As a method of delivery, modular construction moves the majority of a building's fabrication off the site and into a controlled factory environment, where standard modules are produced on jigs, inspected at each stage, and then transported to the project location for assembly. For camps and commercial projects — where accommodation blocks, offices, canteens, clinics and utility buildings must be delivered to a schedule that is often set by a third party — this shift has practical consequences for programme, quality consistency and cost control. CDPH, the brand of Beijing Chengdong International Modular Housing Corporation, manufactures modular house systems and steel structures for exactly these applications, and supplies them either as standalone buildings or as part of a complete camp solution.
Why modular construction suits camps and commercial projects
Camps and commercial developments share a set of conditions that reward off-site fabrication. They are frequently located away from established urban supply chains, they require a defined number of repeatable rooms or functional spaces, and they are often needed within a window that cannot absorb a long wet-trade construction programme on site.
Repeatability. A camp is typically a collection of similar units: dormitory rooms, ablution blocks, offices, a kitchen and dining hall, a clinic, a security post. Modular construction is efficient precisely when the same module type is repeated, because jigs, templates and inspection routines are set up once and applied across the whole production run. Each module leaves the factory with the same wall build-up, the same electrical routing and the same window and door positions, which simplifies snagging and future maintenance.
Relocatability. Many camps are not permanent. CDPH's modular house system is bolted together on site, which means the buildings can be dismantled, transported and re-erected elsewhere. Modules can also be added or reconfigured as a project's headcount changes.
Site conditions. Factory fabrication reduces the amount of wet trade and loose material handling at the site, which matters where labour is scarce, where the climate is extreme, or where the site is simply too constrained to host a large construction workforce. CDPH has supplied a copper mine camp built for −55 °C conditions, where the performance of the building envelope could not be left to site variables.
Integrated services. Because electrical circuits are pre-fitted in the roof and water supply runs along the walls with wall-side drainage, the services scope is largely completed in the factory.
The modular house system: specification and formats
The core product is a factory-prefabricated standard module. Modules are produced to two standard footprints and bolted together on site to form single, double or triple-storey buildings — or more storeys where the project design supports it — in I, U, L or courtyard layouts.
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Module sizes | 6055 × 2990 × 2896 mm (internal 5845 × 2780 × 2500 mm); 6055 × 2435 × 2896 mm (internal 5845 × 2225 × 2520 mm) |
| Frame | Galvanised cold-formed steel, t = 3.0 mm, SGH340, factory prefabricated |
| Roof live load | 1.0 / 0.5 kN/m² |
| Floor live load | 2.0 kN/m² |
| Wind load | 0.6 / 0.5 kN/m² |
| Roof and floor insulation | 100 mm glass wool |
| Walls | 75 mm colour-steel sandwich panels; seamless S-type rock wool composite panels |
| Flooring | 1.5 / 1.6 mm rubber-plastic flooring |
| Doors and windows | Steel doors; integrated PVC sliding windows with security bars and fly screens |
| Services | Electrical circuits pre-fitted in the roof; water supply along walls; wall-side drainage |
The same module platform is offered in two format variants, so the transport and assembly method can be matched to the site rather than the site being adapted to a single format:
- Flat pack — the 6055 mm standard box is packed flat for transport and assembled on site. This is often the most economical option where freight volume is the dominant constraint.
- Detachable — bolted, demountable modules that can be taken apart and reused, suited to phased or relocatable projects.
Typical applications for the modular buildings range include engineering camps, commercial buildings, emergency facilities, education facilities and military sites.
One-stop camp solutions: buildings plus support systems
A camp is not only accommodation. CDPH delivers one-stop camp solutions that combine modular and prefab buildings with six camp support systems: solar power, fire protection, water treatment, wastewater treatment, surveillance, and furnishing and sanitary. Buildings are drawn from the modular house system, the ZA/ZM prefab house series and steel structures.
Each support system is configured according to the camp's requirements and is priced together with the camp project, so procurement teams receive a single coordinated scope rather than a set of separate packages that must be interfaced on site. This matters most in remote locations, where a mismatch between, for example, water treatment capacity and the building layout is expensive to correct after mobilisation.
CDPH's camp reference projects include a port expansion camp in Cote d'Ivoire, a construction camp for a methanol plant, a camp for a cross-sea bridge project in Croatia, a natural gas project camp in Nigeria, a copper mine camp built for −55 °C conditions, and a living camp for a solar power station in Saudi Arabia whose fire performance was verified by Intertek testing. Further detail on the mining application is available on the mining camps page.
Steel structures for commercial and industrial buildings
Where a project requires larger clear spans or a different structural logic from the module system, CDPH supplies steel structures. Standard steel sections and H-beams form the main load-bearing frame, combined with other materials into complete buildings. Steel construction offers light self-weight, high strength, fast construction, and materials that are recyclable at end of life.
Three system families are available:
- Portal frames — industrial plants and warehouses.
- Frame structures — office buildings, dormitories and exhibition halls.
- Special structures — space frames, single-layer latticed shells, trusses, membrane structures and double-cantilever canopies.
Every steel structure is engineered per project design; there are no published per-type numeric parameters, because spans, loads and member sizes follow the specific building, its location and its intended use. The full service chain covers design, intelligent manufacturing, sea freight logistics, on-site assembly, and after-sales operation and maintenance.
How a modular project is delivered
The process is deliberately front-loaded. Because most of the work happens in the factory, the decisions that determine quality and programme are made before production starts.
- Engineering review and concept proposal. The engineering team reviews the project requirements — application, occupancy, site conditions, support systems — and replies within one business day with a concept proposal and a budget range.
- Design and detailing. Module layouts, storey configuration and services routing are fixed, together with the specification of any camp support systems.
- Factory fabrication. Frames are prefabricated from galvanised cold-formed steel; walls, insulation, flooring, doors, windows and pre-fitted electrical circuits are installed on the line.
- Inspection and quality control. Production is factory-based rather than site-built. Buyers can request certificates covering the relevant product categories.
- Logistics. Modules are packed according to the chosen format — flat pack or detachable — and shipped. The Hebei production base is 48 km from Tianjin Port.
- On-site assembly. Modules are bolted together on site; camp support systems are configured and priced with the camp project.
- After-sales operation and maintenance. Support continues after handover.
Manufacturing capacity and quality credentials
Beijing Chengdong International Modular Housing Corporation was founded in 2009 and operates three production bases — in Hebei, Xinjiang and Sichuan — supported by 13 subsidiaries and offices, a team of 500+ people including 100+ engineers, and a reported 5,000+ projects implemented in 100+ countries. Export markets include Eastern Europe, North America, Southeast Asia and Africa. Overseas projects are run through CDPH (HAINAN) COMPANY LIMITED, the wholly-owned subsidiary of the Beijing corporation.
Certifications are held at category level: CE for modular container houses, prefab houses and light steel villas; ISO 14001; ISO 45001; product carbon footprint certification; National High-Tech Enterprise status; NATA materials certification for Australia; Intertek fire-resistance certification; CCS factory approval; Intertek ICC-ES / WH building-material compliance for the US market. Fourteen key welders are qualified to AWS, CWB and CE standards. Certificates available upon request.
CDPH is a project-based manufacturer: there is no standard MOQ, and every project is quoted individually after engineering review. To discuss a camp or commercial project, contact the engineering team with your requirements — including location, intended use, occupancy and any support systems required — and you will receive a concept proposal and budget range within one business day. Telephone +86-10 69597331, email sales@cdph.com.cn, or reach the team by phone/WhatsApp on +86-180 01125803 or WhatsApp on +86-150 1044 5216. The head office is at No. 8 Art Museum East Street, Xiaobao Art Park, Songzhuang Town, Beijing, China.
Choosing and Specifying Modular Construction for Your Site
Because every camp and commercial building is quoted after an engineering review, the most useful first step is to define the operational requirements that will drive the specification. Modular construction from CDPH is built on a factory-prefabricated standard module, so the choices below determine both layout and logistics.
- Module format: standard modules are bolted together on site and can be relocatable and reusable. Where transport volume is the constraint, flat pack formats ship the 6055 mm standard box flat for site assembly, while detachable bolted modules can be demounted and reused on a later project.
- Configuration: buildings can be single, double, triple or higher storey and arranged in I, U, L or courtyard layouts to suit the plot.
- Specification notes: the galvanised cold-formed steel frame (t=3.0 mm, SGH340) is factory prefabricated, with 100 mm glass wool roof and floor insulation, 75 mm colour-steel sandwich and seamless S-type rock wool composite wall panels, steel doors and integrated PVC sliding windows with security bars and fly screens. Design loads are stated per module: roof live load 1.0 / 0.5 kN/m², floor live load 2.0 kN/m² and wind load 0.6 / 0.5 kN/m² — confirm your site conditions against these during review.
- Services and support systems: electrical circuits are pre-fitted in the roof, water supply runs along the walls and drainage is wall-side. Camps can add solar power, fire protection, water treatment, wastewater treatment, surveillance, and furnishing and sanitary systems, each configured to the camp's requirements and priced with the project.
Steel structures follow the same project-based approach: standard sections and H-beams form the main load-bearing frame, and every structure is engineered per project design, so no span, load or member size should be assumed in advance. Buyers can request certificates: "Certificates available upon request." Send your brief to sales@cdph.com.cn or call +86-10 69597331; the engineering team replies within one business day with a concept proposal and a budget range.