Learning how off-site construction works is a good start.  Understanding how it benefits the construction process and the people who will live in the building helps take us one step further.

Manufacturing Quality Control

Building a section of a structural building element such as a wall or roof involves a lot of repetitive tasks, but in the field this repetition can take many shapes and forms depending on weather conditions, the organization and setup of the work area, and the condition of materials due to material storage eccentricities with each site.

Prefabrication makes a number of these variables not only less unpredictable, but in many cases as many times more efficient.  Additionally,

  • The quality of the equipment used is greater, from simple mitre saws to pneumatic nailers and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) cutting systems, because the investment can be protected by keeping the equipment in a climate controlled environment and limiting the movement of this equipment
  • Human error is reduced, and greater automation is possible
  • Inspections are more consistent and quality is more readily verifiable
  • Material use is more accurate and efficient due to all cut lists being generated by a CAD model.

Worker Health and Safety

Jobsite inconsistencies also leads to increased opportunity for injuries and other safety issues that can be far more highly controlled in an indoor, assembly line environment.  By living and working in our community and limiting long-distance transportation to short installation time on site, we can offer a better work-life balance and more stability to our employees.

Reductions in Time, Cost, and Uncertainty

While perhaps the greatest advantage to our clients is the ability to get a higher level of quality for a similar price as conventional construction, there are many occasions where the speed, efficiency, and cost advantages of building off-site can allow additional cost advantages that often arise after the contract is signed.  Site built construction is plagued by delays, whether from weather, the challenge of sequencing sub-trades, or change orders from a less careful planning process.  By eliminating uncertainties, we drastically reduce the number of change orders and therefore deliver a final product much closer to the initial quote than many of our clients could have ever hoped for.

Architectural Possibilities

That a prefab approach might limit architectural possibilities is simply a myth.  While modular construction tends to put things in boxes, the prefabrication approach puts an infinitely greater set of tools in the hands of designers – after all, even the most complex of buildings have things that we can identify as walls and roofs.  Further, prefabrication allows us to build more challenging structures with less complication, making these custom architectural gestures more within reach, not less.  Through the use of exo building elements and the integration of specialized elements like mass timber beams, cantilevered floors, and unique fastening elements, the panelized approach can adapt to any architectural need.