Factory-Prefabricated Housing

Factory-prefabricated housing is a form of construction that involves the industrial production of building components, which are then assembled on-site. It is also known as prefabricated assembled buildings or modular buildings. The core process involves breaking down the building into independent modules (such as beams, slabs, walls, columns, etc.), which are manufactured in a factory and then transported to the construction site for assembly. Specific characteristics are as follows:

I. Technical Types and Components
Factory-prefabricated housing encompasses prefabricated concrete structures and steel structures, with components including prefabricated wall panels, floor slabs, and functional units. For example, the Nanjing Jindi Yufang project adopts a prestressed prefabricated concrete assembled integral frame structure system, while the Shenzhen affordable housing project is assembled from 6,028 concrete modules, demonstrating the widespread application of standardized and modular component design.

II. Production Process
Taking the China Construction HaiLong Intelligent Construction Industrial Park as an example, components are produced in layers within a vertical factory (such as ceilings, walls, waterproof layers, etc.) and assembled using welding robots and automated assembly stations. The parallel operation mode, combined with intelligent production lines and automated warehouses, reduces the construction period by more than 60% compared to traditional buildings. Each module comes with a detailed 'ID card' (project name, model, production date, etc.), with precision control measured in millimeters to ensure component quality and traceability.

III. Advantages

1. Short Construction Period: The completion and delivery time for the Shenzhen affordable housing project was reduced from 2.5-3 years to 1 year, with a reduction in on-site labor of approximately 50%.
2. Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency: Construction waste is reduced by more than 70%, and on-site noise and dust are significantly reduced.
3. Controllable Quality: The factory environment eliminates weather impacts, resulting in higher quality stability than on-site construction.
4. Flexible Maintenance: Modular design facilitates later maintenance and upgrades, extending the building's service life.

IV. Application Scenarios and Market
Domestic policies are driving the construction of industrial bases (such as in Fujian Province), with companies like Vanke developing prefabricated shear wall residential systems. Overseas demand is surging: in the first four months of 2026, the Guangzhou Customs district exported movable houses worth 1.4 billion yuan (a year-on-year increase of 38.1%), while the Shenzhen port exported 1.68 billion yuan worth (a year-on-year increase of 19.6%). The global market size is projected to exceed $142.8 billion by 2030.

V. Technical Challenges
It requires a well-developed industrial foundation, including technical systems, production systems, and industrial clusters. For example, modular buildings have high requirements for transportation and lifting equipment, and design must plan in advance for steel bar positioning and error control to ensure the safety and precision of components during transportation and assembly.