound isolation cavities of the platform are filled by 100 mm insulation of mineral wool and full thickness is filled near external walls. 4. Roof construction is produced out of joists and rafters, cross-sectional dimensions of which are usually 50÷60 x 200÷220 mm. Roof beams - joists are made from glued laminated/ glulam wooden beams based on static calculations. As per customer request, where possible, we try to preassemble roof panels including attic finishing materials and roof assembly including covering materials. Structural elements of the roof can be supplied loose or preassembled as roof panels. Thermal resistance of timber frame panel houses depending on the chosen materials, the resistance of walls is not less than 5.00m2 K/W and the resistance of roof is not less than 6.00 m2 K/W. Usually, additional finishing of outer walls is recommended for panel houses, therefore further thermal insulation is also possible. Special installations Heating pipes, communication lines (low current - alarm systems, internet and television) and water supply and waste water systems are usually laid inside the flooring on the basis of chosen technical system. Panelled walls are designed and construed having in mind abovementioned systems and connections. These jobs are usually done by the local skilled and authorized personnel. Facade of the house an individual outlook for the exterior of the house could be obtained by chosen materials. External decoration of panel walls is carried out using various materials: cladding, cement, stone plates, boards, brick finishing or plastering.Upon request of a customer house set could be delivered with preinstalled windows and entrance doors, garage doors, roofing cover, external staircase, perform their installation. Price It depends upon area of external, internal walls, floor, construction of roof, balconies, thicknesses of elements and their finishing, number of elements, scope of a project. The price for a mirror or typical project is reduced. First, we estimate the price of basic structures of the house and at the moment varies from 400 to 600 EUR per one square meter of living area. In order to have the price for the complete house, you have to know what kind of: Floor cover; Plumbing system; Type of heating system; Windows material, U-value, locks, colour, opening directions, etc.; Type of wood for the external (outdoor use) staircase; Roofing cover and rain drainage system; External and internal decoration / finishing materials such as plasterboards or wooden cladding, etc.; Final price of individual project could be estimated knowing all the details and materials, in the best case when detailed working drawing are issued and based on the latest changes an updated specification – list of materials is issued.
