10 Dec GO Logic Acquires Shop Space
After a bit of searching, GO Logic recently signed a lease agreement for a shop space in the neighboring town of Waldo. Seeing the need to expand our business capabilities, we will use the shop for many purposes: storage of tools, equipment and materials; millwork, casework, and painting; and what is most exciting, prefabrication of our passive homes. Over the winter we will begin to assemble wall and roof components to better meet the demand for GO Logic homes in 2014 and beyond. 
The shop contains 3,600 square feet of floor space with 20-foot ceilings to work in, ideal for the tasks we envision. This move will allow us to deliver our projects at longer distances from Belfast, maintain the highest standard of quality, and reduce delivered cost for our passive homes. There are two main ways to pre-manufacture buildings. One is modular construction, the other is prefabricated component construction, or panelization. Modular means building a box with 4 walls and often a roof and transporting the “module” to a building site where it is placed on a foundation. Buildings may be made up of multiple modules assembled together on site. Generally each module is finished to a high degree prior to shipping, with mechanical and electrical systems installed, insulation, drywall, and finishes complete. 
Prefabricated panelized construction is similar to modular construction, but instead of creating modules, individual wall and roof components are built and finished to a high degree before being transported to the building site. This method is more common in Europe and has several advantages over modular construction. The main advantage is that with prefabricated component buildings there are fewer size limitations for transportation. Modules are typically limited to 16 foot widths while prefab wall components are put together on site, allowing for more flexibility in design. Erection of wall and roof panels is generally easier than modules and is more conducive to building on sites with limited access. For these reasons we will pursue prefab component construction. The first challenge for us will be to adapt our “stick-built” construction methods to prefab components. For this, we will take full advantage of expertise from both architecture and construction at GO Logic to implement a design-build solution. Building information modeling will enable precision detailing of components to move from CAD to the shop floor for assembly. Once implemented, we will begin to deliver and assemble components for homes throughout New England and beyond.