Carbon Footprint Assessment of the Pre-panelized Construction Process

Higher demand for residential construction in Canada in recent years has led some companies to move from conventional site-built construction to pre-fabrication methods. Although pre-fabrication can improve quality and construction speed, its sustainability in terms of CO2 emissions compared to site-built construction also needs to be assessed. This research thus focuses on CO2 assessment of the pre-panelized construction process in order to reduce the environmental impact of construction and provide a benchmark for the pre-panelized process. Results from the CO2 assessment of a pre-panelized company process show that almost 40% of total CO2 emissions are related to utility usage in the factory. Furthermore, a comparison of the carbon footprint of the company's current process to that of its past process (site-built framing) shows that pre-panelized wood framing leads to less CO2 emissions per floor area if the company's production level exceeds a certain level.