Merritts launch Modular Housing Transportation Service

Construction experts have long since been claiming that the UK is in the midst of two major concerns. A housing crisis which is then being accentuated by a lack of skilled construction labour.

Over recent years the dramatic improvement in the quality of modular buildings and high profile publicity for projects such as Croydon Towers in London, means the perception of modular housing is beginning to change and many now believe their wider use may be one of the solutions to the problems caused by building traditional homes built of bricks and mortar.

Modular construction is already popular in countries like Japan, Germany and Sweden, but it has been slow to take off in the UK due to the perceived quality, the image of the prefabricated homes that were erected quickly after the war, and the attitude of lenders and insurers who are currently not too keen to lend money or insure buildings due to concerns over quality control and building regulations.

But this is all changing and large building companies such as Berkeley Group are establishing factories they say will be capable of producing 1,000’s of offsite modular homes a year.

The speed at which homes can be erected is also an advantage, as demonstrated when the Positive Homes, a Nottingham based modular home developer transformed an empty plot of land into a housing estate of nine homes within just four days.

The advantages of modular housing are clear. No longer is construction restricted to the availability of labour and delays caused by the vagaries of the British winter. Instead, these energy efficient buildings can be manufactured and factory built on time in modules ready to transport. The single location means the company can cultivate a pool of skilled labour who are attracted by the prospect working in a nice temperature controlled workplace, rather than on a building site where they are exposed to all weather conditions whilst building traditional housing or commercial buildings.

Modular Housing Unit Movers

The Merritts fleet of modern specialist heavy lifting and haulage equipment, means we don’t have to confine ourselves to lifting heavy machinery. We can lift just about anything as has been regularly proven by projects such as when we transported the bronze statue at Doncaster Airport.

Our interest in researching this sector followed our appointment to move units of modular housing built by KLEG to a new location on behalf of Futures Housing.

It’s a niche sector, but given its potential it is one we believe we can serve.

We won’t be setting ourselves up to transport small component parts or boxes, but if there are projects that require the transportation, installation or storage of entire modular units, then we are ideally equipped.

Our modular housing lifting, transport and installation offer is based around our convenient Midlands location and our ability to provide:

• Expert advice
• Versatile modular building lifting and installation solutions
• Experienced rigging teams with fully qualified Appointed Persons.
• Transport and planning solutions that include abnormal load transport, escort vehicles and arranging traffic regulation orders (TROs).
• A full health and safety compliance package to include Risk Assessment Method Statements (RAMS) and detailed lifting plans
• Provision of industrial storage should the site not be ready to receive the units.

Do you need modular housing units transported to site?

If you are a modular housing manufacturer, or a housing association that needs units transporting to another location, or placed in secure storage, and would like advice on the lifting, transport or modular housing installation, the Merritts team will be happy to help. With nearly 100 years of experience, we have the specialist equipment and knowledge to deal with any project that involves the lifting of heavy individual objects.