Boston-based Suffolk Construction will lead construction management on a $1 billion-plus student housing job, and it plans to use modular construction techniques to deliver key parts of the build with accuracy and efficiency, according to an April 6 announcement sent to Construction Dive.
California Polytechnic State University tpaped Suffolk for its $1.2 billion, multiphase student housing expansion, per the announcement.
The program will add approximately 3,600 new student beds and renovate roughly 1,200 existing beds on the school’s campus in San Luis Obispo.
Cal Poly launched its program, the Future Housing Plan, in the summer of 2024, according to the university. Over the course of the project, the construction team will erect two buildings. Building A, which will open in fall 2026, will house approximately 500 students, while Building B, slated for opening in fall 2027, will hold approximately 700 students.
Suffolk was initially engaged on the program in October 2025. Onsite construction began this month.
To meet the university’s goals, Suffolk will leverage modular fabrication and delivery, alongside advanced digital modeling, geospatial positioning and artificial intelligence-powered planning tools to ensure precise unit stacking and minimize disruption, per the announcement.
“From a cost perspective, modular construction on a program this size supports tighter cost control through standardized, repeatable unit production,” Preston Hoopes, general manager of Northern California for Suffolk, told Construction Dive via email. “When you’re delivering housing at this scale, the ability to manufacture units in a controlled environment reduces variability and waste, which translates to more predictable budgets and fewer surprises during construction.”
With this tech, Suffolk aims to identify issues early, maintain schedule certainty and deliver each unit with accuracy and efficiency, according to the news release.
Indeed, Jim Stanley, executive vice president and Los Angeles division manager of Suffolk Construction, told Facilities Dive in 2025 that the university could expect to complete the main structure of a 100-unit building in seven days, or 30% quicker than a stick-built structure.
The units will be manufactured by New York City-based manufacturing firm Fullstack Modular, per the university’s Future Housing Plan webpage. Fullstack can build modular structures from seven to 45 stories, according to the firm’s LinkedIn. It owns two manufacturing facilities in Hamden, Connecticut, and Carson, California, according to its website.
Best use cases for modular
Modular construction, despite its initially lukewarm reception among the broader construction industry, has drawn attention from builders over the last few years. Multifamily developers are leveraging the tech, for example, alongside builders working in the life sciences fields.
There’s also a ripe opportunity for modular construction in data center builds, due to the scalability and repeatable nature of these projects.
Suffolk’s own portfolio of modular projects includes 18722 Sherman Way, a new development for people experiencing homelessness, and 6th Street Place in Los Angeles, an affordable housing development, per the news release. These come alongside major student housing developments, which include the Fieldstone complex at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
To wit, the contractor views modular construction as one of several tools in its building arsenal.
“For projects where full modular may not be the best fit, we see targeted, component-based fabrication being integrated into delivery methods,” Hoopes said. “This includes bathroom pods, wall panels, floor and roof trusses.”
