[IMAGE: Workers guide a second-story module into place with the help of a crane.]

WORKING WITH THE MODULAR FACTORY

"The challenge for us came when we tried to get the factory to either revise its process or raise its standards for specific green requirements," Bennert says. "When you have a company that is putting out two or four homes a day, and you tell them that you want your home built with finger-jointed studs or an alternative to OSB, it's difficult for them to bring in material for that specific home. Sometimes it can be impossible because they are often locked in with specific products' distributors. Even when it is possible, the administrative, handling, storage, and transportation issues are difficult to handle in a production environment."

MODULAR

Modular homes are built in a factory and trucked to the job site, where the different modules are fastened to the foundation and each other. Modular homes can be built with significant cost savings over stick-built homes.

"Even though the modular factory couldn't provide us with all the green options we wanted, we learned that we can still build a very green home," says Bennert's partner Tanya Williams. "A lot of the materials that the modular manufacturer is already using are green, even though they aren't necessarily marketed or promoted as green. Things like gypsum, OSB, and fiberglass batt insulation provided us points toward green certification. We also earned points because the gypsum was made from recycled content materials, the OSB came from fast-growth forests, and the fiberglass insulation was formaldehyde free. That was a pleasant surprise."