E-Housing

An E-House is a prefabricated power distribution substation that is deployed to site as a fully assembled and integrated unit; they are designed, engineered and manufactured by a professional E-Housing contractor. A major advantage of E-Housing over a brick-and-mortar substation is that it can be installed and commissioned without the need to establish a complex civil infrastructure. This saves on the costs of planning and managing civil works especially in remote areas where the cost of civil and infrastructure construction tends to be higher. The modular design gives a great deal of flexibility while reducing the overall footprint of the structure. On most sites, space is an important factor to consider, and the E-House allows the best possible use of the available space.

E-Housing projects highlights which the cost advantage of dealing with a single supplier will free up many hours of project management and allow for a seamless process from design through to fabrication, with all these activities undertaken at one location. This means a smaller team for the project’s engineer or consultant managing the project, leading to better productivity and resultant cost savings.  A further cost advantage is achieved by the time saved through combining all the related disciplines when engineering and producing the E-Housing project. When constructing a brick-and-mortar substation, a structure is first completed before a number of separate elements mostly prepared off-site by a number of different suppliers have to then be integrated into the building. This undertaking is complex and often involves numerous sub-contractors so it is often open possible to human error. With an E-House, this integration is carefully co-ordinated at the facility of the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), where any teething problems can be immediately addressed.

The cost and saving factors of E-housing are making E-Houses an increasingly attractive choice, as the economic climate places further pressure on project costing and forces contractors to look for ways to achieve savings in project expenditure. There is also a weather-related risk which the E-House avoids; rain and other poor weather conditions frequently delay construction time of built projects, particularly in regions with high rainfall. Being built off-site obviates these challenges and ensures on-time project completion. Beyond the advantage related to setting up and commissioning the E-House, the portability and self-contained nature of this electrical power solution. While it can be easily installed on site that can also be re-located without difficulty; this is particularly useful if the project expands and a substation is required to move to another working area.

E-Housing is also a perfect interim solution where electrical power needs to be provided prior to the balance of the operational infrastructure. It minimizes project lead times and reduces on-site construction requirements. The internal configuration of an E-House which is usually equipped with medium voltage switchgear, low voltage switchgear, transformers, instrumentation and auxiliary equipment can be upgraded when necessary. In applications where required, multi E-Houses can be used, again leveraging on the flexibility that this option provides.