The Barcelona City Council, through the Municipal Institute of Housing and Rehabilitation (IMHAB), has awarded this Monday the construction of four new industrialized buildings for affordable rent in the Sant Martí district. In total, with this innovative construction technique, 151 homes will be built, which will become home to more than 350 people, according to the council.
With a planned municipal investment of 20 million euros, the homes will take a little more than two and a half years on average to be ready, 40% less than what it normally takes thanks to the industrialized production system. This method is based on the manufacturing of structural elements in a workshop and their subsequent assembly on site, allowing for a lower environmental impact and greater quality control. The bidding terms also required efficient use of materials and the use of recycled and recyclable elements.
Furthermore, three of the four winning proposals suggest the use of CLT wood in construction, or in other words, cross-laminated timber, a material on the rise due to the reduced environmental impact generated by its production. The key, then, lies in sustainability.
All developments will have two bedrooms, a central kitchen-dining area, and will feature balconies or terraces. The buildings will be as follows:
1. Pallars Street, 477
- Winning entity of the tender: Constraula, part of the Sorigué Group. It is dedicated to urban services (maintenance of buildings and equipment, new construction and rehabilitation) especially in the province of Barcelona. Among some of its most notable works are the expansion of Pelai Street and the superilla (superblock) in the Sant Antoni neighborhood. In the Sant Martí district, the renovation of Meridiana Avenue between Independencia and Aragó streets stands out.
Constraula's proposal consists of a seven-story building with a ground floor, totaling 42 homes. This is one of the three proposals that will use CLT wood for construction. Broadly speaking, the project stands out for an improvement in the energy performance of the building, greater luminosity (especially in homes facing inwards), and increased ventilation.
2. Marroc Street, 180
- Winning entity of the tender: in this case, it is a project jointly presented by 6 companies. They include Constructora del Cardoner, which, in addition to construction, also operates in the real estate sector; Grupo Avintia, which also belongs to the real estate sector, as well as the energy and industrial sectors; La casa por el tejado, a construction studio that works in historic cities; Part by part, also from the construction sector, but focused on sustainability; Exe Arquitectura, an internationally renowned architectural studio, and Vivas Arquitectos, of Barcelona origin and author of the construction of social housing in the Marina and La Mina neighborhoods.
This proposal stands out for a prefabricated modular structure made with metallic materials and designed with an industrial architectural language. It will have eight floors with six modules each, except for the last one, where only three are planned. In total, there will be 45 homes.
3. Binéfar Street, 22
- Winning entity of the tender: Grup Mas, a construction company with experience in public works. Among its works, the expansion of the Joan Oliver Pere Quart civic center in the Les Corts district stands out.
CLT wood is the main element of Grup Mas's proposal, a building that extends perpendicularly to the facade of Binéfar Street. The project includes the creation of prefabricated modules with finished kitchen and bathroom equipment. The building will have a ground floor and three floors with eight homes each, a total of 24 apartments.
4. Arriassa Passage, s/n
- Winning entity of the tender: Acsa, Obras e Infraestructuras, a company that is part of Grupo Sorigué, which is already in charge of the construction of another development (that of Pallars Street).
This building will have terraces both externally and internally, and will also use CLT wood. It will have eight floors of housing, with five units per floor, which means a total of 40 apartments.