Buildings have been built in one place and reassembled in another throughout history. This was especially true for mobile activities, or for new settlements. Κάστρο Ελμίνα, the first οχυρό σκλάβων in Δυτική Αφρική, was also the first European prefabricated building in Υπο-Αφρική της Σαχάρας.1: 93 In Βόρεια Αμερική, in 1624 ένα από τα πρώτα κτίρια at Cape Ann was probably partially prefabricated, and was rapidly disassembled and moved at least once. Τζον Ρόλο described in 1801 earlier use of portable hospital buildings in the Δυτικές Ινδίες.2 Possibly the first advertised prefab house was the "Manning cottage". A London carpenter, Henry Manning, constructed a house that was built in components, then shipped and assembled by British emigrants. This was published at the time (advertisement, South Australian Record, 1837) and a few still stand in Australia.3 One such is the Friends Meeting House, Αδελαΐδα.45 The peak year for the importation of portable buildings to Australia was 1853, when several hundred arrived. These have been identified as coming from Λίβερπουλ, Βοστώνη and Σιγκαπούρη (with Chinese instructions for re-assembly).6 In Μπαρμπάντος the Chattel σπίτι was a form of prefabricated building which was developed by emancipated slaves who had limited rights to build upon land they did not own. As the buildings were moveable they were legally regarded as κινητά.7
In 1855 during the Ο πόλεμος της Κριμαίας, after Florence Nightingale wrote a letter to Οι καιροί, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was commissioned to design a prefabricated modular hospital. In five months he designed the Νοσοκομείο Renkioi: ένα νοσοκομείο 1,000 ασθενών, με καινοτομίες στην υγιεινή, τον εξαερισμό και μια τουαλέτα με έκπλυση.8 Fabricator Ουίλιαμ Έσι constructed the required 16 units in Αποβάθρες Gloucester, shipped directly to the Δαρδανέλια. Χρησιμοποιήθηκε μόνο από τον Μάρτιο του 1856 έως τον Σεπτέμβριο του 1857, μείωσε το ποσοστό θνησιμότητας από 42 τοις εκατό σε 3,5 τοις εκατό.
The world's first prefabricated, pre-cast panelled apartment blocks were pioneered in Λίβερπουλ. A process was invented by city engineer Τζον Αλεξάντερ Μπρόντι, whose inventive genius also had him inventing the football goal net. The tram stables at Walton in Λίβερπουλ followed in 1906. The idea was not extensively adopted in Britain, however was widely adopted elsewhere, particularly in Eastern Europe.
Prefabricated homes were produced during the Gold Rush in the United States, when kits were produced to enable Californian prospectors to quickly construct accommodation. Homes were available in kit form by mail order in the United States in 1908.9
Prefabricated housing was popular during the Δεύτερος Παγκόσμιος πόλεμος due to the need for mass accommodation for military personnel. The United States used Καλύβες Quonset as military buildings, and in the United Kingdom prefabricated buildings used included Καλύβες Nissen and Υπόστεγα Bellman. 'Prefabs' were built after the war as a means of quickly and cheaply providing quality housing as a replacement for the housing destroyed during το Blitz. The proliferation of prefabricated housing across the country was a result of the Επιτροπή Μπερτ and the Στέγαση (Προσωρινή Διαμονή) Νόμος 1944. Under the Υπουργείο Έργων Εργοστασιακή κατασκευή έκτακτης ανάγκης housing programme, a specification was drawn up and bid on by various private construction and manufacturing companies. After approval by the MoW, companies could bid on Council led development schemes, resulting in whole estates of prefabs constructed to provide accommodation for those made homeless by the War and ongoing εκκαθάριση παραγκούπολης.10 Almost 160,000 had been built in the UK by 1948 at a cost of close to £216 million. The largest single prefab estate in Britain11 was at Μπελ Βέιλ (South Liverpool), where more than 1,100 were built after World War 2. The estate was demolished in the 1960s amid much controversy as the prefabs were very popular with residents at the time.
Prefabs were aimed at families, and typically had an entrance hall, two bedrooms (parents and children), a bathroom (a room with a bath) — which was a novel innovation for many Britons at that time, a separate toilet, a living room and an equipped (not τοποθετημένος in the modern sense) kitchen. Construction materials included steel, aluminium, timber or αμίαντο, depending on the type of dwelling. The aluminium Τύπος Β2 prefab was produced as four pre-assembled sections which could be transported by lorry anywhere in the country.12
The Universal House (pictured left lounge diner right) was given to the Υπαίθριο Μουσείο Chiltern after 40 years temporary use. The Mark 3 was manufactured by the Universal Housing Company Ltd, Rickmansworth.
The United States used prefabricated housing for troops during the war and for GIs returning home. Προκατασκευασμένο σπίτι classrooms were popular with UK schools increasing their rolls during the baby boom of the 1950s and 1960s.
Many buildings were designed with a five-ten year life span, but have far exceeded this, with a number surviving today. In 2002, for example, the city of Μπρίστολ still had residents living in 700 examples.13 Many UK councils have been in the process of demolishing the last surviving examples of Second World War prefabs in order to comply with the British government's Πρότυπο αξιοπρεπών κατοικιών, η οποία τέθηκε σε ισχύ το 2010. Ωστόσο, υπήρξε μια πρόσφατη αναβίωση στις προκατασκευασμένες μεθόδους κατασκευής προκειμένου να αντισταθμιστεί η τρέχουσα έλλειψη στέγης στο Ηνωμένο Βασίλειο