Portakabin

What Portakabin does

Portakabin Limited is a York-headquartered, privately-held modular building manufacturer and hire company founded in 1960, operating across 10 European countries with more than 2,200–2,300 employees. The company designs, manufactures, transports, and installs permanent-grade and temporary modular buildings, portable cabins, and Portaloo sanitation/welfare units from three state-of-the-art European factories totalling 283,900m2 of manufacturing space, distributing them through 55+ UK Visitor Centres and 100+ across Europe.

The business serves education (classrooms, whole schools, SEND facilities), healthcare (HBN/HTM-compliant wards, operating theatres, GP surgeries, diagnostic rooms), construction site accommodation, professional sports (Premier League football clubs), defence, and an emerging transitional-housing vertical. Its technology proposition centres on factory-controlled off-site precision manufacturing, which delivers up to 70% faster build times, 90% less vehicle use and 90% less waste versus traditional on-site construction, and a financial-backed 'On Time On Budget Promise' supported by a documented 99.7% on-time delivery rate. Buildings are certified to BREEAM Excellent and (in the Foleshill Health Centre case) Passivhaus standards.

Portakabin generates revenue through three principal streams: (1) monthly hire of modular buildings from the UK's largest fleet, (2) one-time sale of new permanent-grade buildings (5-year product/30-year structural warranty) and refurbished second-hand stock (3-year/10-year warranty), and (3) comprehensive 360-degree turnkey project services covering planning, groundworks, delivery, installation, and after-sales. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales plus public-sector procurement frameworks (notably the 2026 YPO £500m modular buildings framework), with quote-based pricing. The 2025 entry of Antin Infrastructure Fund as long-term financial partner and the March 2026 appointment of Dan Ibbetson as CEO mark a new strategic phase.

Name

Portakabin

Legal name

Portakabin Limited

Website

https://portakabin.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1960

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Portakabin Limited is a York-based, privately-held modular building manufacturer and hire company operating across 10 European countries, serving education, healthcare, construction, defence, and sports sectors with factory-built portable cabins, permanent modular buildings, and Portaloo sanitation units distributed through 100+ visitor centres.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Modular Building Manufacturing

NAICS

Household and Institutional Furniture Manufacturing (33712)

SIC

Mobile Homes (2451)

akta.pro primary industry

Modular/Offsite General Contracting & Installation (IMAFAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Residential Modular & Prefabricated Home Construction (IMAFABAF)

Keywords

• Modular building construction
• Portable cabin hire
• Permanent modular buildings
• Site accommodation solutions
• Prefab building manufacturer

Headquarters

HQ city

Huntington

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Modular building hire: Portakabin offers modular buildings for hire for as long as customers need them. Hire options include portable cabins, site accommodation, offices, toilets and showers. The company operates the UK's largest fleet of high-quality modular buildings and serves customers through 55+ UK Visitor Centres. Hire terms include minimum hire periods with options to extend.
2. New modular buildings for sale: Portakabin sells new permanent-grade modular buildings. Buildings come with a 5-year product warranty covering the external fabric and a 30-year structural warranty. Refurbished buildings come with a 3-year product warranty and 10-year structural warranty.
3. Pre-owned/refurbished modular buildings: Portakabin sells refurbished second-hand modular buildings from its fleet. These carry a 3-year product warranty and 10-year structural warranty. Customers can sell back their modular building to Portakabin.
4. Comprehensive project services: Portakabin provides a 360-degree service covering planning and design, groundworks, delivery and installation, project management, after-sales and maintenance, landscaping, and relocation. The company can act as main contractor for turnkey projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Portakabin designs, manufactures, hires, and sells modular and portable buildings — including portable cabins, permanent-grade modular buildings, site accommodation, and Portaloo sanitation units — using factory-controlled precision manufacturing. Products are delivered to enterprise and public sector customers as turnkey projects covering planning, groundworks, delivery, installation, and after-sales service across 10 European countries.

Product overview

Portakabin is a market-leading modular building manufacturer offering a comprehensive portfolio of portable cabins, permanent-grade modular buildings, site accommodation, and sanitation facilities. The product range includes portable cabin sub-brands (Arkive, Pacemaker, Pullman, Solus, Titan), modular building systems (Alta, Duplex, Titan Building System, Ultima), Portaloo sanitation products, and Konstructa site accommodation solutions. Buildings serve diverse end-market applications across education (classrooms, whole schools, nurseries), healthcare (hospitals, GP surgeries, operating theatres), offices, site accommodation, storage, sports facilities, defence, and transitional housing. The company operates across 10 European countries with over 100 Visitor Centres, offering buildings for hire, purchase new, or refurbished. Key differentiators include the On Time On Budget Promise and ISO-accredited factory manufacturing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Portaloo: Portable toilet, shower and changing room buildings manufactured by Portakabin for hire and sale.
• Konstructa
• Yorkon

Products and services

• Portable Cabins (Arkive, Pacemaker, Pullman, Solus, Titan product lines) Premium portable cabin ranges for hire or sale, designed for site offices, welfare facilities, and temporary workspace. Includes the Arkive, Pacemaker, Pullman, Solus, and Titan variants serving different durability, size, and configuration requirements.
• Permanent Modular Buildings (Alta Range, Duplex, Titan Building System, Ultima) High-quality permanent-grade modular building systems manufactured off-site, suitable for multi-storey configurations and long-term installations. The Alta Range targets high thermal performance, Duplex enables two-storey configurations on constrained sites, Titan is a robust permanent system, and Ultima is the premium range for long-term installations with high-quality finishes.
• Portaloo Sanitation and Welfare Facilities Portable toilets, showers, and changing room buildings available for hire and sale, including accessible, junior, and standard configurations. Permanent-quality all-steel construction with full-flushing toilets, hot and cold running water, mains water and sewage connections.
• Konstructa Site Accommodation (Jackleg Cabin and Modular ranges) Site accommodation buildings for construction and industrial applications, including the Jackleg Cabin range for portable welfare and office space and the Konstructa Modular range for longer-term portable building requirements on construction sites.
• Modular Building Hire (UK's largest fleet) Subscription-based hire of modular buildings for as long as customers need them. Hire options include portable cabins, site accommodation, offices, toilets, and showers. Buildings available for short-term to multi-year hire with maintenance included and options to extend, buy, or return at the end of the minimum period.
• Pre-owned / Refurbished Modular Buildings Refurbished second-hand modular buildings from Portakabin's fleet, sold with a 3-year product warranty and 10-year structural warranty. Customers can also sell back their modular building to Portakabin at end of life.
• Comprehensive Turnkey Project Services 360-degree project services covering planning and design, groundworks, delivery and installation, project management, after-sales and maintenance, landscaping, and relocation. Portakabin can act as main contractor for complete turnkey project delivery.
• Jordan's Home (Single Living Accommodation) A new modular Single Living Accommodation housing model for transitional and supported housing. Unveiled at UKREiiF 2026, designed for youth homelessness and social housing applications with cost-capped rental terms.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99.7% of buildings delivered on time and on budget
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• CentrepointcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 May 2026Portakabin and youth homelessness charity Centrepoint unveiled 'Jordan's Home' — a new Single Living Accommodation modular housing model for young people experiencing homelessness in the UK. The model aims to create at least 300 such homes capped at a third of a resident's income. The initiative addresses a record 124,000 young people facing homelessness, using Portakabin's modular construction expertise and Centrepoint's social mission.
• IKEA UKcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 May 2026IKEA UK provides interior design services for Jordan's Home, the transitional housing model developed with Centrepoint and Portakabin. IKEA's involvement brings affordable, functional interior design to modular homes for homeless young people.
• YPO (Public Sector Procurement Organisation)flagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 27 March 2026YPO appointed Portakabin as a supplier on its £500 million modular buildings framework — a four-year agreement covering education, healthcare, housing and justice sectors. The framework is designed to make it easier for UK public sector bodies to buy or hire modular buildings from approved suppliers including Portakabin.
• Darwin Group LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDarwin Group Limited is a subsidiary of Portakabin Limited. The partnership expands healthcare capability — Portakabin and Darwin Group together offer enhanced modular healthcare solutions to NHS trusts and healthcare providers.
• The Workdry GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Workdry Group commissioned Portakabin to construct a new headquarters building — a multimillion-pound contract for a three-storey, 66-module modular building with BREEAM Excellent rating, scheduled for completion in early 2027.
• Lend LeaseminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLend Lease Project Management and Construction acted as principal contractor and appointed Portakabin to supply the Surgical Clinical Decision Unit for Worcestershire Royal Hospital NHS Trust. Delivered in 4 weeks.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Reds10: Reds10 is a UK modular construction company specialising in offsite manufacturing of permanent modular buildings for education, healthcare, defence, and residential use. The company competes with Portakabin's permanent modular building lines and within public procurement frameworks such as YPO.
• Wernick Group: Wernick is a UK-based modular building manufacturer and hirer (including the former Caledonian Modular and Britspace brands) with a hire fleet, factory capacity, and UK-wide depot network. The company competes with Portakabin across education, healthcare, construction site accommodation, and public sector framework tenders.
• Premier Modular: Premier Modular is a UK modular building specialist offering hire and permanent modular solutions with offsite manufacturing capacity. It directly competes with Portakabin in education, healthcare, and commercial sectors through a similar product range and sales-led go-to-market model.
• Modulaire Group (formerly Algeco): Modulaire is the largest direct competitor to Portakabin in European modular buildings, operating a comparable hire fleet, depot network, and cross-border footprint spanning the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, and beyond. Both companies compete head-to-head for hire and sale of portable cabins and modular buildings to construction, infrastructure, and public sector clients.
• Elliott Group: Elliott Group is a UK-based provider of portable cabins and modular building solutions, with hire and sale offerings to construction, education, and commercial customers. It is a smaller-scale direct competitor operating in overlapping UK regional markets with Portakabin.
• McAvoy Group: McAvoy is a UK and Ireland offsite construction specialist manufacturing modular buildings for education, healthcare, and commercial clients. Its permanent modular building hire fleet and turnkey services overlap directly with Portakabin's product offering, particularly in the education and healthcare segments.

Broad incumbents

• Atco Structures & Logistics: Atco is a Canadian-headquartered global provider of modular space solutions (workforce housing, portable buildings, modular offices) with a deep North American footprint and growing European presence. While broader in geography and product mix, it competes with Portakabin in modular building hire and remote/onsite workforce accommodation globally.
• Willmott Dixon (WDE Group / Re:Shape): Willmott Dixon is a major UK contractor now operating significant offsite/modular capacity through Re:Shape. As a broader incumbent entering modular, it competes with Portakabin across public sector construction projects where integrated contracting plus modular delivery is procured together.
• BAM Construct: BAM Construct is a major UK and European contractor with growing modular and offsite capabilities serving education, healthcare, and commercial construction. While its core business is traditional contracting, it increasingly competes with Portakabin on integrated modular-led construction tenders.

Emerging players

• TopHat (Tophat Communities): TopHat is a UK tech-enabled modular housing manufacturer focused on residential and build-to-rent developments using precision offsite manufacturing. While focused primarily on residential rather than commercial/education modular, it represents an emerging direct peer in Portakabin's expanding modular housing segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Portakabin_R
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/PortakabinLimited
• Facebookfacebook.com/PortakabinLtd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/portakabin-ltd

Compliance20 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Portakabin