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Identification of Structural Issues in Design and Construction of Multi-
Story Modular Buildings
Issa J. Ramaji1 and Ali M. Memari2
1Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Architectural Engineering, Penn State University, 105 Engineering
Unit B, University Park, PA 16802, E-Mail: ramaji@psu.edu
2Professor, Department of Architectural Engineering and Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering , Penn State University, 222 Sackett Building, University Park, PA 16802, E-Mail:
memari@engr.psu.edu
ABSTRACT
As the modular construction industry tries to find new markets in multi-story buildings,
additional challenges are faced along the way that needs to be addressed. This paper
initially introduces different types of modular multi-story or high-rise construction systems.
The structural systems including gravity and lateral load resisting systems are then
discussed. The challenges that structural designers face in addressing load path continuity
and gravity and lateral load transfer between adjacent structural components are reviewed.
Approaches for system and building modeling needed for structural analysis as well as
relevant building code requirements are discussed. Furthermore the challenges in design
and detailing of different structural members and components/systems are evaluated. The
paper also provides an overview of any special structural safety issues for design and
construction. Finally, the paper outlines the R&D needs for advancing the technology of
multi-story modular building design and construction.
INTRODUCTION
Modular construction is known for its economic advantages and high construction quality of
the modules because of the factory construction environment. Despite the simplicity of the
construction of modular single-family dwellings that brings about speedy erection at the job
site, the same thing cannot be stated for multi-story modular buildings. With increase in the
number of stories, the construction method and structural engineering issues become more
complicated, in particular when lateral loads also need to be considered. There is lack of
good or sufficient understanding of the structural behavior of such multi-story construction.
Nonetheless, interest exists in multi-story low-rise, mid-rise and high-rise modular
construction, in particular in urban and metropolitan areas. However, because this
technology is relatively new with limited understanding of structural performance under
extreme loading conditions, most applications of multi-story modular construction are
currently in low-rise buildings or in areas with minor natural hazard potential. However,
construction of multi-story modular buildings in the United Kingdom has shown significant
progress in developing and advancing this construction technology.
By improvement of technology, the methods of construction can be changed. As shown by
the popularity of the use of panelized components in commercial and industrial
construction, there are various benefits in shifting from all site construction to more
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panelized and modular construction of residential buildings. Lawson and Ogden (2008)
mention the following three major benefits of the modular construction of buildings:
(a)Lower construction cost—as the number of plant fabrication increases, the constant cost
of the plant will be shared by more fabrication, thus reducing the total cost; (b) Shorter
construction time—because of reduced jobsite activities; (c) Higher quality production—
because of better plant fabrication and inspection.
In recent years, numerous mid-rise and high-rise modular buildings have been built around
the world (MBI, 2011). Due to lack of specific code or standard for construction of multi-
story modular buildings, different innovative structural systems are used in these buildings,
and general building code requirements are normally considered for safety-related issues;
for example in United States, most of the multi-story building are designed according to
International Building Code (IBC, 2012). As for each new innovative system, multi-story
modular buildings with their own characteristics pose unique challenges for prediction of
their behaviors under structural loads; there is very limited research available on different
types of such systems. In particular, there are no specific design criteria for this type of
structural system. In addition, due to the complex nature of structural components and
connections of modular buildings, structural modeling and analysis are more complicated in
comparison with conventional (non-modular) buildings. In this paper, for each multi-story
modular system type, some important structural aspects are discussed that needs
consideration for structural design and modeling purposes.
IDENTIFICATION OF DIFFERENT STRUCTURAL TYPE OF MULTI-STORY
MODULAR BUILDING (MSMB)
By considering structural aspect of these buildings, we can categorize them in the following
six major groups: 2D, 3D, Open Building System, Hybrid Cored-Modular, Hybrid Podium, and
Framed Unit systems.
2D systems
In 2Dsystems, prefabricated floors and walls are installed and assembled to create a whole
building. First, columns and walls of each story are installed, followed by installation of floor
cassettes on these columns and walls (Lawson et al., 1999).A good example for this system
is a 30-story hotel in China near Dongting Lake where it was erected in just 15 days. As
depicted in Figure 1, the structure has two main components, which are roof/floor cassettes
and columns (Jackson, 2012).
Floor diaphragm system is strongly related to the type of modular building. Generally, in 2D
Figure 1. Dongting Lake Hotel with 2D structural system using floor cassette-column- connection
example (Jackson, 2012)
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systems and Open Building systems, panelized floors (e.g., floor cassettes) are supported by
walls or a framed structure (as shown in Figure 1) requiring constraining of floor joints in
these systems. The main function of connections between 2D panels is integration of panels
and load transfer between them. Connections must have adequate strength to transfer
gravity and lateral load between panels. An example of connections in 2D system is also
depicted in Figure 1 (Jackson, 2012). As shown in this figure, these connections consist of
rigid bolt fasteners. In addition, a shear key is considered at the top of the column, which
goes to the floor cassette and gives rise to uniform movements of the joints at floor level.
Furthermore, due to the use of wings for the column, a rigid connection is achieved
between the column and the cassette. The behavior of this structural system under lateral
loads, resulting from wind loads or earthquake induced drift, will depend on whether such
resistance is relied on stair tower walls or elevator shafts, or whether some bays employ
certain bracing system. In general, in such construction, emulation of conventional rigid
frame behavior in analytical modeling may not be the most appropriate approach, and
innovative systems may need to be employed. In particular, for use in high seismic regions,
appropriate energy dissipating systems need to be developed.
3D Systems
In this modular system, the structure consists of many 3D modules, which are stacked
vertically and attached horizontally to create the 3D building. Each module can be part of a
unit, one complete unit, or even more than one unit. The size of the modules is related to
the location of the module in the building, construction equipment and transportation
limits. Usually modules in this system are in the range of 100 to 600 square feet (Lawson et
al., 2010). Based on the study of load paths for this type of structure, 3D system can be
divided into two main subcategories, which are “Wall-Load Bearing” and “Corner-
Supported” systems (Lawson et al., 2010).
Wall-Load Bearing systems
In wall-load bearing systems, gravity loads (live and dead) are transferred to the walls, which
will then transfer loads to the foundation. Load bearing elements of these modules are walls
and usually consist of many repetitive C section (light gage steel studs) profiles along the
wall. Lateral loads within the module are resisted by bracing elements and/or sheathing.
Another structural system that is common for these walls is steel sandwich panel. The
spacing of these profiles or the strength of panels depends on the amount of gravity loads,
location of the module, and lateral load magnitude. In Figure 2, a module with load bearing
walls is depicted (Lawson et al., 2005b).
Figure 2. Wall-Load Bearing module with steel C-
section profiles (Lawson et al., 2005b)
Figure 3. An example of entire building floor
diaphragm in stacked modular construction
(Lawson et al., 2008)
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Generally, in 3D systems and their combinations, the floor of the building consists of many
discrete floor elements (unit diaphragms). Therefore, the integrity of these discrete units,
which is provided by the diaphragm, is very important in these systems. There are two
diaphragm systems that need to be differentiated. The entire building floor diaphragm is a
structural system that distributes lateral story loads to lateral load bearing elements of the
structure; an example of this diaphragm is presented in Figure 3. The building floor
diaphragm helps floor joints to have uniform lateral movement. This diaphragm constrains
top joints of the lower modules and bottom joints of upper modules by tying them together
at each story for horizontal movement of the floor. This diaphragm also helps bring about
integrity of the modules and ensure uniform lateral movements of modules in each story. It
also functions to distribute horizontal floor loads to vertical lateral load resisting structural
elements. In 3D systems and their combination with cluster and podium systems, floor
panels of the stacked modules and the connections between modules cannot sufficiently
constrain floor joints together; therefore additional diaphragm system would be required.
Figure 4 shows an example diaphragm system for 3D modules (Lawson et al., 2008).
In addition to the entire building floor diaphragm, each module should have its own
individual module diaphragm. The module diaphragm constrains the joints of a module
together in the floor plane at the top as well as the bottom of the module. As shown in
Figure 4, the module diaphragm can consist of a crossed cable diaphragm bracing, which
constrains opposite corners of the module together (Lawson et al., 2005a). In addition, the
difference between module diaphragm and building floor diaphragm is shown in Figure 5.
Module diaphragms in these systems perform different functions during construction and
after the construction. During the construction phase, this diaphragm helps increase rigidity
and stability of the module, especially at the time of erection and installation when it
enhances twisting and buckling resistance of the module. After completion of the building
construction, the module diaphragm forms a part of the building diaphragm to distribute
loads among structural elements, especially under lateral loads.
Corner-Supported systems
In this system, the corners of the modules support the gravity loads, which are transferred
by edge beams of the modules. The columns and edge beams (normally deeper than those
in wall-bearing modules) in this system carry gravity loads, while some bracing elements or
Figure 4. Individual module diaphragm of a
module (Lawson et al., 2008)
Figure 5. Difference between entire building
diaphragm (continuous lines) and individual
module diaphragm (dashed lines)
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sheathings resist the lateral loads. Steel Hollow Sections (SHS) are the most common profile
types for use as the corner column sections. One example of a corner supported module is
shown in Figure 6 (Lawson et al., 2005b). A critical performance aspect in such system would
be the lateral load response of the building made up of stacked modules. Depending on the
relative stiffness of the floor and ceiling beam and their connections to the corner posts, the
behavior of the post at post-to-post connection can be different. In any case, such behavior
will also be dependent on the type of entire building lateral load resisting system. In Figure
7, an example of connections between two stacked corner-supported 3D modules is
illustrated.
The Open Building System
The Open Building system is developed to enhance the flexibility of space planning and may
consist of various combinations of framing and module systems as appropriate. In one type
of such systems, two integrated framing systems transfer both gravity and lateral loads to
the foundation. The interior structure of the module is one of these frames. The second
frame is the exterior frame, which consist of columns on exterior edge of the structure (or
some in the middle rows) at a constant spacing. The procedure of the construction of the
Openhouse system (one type of the Open Building system) has three main steps. First, the
job-site fabricated columns are erected. In the second stage, the modules are installed
between the columns of the first stage; as depicted in Figure 8, the columns are positioned
in the hollow spaces within the modules. In the last stage, by installation of a uniform roof
system, all of the module elements and the columns of the first stage will be integrated
together for the lateral movements. In Figure 8, two photos from different stages of
construction are shown (Bengt Birgersson, 2004).
Figure 6. Corner-Supported module (Lawson et
al., 2005b)
Figure 7. An example for connection of two
stacked 3D models (SteelConstruction.info
website)
Figure 8. Two
photos from two
different stages of
construction of an
Openhouse building
(Bengt Birgersson,
2004)
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As in conventional building structures, roof and floors behave as diaphragms of the
structure at each floor level, and these diaphragms integrate interior and exterior frames for
gravity and lateral loads resistance.
When a multi-bay structure is loaded in the lateral direction, the columns or walls in
adjacent bays tend to slip with respect to one another if not tied together properly. In
conventional building construction, the connections of horizontal and vertical elements are
designed for combination of gravity and lateral loads. Therefore, the continuity of load path
between horizontal and vertical elements exists and the integrity of the system is provided.
However, due to discontinuity between modules in modular building construction, the
modules must be connected to one another in the vertical direction to resist vertical shear
forces (caused by lateral loads) between modules. In Open Building systems, the columns
that are installed at the first step should be structurally connected in the vertical plane to
the adjacent modules. Figure 9 shows the difference in deflection modes between the two
systems when the adjacent vertical load carrying systems are not tied to one another and
when they are tied. In the figure on the left, there is no vertical deformation coupling
between adjacent components, while the figure on the right shows the vertical shear
transfer between such components.
Hybrid Cored-Modular Systems (Cluster)
As the height of a structure increases, the magnitude of the total lateral and gravity loads
increase and therefore, the size of load-bearing elements in lower modules will have to be
larger beyond what is needed just for gravity loads. In cluster systems the size of these
elements are limited by considering a core for the structure.
Generally, due to erection and installation issues, prefabricated modules should be kept
light (e.g., by using light gage steel) and as a result they have lower lateral stiffness in
comparison with regular (e.g., rolled steel) framings. However, conventional concrete shear
walls and frames, braced steel frame, and steel moment frames have higher lateral stiffness
in comparison with prefabricated modules. By installation of one or more of these stiff
systems between modules as the core, lateral deformations of the whole structure can be
reduced. Under lateral loads, the diaphragms at the floor levels will transfer most of the
lateral loads to the stiffer (core) parts of the structure. Therefore, the connection between
the core structure and the modules should be strong enough to transfer tension-
compression and vertical loads between these two structures. As depicted in Figure 10, the
stacked modules rely on a braced steel frame to resist lateral deformations. In Figure 11, the
Figure 9.Vertical Shear transfer between
stacked units: (left side) No vertical shear
transfer; (right side) Coupled at vertical joints
Figure 10.Stacked modules, supported by steel
frame (Lawson et al., 2005)
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plan of an 11-story modular building is depicted. This is a student residential building In
Bristol. As shown in this Figure, there are 4 steel braced cores in the plan that resists lateral
loads applied on the structure (Lawson et al., 2012).
Hybrid Podium-Modular Systems
One of the limitations of modular buildings is short bay spans for lower stories normally
desired for retail or parking spoce. The hybrid podium-modular system is normally used in
structures that need longer bay spans in lower stories. In podium-modular systems, some of
the bottom stories (usually two stories) are built using conventional structural steel or
concrete frames with long spans. Then, the modular part of the building would be installed
on top of the podium. In other words, the podium is like a foundation for the modular parts.
The modules transfer their uniform load to the beams of the podium. In addition, a podium
structure with long spans behaves as a soft story for the structure leading toan increase of
the period of the structure, which results in a decrease of design earthquake forces.
A schematic drawing of a 2-story podium system is shown in Figure 12 (Lawson et al., 2010).
As shown in this figure, the edges of the modules are aligned to the center of the podium
beams to omit eccentricity of the loading on podium beams and columns. In conventional
structural models, one usually assumes that all elements at a given floor level are located in
a single plane, which is the diaphragm level. But, as depicted in Figure 7, in some types of
modular buildings such as 3D
systems, the bottom of the
upper modules do not lie in the
same plane as the top of the
lower modules; they are just
linked together at some points.
In other words, there is an
elevation difference between
the ceiling of a story and floor
of the next story; and this
should be addressed in the
model. This difference is more
distinguished when the
designer wants to model the
interface of the podium and the
modules. Therefore, the
designer must consider two
Figure 11.Arrangement
of cores in the plan of a
12-story building
(Lawson et al., 2010)
Figure 12.A 2-Story podium beneath a multi-story modular
building (Lawson et al., 2010)
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different closely spaced planes for floor and ceiling to link upper and lower joints of these
elements at sufficient number of points to ensure continuity and integrity of these separate
modules. An example of the finite element model to represent the diaphragm in such
systems is depicted in Figure 13.
Framed Unit Systems
In this system, the main structure of the building is not constructed as modular. As depicted
in Figure 14, the main structure of this type of construction is a conventional structural
frame. After erection of the main structural frame, prefabricated units will be placed and
fitted between beams and columns of the structural frame. Figure 14 shows the
Contemporary Resort Hotel of Disneyland, built in 1971 (Walt Disney Drawing Board
website). The main structural frame is a braced steel frame. The modular units of this
structure are made of wood and cannot therefore bear large deformations as much as steel
frames do. This is one reason for the use of braced frame, which increase the stiffness of the
structure and control the the deformation of the frame under lateral loads.
One of the most important benefits of this system is that the properties of module elements
are not dependent on the plan shape, number of stories, and wind and earthquake loads,
and due to the fact that the main structural frame bears the loads, all of the units can be
identical. In addition, the elements of the modules are designed just to carry their own
gravity loads and construction loads; therefore, the weight of the modules is lower than the
weight of the other types of the 3D modules. In spite of the fact that the main structural
frame carries the lateral loads, the connection between the modules and the frame should
be strong enough to be able to transfer the gravity loads and the earthquake loads, which
result from the acceleration of the mass of the modules. In modeling such a system, a
suitable diaphragm should also be considered in order to properly model the integration of
the modules and structural frame. In addition, to avoid unbalanced loading of the structural
frame during construction, a detailed and exact construction procedure should be presented
by the design groups to avoid failure of the structure at the time of the modules installation.
ISSUES COMMON TO MOST TYPES OF MULTI-STORY MODULAR
SYSTEMS
In addition to specific challenging issues related to each structural system of multi-story
modular buildings, there are some common issues that should also be addressed in all
Figure 13. An example of floor finite
element model for module
Figure 14.Contemporary Resort Hotel in Disney land (1971)
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different types of these modular structures. In code-based design of structures to resist
earthquake loads, one needs to determine the response modification factor (R) value. As for
any new structural system type, it is a challenge to determine a reasonable R factor value,
and as a result, without extensive analytical studies or experimental testing, specific value
for R factor cannot be obtained. Further challenging in the determination of R value is the
fact that due to the difference in lateral resisting systems, R factor would have different
values for different types of modular buildings.In nonlinear design of conventional
construction, plastic hinges that form in members near the connections help dissipate the
seismic energy. In modular construction however such plastic hinging in members is not
expected to occur because of the existence of various flexible joints in the system.
Therefore, the designer should think of alternative approaches to develop appropriate
systems or components that will dissipate energy.
Detailed finite element modeling of entire modular
buildings is complicated because of the variety of joint and
support types with unknown load-deformation properties.
For practical application of finite element modeling of
modular systems some simplifying modeling assumptions
are necessary. For example, a two-tier modeling approach
will be one option where for tier one, each module can be
simplified and assumed as a 3D sub-frame as shown in
Figure 15 to represent the modules shown in Figure 6 and
7. Kc, Kbf, Kbc, and Kj represent, respectively, the stiffness of
vertical members, floor level horizontal elements, floor
level horizontal elements, and joints. Once the entire
building is modeled using 3D sub-frames, the structure
can be subjected to applicable loads and analyzed. The forces the sub-frame experiences
can then be used for a more detailed second tier modeling. Using the forces resulting from
the analysis of the entire building model (first tier modeling) and applying them in a second
tier more detailed finite element model of each module, we can then design internal
elements of the modules such as beam, columns, ceiling beam, floor beam, bracing or shear
walls, etc.
Safety and robustness of the structures are important factors that designers must take into
account in the design of the structures (Lawson et al, 2008). There may be many situations
that could bring about the failure of some modules. Some of these situations are faults in
the factory where modules are assembled, damages during erection or transportation,
failure due to fire or explosion, terrorist attack, and plain collision. Therefore, elements and
connections must have enough redundancy to prevent repetitive failure or progressive
collapse of the structure, when some of the modules fail. Accordingly, the modules must
have a reliable integrity and the continuity needed to be able to bear the loads transferred
from failed modules. Furthermore, contractors cannot prevent all of the installation
problems and eccentricities during the sequence of module installation, and therefore, the
designer must consider installation problems and provide allowance in their design
calculations and drawings. Some internal forces must be added to the module elements or
alternatively the factors of safety increased.
Figure 15. A 3D Finite model for a 3D
module
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SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
As for any relatively new system, unknown structural behavior and lack of sufficient specific
design and construction guidelines and code requirements are two main reasons that
designers or contractors may not be inclined toward selecting modular construction
building. In order to make multi-story modular building more popular and reliable system,
challenging issues for the structural aspects have to be carefully addressed.
In developing computer modeling, the following issues should be considered: load
definition, modeling of modules overlap, element definition, and identifying loads during
construction. Furthermore, there are some important challenges in structural design of the
building, including the following: Individual module horizontal diaphragms, whole building
floor diaphragm, continuity in vertical plane, and connection of units. The importance
degree of the above mentioned challenges can vary based on job site condition and natural
disasters in the region to be considered in design; for example in places that are not
exposed to storm and earthquake load, the importance factor of some elements such as
diaphragms and vertical connections reduces. Finally, it should be mentioned that studying
existing modular building systems, evaluation of their performance, and discussing pros and
cons of each system can effectively be helpful to address the above mentioned challenges.
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