There are used and new modular buildings for sale in Philadelphia that will help you meet an urgent need for classroom swing space, quickly set up a temporary training center, and a hundred other uses. But new modular construction is also helping to reinvent and transform vacant buildings in Pennsylvania and around the nation.

One such project is the 180,000 sq. ft. data center that is being built in the former U.S. Steel Fairless Works Motor Building in Bucks County. The huge building was once home to electric motors that ran the steel mill. After renovation of the structure with modular units called “KeyBlocks” is complete, it will be home to the Keystone NAP (Network Access Point).

This innovative modular idea puts to good use the flexibility of modular construction. KeyBlocks are sized to hold either 22 or 44 server racks and equipped with their own power conditioning, fire suppression, cooling and security systems. They are custom-built in an offsite factory and moved into place in the building as businesses determine their need for power durability, security and capacity.

The fully self-contained, stackable private datacenters take advantage of the old mill’s proximity to four nearby industrial-grade power stations that produce a combined 2,000 megawatts of electricity from diversified coal and gas, natural gas, landfill gas and trash-to-steam sources.

Instead of facing demolition, the availability of custom modular construction has brought the building back to life within driving distance of all the major data center markets in the Northeastern U.S.

There are more opportunities for modular construction in building affordable housing in Philadelphia. The city is among the top five in the nation in terms of construction costs, which are 18% above the national average. But house values are in the bottom three and 40% below the national average. Coupled with high labor costs, site-built construction is often out of reach without government subsidies.

Nationwide companies like Modular Genius, an award winning, turnkey modular building general contractor, are committed to the innovative construction of permanent and temporary residential, industrial, commercial and government modular buildings. We recommend that you contact them with your modular building idea.

Why Modular Construction Has Become So Popular

Have you wondered what advantages there are to a new modular building in comparison to a traditional “stick built” structure? A lower price is definitely at the top of the list, but here are a few of the other important benefits:

• Speed of completion: Modular construction is at least 40% faster to design and build that a traditional building. They are built in a factory and can be delivered in only a few months, allowing you to meet tight construction schedules and occupy the building sooner.

• Flexibility: Prefabricated buildings can be adapted for any site and any business purpose. They’re suitable for sales offices, healthcare centers, mobile offices, retail stores, restaurants and cafes, warehouses, call centers, and many other uses. Because they are inherently portable, they can be disassembled, reconfigured and moved to a different location if necessary.

• High quality: Modular buildings are built to meet or exceed all state and local building codes; the same codes as site-built projects. Once assembled, you won’t be able to distinguish them from site-built structures.

• Substantial savings: Modular building construction offers an average savings of 20% off conventional construction costs.

Research the new and used modular buildings that are for sale in and around Philadelphia to see how you can use them as a new, cost-effective construction methodology.