Prefabricated Wood Building Manufacturers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 600 prefabricated wood building manufacturers in the US produce modular homes and commercial building units, log cabins, detached garages, sheds, sauna rooms, gazebos, wooden geodesic domes, and farm buildings such as barns, chicken coops and corn cribs. This industry does not include mobile home manufacturers, although some modular building manufactures also offer mobile homes and park models.
Variable Building Material Prices
Prefabricated wood building manufacturers rely on supplies of lumber, particle board, drywall, electrical wiring, plumbing fixtures, windows and doors, roofing and siding materials, insulation, flooring materials, cabinets, paint, and hardware.
Demand for Affordable Housing
Firms stand to benefit by working with land developers, lenders, and the government in creating affordable housing projects.
Industry size & Structure
A typical prefabricated wood building manufacturing firm operates out of a single location, employs about 37 workers, and generates about $11 million annually.
- The prefabricated wood building manufacturing industry consists of about 600 companies which employ about 22,000 workers and generate about $6.5 billion annually.
- Just 50 firms have 100 or more workers.
- The industry is somewhat concentrated: the 20 largest firms represent just 3.5% of the total number of firms but they control 59% of industry revenue.
- Large companies include Skyline Champion (modular homes), Southland Log Homes, Backyard Products (sheds, gazebos), Country Carpenters (barns and sheds), and JDM Structures (barns and sheds).
Industry Forecast
Prefabricated Wood Building Manufacturers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Jul 12, 2024 - Industry Growth to Improve Then Flatten
- The prefabricated wood building manufacturing industry is expected to return to stronger sales growth in 2025 after sluggish performance in 2023 and 2024. The industry’s year-over-year sales growth slowed to 1.3% growth in 2023 after a rise of 10.2% in 2022, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Sales growth in the prefabricated wood building manufacturing industry is expected to improve slightly in 2024 with a gain of 2.7%, then see average annual growth of about 4.6% through 2028, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc.
- Modular construction – including wood-framed buildings – makes up about 45% of construction in Sweden, and some industry observers think it’s a good model for the US, according to The New York Times. Labor productivity in site-built homes has fallen by half since the late-1960s, but industrialized housing could reverse the trend. Modular buildings could also help meet housing needs amid a rising shortage of skilled labor. Modular wood buildings also can help reduce carbon emissions. About 40% of global carbon emissions are due to construction, but in Sweden construction only accounts for 20% as many buildings are made using wood, a renewable resource. Like Sweden, the US has ample supplies of timber.
- A weak US housing market has pushed lumber prices down, which could help reduce input costs for prefabricated wood building manufacturers. High interest rates and home prices have reduced key housing indicators, including housing starts and building permits. Sluggish lumber demand from home builders has increased supplies and driven prices lower. As of late June, lumber futures declined more than 25% since mid-March, according to The Wall Street Journal.
- The NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) reading for the first quarter of 2024 was 66, down one point from the fourth quarter of 2023, according to an April 2024 report by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Any RMI reading over 50 indicates that most remodelers feel market conditions are good. In the first quarter, the Current Conditions Index portion of the RMI remained unchanged in Q4 2023 at 74. The Future Indicators Index component of the RMI was also unchanged at 59. While the RMI remained solidly in positive territory in Q1 2024, the NAHB noted that high prices for labor and materials continue to pose challenges to the remodeling industry. The NAHB said that although the Current Conditions Index and the Future Indicators Index were unchanged in Q1, the overall RMI dropped a point due to rounding. Remodeling spending can help drive demand for sheds and other prefabricated wood buildings.
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