August_1966 — Page 75

THE

BALENCY

SYSTEM

Demoulding a unit

they can support the floors. When installed on a finished floor they are completely stable which helps erec- tion. Because of the accuracy of their production, equipment and fittings can be prefabricated and installed very simply.

Wall Panels

Once the functional units have been incorporated in the architect's plans the rest of the structure is formed of essentially flat panels.

For these panels Balency have con- centrated on mechanising the casting procedure which, though highly deve- loped, enables the length of the panel to be varied by means of extensible moulds. The height, which is the storey height of the building, remains

constant.

Panels are of sandwich construc- tion with an intermediate insulating layer. Doors, windows, and external fastenings form an integral part of the panel and are fitted at the time of manufacture. Various surface finishes and treatments are available for the panels, including reconstructed stone: sand-blasted finish; scrubbed finish: stoneware or glass mosaic.

All panels, including party walls and partitions and the functional units support the floors and there is no dead load from non-structural components. All vertical elements are mobilised to carry load and floor spans are reduc- ed to a minimum.

In-situ Floors

The combination of in-situ floors with precast concrete units is unusual but serves an important purpose. This type of floor imposes no planning res- triction and can be easily shaped to meet any variations in size that may be required. It spreads its load even- ly over all walls and partitions and

Far East Architect & Builder August, 1966

ensures a perfect liaison between pre- cast panels and floor slab at each floor level. An in-situ floor also compen- sates for the tolerances in the erec- tion of vertical units and avoids com- plex joints.

Erection

By the Balency method the precast units are lifted straight off trailers and placed in their final position by

crane.

Vertical units are adjusted and secured by adjustable inclined struts. The struts are secured at each end by bolts screwed into threaded sockets in the units and floors. The functional units are stable in themselves.

As the door posts are incorporated in the prefabricated panels. "door templates" enable the erectors check that the units enclosing the rooms are accurately set.

to

The floors are cast on special-pur- pose formwork supported on light ex- tensible props. The reinforcements and pipes are installed in a single operation with the aid of a spreader bar. After the concrete has set the

formwork is collapsed and moved to the next storey.

The few horizontal joints at floor level and vertical joints are then caulked and final trimming is carried out. No further operations by the erectors are required as all the equip- ment is screwed or bolted in position without requiring any plugging or stopping up of holes.

Joints and Insulation

Balency have developed a joint em- bodying a double seal for the facade units. The first seal, which is of plas- tic, is behind a small decompression chamber which reduces the pressure exerted by high winds. The second is of concrete and they are separated by a vented draining channel.

The panels have a thick interme- diate layer of insulating material con- sisting of no-fines concrete made with lightweight aggregates, or a thinner intermediate layer of polystyrene. The insulation continues uninterrupted to the edges of the panels, windows and lintels. The insulation also covers the edges of the floors and division walls.

T

Road haulage vehicle with vertically stacked wall units

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