Making modular mainstream

-By Thomas Hall, Business Development Manager at Mitsubishi Electric

It would be impossible to overlook the fact that Coronavirus has almost wholesale reshaped the way we live, work and socialise in such a short space of time. In light of the pandemic and the shadow of ongoing social distancing restrictions that look to stay in place, at least in some form, for the near future, one area that does stand to benefit from this is the rise of the modular building market. 

What the pandemic has also served to do is underline the impetus for a Green Recovery – in many ways, it has offered us a chance to reset and improve our sustainability agenda, which is something else that modular buildings are fundamentally well-positioned to support. 

On top of this, demand in the construction industry has led to a paucity of key building materials – making the need for ‘alternative’ methods for building all the more important.

Below we have dig into why the modular building market is an ideal alternative to traditional methods of construction and how we can all benefit from its expansion. 

A key ingredient for a green recovery

Before the pandemic hit, the global modular build market was set to be worth over £165bn by the middle of the next decade. 

Now with office spaces, schools, accommodation and even healthcare facilities looking to return to normality but with an ongoing need to expand existing space requirements as COVID variants could see a return to stringent social distancing rules. With the ability to quickly add to or replace existing buildings, the modular building market is poised to really take off. 

This is primarily because it offers easy, cost-effective, more environmentally-friendly and more rapid expansion to meet the needs of a post-pandemic world. Here we look at why modular could be a key vehicle to help Government and industry take us towards a sustainable Green Recovery. 

Modular meeting the climate challenge

Having said that, it’s not just the pandemic that is acting as a driver for growth in the modular buildings space. As citizens become more climate conscious and we are being exposed to greater awareness of our carbon footprint on a near daily basis, traditional construction has been coming under more scrutiny. Cement alone is a source of about 8% of the world’s CO2 emissions, accounting for nearly 6% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions. Cement has such a considerable carbon footprint, if it were a country, it would be the third largest emissions producer, behind China and the US. 

In comparison, the modular building market is much more efficient. Modular buildings are constructed offsite which means they can reduce 90% of the waste generated from traditional construction methods, while using 67% less energy to produce a modular building. Modular buildings are also built to the higher sustainability standards such as BREEAM, or PassivHaus. 

A rapid solution fit for our on-demand world

The benefit of being built off-site and then assembled when ready means that construction time is significantly reduced, often by as much as 50%. This means that everything from the heating, cooling and ventilation systems, to the lighting requirements and the windows can all be installed in modules off-site, ready to be fitted together once required. It can all be done to deliver a more energy efficient building as well. 

This means that modular buildings can be readily equipped with the most advanced technologies whether that is air conditioning with the latest, lower global warming potential refrigerants (R32), renewable heating through modern air source heat pumps such as the advanced Ecodan range, or heat recovery ventilation units such as the Lossnay system to deliver energy efficient fresh air. 

No compromise on building regulations

Modular buildings can address a lot of concerns in the current environment and offer a viable, sustainable long-term future for UK construction, especially as it struggles to return to pre-COVID-19 levels of activity. 

Modular buildings adhere to the same building regulations and standards as traditionally constructed buildings. This means adhering to building regulations such as thermal performance (U Value), fire safety, sustainability and acoustics. Being built off-site means the modular panels are constructed in a covered, controlled environment which brings precision and quality control. 

Conclusion

The way the world works has changed dramatically over the last few months. One thing remains certain though – we’re going to need built environments with the ability to be versatile around capacity. With the UK population also pushing for a green focused economic recovery from the pandemic, modular buildings go a long way to helping achieve that reality. 

What’s more, modular buildings also can help in creating green jobs in the construction sector – these roles will be able to help reduce those 6% of cement emissions from the UK’s annual quota. The strengths are clear to see. Isn’t it time to start making modular mainstream?

For further information on the advanced range of heating, cooling and ventilation systems available for modular construction visit https://les.mitsubishielectric.co.uk/end-users/application-by-sector/modular-buildings