Recognizing the important role played by temporary trailers, the Florida legislature acted on the public school study and mandated a change in factory built classroom specifications. The Florida legislative action is a precursor to better product specifications for temporary classrooms which will be adopted state by state over the next decade. Individual states would fare far better if they followed Florida's lead earlier than later.

The peculiar product attributes of relocatability and speed of installation/deinstallation have finally been recognized as an essential planning element for forward thinking school districts. Shifting demographics, temporary needs, smaller class sizes and an ever-expanding breadth of educational alternatives all justify the use of relocatable classrooms. Even more compelling, the wave of elementary age students will eventually diminish and schools are loath to repeat the overbuilding dilemma of the sixties.

If the merits of relocatable classrooms are recognized, the best longer-term economic alternative is to procure classrooms with more substantial specifications. Relocatable classrooms are no longer required to have the look and feel of a mobile home or a construction site trailer. While it is true many relocatable classrooms have been built and continue in use with an aluminum roof, a thin trailer aluminum exterior, small windows, a residential grade door, doorframe and lockset, wood underlayment, studs and walls, and minimum lighting and ventilation, this wood based classroom is no longer the only choice.

Non-combustible classrooms are now mandated in Florida. These doublewide classrooms consist of two 12' x 40' modules built to join lengthwise to form one 24' x 40' rectangle. Built on a rigid steel frame, the classroom complies with large missile impact requirements indicating an ability to successfully withstand the hurricane force winds found in many parts of Florida. The floor is poured lightweight concrete with fiberglass reinforcement offering the feel of site built construction. Gone are the bouncing and hollow sounds often associated with the trailer classroom.

Steel studs extend from the floor to the roof and support a substantial roof structure finished with a long wear, low maintenance black rubber covering material. Similar to bicycle tire inner tubes I repaired as a kid, the rubber roof can be seamed and patched to minimize leaks. The rubber roof has a long useful life and is vastly superior in terms of both energy conservation and appearance to the aluminum found on the standard trailer classroom.

Interior walls are vinyl covered gypsum board attached to drywall. Four large windows with energy efficient glass offer substantial natural light. The exterior walls of light gauge aluminum sheets found on many classroom trailers have been replaced with a Hardi-panel fiber cement siding. This concrete material boasts a fifty-year warranty and offers a variety of finishes including a stucco appearance. Thus, instead of the look of a mobile home, the new non-combustible classroom is essentially a permanent, relocatable structure indistinguishable from its site built counterpart.

The interior floor covering of the new generation relocatable classroom sports a thick high density, high traffic carpet. Gone are the sprayed ceilings with cheap lights. The new classrooms offer T-grid 2' x 4' tiles with recessed lighting. Interior light levels have been improved with better fixtures and larger windows in response to the request for more light. The cheaper aluminum doors have been replaced with heavy metal, a steel doorframe and a commercial grade lockset. From a maintenance standpoint, the two problem areas with the older trailer classrooms have been roof leaks and faulty doors. Both have been substantially upgraded in the new non-combustible classroom.

The new classroom includes a heat pump and a superior ventilation and cooling system. Gone are the large HVAC units hanging off the back of the classroom. Air circulation has been increased and an air monitoring system has been introduced to monitor and control the learning environment.

Finally, the older trailer classrooms were pulled to the site by a truck, set on concrete blocks and aluminum skirting was added to hide the tires and axles and offer a finished appearance. Often several feet in the air, steps, decks and ramps were added at a substantial cost relative to the price of the classroom. The new non-combustible sits on the ground and eliminates the need for the costly steps, decks and ramps. This not only minimizes installation costs, but also eliminates a potential mold problem. The dank crawl space no longer exists.

The new look relocatable classrooms offer vastly superior aesthetics, significantly upgraded building components and an improved learning environment. The buildings by themselves are indistinguishable from site built schools. The remaining difference is the new relocatable classrooms do not share the same roof with the main school. Students must exit the relocatable and walk outside to reach the cafeteria, gym or restroom. This potential exposure has been addressed with a roof overhang at the front of the classroom. If two classrooms are aligned face-to-face, a ten foot covered walkway is formed. The rubber roof of each is joined to the other to form a continuous cover. A number of face-to-face classrooms set alongside each other offer a covered walk to the main school building.

The new non-combustible classroom costs more than the predecessor trailer. While everyone certainly favors a better learning environment, the real question is at what cost. This is where it can get tricky. Cost must include not only the classroom, delivery and installation, but also maintenance and operating costs over an anticipated period of use. The new classrooms are no more costly to operate and maintain than the core school-and in fact, may be far more efficient given the age of the core structure. The new generation non-combustible classrooms are far cheaper to operate due to numerous energy efficiencies. The new classrooms also require far less maintenance. The analysis boils down to the anticipated period of need.

At nearly twice the cost of the older wood based traditional trailer classroom, the new non-combustible does not make economic sense for a school system if the need is truly temporary (12 to 18 months while construction or renovation of an existing facility is underway). If the requirement is permanent, there is no question the pricier non-combustible is the way to go. It is the mid-year requirement that needs to be analyzed--and analyzed with relocatability and the cost of relocation(s) factored into the equation.

In late 1993, the Florida Center for Community Design and Research, a research arm of the University of South Florida Master of Architecture Program, released a report on The Use of Relocatable Classrooms in the Public School Districts of Florida. Prepared at the behest of the Florida Department of Education, the report provides an in-depth analysis of the use, perceptions and future of relocatable classrooms. The findings and recommendations of the report had a profound influence on the role of relocatable classrooms in Florida.

For decades, wood based classroom trailers have been used as a low cost method to provide temporary space. More often than not, the temporary requirement lasted for longer than anyone imagined. The light grade trailers were often pressed into extended service and either fell into a state of disrepair or commanded an ever-increasing share of the maintenance and operating budgets. Abuse occasioned by excessive wear and tear was manifest in damaged exteriors, well-worn interior components and poor air circulation.

The 1993 Florida study focused, in part, on the cost of relocatable classrooms as compared to permanent construction. Costs were subdivided into four distinct categories: the initial capital outlay; operating costs; maintenance costs and replacement costs. Remember that survey data for the Florida study was gathered ten years ago in 1993. Permanent school additions in 1993 in Florida cost on average about $61 per square foot. The purchase price per square foot for relocatables, delivered and installed on site, was found to average between $22 and $47 per square foot. The wide variation for relocatables must be due in part to different freight and installation costs as well as different quality in the buildings. The mid point of the 1993 relocatable price range is just over 61% of the cost of permanent school construction in 1993.

Operating costs (direct energy consumption) for a permanent common classroom in 1993 averaged $1 per square foot per year while relocatables ranged from $1 to $1.20 for low-end relocatables to $1 to $1.10 for high-end relocatables.

Maintenance costs including normal preventative and replacement maintenance were approximately $2.30 per square foot per year for permanent construction. High-end relocatables averaged $2.50 per square foot in 1993 and low-end relocatables averaged $2.75 per square foot.

Normal refurbishment and replacement costs for items such as HVAC units, roofing, exterior finishes and carpets were approximately 36% higher for relocatables than for permanent structures with total costs over a 30 year period estimated at $15,275 for a relocatable classroom and $11,167 for a permanent structure.

Life cycle cost analyses were performed on the comparative costs over a 30-year period for permanent and relocatable classrooms. Each analysis looked at estimated life expectancy, required operating and maintenance costs as well as periodic refurbishment outlays. It was assumed the relocatable stayed in place for the entire period of the analysis. Relocatables are essentially permanent structures until such time as they need to be relocated. According to the Florida study, relocatable classrooms were found to be a good investment over the 30 year anticipated life cycle if they were purchased at or below a calculated break-even price. A low end relocatable in 1993 was found to have a break-even price of $31 per square foot while a high end relocatable was found to have a break-even price of $37 per square foot. This means that in 1993, if you had a 30 year requirement for a classroom, all other things being equal, from a financial standpoint, relocatables performed the same as permanent construction if they could be purchased for $31 or less per square foot for a low end relocatable or $37 or less per square foot for a high end relocatable.

The same analysis needs to be performed for the new generation relocatable classroom. Today permanent construction averages approximately $110 - $120 per square foot. The non-combustible relocatable classroom costs about $60 - $65 per square foot plus delivery and installation. If delivery and installation are included, relocatables cost on average 60% of the cost of permanent construction. This is about the same ratio found in 1993 for the wood based relocatable, yet the new relocatable is concrete and steel.

Higher quality building components in today's relocatable means the differential in operating, maintenance and refurbishment costs found in 1993 between permanent and relocatable have been narrowed considerably. If wood based relocatables were a good investment in 1993, concrete and steel relocatables are a great investment in 2003 when compared to permanent construction.

The Florida study concluded "due to the continuation of high rates of growth in public school enrollment levels. and expected weakness in these district's fiscal position, the use of relocatable classrooms will certainly continue to expand during upcoming years. The information in this report has shown that these structures can be just as educationally effective and cost efficient in the long run as permanent classroom additions... This study has found that the primary advantages of the relocatable classroom are its ability to provide flexible, suitable short-term accommodation for Florida's growing student population and its ability to provide that accommodation incrementally, in a timely and cost efficient fashion... The growing reliance on portable classrooms as a means to meet enrollment expansion needs is in effect shifting some portion of the financial burden for the housing of new students from the capital outlay to the operating end of the budget. This may or may not be a desirable consequence depending upon the relative ease with which the burden can be accommodated."

Florida is a leader in the use of relocatable classrooms in the US. Just as they have assured their position by mandating a new generation of relocatable classroom, it is a certainty the lessons of Florida will spread north. The new relocatables offer compelling product attributes with economics superior to permanent construction alternatives.

Michael I. Roman is the chief executive officer of Resun Leasing Inc. headquartered in Dulles, Va. and a past president of the Modular Building Institute.
Email: mroman@resunleasing.com.