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Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

fastcompany.com

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Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#61

Post by floatingatoll »

dejv wrote: post #54
falcolas wrote: post #16

This article seems to be missing some critical information - does this proposed system help with anything but the framing? Because framing a house, even a two story house, only takes an experienced crew a couple of days. And in the neighborhoods springing up around here, they are using pre-fab framed walls (still using wooden studs (which are cheap and plentiful), but they arrive on site as whole walls). Before frami…

We are buying house from company that is building them fully assembled: house is assembled indoor and include all electrical, plumbing, HVAC, insulation. Whole system is based on few types of modules that you can connect together and it scale from tiny house to standard house sizes and modules could be even stacked to get multiple floor levels.

From what company?

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#62

Post by heimatau »

irrational wrote: post #60

All of the pictures are of very modern houses. I'd be fine with that, but my wife wouldn't. She prefers more of the Victorian/Queen Anne style of architecture. I wonder if there is a way they could design this system so that the innards are all the same but then you can put different shells around the innards so the home could look modern, craftsman, victorian, etc. Sort of like how you could have 10 cakes that are i…

There is one company in the USA that is trying this but China and Germany seem to be leading in pre-fab.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#63

Post by dcolkitt »

falcolas wrote: post #16

This article seems to be missing some critical information - does this proposed system help with anything but the framing? Because framing a house, even a two story house, only takes an experienced crew a couple of days. And in the neighborhoods springing up around here, they are using pre-fab framed walls (still using wooden studs (which are cheap and plentiful), but they arrive on site as whole walls). Before frami…

One big area where modular prefab can potentially make a difference is by reducing the need for skilled tradesmen, particularly electricians, plumbers and HVAC techs.

In most growing American metros, a major constraining factor on housing supply is the lack of these skilled tradesmen. In contrast, drywall, painting, and landscaping tend to be lower-skilled and easier to draw from the general labor pool.

You can have a high-productivity manufacturing center start with a pre-fab "core" built out of a modular shipping container, and pre-fab roof trusses. In parallel, you prep the site including any lot development and laying the concrete foundation. You then install the core and trusses on site, and can finish up the drywall and paining very quickly.

The core contains all the complex plumbing, electrical work, HVAC and kitchen work. The finished house looks indistinguishable from regular construction, and you can stand up single family homes or duplexes in under two months.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#64

Post by bluGill »

sjg007 wrote: post #38
bluGill wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having done framing in the past I assure you foundation tolerances are not close enough for a shim kit in general.

Seems like people are getting away with shoddy work then.

It costs more than it is worth to have them do better. As a framer is takes me a couple minutes more to compensate. To have the do it would take hours of labor.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#65

Post by pfhorge »

potiuper wrote: post #39
pfhorge wrote: post #28

I built my current house recently, and our builder used a prefab factory in the region for some of the construction. I would _never_ do it again. The process has all the pitfalls of the waterfall software development model, but at the end you have to live in the failed project! It took months for the factory to do their pre-build engineering, and that's after they started the process using plans from my architect. Th…

Why not sue for breach of contract / design?

We had a frank conversation with the builder about costs, as well as what was and wasn't worth fighting over. Some items were able to be repaired without impacting the budget by subcontractors that were already coming in to do other things. Other things we didn't care enough about to make a fuss over (like the roof line not matching up right on the back side of the house, where no one will ever notice). Some things we asked her to fix at her expense.

We were very aware that big projects, be they software or home construction, don't ever go perfectly, so we made a conscious effort to stay calm and solution-oriented through the entire multi-year process. We came in very slightly under budget, and things that need to get addressed are getting addressed, whereas a lawsuit would have turned things adversarial very quickly.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#66

Post by irrational »

bluGill wrote: post #32
sjg007 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Huh? There's a shortage of carpenters so if you can go prefab it is a win. In fact the article shows that if you can build a house faster with prefab at the same cost as a traditional house that's a win.

There isn't a shortage of carpenters. There is a shortage willing to work for the wages offered. I've done carpentry work in the past, offer enough money and I'll leave my tech job. I'm not the only one who could do carpentry for the right price.

Same here. I'm a skilled carpenter and woodworker, but for a much higher salary and benefits I can sit on my butt all day long typing into a computer. They would have to offer me a lot more money than my current six figure salary to get me to do carpentry work all day.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#67

Post by bluGill »

amelius wrote: post #52
bluGill wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There isn't a shortage of carpenters. There is a shortage willing to work for the wages offered. I've done carpentry work in the past, offer enough money and I'll leave my tech job. I'm not the only one who could do carpentry for the right price.

Ok, so prefab can still be a win if it's cheaper?

Problem is it isn't much cheaper. There is still work to do on site. Prefab needs labor in the factory. Prefab generally has higher shipping costs. These mostly balance out.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#68

Post by helipad »

The article mentions labor being a huge problem.

On a TV episode of Grand Designs (UK) a few years ago, the German company Huf Haus (www.huf-haus.com) sold a prefab home to a family. Their approach to labor? Ship that too.

The whole crew arrived with the house components. They knew exactly how to assemble it on the concrete base the local crews had put in place. It went up ridiculously quickly, and once done, they got in the trucks and drove back to Germany.

So I think the key takeaway of this article is that it's hard to drive from Germany to California.

Re: Why hasn't prefab construction taken over?

#69

Post by stephencanon »

LatteLazy wrote: post #58
xwdv wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's about principles, not money.

Says the man who can afford to spend 3 years in court losing 15k :)

Anyone who takes on building a custom house can easily afford to spend 3 years in court losing 15k.
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