Editing Modular building (section)

==Standards and zoning considerations==
Typically, modular dwellings are built to local, state or council code, resulting in dwellings from a given manufacturing facility having differing construction standards depending on the final destination of the modules.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/repealed_reg/lgheamhr1995693/ |title=Australian Government modular home regulations|website=Austlii.edu.au |access-date=2007-10-21}}</ref> The most important zones that manufacturers have to take into consideration are local wind, heat, and snow load zones.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} For example, homes built for final assembly in a hurricane-prone, earthquake or flooding area may include additional bracing to meet local building codes. Steel and/or wood framing are common options for building a modular home.

Some US courts have ruled that [[zoning]] restrictions applicable to mobile homes do not apply to modular homes since modular homes are designed to have a permanent foundation.{{Citation needed|date = September 2013|reason = Requires reliable, third-party, published source (not from a Modular Homes company's website) to allow for verification of statements.}} Additionally, in the US, valuation differences between modular homes and site-built homes are often negligible in [[real estate appraisal]] practice; modular homes can, in some market areas, (depending on local appraisal practices per [[Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice]]) be evaluated the same way as site-built dwellings of similar quality. In Australia, manufactured home parks are governed by additional legislation that does not apply to permanent modular homes. Possible developments in equivalence between modular and site-built housing types for the purposes of [[real estate appraisal]]s, financing and zoning may increase the sales of modular homes over time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://modularhomesnetwork.com/building-codes/index.asp |title=Building Codes for Modular Homes |website=Modularhomesnetwork.com|access-date=2010-08-06}}</ref>

===CLASP (Consortium of Local Authorities Special Programme)===
The [[Consortium of Local Authorities Special Programme]] (abbreviated and more commonly referred to as CLASP) was formed in England in 1957 to combine the resources of local authorities with the purpose of developing a prefabricated school building programme. Initially developed by Charles Herbert Aslin, the county architect for [[Hertfordshire]], the system was used as a model for several other counties, most notably [[Nottinghamshire]] and [[Derbyshire]]. CLASP's popularity in these coal mining areas was in part because the system permitted fairly straightforward replacement of subsidence-damaged sections of building.

===Building strength===
[[File:Modular Construction home josh vignona.jpg|alt=Modular Home being built in Vermont photo by Josh Vignona|thumb|Modular home in Vermont]]
Modular homes are designed to be stronger than traditional homes by, for example, replacing nails with screws, adding glue to joints, and using 8–10% more lumber than conventional housing.<ref>{{cite web|title=Disruptive Development: Modular Manufacturing In Multifamily Housing|url=http://ternercenter.berkeley.edu/uploads/A.Stein_PR_Disruptive_Development_-_Modular_Manufacturing_in_Multifamily_Housing.pdf|access-date=10 September 2017|page=35}}</ref> This is to help the modules maintain their structural integrity as they are transported on trucks to the construction site. However, there are few studies on the response of modular buildings to transport and handling stresses. It is therefore presently difficult to predict transport induced damage.<ref name="sciencedirect.com"/>

When FEMA studied the destruction wrought by [[Hurricane Andrew]] in Dade County Florida, they concluded that modular and [[masonry]] homes fared best compared to other construction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fema.gov/library/viewRecord.do?id=2765|title=FIA 22, Mitigation Assessment Team Report: Hurricane Andrew in Florida (1993) |website=Fema.gov}}</ref>

===CE marking===
The [[CE mark]] is a construction norm that guarantees the user of mechanical resistance and strength of the structure. It is a label given by [[European community]] empowered authorities for end-to-end process mastering and traceability.{{Citation needed|date = September 2013|reason = Requires reliable, third-party, published source (not from a Modular Homes company's website) to allow for verification of statements.}}

All manufacturing operations are being monitored and recorded:
* Suppliers have to be known and certified,
* Raw materials and goods being sourced are to be recorded by batch used,
* Elementary products are recorded and their quality is monitored,
* Assembly quality is managed and assessed on a step by step basis,
* When a modular unit is finished, a whole set of tests are performed and if quality standards are met, a unique number and EC stamp is attached to and on the unit.

This ID and all the details are recorded in a [[database]], At any time, the producer has to be able to answer and provide all the information from each step of the production of a single unit, The EC certification guaranties standards in terms of durability, resistance against wind and earthquakes.{{Citation needed|date = September 2013|reason = Requires reliable, third-party, published source (not from a Modular Homes company's website) to allow for verification of statements.}}