With prototype testing and engineering analysis validating their modular housing system concept, Qingdao-based Lida Group has broken ground on a new multimillion-dollar factory dedicated to mass producing standardized building components for their prefabricated steel container homes. Located on the outskirts of the city, the large-scale production facility represents a major step forward in scaling up manufacturing to meet projected global demand for the innovative seismic-resistant shelter solution in disaster-prone regions. Mass fabrication of pre-tested structural,envelope and finishing elements aims to drastically reduce on-site construction times when deploying the housing modules.

Utilizing surplus steel shipping containers as the basic building blocks, Lida Group designed their system of modular homes to be rapidly assembled from arrays of standardized structural panels, wall cassettes and built-in fixtures fabricated in a controlled factory setting. Computer-aided engineering and optimized production processes will be employed at the new plant to mass manufacture pre-assembled structural components for efficient installation by non-specialist labor at deployment sites globally. This vertically-integrated manufacturing approach aligns with the company’s vision to provide affordable, durable Shelter as a Solution following major disasters or for remote communities currently underserved.

At a cost of nearly $40 million, the new factory spans over 100,000 square meters on a dedicated industrial site near Lida Group’s research and development campus. The advanced facility was designed by architectural and engineering consultants to maximize production throughput while maintaining strict international quality standards. Equipment includes large-scale steel plate shearing, cutting, rolling and bending systems integrated with computer numerically controlled welding robots. Adjacent areas house finishing operations such as spray booths, 3D printers for custom plastic components, and an assembly hangar to test fit factory-built modules.

A key focus of the new plant is mass manufacturing standardized building envelope panels that enclose and weatherproof the stacked shipping container structural frames. Made from profiled metal sheets bonded to fire-retardant insulated cores, the prefabricated wall and roof cassettes arrive ready to bolt into place. This cuts on-site installation times radically compared to erecting framing and completing the building envelope conventionally. Specialized equipment precisely forms the insulated panel profiles for a consistent thermal and air barrier. Testing proved the envelope integrally ties into the reinforced container structure as a cohesive unit.

In addition to full building envelope panels, the factory is set up for mass producing purpose-engineered built-in fixtures, sub-assemblies and finishing components. Standardized kitchen runs, bathroom pods, and electrical-mechanical cassettes come pre-plumbed, pre-wired and pre-tested for fast drop-in installation in the container structural frames. Internal partition wall panels snap together section by modular section. Customized windows, doors and applied finishes like exterior siding ship ready to easily install complete each housing module for turnkey delivery. Quality control checkpoints at each stage minimize defects in the mass-produced components.

A fleet of medium-duty trucks will transport the flat-pack housing modules and just-in-time component deliveries from the new factory to regional ports for overseas shipping. Standard container dimensions accommodate stacking full housing cassettes within regular shipping containers inbound to deployment sites around the Pacific Rim and disaster-prone developing regions. Modular walls, roofs and pre-fitted built-in systems also ship in standard container loads for rapid assembly anywhere infrastructure allows. Crews on-site require only basic tools and basic handling equipment like forklifts to construct turnkey shelters optimized for speed of deployment.

Back at the production facility, sophisticated inventory tracking and materials handling systems keep the continuous flow of components streaming through automated fabrication lines. Precise bill-of-materials for each housing model type triggers the sequenced production of ready-to-assemble parts held in climate-controlled storage until outbound shipments. Should demand spike such as after a major humanitarian disaster, the mass manufacturing process can surge output of essential shelter modules for rapid deployment to displaced communities in need. Likewise, routine planned production keeps regional inventory stockpiles replenished to years ahead of schedule for long-term remote settlement housing needs.

Lida Group aims for the new factory to eventually produce tens of thousands of housing modules annually to serve a global market projected at hundreds of millions in unmet demand. Regional representatives will license volume contracts with governments and aid organizations for constructing self-sufficient villages or temporary relief shelters. Mass production of standardized, tested building components allows delivering complete modern housing communities within weeks—a revolution compared to traditional methods. The company forecasts strong ongoing sales also servicing infrastructure-limited resource extraction sites or tourism destinations evolving into permanent communities.

As hiring and equipment commissioning progress over the coming months, the new factory’s output is set to ramp up through 2021 for initial container module deliveries next year. A quality management system aligned to stringent international codes oversees every process. But high-volume automated production remains flexible for customized configurations or materials to satisfy regional building code variances. Factory tours will showcase the innovative industrialized system to potential clients and donors helping expand access to affordable shelter solutions globally through humanitarian preparedness and development projects.

Lida Group’s investment in a dedicated modular housing component factory marks an important milestone towards achieving economies of scale vital for affordably meeting massive projected demand. Mass production techniques applied to standardized building materials transformed the home construction industry domestically in prior decades. This new facility now applies similar principles leveraging containerized prefabrication to sustainably expand housing options globally—particularly for the most vulnerable communities plagued by natural disasters or isolation from traditional infrastructure networks. Through such innovation backed by mass manufacturing capability, more lives stand to benefit from the timely provision of wind- and earthquake-resistant shelter.

In summary, Lida Group has broken ground on a new large-scale factory dedicated to mass producing standardized structural panels, wall cassettes, built-in fixtures and finishing components for their prefabricated modular housing system utilizing steel shipping containers. Sophisticated equipment and optimized production processes will allow assembling full housing modules in a controlled setting for rapid on-site erection virtually anywhere globally. This vertically integrated manufacturing approach aims to realize the promise of affordably delivering complete villages or temporary relief shelters within weeks through industrialized modular construction techniques. With ongoing facility commissioning on track to ramp output in 2021, Lida Group’s factory represents a major milestone in scaling innovative seismically-resistant shelter solutions to sustainably meet immense projected worldwide demand.

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