Companies in all industries had to adjust business operations during the quarantine order to protect our population from the Coronavirus outbreak. Our construction clients are no exception, and they have found innovative ways to incorporate remote working into their building projects – including zoom meetings, drone surveillance, and incorporating modular construction or some form of offsite assembly. But a modular and prefabrication construction process is just one of many ways that your company can incorporate an offsite system into your business, and the benefits are greater than just being able to build within “social distant” guidelines. Because of this, many construction companies are now reconsidering their business model to incorporate offsite systems into their regular operations in the future. Here are some of the benefits and reasons why you may want to do the same:
Consistency
Building sites are always going to be unique. This means that there’s a learning curve and adjustments that need to be made with every project. And while you’re still going to have to be onsite for some of the construction, if you can shorten the time there, you can create more consistency in your systems offsite. That means that you can potentially control the workflow better. Look at all the ways you can be more consistent from project to project offsite! If you can keep your team intact and working with the same colleagues, engineers, and subcontractors, for example, they’ll improve at a faster rate at the things that they are repeatedly doing together. All of this removes the waste of time and energy that comes from the uniqueness of the building process onsite.
Customization
Don’t forget that even though you’re streamlining the building process with offsite construction, you’re actually able to personalize the final build better for your customers. You can customize material with pre-made and even pre-cut elements to fit! Clients can choose how to fit components together in a way that is unique from the next. Don’t forget though, it’s not about all the different components that your customers get to choose from. They don’t care about components; they care about solutions. Offsite construction can fulfill their needs and get exactly what they want in a way that they wouldn’t be able to otherwise!
Sustainability
If you’re designing projects and getting materials made to spec, there’s less cutting, less fitting, and less mistakes… which means less scraps and leftovers! This eliminates waste and makes the building process more eco-friendly. It also creates less noise on the job site! Plus, many of the materials used in prefabrication tend to be lightweight, reducing environmental impact. But don’t forget that it’s not just about prefabrication! When you’re conducting project meetings via zoom or other cloud-based platforms, you’re saving your team many resources – including the gas and carbon emissions from the car to get there, as well as the constant runs from jobsite to supply yards. Look at new ways to be good to the earth when working offsite, and you may be surprised at solutions that arise.
Efficiency
With offsite construction, inventory and supplies for multiple projects can be delivered to one location, and one after another can be built in that spot. Meetings can all be done more regularly online without the worry of weather or transportation. Re-reviewing video surveillance of the site can be done without needing to leave the cloud on your computer. And with all of these efficiencies, it makes sense that the cost goes down too! The consistency means you can do bulk buying that gives discounts, less mistakes that save materials, and labor productivity that goes up. The cost efficiencies have been reported from 15-50% with offsite systems!
Safety
Anytime you can control the environment, you can decrease the risk factor. If you’re doing some assembly offsite in a factory-controlled warehouse, there’s less dust and more consistent standards which overall creates a safer environment. Weather is less of an issue and it increases the ability to allow for better craftsmen protection from COVID such as stacked shifts, more reliable sanitization of equipment, and 6-feet separation while working.
The benefits of speed, quality, safety, and customization that builders get from offsite systems are ultimately enjoyed by the end user, so customer satisfaction may be the biggest benefit of all! And if you need help finding and placing the best talent for the job, contact your local Madden Industrial Craftsmen office today We place craftsmen that have the experience and training you need for your next building project – whether it’s onsite or offsite or somewhere in between.
