In Brief: Understanding the Regulatory Landscape for Increasing High-Rise Modular Construction

Arup has developed a report, commissioned by the Canadian Standards Association, analyzing the state of the high-rise modular construction industry. Demand for modular construction in North America has increased in response to urbanization, pressure on housing affordability, construction labor shortages, and persistently stagnant construction productivity.

annotation-2020-09-03-153949bw_310b

Arup has developed a report, commissioned by the Canadian Standards Association, analyzing the high-rise modular construction industry, titled High-Rise Modular Construction: A Review of the Regulatory Landscape and Considerations for Growth.

Demand for modular construction in North America has increased in response to urbanization, pressure on housing affordability, construction labor shortages, and persistently stagnant construction productivity. Modular construction can also reduce construction waste, alleviate disruption to the community, and provide a safer environment for construction teams.

John Barrot, an Arup project director and one of the report authors, said, “Modular construction contributes to a number of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and aligns with Arup’s commitment to sustainable development progress and to shaping a better world.”

In the last decade, an increasing number of high-rise modular buildings have been constructed. Recent projects engineered by Arup include the 32-story tower at 461 Dean Street in Brooklyn (shown on cover above) and the 19-story citizenM Bowery building in Manhattan, both in New York City.

Brett Widness is the managing editor of Urban Land. Previously, he worked in online editorial at the Washington Post, AARP, and AOL, now part of Yahoo!
Members Sign In
Don’t have an account yet? Sign up for a ULI guest account.
Members Get More

With a ULI membership, you’ll stay informed on the most important topics shaping the world of real estate with unlimited access to the award-winning Urban Land magazine.

Learn more about the benefits of membership
Already have an account?