Off-site construction and modular building are favoured modern building methods and no wonder: they save time, money and resources. MTX Contracts take a look at why this is the case, using examples from around the globe.

It is a form of building that is here to stay. Modular building affords the client many options, from complete customisation to amazing savings on time and money. And it is a sustainable process too, something that is of increasing importance.

And thus, today’s construction projects are embracing this innovative building technology and as these examples highlighted by MTX Contracts show, the results are not only stunning but answer the brief perfectly.

Tokyo

When space is at a premium

Like many global cities, space in Tokyo is at a premium and thus for decades, the habit has been to build up. With taller skyscrapers being built all the time, this modular built home in the Japanese city breaks all the rules.

The concept of a tiny home, with minimal design and interior, may not be everyone’s idea of heaven but when it comes to the best use of space, this rather whimsy design and modular built home is an ideal city dwelling.

What it highlights, however, is how adaptable modular construction is and how it can create stunning results in very little space.

China

Swiftly built infrastructure

Staying in the far east, this 57-storey skyscraper in Mini Sky City, Hunan Province in China is clearly demonstrating how modular building can build the infrastructure of a city, and quickly.

As a country with an economy growing at such a fast rate, China has to not only maintain its current infrastructure but to build it that keeps pace with progress. China has embraced modular building as a result and in many ways, has been showing the rest of the world how it is done.

In effect, this highlights the efficiency of modular building in a way that perhaps no other project can highlight. Built at a rate of three floors a day, the mixed-use building boasts 18 atriums, 800 apartments as well as substantial office space. It is built using 2736 modules that took four months to assemble off-site.

And this won’t be the only one. There is a 220-storey version planned for Sky City in central China.

New York

Less on-site disruption

As a busy, thriving city, any holds up in New York affects not only the mood of the city but the progress and daily business that thrives here.

As a building solution, modular construction is less disruptive. With units or modules built off-site, the process of transporting them is much easier. And with a lot of this done at quieter times, such as overnight, the disruption is minimised yet further.

And this is one of the reasons why modular construction processes were used at Carmel Place in New York, originally called My Micro NY. It is a bijou complex of micro-living apartments – again, a great use of limited space in the city – that is comprised of 55 modular units arranged over nine storeys. Bolted and stacked into position, this development also comes with communal lounge, gym, roof terrace and garden. And the modular units arrived with utility ready too and so it was literally a case of ‘plug and go’.

Finland

Falling in love with timber

It is the first example of its type in the world, and it shows that as a technology, modular construction is not an industry that is about to stand still and rest on its laurels.

The eight-storey apartment block in Finland is the tallest wooden apartment block in the country and the first example to use prefabricated cross-laminated timber construction anywhere in the world.

Slotting together like ‘Lego pieces’, it is a lightweight, yet robust design with energy efficiency and sustainability at its core. The carbon footprint is lower than a concrete block of the same size and so for countries and builders looking to push that particular envelope, you can see why modular construction is an increasingly popular process.

With such great projects to be found not only across the world but here in the UK, we can expect to see more of this innovative way of building.

Involved in so many exciting contracts, MTX Contracts are making a name for themselves of one of the leading modular design and build specialist. Stay up to date with their project by connecting with them @MTXContracts