Canada is well-known for exporting raw materials. Recently, however, both policy makers and industrial associations have taken note of modular producers from all over the world delivering building systems from as far as Eastern Europe and China sometimes using Canadian lumber. Trade conflicts over timber prices with the USA and increasing tariffs are also politicizing an interest in producing value-added locally sourced construction systems for domestic use and for export.
Much like the prefabricated building industry in the rest of North America, the sector in Canada is dominated by panelized wall or modular volumetric manufacturers spawned by the rationalization of stick frame building and the evolution of the mobile home industry. Whether erected on a modular relocatable chassis or delivered to be set up on a site-built foundation, the lightweight timber frames are produced deploying the same systems as their onsite counterparts, except for being fabricated in a climate-controlled environment. A substantial advantage in a country where winter conditions impose increased construction logistics accompanied by greater costs.
Demand for housing is shifting from traditional single-family dwellings to multi-unit residential building and has inspired many manufacturers to redirect their processes toward the open juxtaposition or stacking of premade systems. Modular construction is also being driven by rising construction costs, labor shortages along with increased design and construction digitalization.
Presently, the industry delivers approximately 12% of new single-family housing starts. The objective is to increase market share by at least two-fold of all housing starts in the coming years. Articulated to greater sharing of standards to ensure adequate sound and fireproofing required in the multi-unit space, application initiatives are taking root in different provinces. Specifically, growth in the mass timber sector, glue-lam or cross laminated products are identified as sustainable building materials with high levels of potential prefabrication. British Columbia’s housing authority is proposing a timber based modular Designed for disassembly kit-of-parts. The approach (lighthouse.org) combines the advantages of volumetric construction with the intelligent separation and layering of building systems to achieve systemic adaptability to reform construction’s linear processes and to mitigate waste associated with a building's renovation over its lifespan.
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| Modular construction designed for disassembly (lighthouse.org) |
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