Prefabrication enhances all major elements of a project: cost, schedule, safety, and quality.
Prefabrication is the assembly of building units or components at a workshop or factory separate from the jobsite. During preconstruction, Messer’s experts will analyze the project scope and the supplier/subcontractor marketplace to determine if prefabrication opportunities exist for your project.
Prefabricated Units & Components
Prefabrication can come in many forms, including but not limited to:
- Mechanical/electrical/plumbing (MEP) system assemblies, such as ceiling racks
- Bathroom pods
- Health care headwall assemblies
Benefits of Prefabrication
When implemented effectively, prefabrication is a benefit to a project’s cost, quality, safety, and schedule. Prefabrication also enhances end-user satisfaction and sustainability.
- Improves cost control by eliminating variables, like inclement weather
- Waste is minimized at the jobsite, reducing costs for General Conditions (dumpsters and clean-up)
- It removes the variation in on-site manpower, effectively reducing items such as portable toilets and subcontractor parking areas
- Prefabricated components can be built in the process – e.g. above-ceiling mechanical racks can be built before the floors are complete
- The reduced amount of material deliveries minimizes traffic and improves safety for your occupants as well as construction workers
- When above-ceiling components are prefabricated, contractors are working in ergonomically-comfortable positions (not on ladders), reducing the risk of falls
- All items are constructed in a controlled environment, which means they are free from exposure to weather
- Materials are typically tested in the warehouse (off-site), and then re-tested once they are installed, ensuring every piece and part fits perfectly
- Using Building Information Modeling (BIM) further enhances quality and reliability by removing potential material clashes before they occur
Enhanced Maintenance & Operations
- Maintenance staff can attend preconstruction meetings to help ensure the design and construction of prefabricated elements are done with maintenance considerations in mind
- Waste is significantly reduced at both the shop and project locations because materials are ordered in specific lengths