Benefits of Modular Construction in Sustainability and Safety

CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
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Executive Summary
Modular construction has gained momentum in the construction industry as well as a strong
market in the residential buildings alongside the educational as well as health buildings in which
the benefits of enhanced construction are attained. The paper addresses the sustainability as well
as the safety and health benefits of modular construction including discussion on such factors as
reuse and recycles sustainable energy as well as reduced site activities.
Introduction
Modular construction defines a form of construction that is done off the site where the
components of the building also known as the modules are manufactured within the settings of a
factory prior to transportation to the assembly for the purposes of assemblage. The modular units
can be used in the formation of complete rooms, separation of highly serviced units for example
lifts or toilets or even in the construction of parts of rooms (Baldea, Edgar, Stanley and Kiss,
2017). The gathering of the modular units forms a structure that is self-supporting in its own
right or for the case of tall buildings may be dependent upon the structural framework. Modular
construction is applied in numerous sectors including private housing, hotels, apartments as well
as mixed use development, social housing, buildings in the health sector, student residences as
well as educational sector, housing for the public sector as well as main worker accommodation
alongside sheltered housing.
Health and safety
Modules which are used as the main building blocks of modular construction are made offsite
with the use of specialist plant machinery in a regulated environment. The process results in
waste reduction as well as enhances control resulting in a low environment impact of the

construction process. Such modules are the delivered to the site when prefitted with such
services as doors, windows, heating, electrics as well as plumbing hence resulting in a reduction
in the onsite building program alongside acceleration of the overall process of construction
(Fifield, Lomas, Giridharan and Allinson, 2018). The lowered time of onsite building alongside
the indoor production environment combine together to result in a reduction of the risks of
accidents linked with construction sites. A report published by CIBSE journal made a conclusion
that the construction industry may reasonably anticipate a reduction in the levels of accidents
suppose more of a manufacturing mind set is adopted. Methods of factory construction tend to
pose fewer risks to the general public as well as workers in comparison with the inherent dangers
experienced in a construction site.
Modular construction is able to offer cleaner as well as safer working environment. The
conditions that are based on the factory of offsite allow safety requirements to be met more
easily and in a policed manner resulting in better quality, lowering of the defect levels as well as
enhanced procedures of quality control (Švajlenka, Kozlovská and Spišáková, 2017). This not
only results in a reduction in the trips, falls and slips especially as the height of work is lowered
but also a reduction in the number of activities taking place on site. The manual handling as well
as lifting of goods on the site is as well lowered since the movement of the materials is done
mechanically in a production unit that is intensively regulated.
Sustainability
Modular construction tends to be cheaper and less time consuming to construct in comparison
with the conventional methods of construction. Nevertheless, it as well brings along a raft of
benefits associated with sustainability too including such aspects as using less energy, recycled
materials as well as the constructed structures of modular buildings being recyclable.