It’s a rapidly growing international trend. The expectation to deliver a quality house faster and more cost competitively whilst maintaining margin is a growing challenge for even the biggest builders. The fact is, building a home the conventional way is becoming increasingly difficult. Rising trade costs and growing industry competition are putting pressure on builders. It’s a recipe for conflict as client expectations rise and the budget gets the squeeze.
Until now, there has been no distinct advantage for builders. It was simply a case of trying to be better and more cost effective than the next builder, yet equipped with exactly the same tools and building materials. But that is now changing. Builders are now finding the competitive edge, building Class A finish homes, more cost effectively and quicker than traditional builds, with less trades.
It might seem like a dream, but a Perth company has developed a prefabricated structural wall system that’s set to revolutionise the global building industry, a solution that’s at least 30 per cent faster and 20 per cent more affordable than a traditional build.
Pro9 Global’s Structural Wall Systems also offer full design flexibility, high acoustic performance, high thermal resistance, moisture resistance and load bearing for up to 4-storeys. Moreover, it is suitable for BAL-FZ extreme bushfire risk areas. It’s also one of only a few lightweight systems to undergo stringent testing and receive CodeMark Certification in Australia (Building Code of Australia). “It’s a win-win for the builder and client,” Pro9 Global founder Daniel Jukic said. “The walls are delivered to site and erected within days, plus the reduced requirements for trades means improved margins for builders. “From a client’s perspective, they get a quality finish, save costs on the heating and cooling throughout the lifetime of the building, and get to move into their dream home faster.”
Superior thermal performance, reduced noise and a Class A finish
The Structural Wall System (PRO125) is a precision engineered prefabricated building system suitable for detached and semi-detached homes, grouped dwellings and low rise residential developments. The PRO125 wall has a superior thermal rating of 4.2 making for reduced energy costs, and the acoustic rating of 31db means less noise from outside traffic and neighbours.
“More than A$12 million has been invested in designing, engineering and testing the wall,” Jukic said. “Pro9 Global walls are fire resistant with the PRO125 panel achieving a 60/60/60 rating*, making it suitable for extreme BAL-FZ bushfire areas. The walls have a Class A finish, both internal and external, which can be finished with paint, plaster, render, planking or any material the client desires.
Faster build times and load bearing
“By simplifying the build process, shifting construction away from site and into a controlled factory environment, efficiencies are created,” Jukic said.“We’ve engineered highly mechanised installation equipment to install its complete building systems at speed. Onsite errors are minimised and less manual labour hours are needed for the build.” The walls are load bearing, so can be used for multi-storey construction.
Global approval means peace of mind
“The PRO125 wall has undergone rigorous testing meaning builders can build with confidence,” Jukic said.“Pro9 Global’s building system has also passed extreme weather testing conducted at the Materials Testing Institute (University of Stuttgart). After 50 extreme weather cycles, there were no signs of cracking, delimitation, deformation or bending.” In addition to surpassing international standards, Pro9 Global’s walls were recently recognised as a finalist across four categories at the 2018 Australian Construction Awards, including for product innovation and sustainable construction.
To find out more about Pro9 Global’s structural wall system, check out Pro9 Global’s first residential housing project in Woodvale, Perth, or jump on the website at www.pro9.com
*Based on an 100kN load
