An Innovative Plastic Housing System

摘要

The Royal Housing System~TM is a revolutionary approach to the provision of single and double-story dwellings. The system employs various interlocking, cored elements made from a polyvinyl chloride-based material. These extruded elements are interconnected to form both exterior and interior walls, as weel as the roof of the building. The walls, 100 mm or 150 mm thick, may be filled with concrete (or other materia) and can be reinforced with conventional steel reinforcement if necessary. A comprhensive program of developmental and conformance testing has been conducted. Materials, elements, sub-assemblies, connections and assemblies (full-scale prototype buildings) have been systematically tested. Extreme wind, seismic and thermal loadings as well as moisture and air leakage control were all considered. This paper describes and discusses the structural aspects of the conformance testing program. The technical characteristics of this housing system were evaluated in accordance with guidelines commissioned from the Canadian Construction Materials Centre in order to facilitate multi-country conformance. The system has been accepted as suitable for housing construction in Canada, Argentina, Japan, and mamy other countries.