Facts About Modular Construction Part Four – High Quality Materials
Installation of Plywood Sheathing at the Roof Mate Line on a Permanent Modular Building
The materials used in permanent modular construction are no different than site built structures. This includes critical features like roofing applications. For large or small parapet wall facilities with low slope roofs, Ramtech prefers to use and install TPO (Thermoplastic Polyolefin) roofing material because of its durability and flexibility. This type of roofing material will adapt to a building’s movement and setting while still remaining resistant to impact damage, tears, or punctures.
Installation of DensDeck Prime Roof Board at the Roof Mate Line on a Permanent Modular Building
TPO roofs are resistant to dirt, algae buildup, and debris and will improve a building’s energy efficiency because of it’s substantial heat-reflective properties and the able to minimize the urban heat island effect. They’re also environmentally friendly with ability to be 100% recycled at the end of their lifespan. Ramtech applies the TPO material during the construction phase in our manufacturing plant, then seams the roof at the mate lines it the jobsite. This can be done quickly by nailing in both the plywood sheathing and DensDeck prime roof board before overlaying the TPO to complete the assembly.
- Published in Modular Building, Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Technology
Facts About Modular Construction Part Three – Faster Installation
Installation of a Pier & Beam Permanent Modular Building
Whether it’s a pier and beam or a slab-on-grade building, both of Ramtech’s permanent modular construction approaches can be installed quickly in a matter of days, eliminating the weather delays that frequently plague site construction projects. Our pier and beam type permanent modular buildings can be installed either by using a crane, or by rolling them into place if the area has adequate space for maneuvering the individual modular sections. The accompanying images show how the rolling process works once the foundation has been completed and is ready to support the modular sections.
Installation of a Pier & Beam Permanent Modular Building
The modules are moved onto the grade beams, aligned with its adjacent section, lowered onto CMU blocks, then anchored and lagged together to form a complete building. Once an individual section is put into place it can be quickly weathered in at the seams to keep out the elements so the interior and exterior finish-out process can begin.
- Published in Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
Facts About Modular Construction Part Two – The Same Infrastructure as Site-Built
Underground Electrical Service for Permanent Modular Building
The extension and connection of utilities requires the same site work elements for relocatable and permanent modular buildings as it does for site built structures. As a design-build construction company, Ramtech can manage every aspect of the site development and improvements for all project sizes and sophistication levels. These images show the preparation for the electrical service being brought to the main distribution panel for the 10,624 square foot adult education building for First Baptist Carrollton Church.
Preparing Conduit for the Underground Electrical Service for Permanent Modular Building
- Published in Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
Facts About Modular Construction Part One – Minimized Weather Delays
Pier and Beam Foundation for a Permanent Modular Building
One of the benefits of modular construction is the inherent ability to minimize weather delays on the job site. Since the structure is being produced offsite, the ability to quickly set the modules on the foundation and weather them in speeds up the entire construction timeline. This means there’s no waiting for the framing or erection and other onsite construction activities to take place – the typical site-built work elements that are subject to weather related delays. With modular construction, once you install it you can immediately begin performing the interior finish-out with no delays. This also keeps any weather related materials damage to a minimum.
Completing Duct Connections in a Permanent Modular Buil;ding
The Pier and Beam Permanent Modular Buildings that Ramtech is currently building for First Baptist Carrollton is a good case in point. Although the rainy spring made getting the foundations in place a challenge, once the first one was poured we were able to quickly get one of the two modular buildings placed on it. Then, as the pictures show, while the foundation for the second building was being developed we were already performing the interior work on the first building. With J&P Contractors Inc.
- Published in Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
What’s The Best Delivery Method?
As a vertically integrated design-build construction company, Ramtech has been at the forefront in developing a beneficial and cost-effective D-B delivery model for commercial modular construction projects. Ever since design-build became available to use for public projects in Texas in the 1990’s, Ramtech has been able to show end-users that D-B can save them money, and is a faster process than design-bid-build or construction manager at risk. There’s a good synopsis on the three methods in this article from buildingindiana.com.
- Published in Modular Building, Modular Construction, Permanent Construction
Modular Construction Gaining Ground
Good article by Angelo Verzoni in the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) Journal on how the commercial modular industry is experiencing an increased level of acceptance and cooperation from the building codes and standards agencies. This is due in large part to the efforts of the Modular Building Institute, the international trade association for the commercial modular industry. As the MBI’s executive director Tom Hardiman points out in the piece, “we were successful in the 2018 [International Building Code] in getting standard language included for the approval process for modular ‘relocatable buildings,’” he said. “We want to expand upon that effort and create a standard process for approval of all modular buildings. That’s a bit of a longer-term project but we plan on working with ICC this year to get it off the ground.”
Read how modular construction is rapidly becoming a primary building option for designers, builders, and owners here.
- Published in Modular Building, Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
Ramtech Receives Modular Building Contract for Multi-Use Office Building at Los Alamos National Lab in New Mexico
Slab on Grade Permanent Modular Building for Los Alamos National Laboratory
Ramtech has secured a contract to provide a 22,680 square foot modular building at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in Los Alamos, NM. The two-story facility will be built using our Slab on Grade Permanent Modular Construction approach, and will include a two-story atrium, elevator, and two stairwells. The floor plan calls for 67 personal business offices in three sizes, along with an open office plan on both floors that can accommodate 12 freestanding office spaces in custom furniture cubicles. The Multi-Use Office Building (MUOB) project will be installed adjacent to LANL’s main headquarters located in Technical Area 3. (more…)
- Published in Government, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
Site Work Progressing on Lifestyle Management’s Dallas (TX) Area Residential Reintegration Facility
After a spring and summer of dealing with heavy rains, Ramtech is progressing with all of the site improvements and foundation preparation for the new residential reintegration facility for Lifestyle Management Inc. of Edmond, Oklahoma. The 31,752 square foot project, which will accommodate up to 296 clients, is being built using Ramtech’s Accelerated Building System permanent modular construction method. Known as the Dallas Transitional Center, the modular building project is located 12 miles south of downtown Dallas on a ten acre portion of an existing 57 acre site owned by Dallas County. The new building will replace Lifestyle’s current 225-bed halfway house with a facility that includes four 50-man dorms, three 24-man dorms, one 24-woman dorm, two classrooms, a full commercial kitchen, and administrative office space. Ramtech is also responsible for the full site development of the four acres required to accommodate the residential reintegration facility, 40 parking spaces, two basketball courts, and two covered pavilions.
- Published in Commercial, Modular Construction, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
The Green Benefits When Using Permanent Modular Construction
As Ramtech begins to see more and more projects that are requiring LEED certification and sophisticated sustainability requirements, we have begun the process of developing an informational guide around sustainable construction alternatives that can aid public school districts in their decision-making process when planning for permanent school expansions. Planned during the first quarter of 2014, Ramtech’s Green Benefits guide will help educate schools on the efficiencies of using sustainable construction techniques that can be realized through the use of permanent modular construction like Ramtech’s highly adaptable Accelerated Building System process. Recognized by the Modular Building Institute, the trade association that represents the commercial modular building industry in promoting permanent modular construction across a wide variety of industries for public, private, and institutional applications, the Green Benefits advantages provide for sustainability through:
- Less material waste using pre-fabrication in order to make it possible to optimize construction material purchases while minimizing the on-site waste caused by weather related damages.
- Less site disturbances since the modular structure is constructed simultaneously off-site while the foundation and other site work takes place, thereby reducing the time and impact on the surrounding site environment including reducing the number of vehicles and equipment needed.
- The off-site construction which helps eliminate the hazards associated with materials, equipment and incomplete construction processes that are typical of construction sites that can attract curious and unwelcome “visitors” (i.e. students on a school expansion project).
- An adaptability inherent in modular buildings which are frequently designed to quickly add or remove one or more “modules” minimizing the disruptions to adjacent buildings and surroundings.
- Published in Permanent Construction
Ramtech Receives Redwater (TX) ISD Contract for Permanent Modular Construction
Last week Ramtech received word that the Redwater (TX) school board has approved a design-build agreement with us to proceed with providing preconstruction services for a 18,348 square foot middle school building to be completed next August prior to the 2014-2015 school year. The proposed $2.6 million project will require demolishing the School District’s existing seven classroom middle school facility and replacing it with a permanent modular building using our Accelerated Building System (ABS) which will accommodate 15 classrooms, a science lab, office area, and data room. The project also includes full site development including the extension and connection of utilities, rerouting an existing bus lane, building up the existing site elevation, and providing for additional sidewalks, canopies, and fencing. The modular school building will be able to accommodate 350 – 400 students and will include full lockers in the interior hallway, a full brick exterior designed to complement the surrounding structures, and textured and painted walls in the interior. (more…)
- Published in Education, Permanent Construction, Ramtech News
- 1
- 2