Well said - Francess - the future does not arrive easily.
Offsite architect crafting compelling visuals that drive sales for modular and prefab systems
What does modular 2.0 look like? Modular construction has promised many things over the years. But like most things, our first ideas are often the most conventional – the closest to the existing default. They are also the ones most likely to fail, as has been the case repeatedly for modular organizations. Only once we realize that mass standardization and mass production are only one means to an end will we finally move beyond its shitty first draft and see industrialized construction succeed at scale. The challenges facing modular – Capital intensive, not enough standardization, not enough volume, slow planning approval process – are all symptomatic of the underlying cause – the Henry Ford Syndrome. That is the dogmatic approach to industrial manufacturing via mass production. But by assuming this is the only way for construction to improve, we’ve shielded ourselves from alternative solutions. Adam Grant explains, “First, our wrong opinions are shielded in filter bubbles, where we feel pride when we see only information supporting our convictions. Then our beliefs are sealed in echo chambers, where we hear only from people who intensify and validate them.”1 Only once we question modular’s assumptions and reframe them can modular construction move beyond its shitty first draft and succeed at scale. Specifically, there are six areas in which we must revise our thinking.