Shaping the world of construction by reimagining modular - Part three

Since creating this article and video series, MODLOGIQ has acquired the equipment, rehired the employees, and completed a new lease for the facility formerly occupied by ToVee. To visit their new website, click here or read the press release here.

With Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) pushing new boundaries, modular companies are reimagining the way we build.

But how exactly is modular reimagining the way we build, and why do those in the know consider it to be the future?

To answer these questions and more, we invited Dave Cooper to visit ToVee, a modular offsite construction company we first interviewed back in 2020, in Seville, Ohio, USA. Dave follows a modular project through from concept to completion, to see how ToVee is reducing costs, compressing schedules, and improving quality by integrating different technologies.

In part three of our six-part series, Dave and Russ investigate ToVee’s automated process for turning design data into precise steel components, and the vital role played by their Howick FRAMA™ 7800.

The design data hits the factory floor at ToVee in their Howick FRAMA™ 7800.

“For our setup, this is the largest, most capable machine that Howick makes. It's the only one in North America right now, so that's a huge step for us,” says Russ.

The FRAMA™ 7800 can handle rolling to a vast array of profile specifications (12, 14, 16 gauge thickness and 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14-inch web widths), providing ToVee with “a big footprint” to help customers.

“It'll print out your bottom tracks, your studs, your top tracks, everything. We can change the order in which it goes."

The FRAMA™ 7800 first processes the design data and the order of production before a steel coil is fed through the machine. For easy assembly, each component is printed in sequence with MEP holes and dimples punched in the steel first before it is rolled into a C or U-shaped stud, labelled and cut to measure, ready for the framing line.

“It's very user-friendly, so we can get exactly what the customer needs.”

Coming up next

In part 4, Dave and Russ follow the steel studs to the highly-efficient framing line, made possible thanks to the precision and sequencing of the FRAMA™ 7800.