Fort Bragg
Constructing Buildings using Shipping Containers
Fort Bragg has completed its first steel shipping container building with a total construction time of only 110 days. The building is the first multi-story commercial structure of its kind in the United States. The new facility is constructed of 12 used, 14-gauge steel shipping containers. Each module weighs about 8,500 pounds, is built to hold an impressive 50,000 pounds and is capable of withstanding the weight of eight like-sized containers stacked on top of it. With an exterior appearance designed to meet the installation’s specifications, the building blends with its surroundings. The containers are used as a structural building block, and all interior and exterior construction is standard commercial construction, so the end result is what would normally be expected on the inside, only with a much stronger structure. The building also boasts the longevity necessary to meet the Army’s 50-year structural life-cycle requirement for all standard construction.
Converting used shipping containers into buildings may present much-needed solutions to the growing national problems of rising construction and materials costs, diminishing virgin steel resources, widespread deforestation of timber for construction purposes and the growing excess of abandoned shipping containers at U.S. seaports. The process also uses steel in its most conversion-efficient form and preserves energy that would have otherwise been expended in the construction of new materials. Ft. Bragg’s Environmental Management Branch is counting on this success to serve as a prototype for future developments.
- Mission Fort Bragg is committed to being an environmental steward of natural resources and protecting training lands for future generations. The mission of the Environmental Compliance Branch (ECB) is to support all Fort Bragg military operations and civilian activities by ensuring that the installation maintains the highest level of environmental compliance. With more than $2 billion in new construction slated to occur over the next four years, the ECB supports Fort Bragg in a new era of explorative and forward thinking sustainable design and development solutions.
- Community The container housing’s resilient design was first introduced to the United States in Charleston, S.C., where it continues to gain popularity in the residential market due to its superior hurricane and wind resistance. Additionally by using this construction Ft. Bragg put people to work and created new jobs.
- Environment It is highly unlikely that the structure of these buildings will rot or get moisture damage, and they are less likely to grow mold or mildew which improves indoor air quality. Additionally, melting down an 8,000-pound steel shipping container expends 8,000 kilowatt hours (kwh) of energy. However, it takes only 5 percent of that amount (400 kwh) to modify the container to be used as a building block for construction.
At under $750,000, this building has a price tag comparable to that of standard construction on Fort Bragg. Material costs are minimized by purchasing used containers. New containers typically cost about $4,500, but used ones can be bought at less than half the price. As construction costs continue to climb, it has becoming increasingly difficult to build decent-sized structures for under the $750,000 limit for minor construction. Additionally, container buildings durable steel frames are expected to help save thousands of dollars on long-term maintenance costs and by preventing potential damages from not only wind, but fire, moisture and other damaging elements.
CAB Resident Office, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Phone: 910-396-9977