Twelfth Annual Conference of the Construction History Society, 25-27 September 2026
The conference theme is Building Practice: regulation, corruption, & adaptation, but there are other general sessions too. Booking link in ALT.
The proceedings have now gone to be printed. Here is the lovely cover:
![In Dutch historiography Dyke is often mentioned as inventor of the ‘Simplified Brick Construction’ (SBC), an assembly line production of wall elements. He has almost the status of a ‘godfather’, but no serious building historian gives any biographical information about him.
In the Netherlands between 1950 and 1980 c. 450,000 prefab houses (systeemwoningen) were built, often using a British system, e.g. Airey, Orlit etc , approximately 15 % of the total production of new dwellings. Approx. 30,000 of the SBC 'system built' houses were built , more than in the British Isles.
In my view it is strange that we know in the Netherlands so little about the man who stood in 1934 at the cradle of SBC-building system.
References found so far:
Gollins, [A.]F., ‘Simplified brick construction’, in: Architectural Design & Construction (1945) January, p. 9-15.
‘Catalogue of House Building Construction Systems ( Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation; [Ottawa, 1960]), p. 138, “DYKE, HENRY Simplified Brickwork Company Limited, 11 Old Jewry E. C.2, England. (Clothed Concrete Const. Ltd.). Precast brick and light weight concrete cavity panels in 10' 0" x 3' 0" high x 10 1/2" thick. M. O. W. Survey of Prefabrication.”](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6ekjxiozdrzacyf6ogw7nhhw/bafkreib2fofqj7juzx7te6ehdshq2wlhv4ty4iacex5xqzfkvz4kqfrnk4)
