Timber iQ August / September 2021 | Page 11

LOCAL PROJECT
Another view of the innovative timber building .
The construction idea for Ko-Spaza has been in development for more than a year .
The Ko-Spaza shop consists of a complete plywood structural system .
The notion of small-scale alternative construction comes from seeing the latent talent that is found in our local communities , where people are pivotal to the success . Using this small-scale concept , we developed a system that could be easily constructed and assembled by locals , using basic tools and labour . In this process of collaboration there is a transfer of knowledge and skill which can be honed to create small businesses within the community , creating a building ecosystem where parts can be manufactured off-site and assembly on-site by different people .
FROM THE CLIENT :
The architects surprised us with a new and novel idea to approach the construction of our spaza shop . We wanted a solution that allowed for quick assembly to enable us to open and operate as soon as possible . Site disturbance was minimal , we got a lot of curious questions during the four-day construction period , which set the scene for our busy opening day . The system developed allowed for effortless assembly without any major hiccups , which will allow us to set up even more similar shops in the near future .
An alternative approach to constructing buildings – a simpler and more efficient way to build .
www . timberiq . co . za // AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2021 9