Blog Benefits of Offsite Construction
Modular offsite construction maximizes efficiencies, saving time and money, since key building components are created simultaneously to those onsite, with less waste and cheaper labor via a factory assembly line.
Offsite construction refers to the portion of a modular construction project taking place away from the building site, in a separate facility. This industry-changing process perhaps best distinguishes modular from traditional construction, and results in greater efficiencies that save time and money. The following breakdown explains in further detail several significant benefits of offsite construction with modularization:
Saving Time
One of modularization’s greatest benefits is the time saved during construction, with reductions as much as 50%—translating to an average nine-month construction period as opposed to a longer and more expensive 18-month period, according to international nonprofit trade group the Modular Building Institute (MBI). This is possible because the modular units are fabricated offsite simultaneously as the foundation is prepared onsite.
Creating Efficiencies
Since 1968, construction productivity has declined by an average of 1.7% every year, while productivity in all other non-farm industries has experienced stable growth. This is unsurprising, considering the nature of traditional construction. While nearly everything consumers purchase is manufactured in a factory nowadays, construction has not undergone the same evolution.
Offsite construction maximizes such efficiencies. Rather than required materials and crews having to climb a towering structure, for example, individual modules move in an organized fashion down the production line, in a controlled, indoor environment. When finished with one module, teams simply move along the line and work on the next.
With materials stored in close proximity to the modular fabrication facilities, offsite construction reduces instances of lost and wasted materials due to misplacement, delivery errors, or hasty cutting on the job site.
Saving Money
Offsite construction’s aforementioned efficiencies and job time slashing go hand in hand with its overall cost savings.
Labor is one of the most-expensive aspects of a construction project. The assembly line nature of offsite construction means that modular manufacturers such as iBUILT can hire factory labor, which is as much as 70% less-expensive than typical onsite construction labor.
The shorter the construction period, the less construction period carrying expenses, such as real estate taxes, insurance, interest and other so-called “soft costs.” Moreover, the sooner a business can open its doors, the faster it can begin generating revenue. On a large project, this could equate to millions of dollars saved—just by choosing offsite, modular construction.
