Prefab Buildings
Prefab buildings, or prefabricated buildings, are any buildings that are fully constructed in a factory. They may be completely assembled in the factory or, more often, be constructed in parts or modules and then assembled on-site.
Portable buildings are prefab buildings that are generally constructed as a whole structure before shipping and are meant to serve as temporary buildings. They are used as temporary offices at construction sites and for disaster relief housing and military barracks.
Manufactured homes, another type of prefab building, are homes that are entirely factory-built. They may be transported whole (single-wide) or in parts (double- or triple-wide). Manufactured homes are sometimes called mobile homes. However, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defines a manufactured home as one that follows a set of guidelines set forth in 1976, while a mobile home is a home built before those guidelines were in place.
Prefab buildings are meant to be permanent structures and may be indistinguishable from their traditionally-built counterparts, using many of the same materials and following the same building codes. Prefab buildings are used to achieve standardization in cruise ships, hotels, and chain restaurants and to efficiently build in remote and rural locations.