A new offsite construction factory is the result of months, or even years, of planning. Every process and piece of equipment is carefully considered and engineered. Except for one. There’s a particular element that needs as much attention as the factory design, but doesn’t always get it. That element is how the product will ultimately get to the client’s jobsite.
A module built in a factory must be delivered on today’s road system to the final destination. If it can’t get there, or if it can’t get there cost-effectively and safely, then it can’t be ordered. That means no sale for the factory.
The point is that transportation and logistics are a key facet of offsite construction. They need to be developed and designed with the same rigor as the factory line.
With offsite modular and panelized construction, the finished product typically arrives at the site on a flatbed carrier pulled by a semi-truck. Panels or modules can be 14 ft. to 16 ft. wide. Some are even larger. The loaded carrier needs to be able to navigate the roads cost-effectively and safely. In addition, the factory must think through how to get those large items onto the carrier, secured for transport and then offloaded at the destination.
Again, if the carrier can’t navigate the roads, or can’t deliver the load cost-effectively or safely, the factory doesn’t get the sale.
This is an area that’s crying out for innovation. What if carriers were an integral part of the product’s design process? What if carriers could shrink or expand to the size of the load? What if the carriers could move up and down to pick up the load and drop the load without other equipment? What if securing the load could be done without getting under it? And finally, what if protecting the load from the weather was an integral part of the delivery device and didn’t require disposal or recycling of protective materials?
Each project and each type of load is different. But the key is to look at the carrier — the actual delivery mechanism — as a tool in the delivery process, not just a commodity to move large things around. Once the carrier is designed as a tool, offsite construction becomes even more efficient.
This type of thinking can start a positive domino effect. If the delivery mechanism improves, how will that impact the installation process (the rigging, placement, or process of assembling the big things together at the jobsite)? What efficiencies can be gained there?
One impediment to making carriers a tool versus a commodity is that many factories use carriers to store their finished goods inventory. Factories may need to store hundreds of loads, so carriers have always been simplistic (read lower cost), rather than being a sophisticated (read expensive) tool in the delivery and installation process. The delivery process has always been viewed as a necessary evil.
Fortunately, times are changing. Non-factory-owned delivery companies are seeing the opportunity to differentiate themselves by offering more sophisticated carriers. In addition, as the offsite construction industry moves towards vertical integration, those vertically integrated companies will place more focus on the final project cost, which will include giving more attention to transport and delivery.
The industry is evolving rapidly, and it is exciting to watch the industry’s ingenuity as it works to improve the entire project delivery process!
If you liked this article, you can follow Ken Semler on LinkedIn, where he offers daily insights and commentary about offsite construction.
