PANELO Insights / Prefabrication

What Is Prefabricated Timber Construction?

Prefabricated timber construction moves a significant part of the building process from the construction site into a controlled factory environment.

Prefabricated timber construction uses factory-made structural components assembled on site. This guide explains the building method and the role of prefabricated timber elements, including wall panels, floor elements and roof elements. For delivery planning and the site workflow, read our offsite timber construction guide.

Instead of constructing walls, floors and roofs largely from individual materials on site, prefabrication allows complete structural elements to be manufactured in advance.

Depending on the system, these elements can already include the structural timber frame, insulation, structural facings and prepared window and door openings.

The result is a construction process in which more work is completed under controlled factory conditions and less work remains to be carried out on the building site.

How does prefabricated timber construction work?

The process starts with the architectural and structural design of the building. The building is then divided into elements that can be manufactured, transported and assembled efficiently.

These elements may include external walls, internal load-bearing walls, intermediate floors and roof structures.

Because the elements are manufactured from project drawings, dimensions, openings and structural requirements can be incorporated before the panels reach the construction site.

From architectural drawings to building assembly

01

Building design

The process begins with the architect's building design, dimensions and required openings.

02

Panel engineering

The building is converted into manufacturable wall, floor and roof elements and the required structural components are engineered.

03

Factory production

The structural elements are manufactured in controlled factory conditions according to the project drawings.

04

Site assembly

The completed elements are transported to the building site and assembled to form the building structure.

The principle is simple: build more in the factory

A traditional construction site brings materials, workers and multiple separate operations together at the building location. Prefabrication moves many of those operations into a factory.

This changes the role of the construction site. Instead of being primarily a place where individual building materials are processed, it increasingly becomes a place where pre-manufactured building elements are assembled.

Advantages of prefabricated timber construction

Faster construction

Large building elements can be installed much faster than constructing the same structure from individual materials on site.

Less site labour

More work completed during factory production means fewer cutting, fitting and assembly operations are required on site.

Factory precision

Production from detailed project drawings allows dimensions, openings and structural components to be prepared before delivery.

Reduced material waste

Project-specific manufacturing can reduce cutting and unnecessary offcuts on the construction site.

Weather protection

A greater share of the construction process takes place inside the factory, reducing exposure of materials and components to site weather during production.

Predictable construction

Factory production allows important parts of the structure to be prepared before the installation team begins assembly on site.

How does PANELO use prefabricated timber construction?

PANELO is an offsite timber construction system based on factory-made structural wall, floor and roof panels.

Each panel combines a load-bearing timber frame, structural facings and high-performance closed-cell PUR insulation into a single building element.

The panels are manufactured according to the individual building project rather than simply being supplied as standard-size boards that must be extensively adapted on site.

Window and door openings can be manufactured directly into the wall panels, including the required structural timber framing around the openings.

This allows large parts of the building envelope to arrive on site as ready-to-install structural elements.

Factory-installed insulation

Prefabrication also allows insulation to become part of the building element during factory production rather than being installed separately on the construction site.

In PANELO panels, closed-cell PUR insulation is injected into the panel during production. The material expands inside the panel and bonds with the timber frame and structural facings.

This eliminates the need to cut and fit loose insulation between the structural members on site. It also reduces the risk of insulation gaps, incorrect fitting and exposure of the insulation to rain or other site weather during the insulation stage.

The combination of factory-installed insulation, project-specific panel dimensions and fewer site-made connections helps create a consistent thermal envelope while reducing the number of operations that must be completed correctly on the construction site.

PUR Insulation vs Mineral Wool – What Is the Difference? →

One system for walls, floors and roofs

Wall panels

Load-bearing external wall elements can include project-specific window and door openings with the required timber framing already incorporated.

Floor panels

Structural floor elements allow intermediate floors to form part of the same prefabricated building system.

Roof panels

Structural insulated roof elements combine the load-bearing structure and thermal envelope in large factory-made panels.

Prefabricated vs traditional site-built timber construction

The materials used in prefabricated timber construction can be familiar. What changes most significantly is where and when the work is completed.

In conventional site-built timber construction, the frame, insulation, boards and many structural details are assembled through separate operations on the construction site.

In a highly prefabricated system, many of these operations are combined into the manufacture of complete building elements before delivery.

For builders and developers, this can mean a shorter on-site structural phase and less dependence on numerous separate site operations. For architects, it allows conventional building designs to be translated into an engineered offsite construction system.

Continue exploring

SIP Panels vs PANELO → See how PANELO differs from conventional SIP panel construction.
Wall Panels → Explore prefabricated load-bearing timber wall panels.
Roof Panels → Explore PANELO structural insulated roof panels.
For Architects → See how architectural projects are converted into factory-made panels.

Have a project suitable for prefabricated timber construction?

Send us your architectural drawings. PANELO can evaluate the project and convert the building into factory-made structural wall, floor and roof elements.

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