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Modular Construction Industry Poised to Help Amid COVID-19 Crisis

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Modular building manufacturers in the U.S. can quickly provide ready-to-use facilities to meet housing, education, and health care needs.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – The modular construction industry, led by trade groups Modular Building Institute (MBI) and the Modular Home Builders Association (MHBA), have been working with state and federal officials on ways to support housing and emergency response efforts.

MHBA has been advocating for greater use of modular construction to address the nation’s affordable housing crisis well before the COVD-19 outbreak. “With modular factory production lines idle, there is nothing our industry can do in this crisis,” said MHBA Executive Director Tom Hardiman. “We have the capacity to build thousands of medical clinics and support facilities now and we are calling on our leaders to keep our factories open and let us help.”

MBI members are well poised to help supply rapidly-deployable buildings, such as temporary medical clinics, in times of crisis. “By working with the National Governors Association, we are positioning MBI as a clearinghouse for information for any state requesting space for surge capacity or any other need during this crisis,” said MBI Government Affairs Director Jon Hannah.

Along with other organizations such as Associated General Contractors, the modular industry is calling on Congress to take the following actions:
•Provide the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) loan programs with increased funding for small businesses in the construction industry;
•Create and vigorously fund a similar program for construction businesses that do not qualify for assistance through existing SBA loan programs;
•Provide financial assistance to contractors who incurred losses when public owners—who themselves utilize federal funding—delay or terminate projects as a result of COVID-19-outbreak;
•Extend the filing deadlines for business returns and suspend the payment of all business taxes to the federal government for the duration of the pandemic; and
•Make substantial and long-term investments in federal construction programs to address housing, health care, and education needs, which have all been exacerbated by this crisis.

Started on March 20, 2020 by Tom Hardiman

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