India aims to provide affordable housing to approximately 600 million people by 2031 and modular construction is seen as a better option.
The global modular construction market size is projected to grow from USD 82.3 billion in 2020 to USD 108.8 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 5.75% from 2020 to 2025. While modular construction has been embraced and accepted by the world at large, India is lagging in its adoption. Prefabricated modular buildings comprise only 1% of $100 billion Indian real estate market, however, this share is expected to grow in the short to medium term. In India, increased demand for low-cost or affordable housing is leading to the growing popularity of modular buildings among housing and real estate developers. Additionally, a sustained government push for digitalization and adoption of latest construction technologies like BIM is an important driver for the adoption of modular construction. In fact, government initiatives like “Digital India”, “Housing for All” and “Bharatmala Pariyojana” among others have given a significant boost to the adoption of modular construction in India
The real estate industry is particularly bullish on modular construction in view of its significant advantages over conventional CIP construction techniques. These advantages include faster completion of projects, reduced costs and wastage of manpower and materials, and environment-friendly construction. Modular building projects are typically finished 30 to 50% faster than projects involving traditional construction. The time and cost benefits alone are of tremendous value. The construction sector in India is currently undergoing large scale digitalization with an end-goal to make construction faster, greener, safer, and cost-effective. Modular construction, aided and enabled by digital processes like constructible BIM, is today fast emerging as the preferred choice for new projects for the real estate industry.
Key advantages adopting modular construction in India
India is aiming to provide affordable housing to around 600 million people by 2031. To meet this ambitious goal and to quickly create affordable yet high-quality housing at a massive scale, the construction industry leaders are now increasingly favoring modular construction. The advantage of choosing modular construction is that it removes nearly 80% of the construction activity away from the actual project site, and therefore minimizes the scope of human errors on-site.
Other benefits of modular construction include higher quality and durability of the finished buildings because of the production of a building’s modules in a tightly controlled factory environment. It also lessens the impact of construction on the environment, owing to the reduced wastage of water and materials on one hand, and increased recycling of materials on the other. On the flipside, it is important to remember that modular construction is not a panacea for all ills and challenges faced by the construction industry. It is a technology-intensive process that requires both the application of the right technology and well availability of trained and experienced workers. Successful adoption of modular construction also requires seamless collaboration and transparent communication between on-site and off-site teams working on a project. However, modern software tools and solutions available today can easily circumvent or mitigate majority of these challenges by streamlining collaboration and real-time flow of information.
Modular construction can be more sustainable than traditional construction due to the ability to optimize material usage and reduce waste. Additionally, modules can be recycled and repurposed after their initial use, reducing the overall environmental impact. While both traditional and modular construction have their own unique advantages and disadvantages, the choice ultimately depends on the specific needs of the project. Factors such as cost, speed, customization, and sustainability should be carefully considered when making a decision.
Modular construction is one of the most recent and high-tech architectural and construction innovations. It is rapidly evolving as a productive or potent alternative to traditional on-site buildings. Despite some challenges, modular construction promises to deliver quality output and satisfactory results through quantitative analysis, as determining approximate estimates is a significant issue in the industry. It offers a diverse range of social, environmental, and economic benefits, contributing to its long-term viability.