Plant Prefab aims to make housing accessible and affordable

2022-06-15 11:58:17 By : Ms. Kivi Tang

Between impact on the land, use of resources, construction waste and effects on air quality, the building and maintenance of homes and businesses accounts for nearly 40% of carbon emissions on the planet. Plant Prefab is setting out to change all that. 

The concept behind Plant Prefab is prefabricated homes. It’s a process the construction industry has leaned into for a variety of reasons, including the fact that prefabbed buildings require less materials and create substantially less waste. Working from this base of knowledge, Plant Prefab builds custom multi-family or single-family homes from any architectural design. The examples pictured here were designed by The Brown Studio.

Related: These prefabricated tiny homes are earthquake- and fire-resistant

This in-house building system addresses many environmental and industry-specific issues. One is the shortage of skilled labor in the construction field. Efficiency in the plant means less labor is required. The process is also cost effective by streamlining material and labor expenses. 

The hybrid modular model of building panels equates to short project timelines, 20% to 50% faster than a standard build. The process is flexible, so it can cater to endless combinations of low or high volume real estate developments at a 10% 25% cost savings and up to 30% less waste.

When in full swing, the company anticipates being able to produce around 900,000 square feet of living space per year, equivalent to 800 dwelling units. Currently, the company is catering to custom builds, but they are working to scale the process to serve a breadth of customers across all price points, becoming a solution for the housing crisis across the U.S.

The company’s third plant will break ground this month. It will be located on 17 acres in the Tejon Ranch Commerce Center, 25 miles south of Bakersfield, California. The innovative automated system will guide the business towards achieving these goals, with production starting in about a year.

“The launch of our hub is a critical milestone in Plant Prefab’s broader mission to make architectural, sustainable housing more accessible, as it allows us to expand our capabilities from single-family and small multifamily housing into high-volume, large-scale developments – including student, affordable and market-rate housing for real estate, hospitality and corporate developers,” said Steve Glenn, founder and CEO of Plant Prefab.

Plant Prefab is the first Certified B Corporation building technology company dedicated to sustainable design, materials and operations. The new hub echoes sustainability goals with efficient systems to minimize water use and energy consumption. Energy-efficient lighting, appliances and mechanical systems ensure low-usage requirements. The plant will also rely on solar power for energy production. Plant Prefab has announced a goal to achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2028.

The homes produced in the Plant Prefab factories are held to an equally high sustainable building standard. Materials are selected for occupant and environmental health such as wool-based insulation and recycled drywall, as well as zero-VOC paints, stains and sealants. 

+ The Brown Studio and Plant Prefab

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Between impact on the land, use of resources, construction waste and effects on air quality, the building and maintenance of homes and businesses accounts for nearly 40% of carbon emissions on the planet. Plant Prefab setting out to change all that.

It’s a process the construction industry has leaned into for a variety of reasons, including the fact that prefabbed buildings require less materials and create substantially less waste.

Working from this base of knowledge, Plant Prefab builds custom multi-family or single-family homes from any architectural design.

The process is flexible, so it can cater to endless combinations of low or high volume real estate developments at a 10% 25% cost savings and up to 30% less waste.

Currently, the company is catering to custom builds, but they are working to scale the process to serve a breadth of customers across all price points, becoming a solution for the housing crisis across the U.S.

“The launch of our hub is a critical milestone in Plant Prefab’s broader mission to make architectural, sustainable housing more accessible, as it allows us to expand our capabilities from single-family and small multifamily housing into high-volume, large-scale developments – including student, affordable and market-rate housing for real estate, hospitality and corporate developers,” said Steve Glenn, founder and CEO of Plant Prefab.

Plant Prefab is the first Certified B Corporation building technology company dedicated to sustainable design, materials and operations.

The homes produced in the Plant Prefab factories are held to an equally high sustainable building standard.