Case Study: Modular Housing

Delivering homes to rural areas through innovative practice

This year, Enliven Housing expanded its reach to regional Western Australia. It delivered three homes in Geraldton,¹ an area identified as having an acute shortage of appropriate SDA housing with strong demand from the local community. Located ~420 km north of Perth CBD, Geraldton is a coastal town in the mid‑west with a population of ~40,000 people.² Research indicated that people with disability in the area were either living with family or in unsuitable accommodation. Unfortunately, due largely to remoteness, high labour and materials costs, there is a limited supply of appropriate SDA in Geraldton. Working with our SDA Partner, Habilitas, Enliven Housing sought to cater for this need through the provision of SDA in the form of modular housing. Modular construction has the potential to shorten project design and engineering time, reduce costs and improve construction efficiency. The installation of modular buildings can be provided in a cost-efficient, safe and eco-friendly manner.

What are modular homes?

Modular homes are houses built off-site, usually in an indoor factory-like setting. Often referred to as “factory-built” or “prefabricated”, modular homes are completed in sections, according to specific plans and then transported to the site where they are assembled by builders and installed into the foundations.

The key benefits were…

Efficient and timely delivery: The homes were designed and built in a factory in Perth and trucked to the site. All six modules, two for each dwelling, were prefabricated which allowed the sections to be craned into place within two days. The SDA Partner found the entire construction program to be ~10 weeks more efficient than a traditional build. Reducing the development stage time allowed for labour costs to be kept down as well as facilitating a faster lease-up.

Reduced waste: By building in a controlled factory environment, it was much easier to ensure the quality of the build, reduce waste compared to traditional construction methods and facilitate ease of recycling/re-use of materials.

Cost efficient: The precision of factory construction and prefabrication allows for modular construction costs to be typically less than traditional builds. Assembly completion is in a factory setting where labour and materials management is more cost-effective. This is particularly beneficial in rural areas where labour costs can be higher, due to scarcity. Overall, the SDA Partner reported ~22% cost saving.

Getting the Site to Work

Site assessment

Once it was decided that modular homes were the best option, site selection began. There was substantial time spent choosing the location given the remoteness of the area. A well‑located site was selected:

• 500m from a grocery store

• 1km from a local pool

• 200m from bowling and recreational centre

• 5-minute drive from town centre

• 10-minute drive from hospital

The site itself is a large, flat lot located on a corner which is important for the type of SDA. There is minimal flooding, bushfire, and other natural environmental risk, and no state planning controls. Additional site verifications were completed using Climate on Demand software to assess physical climate risk considerations for the location. All these factors were considered throughout the feasibility phase to ensure an appropriate location was chosen that would achieve the best outcome for the tenants and the community.

Design outcomes

Given the large corner site, flexibility in the design could be achieved by providing three separate dwellings – one of which is specifically designed for Robust tenants and two for High Physical Support. Providing separation of the dwelling is critical for Robust tenants but also offers the care provider the ability to support tenants across all three dwellings therefore offering continuity of care with an efficient staff roster. Across all freestanding dwellings, Enliven Housing seeks to provide tenants with green spaces for personal space and relaxation. Family members of tenants who had expressed interest, or committed to the property already, were involved during various stages of design consultation and construction. We received positive feedback from the tenants’ families for this extra step of consultation and proactive engagement.