Up-to-date Factory Buildings.
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In modern buildings appearance, fire-proofness, lighting and ventilation are all factors which must be considered. The degree of the possession of these qualities will be a measure of the health and happiness of its occupants. A structure possessing all these attribute; to a high degree is one for which one might desire a considerable measure of permanence. Fortunately, it happens that modern methods of construction enable these features to be combined with that of the capability of resisting wear and tear. They are exemplified in the recent extensions of the building of the Continental Motor Co., of America, a photograph of which, in process of construction, we reproduce below. .
Ferro concrete is, of course, the material used, and it is interesting to note that the same lines are being followed by the principal makers of motor vehicles in this country, among others may be mentioned the Daimler Co., Leyland Motors, Ltd., Albion Motor Car Co., Ltd., Birmingham Small Arms Co., Ltd., Vickers, Ltd., etc. The system is named the "Kahn," and the Trussed Concrete Steel Co., Ltd., of Caxton House, Westminster, is responsible for the design. The most modern style of building is that on the lines of the sectional bookcase where each factory is built on the unit. system, allowing of ease of expansion as business increases, or of change of direction of energy of a portion without inconvenience. This style has been adopted by most of the manufacturers named above, and also by the principal American firms, such as the Packard Co. and the Ford Co. 'In the old days when a man's business grew, he erected a small addition, often an annex to the main building ; a little later on, further extensions being needed, he would probably put up another building, possibly at another side of the factory. The
result, of course, was that proper organization was impossible, and the greatest efficiency from the point of view of production was unattainable. With the unit system, you construct to-day as many units as you require ; to-morrow you may add others as necessitated by the growth of your business. The desirable end is obtained in the case of the Trussed Concrete Steel Co.'s designs of standardization. Each new building is, so far as possible, a replica of the old. The same spacing is adopted for the columns, the same heights for the floors, and the same arrangement of beams and secondaries. The special construction of reinforced concrete enables the maximum amount of glass to be used in the walls, with the result that each and every unit is thoroughly lighted.