Productization in Modular Construction: How Tomorrow’s Marvels Are Made

The construction industry is in a period of exciting growth as the demand for various facilities continues to rise. For example, McKinsey estimates that the global demand for data centers could rise annually between 19% and 22% from 2023 to 2030. Addressing future artificial intelligence (AI)-related workloads would require at least twice the data center capacity built since 2000 to be built in less than a quarter of the time¹.

However, the construction industry faces several key challenges such as skilled labor shortages due to retiring experts, increasing regulations around sustainability, high material costs, supply chain disruptions and weather unpredictability.

Additionally, productivity in construction has remained stagnant due to its reliance on craft production with bespoke designs and on-site, labor-intensive work. Sustainability is one of the biggest drivers for the industry as 40% of emissions are from buildings².

It's imperative that builders find innovative ways to build new buildings faster and more sustainably with increased safety and quality. Modularity in construction and offsite manufacturing will be how we get there.

Modular construction is reshaping today’s built environment, accelerating timelines, improving quality, and enabling more sustainable outcomes through factory based production and standardized components. Modular enables the shift from a classic project approach toward industrialized construction to produce more repeatable, and thus more affordable and sustainable buildings. 

But to move beyond traditional modular approaches and fully industrialize construction at scale can add risks.

By adopting virtual twin technology, modular actors can represent and optimize every phase of the modular value chain: 

• Product Design: Smarter, Faster, Sustainable Design
• Factory virtual twins: Optimize Production Before It Starts
• Operations & Logistics: From Assembly Flow to Loading and delivery Plans

Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE® platform delivers exactly that: connected, dynamic virtual twins of the product, the factory, and the entire flow of operations. From design and sustainability validation, through factory production, all the way to logistics and on-site integration.

We understand that driving transformation can be challenging and risky. Making an impact requires the right expertise, investment and strategy. Virtual Twin as a Service offers a shortcut to value.

Unlock the power of Virtual Twin as a Service, a cloud-based solution designed, maintained and continuously enhanced for your business. With a single subscription, you gain access to the value of virtual twin technology, backed by over 40 years of industry expertise.

Fast-track innovation, eliminate the traditional barriers of risk, budget overruns and timeline uncertainty. Experience a solution that grows with you and delivers measurable impact from day one.

With productization in construction, buildings are broken down into standardized, interchangeable building modules called virtual construction bricks. These bricks are connected through standardized interfaces, making them interchangeable. These bricks can be used to generate production drawings and detailed bills of materials. When the design is updated, these drawings and bills of materials can be automatically updated.

A detailed product virtual twin is created and used across all phases of the manufacturing workflow. This greatly reduces the design effort and time and helps with more precise cost estimation, helping decision-making early in the design phase.

Builders can further enhance flexibility and design variability through generative design and virtual construction bricks. This shift enables the construction industry to move closer to a more efficient, manufacturing-like approach.

All of this is done on the 3DEXPERIENCE® platform. It connects all stakeholders and suppliers across design, manufacturing and procurement, ensuring a seamless flow of information and enabling modular builders to master their prefabricated construction methods.