Prefabrication in the construction industry is evolving into a strategy instead of a tactic. But making the most of this trend requires more than just relocating fabrication away from jobsites. A unified approach to the entire value stream is needed, with general contractors taking on the roles of integrators.
In a recent livestream for the HITT Contracting Masters Series, Building Composites CEO Andy Loff sat down with Nick Masci, chief product officer and co-founder of Industrialized Construction Group, and Mayra Arntz, senior associate at Building Ventures, for a conversation about how prefabrication and new manufacturing methods are making jobsites more efficient, reshaping the built environment, and driving long-term efficiencies across the supply chain.
Labor shortages are major catalysts for adopting prefabrication and industrialized construction. The decline in skilled craft workers, combined with fluctuating material prices and supply chain challenges, is driving the need for off-site manufacturing and supplier development. This shift offers the potential to reduce on-site risks, improve efficiency, and manage costs better.
Moving construction toward a manufacturing model requires more than “doing construction in a factory”. The good news is the methods have been around for decades and are already proven. The built industry simply needs to learn how to apply them to construction. What’s more, the hidden costs of today’s inefficiencies could be redirected into supplier readiness, transforming sunk costs into enduring value.
Check out this informative livestream to learn:
- How the industry can transition from a craft to a manufacturing mindset
- Why early and direct collaboration benefits owners, architects, general contractors and prefab suppliers
- How supplier development can build consistent production capacity and improve quality
- Why standardization enables scalable manufacturing and reduces complexity
- How to avoid “rescue missions” by engaging prefab expertise early in project planning
