The term “modular” is often used interchangeably with the term “prefab” when, in fact, there is more than one method of prefabrication. At Turkel Design, our homes employ a panelized prefabrication system—while the building components are fabricated off-site, they are not modular homes.
In both modular and panelized prefabrication, a large part of the house is built in a specialized facility. In modular construction, whole portions of the house are built as large volumes, either partially or fully finished. They are then trucked to the building site and lifted onto a pre-built foundation.
In panelized construction, the house’s exterior and interior walls are also pre-built, but those walls are constructed into a series of flat panels. These panels can be shipped on a conventional flat-bed truck, then assembled on-site on a ready foundation.
Pourquoi préfabriquer ?
Both modular and panelized construction address problems presented by conventional “stick-built” construction. It’s difficult to build accurately when you must measure, cut, and nail every piece of the house on-site. Building this way can also take a great deal of time. Plus, if the house is to achieve a high quality of finish, that might require a level of building expertise that is not available, or financially appropriate, in every locality. Prefabrication can be more accurate, it can be faster, it can provide a superior product, but most importantly, it provides prévisibilité.
Why do we use prefabricated panels?
Panelized prefabrication allows for spatial variety, which gives our homes a level of customization that is not commonly associated with prefab. Modular construction makes this variety difficult to achieve efficiently.
Fixed-width modules are are often too big for an intimate space and too small for an expansive one. A house module, transported by truck, can be no taller than the lowest highway overpass it must pass under.
A more efficient option
Lorsqu'une maison préfabriquée est transportée par camion jusqu'au chantier sous forme de panneaux, ces derniers peuvent être empilés les uns sur les autres dans le camion – “ à plat ” – ce qui permet de livrer une grande quantité de matériaux en une seule fois. Avec un module, c'est un volume d'air considérable qui est transporté sur la route. Les panneaux constituent donc une solution plus efficace pour le transport d'une maison préfabriquée.
Votre maison Turkel Design peut être construite à peu près n'importe où
One of the advantages we offer at Turkel Design is our ability to design homes for pratiquement n'importe où: in cities and suburbs, on sites near town or out in the wilderness, and in locations near and far. The sheer size of house modules prevents them from being shipped down the narrow or steep roads that lead to remote sites. And modules are subject to damage if they travel over long distances—from wind and rain and sheer roadway vibration. Panels avoid both these problems.
Votre maison peut être correctement inspectée
Les panneaux permettent d'éviter un autre problème : certaines municipalités sont réticentes aux modules pour diverses raisons. En effet, la structure, le câblage et la plomberie des modules sont souvent dissimulés derrière des plaques de plâtre, hors de portée des inspections des services d'urbanisme. Les murs de nos maisons préfabriquées sont livrés apparents, ce qui permet d'inspecter la structure et les différents systèmes dès leur installation. La construction préfabriquée en panneaux vous permet de bâtir la maison de vos rêves sur n'importe quel terrain.
For more information about how we bring unprecedented quality and customization to prefab home architecture, visit our Traiter section.
