What Does Prefabricated Housing Include
Prefabricated housing mainly includes types such as modular homes, prefabricated panel houses, container houses, and wooden prefabricated houses. In terms of construction methods and forms, it can also be classified into panel prefabricated buildings, box prefabricated buildings, as well as steel, concrete, and wooden forms.
From the perspective of housing types, modular homes are completed as whole modules in the factory and then directly assembled on-site. For example, the building is disassembled into independent modules, with ceilings, floors, water and electricity pipelines, etc., prefabricated in the factory, and then transported to the site for assembly like building blocks, reducing the construction period by more than 60%. Prefabricated panel houses are buildings constructed with prefabricated panels as the main components. These panels are cement components prefabricated in the factory and come in solid and hollow types. They originated in the early 20th century, and most residential buildings constructed in China before 1985 adopted this structure. With the development of construction technology, cast-in-place concrete and prefabricated buildings have gradually replaced traditional prefabricated panel houses. Since 2022, China has implemented a policy of renovating old residential areas, focusing on repairing and renovating prefabricated panel houses and only demolishing those that meet the criteria for dangerous buildings. Container houses are residential structures modified from discarded or new containers. Wooden prefabricated houses use wood as the main material, emphasizing environmental protection and a natural style.
In terms of construction methods and forms, panel prefabricated buildings use prefabricated wall panels and floor slabs as core components. This type of building can expand the usable area but is limited in design flexibility. Box prefabricated buildings are assembled through prefabricated functional units, increasing the construction speed by 50%-70%, but they have high requirements for transportation and lifting equipment. In terms of forms, there are mainly steel, concrete, and wooden types. Chinese companies have comparative advantages in steel and concrete structures. Steel structures are lightweight and suitable for ocean transportation and high-rise buildings, while concrete structures are closer to traditional living experiences and have high acceptance in the domestic market.
