I had various success with encouraging modular builds (sometimes called pre-assembled units) to maximise workshop assembly and minimise site construction
I started out as a packaged equipment engineer procuring simple skid units (combining pumps, exchangers etc with piping and electrical systems). Equipment vendors were usually quite comfortable with this as long as they were not asked to incorporate an unfamiliar piece of equipment
The most successful application of this that I saw was a process distillation tower (pumps, columns, heat exchangers and controls) which was delivered in a single frame on the back of a road truck
Then came along electrical switch rooms in container size buildings and pipe rack sections delivered pre-piped. Both relatively successful as long as the site civil works interface was well managed
The holy grail of a multi-floor, multi-discipline “lego brick” type of build never seemed to happen. One opportunity failed due the EPCM’s structural designers inability to innovate beyond the “stick build” method. Vendors who marketed modular builds did not have the capability to design bespoke process plants
Hopefully with modern design, modern fabrication systems, less need for wiring and the increasing site construction costs, the process industry will gradually adopt more and more of this type of construction
