Walter Segal (1907-1985) was a Berlin-born architect who devised a system of self-build housing. The “Segal Method” eliminates the need for wet trades such as bricklaying and plastering, using a modular, timber-frame system that allows for ease of construction and low maintenance. The roofs tend to be flat, with many layers of roofing felt, and foundations are minimal, the strength coming from the geometry of their construction. Walter Segal trained in Berlin, a city that was at the forefront of Modernism in architecture, and moved to London in 1936. It wasn’t until the 1960s, however, that he began to gain recognition for his ideas and methods. Today, his reputation continues to rise, not least because of his environmentally friendly approach to building. Segal himself was much influenced by the egalitarian principles of William Morris, as well as the early Modernists.