30 Nov The Impact of Prefabricated Buildings on Construction and Design

While initially designed to meet emergencies like Britain’s post-war housing shortage, prefabricated buildings are equally vital now and for our future. We can no longer dismiss the impending threat of global warming or the role played by the construction industry in boosting the carbon footprint responsible.

In addition, the rising cost of construction, higher land prices, and escalating interest rates have made new homes and office premises increasingly unaffordable. However, there is an upside. A surplus of new and used shipping containers has provided builders with a viable alternative to the traditional structures created using concrete or bricks and cement.

The Many Advantages of Prefabricated Buildings

In practice, living or working spaces are merely box-like structures. They have four walls, a floor, and a ceiling and are usually constructed on-site by a team of workers with appropriate skills, such as bricklayers, carpenters, plumbers, and electricians. However, a shipping container is also a large rectangular box composed of the same six components. As the starting point for a construction project, these units offer several advantages:

• Economical: Shipping container buildings are far cheaper than comparable conventional structures, whether made from new or used units.

• Portable: Shipping containers were designed to be easily transportable by road, rail, or sea. This portability allows most of the conversion process to be completed elsewhere and transported to the permanent site to connect the power, water, and drainage services.

• Flexibility: Think of these sturdy steel boxes as oversized Lego blocks. As such, they provide the essentials for modular buildings. Several containers can be joined to form anything from a two-, three-, or four-bedroom home to a high-rise office or apartment block.

The possibilities are not limited to homes and offices. Schools, miner’s hostels, and ablution blocks are just a few other examples of this versatile option for constructing modular buildings.

• Time-Saving: As most of the basic structure is provided by the container, conversion, relocation, and fitting can be completed in a fraction of the time required for conventional structures.

• Sustainability: Container buildings are more environmentally friendly due to their use of upcycled materials and the minimal need for concrete. Four small slabs of the latter are sufficient to support a single, six-metre unit. Also, the substantial up-front savings in building costs could mean that installing some energy-saving solar panels becomes more feasible.

Hiring an Expert in the Construction of Prefabricated Buildings

We at Absolute Containers are an established South African industry leader specialising in the construction of prefabricated buildings. Check out some of our completed shipping container buildings, and if you like what you see, contact us to discuss your needs and get a quote.