The Groundwork: The Basis for a Strong Foundation
Before we begin building a home, the land is first prepared for building or construction. This involves preparing the piece of land so that we can later install the foundation. The next step is a ground measurement by an expert surveyor. This measurement determines the depth at which the load-bearing soil lies.
Before we begin the actual foundation work, it is important to plan and set up the technical installations. This means thinking carefully in advance about where the pipes for sewerage, water drainage and electricity should run through the foundation and floor slabs. It is essential that the pipes are installed in the right place so that they can later be connected to the home's network without problems. This not only ensures efficient construction, but also helps us achieve a faster construction time - an important KPI for Woonstaete.
Screw piles: Durable and Low Noise
For the foundation of the Woonvilla Zutphen, we choose not traditional piles, but screw piles. Instead of driving piles into the ground - which often involves a lot of noise and vibration - screw piles are driven into the ground. The major advantage of this technique is that there is much less noise, which significantly reduces the inconvenience to the surrounding area. In addition, the lack of heavy vibration ensures that surrounding soil and buildings are not affected, which can be the case with traditional piles. Screw piles also require less preparation time than piles. Screw piles are drilled and poured on site at the construction site.
For the Woonvilla Zutphen, a total of 39 screw piles are being installed, each going almost 4 meters deep into the ground. These piles serve as a solid foundation for the foundation beams that will later rest on the piles. The precise placement of the piles prevents the risk of subsidence in the future.
Reinforcement and Concrete: An Iron Strong Combination
After the screw piles are installed, the foundation is built further. The foundation beams are installed using a type of "power box" (PS box). These form a frame over the screw piles. The reinforcement is placed in the power box and then filled with concrete. The result is a solid foundation that supports the entire house.
The Floor: Robust and Efficient
After placing the foundation comes the floor slabs. We choose hollow-core slabs, a type of precast floor that is ideal for large spans and heavy loads. The floor consists of reinforced concrete and features hollow channels, which provide additional insulation. These channels create stagnant air, which improves sound insulation. There is a thick strip of EPS on the underside of the hollow-core slab floors to provide the desired insulation value.
Holes are made in advance in the hollow-core slabs at the correct positions, so that the pipes for the sewerage and other installations - which we have predetermined - can be pulled through them. This is a meticulous job, as the plates must be placed precisely so that the pipes end up at the correct connection. The plate numbers are numbered on the foundation beams, so that each plate with a hole for the pipes can be placed in the right place on the foundation.
Finally: Preparations for the Steel Frame Casco
Before the house is further constructed, U-shaped adjustment profiles are placed on the floor. The adjustment profiles serve as preparation for the upcoming construction phase, in which our partner M-frame places the precast walls on them.
Once the foundation is solid, the entire shell for the Residential Villa can be built on top of this in just 3 weeks! In a subsequent article, we'll take you through this next phase of construction: placing the steel frame shell.
