In 2016, the “Internet decoration” industry was seeking its next breakthrough after riding the wave of rapid growth.
Back in 2014, “Internet decoration” experienced a significant boom. However, by 2016, the industry entered a phase of rational adjustment. Despite being a favorite among investors, many “Internet decoration” companies began to slow down due to a lack of core competitiveness in the market. Moreover, it became clear that “Internet decoration” had not completely overturned traditional decoration methods, leading some to question whether it was merely a passing trend or gimmick.
Based on the author’s extensive experience and long-term observation of the industry, the answer is a clear no.
While “Internet decoration” has not fully replaced traditional decoration, it has established itself as a strong competitor. No major traditional decoration company can now ignore the rise of prominent “Internet decoration” players such as AiSpace, Youzhu.com, and Meijiabang.
Furthermore, the decoration industry’s push to create standardized products through the “Internet” has sparked technological innovation. This progress, led primarily by “Internet” companies, clearly benefits from the inherent advantages of “Internet decoration” firms.
Previously, Yiou identified six emerging technologies expected to further transform the home decoration industry in 2017. These include VR home decoration, prefabricated decoration, intelligent production, and big data. Among these, prefabricated decoration stands out as a particularly mature and practical concept — truly embodying the idea that “the future is here.”
So, what exactly is prefabricated decoration?
Prefabricated decoration, also known as industrialized decoration, is a process where industrially produced components are reliably assembled by skilled workers on site, following standardized procedures and using dry construction methods. (Source: Beijing Prefabricated Decoration Local Standard, “Technical Regulations for Prefabricated Decoration Engineering (Draft)” by He Neng Renju Technology)
Since its core lies in reliably assembling most main materials through industrial production techniques, prefabricated decoration is often referred to as industrial decoration.
There are four key characteristics that define industrialized decoration:
1. Standardized Design: This involves integrating architectural and decoration design into modular units, employing collaborative BIM (Building Information Modeling) models to eliminate conflicts between buildings, equipment, pipelines, and decoration.
From a user’s perspective, the layout of your home—especially in new developments—will be stored in a BIM database. Simply supplying an accurate address allows decoration companies to skip on-site measurements, quickly selecting suitable materials from their existing libraries and generating design sketches.
2. Industrial Production: This refers to standardizing product components, including their models, specifications, and design.
Closely linked to standardized design, the data from BIM models feed directly into factories for customized production of non-standard materials. Consequently, the panels delivered to the site will perfectly match the user’s home.
3. Prefabricated Construction: On-site assembly is performed by industrial workers following standardized procedures managed like factory processes.
Don’t underestimate the significance of this standard: prefabricated construction resembles the ancient mortise and tenon technique, avoiding adhesives and greatly improving indoor air quality. On-site workers also avoid using cement mortar, resulting in cleaner and tidier job sites. On a larger scale, energy is allocated more efficiently, and integrated decoration environments are better protected. Additionally, this method facilitates easy replacement of main materials like walls and ceilings. Users can swap components quickly without heavy tools, and industrial workers can complete replacements within hours.
4. Information Technology Collaboration: This includes standardizing and modularizing components, integrating measurement data with intelligent factory manufacturing, and coordinating on-site progress with engineering logistics.
Information technology plays a vital role throughout the process, from visualizing construction projects and managing extensive SKU libraries to matching personalized user data with software-based decoration. Industrial decoration fully leverages the convenience brought by advanced information systems.
In summary, industrialized decoration promises to revolutionize the industry by boosting productivity. It addresses many traditional decoration challenges such as slow delivery, messy sites, inconsistent quality, unscientific design planning, and complicated updates or maintenance.
The ideal environment for industrial decoration is the “Internet decoration” industry. Unlike traditional decoration, Internet-based companies possess the necessary attributes for standardization, modular assembly, industrial production, and IT collaboration. In 2016, some enterprises began small-scale pilots, and in 2017, Youzhu.com — a pioneer in Internet decoration — plans to launch assembly-style home decoration to the forefront this spring, spearheading a new wave of change in the industry.
As “Internet decoration” companies continue to make significant strides, we look forward to witnessing the full launch of industrial decoration in 2017.
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