Cross-Sections: Recent Episodes
MarketScale
If you were to describe today's construction and industrial landscape in a word, interconnected might be the ideal one. On "Cross-Sections," host Anthony Gude will sit down with an industry leader for a 10-minute conversation in search of those "aha moments" that present incredible opportunities for collaboration and growth.
On today's episode of Cross-Sections, Host, Anthony Gude, is joined by Tom Hardiman, Executive Director of Modular Building Institute (MBI) the largest and only international trade association representing the modular industry. The two discuss the initiatives and annual offerings that MBI handles, briefly discussing the importance of consistency in the modular industry. Hardiman specifically mentions the two new ANSI standards MBI just recently published and made available in the International Code Council (ICC) book store are helping contribute to the efficiency and regulation needed in this industry. The two also talk through MBI's data collection process of all the modular projects that have existed and continue to exist for research and legislative efforts over a decade-long period. Tune in to learn more about MBI and their experience and role in the modular industry.
On this episode of Cross-Sections, Host Anthony Gude talked with Colby Swanson, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Operations Director, Modular Mobilization Coalition, and Michael Palmer, the Operations Director. The Modular Mobilization Coalition (MMC) is a group of independent modular construction companies with a nationwide network of dozens of factories. The MMC builds standardized modules for clients who demand volume, velocity, and value in their projects.
The trio discussed the types of projects the MMC works on, growth in the market, and challenges in the modular industry.
One thing that is important for Swanson and Palmer is that they continue to grow MMC. If you look at other industrialized construction markets, such as Japan, Germany, and Switzerland, the percentage of prefabricated construction of GDP is in the 40 percent range. This is where they want to be in the market. Palmer noted they have a long way to go, and a lot of infrastructure needs to be built to support that load.
“Our goal is to really grow the modular space,” Swanson said. “We’re at three-and-a-half, to four percent, and we want to grow that market share. We’ve done some back-of-the-envelope analysis, and we think that should be 35-40 percent of the construction market.”
The Modular Building Institute (MBI) recently published a report that fabricators in the U.S. found that 21 percent of their volume is multi-family, with that stat improving in just the past few years. However, while that portion of the market is increasing, there wasn’t any information about prefab in the hotel industry. Palmer thinks modular and hotels work well together, though.
“When we look at hotels in terms of the modular industry, there’s probably no better product,” Palmer said, “because every room is exactly the same.”
On this episode of Cross-Sections, Host Anthony Gude talked with Colby Swanson, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Operations Director, Modular Mobilization Coalition, and Michael Palmer, the Operations Director. The Modular Mobilization Coalition (MMC) is a group of independent modular construction companies with a nationwide network of dozens of factories. The MMC builds standardized modules for clients who demand volume, velocity, and value in their projects.
The trio discussed the types of projects the MMC works on, growth in the market, and challenges in the modular industry.
One thing that is important for Swanson and Palmer is that they continue to grow MMC. If you look at other industrialized construction markets, such as Japan, Germany, and Switzerland, the percentage of prefabricated construction of GDP is in the 40 percent range. This is where they want to be in the market. Palmer noted they have a long way to go, and a lot of infrastructure needs to be built to support that load.
“Our goal is to really grow the modular space,” Swanson said. “We’re at three-and-a-half, to four percent, and we want to grow that market share. We’ve done some back-of-the-envelope analysis, and we think that should be 35-40 percent of the construction market.”
The Modular Building Institute (MBI) recently published a report that fabricators in the U.S. found that 21 percent of their volume is multi-family, with that stat improving in just the past few years. However, while that portion of the market is increasing, there wasn’t any information about prefab in the hotel industry. Palmer thinks modular and hotels work well together, though.
“When we look at hotels in terms of the modular industry, there’s probably no better product,” Palmer said, “because every room is exactly the same.”
Cross-Sections brings to you bite-size conversations with host Anthony Gude, as he chats with colleagues and leaders in the construction and industrial ecosystem. Gude spoke with John Pugh of Pugh Management, a boutique real estate development, consulting, and investment firm. They play an advisory role to help maximize the opportunities and investment for landowners.
Gude and Pugh discussed repurposing properties and how assessing the numbers, demands, and environment influence this. His firm is currently working on a project for a smaller urban delivery model in Boston. “On-demand delivery is creating a need for this type of warehouse space. To execute on this, it has to be close to areas with a high density of homes,” Pugh said.
Pugh’s company first looked at the property as possible apartment space, reusing the bones, but the numbers didn’t work. The property did have industrial zoning, so a new approach to urban development would work to fulfill increasing demand by consumers to get what they want as soon as possible. “We’re nimble enough to look at a property to find opportunities and then put the right team together.”
In this field, risk is inherent. Pugh noted that “development is the management of risk” in many ways. He recommends asking the right question to the experts because small little things can add up that impact a development's long-term value. His company strives to translate technical language and communicate in a common one so that all stakeholders are on the same page.
Building was one of man’s earliest skills. Thousands of years later, it’s still essential to life, but the construction industry is complex, with many factors influencing it. However, technology is simplifying and optimizing processes, specifically with AI. That’s today’s topic on Cross-Sections. Host Anthony Gube spoke with Rene Morkos, Founder and CEO of ALICE Technologies.
Morkos described his career journey, “I’ve been building stuff for 23 years, holding many different roles. I began to get interested in how do you run companies from an operations perspective.”
“Every player in construction is needed to create the change in the industry and opportunity.” -Rene Morkos
This curiosity and desire to disrupt with innovation led Morkos to develop the technology that powers ALICE. He explained that there were two pivotal moments. “I was trying to figure out the sequencing for a project to finish it as fast as possible and couldn’t do it and realized I needed a tool.”
That tool wasn’t available, but Morkos knew it could be. The second moment of inspiration came from looking at construction sites and seeing they were mostly empty. “The project was late, and I went to the window to look at the site, and there were six people in this large space. The question was how to increase space usage.”
Those were the founding challenges of creating a better solution. Years of research and refinement eventually resulted in the development of algorithms to plan projects more optimally. Morkos said it came down to “converting construction constraints to a generalized schedule.”
The construction industry is evolving due to AI and technology, providing planning tools based on valuable data. With the right solution, the field can rely on it to help them plan faster and smarter.
On this episode of Cross-Sections, Host Anthony Gude talked with Ricky McLain, PE, SE, Senior Technical Director – Tall Wood WoodWorks™ – Wood Products Council about the projects they have going on and industrialized construction, mass timber, tall buildings, and other research and developments.
McClain talked about WoodWorks and what they do. WoodWorks provides education and free technical support related to the design, engineering, and construction of commercial and multi-family wood buildings in the U.S. A non-profit staffed with architects, structural engineers, and construction experts.
“We really have two main focuses,” McClain said. “First, and the biggest, is one-on-one project-specific assistance on project support.” The second area they focus on is education.
Currently, they are working on a symposium on May 27, which will examine how project teams respond to the challenges brought on by the pandemic, as well as provide some educational opportunities. The symposium will bring speakers for 12 micro-sessions tailored toward structural engineers, developers, contractors, sustainability consultants, and architects.
The duo dug into the mass timber projects that WoodWorks is currently working on, often used in mid-to-low-rise buildings, where they’re working on about 100 projects.
“From a cost perspective, mass timber and light frame wood don’t compete well with each other,” McClain said.
Listen to hear McClain talk about the mass timber projects they have going on in Cleveland and Milwaukee.
Cross-Sections brings to you bite-size conversations with host Anthony Gude as he chats with colleagues and leaders in the construction and industrial ecosystem. Gude spoke with Brandon Searle, The Innovation Director of the Offsite Construction Research Center at the University of New Brunswick, which studies the "Current trends in the construction industry reflect the need to adopt technological advances and initiate a transformational shift from conventional on-site construction to a Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) approach."
This episode touches on private/public partnerships, private/academic partnerships, funding research, and some other exciting things Searle has on his plate. First, they touch on a topic Gude is passionate about: offsite and industrialized construction. To Searle, offsite and industrialized construction have similarities, while modular pre-fab is somewhat different.
"If you go to certain countries, they're going to refer to everything as modular, "Searle said. He noted the differences in the lingo of what England and Australia refer to as modular or offsite construction.
They dug into the difference between micro and macro level projects. At the research center, Searle and his team try to scan and improve the whole industry. Micro is specific to an organization's need, which is most likely applicable to its competitors. He elaborated on how to partner with research centers and how it works at the University of New Brunswick. "Macro would be something we would partner with the modular building project on," Searle said.
Cross-Sections brings to you bite-size conversations with host Anthony Gude, as he chats with colleagues and leaders in the construction and industrial ecosystem. Gude spoke with John Pugh of Pugh Management, a boutique real estate development, consulting, and investment firm. They play an advisory role to help maximize the opportunities and investment for landowners.
Gude and Pugh discussed repurposing properties and how assessing the numbers, demands, and environment influence this. His firm is currently working on a project for a smaller urban delivery model in Boston. “On-demand delivery is creating a need for this type of warehouse space. To execute on this, it has to be close to areas with a high density of homes,” Pugh said.
Pugh’s company first looked at the property as possible apartment space, reusing the bones, but the numbers didn’t work. The property did have industrial zoning, so a new approach to urban development would work to fulfill increasing demand by consumers to get what they want as soon as possible. “We’re nimble enough to look at a property to find opportunities and then put the right team together.”
In this field, risk is inherent. Pugh noted that “development is the management of risk” in many ways. He recommends asking the right question to the experts because small little things can add up that impact a development's long-term value. His company strives to translate technical language and communicate in a common one so that all stakeholders are on the same page.