With the construction industry facing more challenges today than ever thanks to fluctuating land costs, supply chain issues, and labour shortages, companies are looking at innovative ways to reduce timeframes and keep construction costs down. More and more companies are looking to modular construction to check off these items and more, including supply chain and logistics leveraging and environmental sustainability for residential to high-rise commercial and everything between.
With over 100+ years of construction excellence, Stack Modular (Stack) in partnership with Bird Construction has emerged as a leader in Canadian modular construction. Stack manufactures purpose-built structural steel modular buildings for the residential, hospitality, commercial & resource sectors. Headquartered in Western Canada, Stack creates an approach to construction that produces projects faster, more economically, and more sustainable—making modular the future of construction.
Stack accesses its global supply chain and logistics expertise to manufacture the most economic modular steel structures on the market, delivering modules finished with some of the best construction products, fixtures and furnishings on the global market today.
What is Modular Construction
“Modular construction is a process in which a building is constructed off-site under controlled plant conditions, using the same materials, and designed to the same codes and standards as conventionally built facilities—but in 25 to 50 per cent less time,” says Jon Higgins, VP Construction, Stack Modular.
Buildings are produced in “modules” that, when put together on site, reflect the identical design intent and specifications of the most sophisticated site-built facility without compromise. Structurally, modular buildings are generally stronger than conventional construction because each module is engineered to independently withstand the rigours of transportation and craning onto foundations.
“Once together and sealed, the modules become one integrated wall, floor, and roof assembly. Building off-site facilitates better construction quality management,” says Higgins. Materials that are delivered to the plant location are safely and securely stored in the manufacturer’s warehouse to prevent damage or deterioration from moisture and the elements. Manufacturing plants have stringent QA/QC programs with independent and third-party inspection and testing protocols that promote superior quality of construction every step of the way.
Background
Founded in 2009, Stack’s primary focus is designing and manufacturing innovative modular buildings to suit its clients’ specific requirements. “The building system is easily adaptable and can be used for a variety of applications such as hotels, townhouses, residential apartments, affordable housing, long-term care, and correctional Facilities,” says Higgins. “Stack’s products are manufactured out of two Intertek Certified and NTA-approved facilities in China, operated by a team of Canadians and Americans.” Located in the economic super-hub of Shanghai, China, the production facility employs a talented workforce of up to 500 staff and trades on on-site has developed a vetted network of over 5,000 vendors and suppliers that meet the highest designations of North American construction.
Reducing Carbon Emissions
Stack’s clients look to modular building to help reach their goal of net-zero carbon projects. Off-site construction methods offer the opportunity to compress costs of net zero energy housing using the advantages of mass production.
Modular construction has the potential to radically reduce the carbon footprint of the construction sector. The design, construction and decommissioning phases of a modular development emit dramatically lower amounts of CO2 when modular systems are used because buildings product less waste.
The Stack Advantage
Steel framing has risen as the front-runner as the best and most feasible alternative building materials for modular housing, and there are many reasons, chief among them is structural strength, aggressive timelines, increased quality of construction, reduced overall costs and time to fabricate, and demonstrated sensitivity to reducing environmental impacts in contrast to traditional site-built construction.
Stack’s High-grade structural steel and North American-certified products means clients receive a unit that is more durable than the competition. “Our building practices allow us to provide you with the highest quality product, with pricing and delivery unmatched by our competitors,” says Higgins.
“And with our global network of freight forwarders and logistics partners, no location is out of reach. We ensure that your modular units are delivered on schedule and within your budget, from our port to your final location. Services include inland and maritime shipping, permitting, crane rentals, and warehousing, and all modules have full insurance coverage from production to delivery and installation at your site.”
Delivering quality, cost, time, safety, and client satisfaction objectives are the primary cornerstones of Stack’s corporate philosophy, resulting in successful project completion. Stack relies on a proven quality management system that includes cooperative processes encompassing all aspects of its business operations.
The Future of Construction
According to the Modular Building Institute, modular structures accounted for a $9 billion in construction activity in 2019(USA). Canadian developers are beginning to follow suit, mainly with publicly funded projects such as affordable housing complexes or LTCs, but also some private commercial buildings, like hotels.
“Modular construction is the way of building the future,” says Higgins. “It has many benefits such as reduced costs, time savings and reduced waste. The benefits make it seem like a clear path for the future of construction. The shortage of affordable housing is a problem that has been plaguing the country for years. This can be solved by building more rental units in urban centers. This construction needs to happen fast, and this is what steel modular construction can help you solve it. Stack Modular can solve your housing needs by helping developers build safe and affordable modern communities near urban centers promptly while providing comfortable living units under the budget plan you need.”
For more information, please visit www.stackmodular.com
