Building Better – Strength and Quality Control
For builders and developers, time and money are the most important factors to manage on any project. Every day a builder or developer can shave off the completion timeline saves money. Consequently, the unique ability of modular construction to drastically reduce the overall length of the construction process translates into significantly increased profits.
Until recently, many did not see modular construction as a viable option for commercial construction or residential developments of singular and multi-family projects. Homes built in factories have long been associated with “trailers” or mobile homes and, more recently, with manufactured homes. However, unlike manufactured homes which are constructed in strict accordance with the Federal HUD code of 1976 and inspected by third-party inspectors, modular homes are built using modules or boxes designed and constructed to local and state building codes. They are inspected by both an independent third party inspection agency during construction as well as the same local building inspectors that certify traditional stick-built construction.
Sometimes referred to as “off-site site built construction,” modular homes are typically completed to approximately 80% in environmentally controlled building centers. Then the factory-built modules or boxes are transported on trucks to the final construction site. Once they are on site, the modules are typically crane-lifted to their permanent foundations, which can be stem-walls, basements and even elevated stilts. Click here to view our 2-minute video of a 2-story home set.
By their nature of being transported (sometimes hundreds of miles) and then lifted through the air into place, these modules must be stronger and more securely constructed to withstand the strains of this movement. Local codes such as the Uniform Building Code (UBC) and International Residential Code (IRC) are much more stringent than the Federal HUD code. Consequently, the additional strength and more stringent construction requirements mean that modular construction provides a stronger, higher quality home than either traditional site-built or manufactured home construction.
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Tags: commercial construction, International Residential Code, IRC, local building codes, Modular Construction, modular homes, modules, UBC, Uniform Building Code
