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Construction Matters: Comparing Environmental Impacts of Building Modular and Conventional Homes in the United States

Author

Listed:
  • John Quale
  • Matthew J. Eckelman
  • Kyle W. Williams
  • Greg Sloditskie
  • Julie B. Zimmerman

Abstract

Modular construction practices are used in many countries as an alternative to conventional on‐site construction for residential homes. While modular home construction has certain advantages in terms of material and time efficiency, it requires a different infrastructure than conventional home construction, and the overall environmental trade‐offs between the two methods have been unclear. This study uses life cycle assessment to quantify the environmental impacts of constructing a typical residential home using the two methods, based on data from several modular construction companies and conventional homebuilders. The study includes impacts from material production and transport, off‐site and on‐site energy use, worker transport, and waste management. For all categories considered, the average impacts of building the home are less for modular construction than for conventional construction, although these averages obscure significant variation among the individual projects and companies.

Suggested Citation

  • John Quale & Matthew J. Eckelman & Kyle W. Williams & Greg Sloditskie & Julie B. Zimmerman, 2012. "Construction Matters: Comparing Environmental Impacts of Building Modular and Conventional Homes in the United States," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 16(2), pages 243-253, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:inecol:v:16:y:2012:i:2:p:243-253
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-9290.2011.00424.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. G. J. Treloar & P. E. D. Love & O. O. Faniran & U. Iyer-Raniga, 2000. "A hybrid life cycle assessment method for construction," Construction Management and Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 5-9.
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    2. Pero, Margherita & Stößlein, Martin & Cigolini, Roberto, 2015. "Linking product modularity to supply chain integration in the construction and shipbuilding industries," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(PB), pages 602-615.
    3. Zezhou Wu & Lirong Luo & Heng Li & Ying Wang & Guoqiang Bi & Maxwell Fordjour Antwi-Afari, 2021. "An Analysis on Promoting Prefabrication Implementation in Construction Industry towards Sustainability," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-21, October.
    4. Yu, Sisi & Liu, Yanfeng & Wang, Dengjia & Bahaj, AbuBakr S. & Wu, Yue & Liu, Jiaping, 2021. "Review of thermal and environmental performance of prefabricated buildings: Implications to emission reductions in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    5. López-Guerrero, Rafael E. & Vera, Sergio & Carpio, Manuel, 2022. "A quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the sustainability of industrialised building systems: A bibliographic review and analysis of case studies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    6. Joaquin Humberto Aquino Rocha & Andréia Arenari de Siqueira & Marco Antonio Barbosa de Oliveira & Lucas da Silva Castro & Lucas Rosse Caldas & Nathalie Barbosa Reis Monteiro & Romildo Dias Toledo Filh, 2022. "Circular Bioeconomy in the Amazon Rainforest: Evaluation of Açaí Seed Ash as a Regional Solution for Partial Cement Replacement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-21, November.
    7. Nicole Anderson & Gayan Wedawatta & Ishara Rathnayake & Niluka Domingo & Zahirah Azizi, 2022. "Embodied Energy Consumption in the Residential Sector: A Case Study of Affordable Housing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-18, April.
    8. Dilek Arslan & Steve Sharples & Haniyeh Mohammadpourkarbasi & Raheela Khan-Fitzgerald, 2023. "Carbon Analysis, Life Cycle Assessment, and Prefabrication: A Case Study of a High-Rise Residential Built-to-Rent Development in the UK," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-15, January.
    9. Carless, Travis S. & Griffin, W. Michael & Fischbeck, Paul S., 2016. "The environmental competitiveness of small modular reactors: A life cycle study," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 84-99.
    10. Ravijanya Chippagiri & Ana Bras & Deepak Sharma & Rahul V. Ralegaonkar, 2022. "Technological and Sustainable Perception on the Advancements of Prefabrication in Construction Industry," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-19, October.
    11. Fred Edmond Boafo & Jin-Hee Kim & Jun-Tae Kim, 2016. "Performance of Modular Prefabricated Architecture: Case Study-Based Review and Future Pathways," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-16, June.
    12. Oriol Pons & Albert De la Fuente & Antonio Aguado, 2016. "The Use of MIVES as a Sustainability Assessment MCDM Method for Architecture and Civil Engineering Applications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(5), pages 1-15, May.
    13. Kamali, Mohammad & Hewage, Kasun, 2016. "Life cycle performance of modular buildings: A critical review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1171-1183.
    14. Joosung Lee & Jaejun Kim, 2017. "BIM-Based 4D Simulation to Improve Module Manufacturing Productivity for Sustainable Building Projects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-23, March.

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