540
Building Trade Unions: Industrialization
542
INDUSTRIALIZATION
542.1
DEGREE OF PREFRABICATION
542.1.1
The construction industry has always been industrialized to some degree.
Even in the most conventionally built building today, nearly every item
used in construction comes from a factory. The issue at this point is the
accelerating rate at which factory-built components are becoming larger
and/or more complicated, thereby reducing work required at the site.
542.1.2
Industrialization can range from the making of bricks in a factory, which
are assembled at the site, to building whole buildings in a factory and
merely hooking them to plumbing and power. This off-site work can be
done by manufacturers or subcontractors in their own factories, by general
contractor in his shop, or by setting up a "site factory" adjacent to the
building. The work can be performed by the union or non-union factory
workers of the supplier, members of building trade unions working in a
factory, or the contractor's own men next door to the job site. With so
great a range of degrees of prefabrication, sites where it can take place,
and union status of participants, it is easy to see how confusion and
seemingly arbitrary decisions can arise on the part of all concerned.
542.1.3
The trend toward increased industrialization seems to center on a single
set of premises: that work can be done more accurately, more efficiently,
and more productively in factory. The factory provides an enclosed,
weather-protected environment, with better working conditions, the
opportunity to use heavy fixed equipment, and the opportunity for better
inspection and control procedures. (2) These advantages, plus the ability
to use less highly skilled labor which is presumably less costly, and the
elimination of the seasonal nature of construction, make factory production
a tempting alternative in many cases. On the other hand, there are
several inherent problems in factory fabrication which may often outweigh
the advantages. Among these are the costs of setting up the production
line, costs of transporting the prefabricated components to the job site,
and costs of storing the assemblies until they are needed. Thus, it is not a
foregone conclusion that large prefabricated components are better or
more economical than site-assembled components. Each case must be
weighed by the A/E or construction contractor on its own merits.
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