INNOVATION AND TRADITION IN THE SECOND POST-WAR ITALIAN CONSTRUCTION SITE
introduction
Stefania Mornati
Studies on the convenience of employing prefabricated elements in construction had a relevant revival in the first years after World War II when reconstruction became a social emergency. The renewal of the construction supply chain had previously involved techniques and materials, compounded by studies on building unification, with establishing a technical committee within UNI in 1940. Compared to other industrial sectors, there were few unification tables in the construction field and mainly limited to brick products. The post-war period produces profound transformations in the construction sector. On the one hand, the response to the housing emergency, the need to rebuild services – schools, above all – and to reactivate production activities must contribute to the country’s economic and social recovery. On the other hand, it must stand as an opportunity to actively resume technological and scientific experimentation in the construction industry’s various fields: from design to execution, from new materials to construction elements and from work organization to production processes.
