Prefabricated building or "prefabrication" is a construction method that uses components manufactured off-site in a factory and then transported to the site to be assembled into a structure. Prefabrication is a remarkable technology that helps reduce time and has more benefits. Construction has always been about the speed and efficiency that can be ensured through materials and construction techniques.

In this article, we will get to know all the details about construction prefabrication.

Let's start with the definition of prefabrication.

What is prefabrication?

Prefabricated building or "prefabrication" is a construction method that uses components manufactured off-site in a factory and then transported to the site to be assembled into a structure.

Offering different advantages, there are several different common types of prefabricated components. You may want to consider combining any of these solutions, depending on your particular building project.

Price of prefabrication

Although building prefabrication is a new construction method, but also will use the basic building materials, do the cost table will still need to query a lot of material information, this time we can go to the building construction cost website to check the price of various materials. The site will be updated in real time across the country market price, information price.

Benefits of prefabrication

1. Relieve labour shortage:

Contractors are already having a hard time finding labour, but still need to carry out construction.

As site construction continues to be piecemeal, it will reduce labour productivity even more.

Therefore, prefabrication helps companies to speed up timelines, make the best use of on-site labour, increase efficiency and succeed in the marketplace.

2. Cost effectiveness:

The cost of transporting some of the components from the factory is also lower than the cost of moving pre-production resources to each site.

In addition, labour-related costs decline as labour efficiency increases.

3. time savings:

Time is money when doing construction, and pre-production will help you save even more construction time.

4. quality control:

a.Factory tooling provides additional quality assurance rather than duplicating work on site.

b.A uniform factory interior eliminates most weather influences on fabrication, while streamlining the manufacturing and production process improves job site safety in general.

5. Reduced environmental impact:

a.Accelerated off-site production of parts reduces emissions and job disruptions.

b.This protects nearby wetlands or conservation areas and minimises disturbance to local flora and fauna.

c. The controlled drying environment of modular structures saves water usage and allows for recycling of waste and other materials.

d. In addition, fossil fuel consumption plummets as site traffic is reduced and transport is simplified.

6. Better safety and security:

By reducing the timeframe of a construction site while reducing the time the site is vulnerable to vandalism or looting.

7. Flexibility:

a. Ease of dismantling and moving the modular structure to various sites.

b. This significantly reduces the need for raw materials, minimises resource consumption and reduces time overall.

c. Modular structures also allow for versatility in structural design, permitting an unlimited number of possibilities.

d. Because prefabricated building units can be used in a variety of spaces, their neutral aesthetics can be combined with virtually any form of architecture.

8. Reduced site disruption:

a.There is much less truck traffic, machinery, and material suppliers around the final construction site because several parts of the building are completed at the factory.

b.As a result, disruptions to traditional workplaces subject to noise, emissions, waste, and other common irritants are minimised.

c.This structured design approach provides a more productive environment and eliminates unnecessary interruptions and disruptions typical of construction sites.

It's time to understand the difficulties of prefabrication.

Difficulties of prefabricated construction

a.The joints to be given should be good enough to transfer various stresses and connect the core structure and components.

b.The strength and robustness of the entire building depends entirely on the strength of the joints.

c.Therefore, it is important to carry out a detailed study of the whole system rather than component based analysis.

d.One of the major challenges in adopting prefabrication techniques in construction where accuracy and precision are required is the need for skilled labour on site and lack of site automation.

e.Skill development and local automation is also mandatory for prefabricated systems to be installed.

f.There is a high risk of damage during erection or transport of heavy mechanical units, so the layout of the units has to be carried out accurately and the process can become sloppy in crowded areas.

g.Manual maintenance is another issue as prefabricated construction requires skilled labour as it is different from on-site construction, which requires on-site and production process machine expertise.

Advantages of Prefabrication

a.Prefabrication has several advantages such as revised energy efficiency, minimal waste and inspection, efficient construction, speed of work, protection, sustainability and quality.

b.The need for formwork, templates and scaffolding is greatly reduced due to the use of self-supporting off-the-shelf components.

c.This results in a reduction in construction time and therefore labour costs.

d.The amount of waste material relative to on-site construction is reduced.

e.Reduction in construction time so that the capital invested is recovered earlier.

f.Construction ensures strict adherence to building codes and superior quality assurance.

g.High performance along with quality control and factory sealing.

h.Prefabricated sites can be placed where skilled labour is more readily available and reduce the cost of labour, power, materials, space and overhead.

i.Prefabrication allows year-round construction regardless of weather (related to excessive cold, heat, rain, snow, etc.).

g.Buildings have less material waste.

k.Regardless of climatic conditions.

l. Off-site buildings are safer and more comfortable for workers.

Finally, let's look at the disadvantages of building prefabrication.

Disadvantages of prefabrication

a.The joints of prefabricated parts are prone to leakage.

b.Transport costs can be high for huge prefabricated parts.

c.In order to ensure affordability through prefabrication, production volume needs to be increased.

d.Initial cost of construction is high.

e.Initial production of the design is very time consuming.

f.Large prefabricated parts require heavy cranes and precision measurements from handling to positioning on site.

g.Local employment is affected as less labour is required.

h.Modular building design and construction requires a high degree of co-operation between project parties, particularly architects, structural engineers and manufacturers.

i.Prefabricated buildings usually depreciate faster than standard site-built houses.