MODULAR CONSTRUCTION INTRODUCTION The commercial modular building industry is comprised of two distinct divisions: PERMANENT MODULAR CONSTRUCTION – an off-site construction process performed in a controlled setting yielding three dimensional modules transported and assembled at the building site. RELOCATABLE BUILDINGS – Buildings designed and constructed to be transported and installed efficiently and repeatedly that can be substantially reused in whole or in part at future building sites.
Modular components are typically constructed indoors on assembly lines. An assembly line track moves the modules from one workstation to the next. Independent building inspectors are on site to supervise the construction and ensure that all building codes are adhered to during assembly. While modules can take one to three months to be constructed, they can take as little as 10 days. They are transported to the building site and assembled by a crane. The placement of the modules may take from several hours to several days. Once assembled, modular buildings are essentially indistinguishable from typical site-built structures. While mobile manufactured buildings often decrease in value over time, a well-built modular building should have the same longevity as its site-built counterpart, increasing in value over time Commercial modular buildings are non-residential structures, 60 percent to 90 percent completed “off-site” in a controlled environment, and transported and assembled at the final building site. This can comprise the entire building or be components or subassemblies of larger structures. in many cases, modular contractors work with traditional general contractors to leverage the resources and advantages of each type of construction. The term “modular” describes a construction method or process where individual modules stand alone or are assembled together to make up larger structures. unlike relocatable buildings, these structures are intended to remain in one location for the duration of their useful life.
ASHWEEK CHHABRA
B.ARCH IV YR SFS
SURFACES AND FINISHES Modular buildings can be assembled on top of multiple foundation surfaces, such as a crawl space, stilts (for areas that are prone to flooding), full basements or standard slab at grade. They can also be built to multi-story heights. Motels and other multi-family structures have been built using modular construction techniques. The height that a modular structure can be built to depends on jurisdiction but a number of countries, especially in Asia, allow them to be built to 24 floors and possibly even more. Exterior wall surfaces can be finalized in the plant production process or in the case of brick/stone veneers field applications may be the builders choice. Roof systems also can be apart of – separate from – applied in the field after the basic installation is completed.
BUILDING STRENGTH According to manufacturers, modular homes are generally designed to be initially stronger than traditional homes by, for example, replacing nails with screws and adding glue to joints. This is supposed to help the modules maintain their structural integrity as they are transported on trucks to the construction site. Despite manufacturer claims that the modular home is initially built to be stronger than a traditional home, it is difficult to predict the final building strength since it needs to endure transportation stresses that traditional homes never experience
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ADVANTAGE OF MODULAR CONSTRUCTION The primary benefits of permanent modular construction include: 1) STREAMLINED CONSTRUCTION PROCESS (in many cases occupancy occurs 50 percent faster than with conventional construction); 2) RESOURCE EFFICIENT – less labor and fewer materials wasted. 3) REDUCED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT – less site damage, less material exposure and less waste in landfill. 4)SHORT BUILD TIMES- Typically 50-60% less than traditional on-site construction, leading to an earlier return on investment and saving in preliminaries. 5)SUPERIOR QUALITY- Achieved by factory-based quality control and pre-design of similar modules. 6)LOW WEIGHT- Compared to site construction, modular construction is about 30% of the weight of conventional masonry construction.
7)ECONOMY OF SCALE- Repetition of prefabricated units leads to considerable economy of scale in production. 8)ENVIRONMENTALLY LESS SENSITIVE- Efficient factory production techniques are much less wasteful and installation is less disruptive on site. 9)USE ON INFILL SITES- Modules are useful in small urban and infill sites, and in roof–top extensions to buildings. 10)SAFER CONSTRUCTION- Modular construction sites have proved to be significantly safer than traditional on-site building 11)REDUCED SITE LABOUR REQUIREMENT- The erection and finishing teams, which install and complete modular buildings, involve less workers on site than traditional buildings. 12)REDUCED PROFESSIONAL FEES- Standardized design details for modular buildings simplify and reduce the need for specialist design input.
MODULAR COORDINATION? •Modular coordination is a concept of coordination of dimension and space, in which buildings and components are dimensioned and positioned in a term of a basic unit or module, known as ‘1M’ which is equivalent to 100 mm.
•It is internationally accepted by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and many other countries. •The introduction of modular coordination in building will constitute a positive step to streamline the industry towards proper metrication in building planning, design, construction, assembly and manufacturing of building materials and components. •Thus, the modular coordination can facilitate the achievement of greater productivity in the building industry by virtue of its ability to discipline the dimensional and spatial coordination of a building and its components. •Moreover, modular coordination allows a more flexible open industrial system to take shape. •The principal objective of implementing Modular Coordination is to improve productivity in the building industry through industrialization. •With the introduction of Modular Coordination in building, the concept will provide a positive step to streamline the industry towards proper metrication in building planning, design, construction, manufacturing and assembly of building materials and components.
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BENEFITS OF IMPLEMENTING MODULAR COORDINATION The benefits of practicing modular coordination is to provide a practical approach towards the following: •Facilitates cooperation between building designers, manufacturers, distributors, contractors and authorities. •In the design work, enables buildings to be so dimensioned that they can be erected with standard components without undue restriction on freedom of design. •Permits a flexible type of standardization, which encourages the use of a limited number of standardized building components for the construction of different types of buildings. •Optimizes the number of standard sizes of building components.