Categorizing modularization strategies to achieve various objectives of building investments

Abstract

a a department of Civil engineering, aalto university school of engineering, espoo, Finland;b Construction Management research Laboratory (LagerCon), department of architecture and Building, school of Civil engineering, architecture and urban design, university of Campinas (uniCaMP), Campinas, Brazil ABSTRACT Modularization has recently attracted considerable interest among academics and practitioners. In the construction industry, several modular solutions have been introduced and examined; however, hardly any study comprehensively classifies the different modularization strategies according to their possibility to achieve various objectives of building investments. This research aims to develop a framework for identifying and classifying modularization strategies in construction according to their suitability to achieve the specific outcomes intended for a building or its subsystem. Using the literature on product modularity, product platforms and production strategies as a basis, this study has developed a theoretical framework that proposes connections between the main objectives of a building investment and the dimensions of modularization strategies. The framework is elaborated by testing the propositions, based on an empirical analysis of nine real-life case studies. The findings reveal that modularization can be a suitable approach to develop an innovative design solution; improve a project's quality, cost and schedule performance; and enable flexibility in building use and maintenance. However, suggestions for achieving these objectives vary from project organizationdriven to collaborative, integrated or supplier-driven modularization strategies. Developers, owners, contractors and module suppliers can use the framework when positioning and developing their roles in the construction supply chain.

Embodying circularity through usable relocatable modular buildings

“…In the research at hand, the relocatable modular buildings theory is extended by studying the benefits and challenges of these buildings from the producer, client and user perspectives. Modular buildings are volumetric building modules which alone or when connected to each other form the actual building (Peltokorpi et al 2017). In addition to the general literature on modular buildings and their prefabrication, two previous studies from Finland address the business model of leasing relocatable modular buildings.…”

“…Both situations are putting a lot of pressure on the environment, in the form of energy and 2 resource use, and related greenhouse gas emissions. Modular buildings (Jonsson & Rudberg 2015;Peltokorpi et al 2017), which can be relocated from one site to another based on need, offer one potential solution.…”

Modularity in the Construction Industry: A Systematic Mapping Study

“…Some empirical studies in the construction industry point out that there are different types of modularity: product, process, and supply chain modularities (Voordijk et al 2006;Lessing 2006, Viana et al 2016, Peltokorpi et al 2018.…”

“…Therefore, the use of modularization can go beyond improving the time, cost and quality performance of the project. It can potentially enable the development of innovative products and create flexibility during the use and maintenance stages (Peltokorpi et al 2018). In addition, several studies point to modularity as a strategy to deliver a customized product to clients (Miller and Elgard 1998, da Rocha 2011, Peltokorpi et al 2018.…”

“…Second, the process modularity is concerned with the adoption of standardized operations with shared interfaces (Lennartson and Björnfot 2010). However, a modular process does not necessarily include standardized components, but rather standardized manufacturing, delivery, and assembly processes (Peltokorpi et al 2018). Furthermore, a modular process allows the sharing of production technologies, parallel assembly, and the use of standardized work (Lennartson and Björnfot 2010).…”