I can’t wait to get to IBS in Vegas where new products and equipment for the construction industry will be unveiled and all the new construction experts will be speaking and taking part in conferences.
There will be so many “Experts” in off-site construction there, each armed with whatever software, app, or disruptive idea they are pushing that will change how we build housing today. It’s almost impossible not to see, read about or hear one telling you that by giving them tons of money, you can be the new leader in off-site housing.
It reminds me of a dozen blindfolded people trying to describe an elephant. It all depends on where you’re standing and what they touch. They all know it’s big but beyond that, there is no point of reference for them to collaborate on.
The person in the front may think he is touching an extra long tail as is the person at the back. Are those tree trunks or legs? And what’s with those long rock-like projections?
You get the picture. We all know something about modular construction but very few know it all. It all depends on your viewpoint.
About four years ago I invited a modular home “expert” to tour a modular factory with me. As he looked at the production line, he asked me when the steel frame gets added to the house. Turns out he had only toured two factories, both were manufactured home plants. I spent the rest of the tour explaining the differences to this off-site housing “expert”.
Fast forward to the present and I’ve encountered many more of these housing “experts” that had no idea what true modular manufacturing is all about. These same experts were speaking at events and conferences I was attending before COVID-19 and now on Zoom conferences and video interviews. You have to ask yourself what part of the elephant were they touching before they spoke to their audiences.
The problem with this begins when they speak to a group of investors and developers that are so ready to drink whatever Kool-Aid these experts provide. I know very few speakers that have ever been in the trenches of modular construction. There are so many levels of knowledge and expertise needed and most of them only know their small segment.
One of the first misperceptions is when the developer is told by the expert that modular construction is cheaper by 25%, it’s finished in half the time, it is available whenever the developer wants it; etc. I know, this sounds like the perfect way to build a 5 story apartment building or hotel.
And it could be if it was reality. I know of no modular factory in the world that can shave 25% off the cost of a site-built project. That ship sailed a long time ago. And that part about taking half the time; who’s kidding who here? Yes, you will probably save some time but not by half unless you’re just counting the time from the modules arriving on the job site until the building is ready for occupancy.
So what is modular reality?
It’s the best way for investors, developers, and builders to construct everything from hotels, affordable housing projects, single and multi-family homes, ADUs, tiny houses, workforce housing, and just about any other type of building.
But there are limitations and that’s the reality. Listening to those “experts” and planning your project around what they say is not the way to go.
Before you even begin talking to any modular factory about building your next project, you should take the time to find an experienced consultant with the working knowledge and expertise of what is modular reality for your project. That reality is not always found by just talking to the factory people.
I recently learned that the engineering department at one modular factory turned down a project after the developer spent countless hours and tons of money working with an expert that told them they needed to have their modular project designed by an Architect. When the developer presented the Architect’s work to the modular factory, they were told the factory couldn’t build what the developer wanted, so he went back to using a site builder for the project.
Little did the developer know that another factory within a hundred miles actually has built similar projects but since they didn’t use an experienced consultant with modular knowledge instead of a new-to-modular expert, they missed the boat.
Here is more reality.
Modular construction can be slightly faster to complete, it can save you money and it will definitely give you a better product over site-building your project. It is also inherently more energy-efficient, greener and sustainable.
The modular factory becomes your partner in identifying problems and offering solutions before anything is even built. You can also visit the production line and watch as your modules are produced. Your groundwork and foundation can be completed at the same time your modules are being produced.
And let’s not forget the people that build the modules for your project. They actually show up every day! They also work in a stable environment and usually work in the same station on the production line where they hone their skills.
As Winston Churchill might have said,
“Indeed it has been said that modular is the worst form of construction except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.…”
Gary Fleisher is the Editor in Chief of Modular Home Source and Offsite Builder. Email at [email protected]
Gary Fleisher, Editor in Chief of Offsite Construction Magazine
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