prefabrication

prefabrication, in architectural construction, a technique whereby large units of a building are produced in factories to be assembled, ready-made, on the building site. The technique permits the speedy erection of very large structures. It has been applied to urban housing for more than a century. Major architects, including Walter Gropius, Konrad Wachsmann, and Buckminster Fuller, have been involved significantly in the development of prefabrication. See also module.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2011, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.