Builder - January 2009 - (Page 178) The only way we could build a show home on the IBS ’09 exhibit floor was to go modular. Here’s how we did it and why it proves factory-built housing is the way of housing’s future. TRACKED BY RICH BI NSACCA fter a decade of building off-site show homes in the host city of the annual convention, we wanted to put one smack dab in front of the industry’s face—on the exhibit floor of the 2009 International Builders’ Show (IBS)—and make it easy for builders to clearly see housing’s future. One that addresses resource efficiency, starting with a responsible footprint and factory precision. One that leverages the best of new and old building methods to create a superior-quality house. And one that, in an extremely tight and unyielding schedule, can be ready for occupancy in about four days. FASTThe only way to satisfy those requirements was to go modular, with a dash of high-level panelization. And of all the benefits that factory-built housing delivers— shorter cycle times, better quality, less waste, and labor savings, among others—it was the ability to build 90-plus percent of it in a factory over the course of three months and then crane and connect those nearcomplete modules on the show floor in less than a week that drove us to partner with LivingHomes, a modular home builder and developer, to produce this year’s house. We call it the Builder LivingHome, and here’s how we did it: Courtesy livinghomes A 178 ■ B U I LD E R ja n ua ry 2 0 0 9 W W W.BUILDERONLINE.COM http://WWW.BUILDERONLINE.COM
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