Development Direction of a prefabricated Method for the Interior Finishing Work of Modular Housing Unit

A modular housing unit is built using a prefabricated construction method by which interior and exterior materials, electricity, machines and facilities are installed in a box-shaped unit module structure manufactured in a factory, and then it is carried into a construction site for assembly. Most buildings have been built in Korea using a Reinforced concrete method of steel-reinforced concrete structure or steel frame structure, and a great number of skilled workers are needed to carry out the work at a construction site. However, when using the conventional Reinforced concrete method it is difficult to secure the quality of construction due to various influencing factors including the aging of manpower, the capability of the construction project manager, the conditions of the construction site, etc.. In particular, there is a high probability Korea will have difficulty meeting the demand for skilled workers in the future since it is rapidly shifting to an “aging society.” For this reason, the modular unit technique already employed in some of the advanced countries, including Europe and Japan, has been presented as an alternative to the conventional method. The modular unit has been in wide use in some advanced countries such as Europe and Japan for typical building structures such as houses, schools and offices. The method has been widely used for schools and military facilities thanks to its advantages such as accelerated construction and reduction in construction duration. However, there are still many issues to be resolved before modular housing can be widely employed in Korea as it is in countries like Europe and Japan. This study aims to set a direction for the development of a new prefabricated method for prefabrication of the interior and exterior finishing for construction projects in Korea. The interior and exterior finishing work of the construction works done at the construction site of the modular housing unit was examined. It is expected that this study will be utilized as fundamental data for developing a new alternative to the conventional method for interior and exterior finishing of a modular housing unit suitable for Korea’s construction environment.