"The dawn of a new era of housing construction: the advantages of serial and modular construction in the fight against the housing shortage"
The housing market in Europe is facing major challenges, particularly in the affordable segment. With a shortage of hundreds of thousands of homes in countries such as the Netherlands and Germany, it is time to find innovative solutions. One promising answer to these problems is serial and modular construction.
Serial and modular construction methods offer an efficient solution to the current bottlenecks. Prefabricated production of components or even entire room modules in factories speeds up construction, reduces costs and promotes sustainable practices. These methods minimize weather-related delays and enable time and cost savings of up to 40 percent compared to traditional construction methods. In addition, standardization enables economies of scale that lead to further cost savings and ensure high quality standards.
The environment also benefits from this construction method, as less waste is produced and the reusable modules can be recycled at the end of their life cycle. This resource-saving approach contributes to sustainability. Last but not least, industrial production also solves the problem of the shortage of skilled workers by reducing the need for labor and providing better working conditions in the factories.
Although serial and modular construction is already widespread in commercial real estate, residential construction is still lagging behind. However, it is foreseeable that the market share of these construction methods will double in the coming years, particularly in the apartment building segment. The continuing demand for affordable housing, particularly as a result of net migration, is driving this development forward.
Entities such as the Federal Agency for Real Estate in Germany actively support the use of modular construction to create new affordable housing. This support will be further strengthened in the future by changes in regulations and laws. Forecasts point to considerable growth potential in this sector, particularly in Germany, where the need for housing is greatest. The future of residential construction therefore lies increasingly in the area of serial and modular construction.
Kind Regards
Matthias Holzmann