David Robins, Head of Central Technical Services at Places for People, explores just what MMC processes are at hand to housebuilders looking to create new homes at scale –and why he believes a construction mix is the key to the future.
It’s the general consensus that modern methods of construction (MMC) will help the UK sector meet its new homes and sustainability targets. As we strive to create more, much-needed new homes for people across the country, I see a role for both traditional build and MMC. The goal for developers, suppliers and the government, is to create new, sustainable homes and I believe that is achievable if we’re efficiently maximising all forms of construction.
As a sector, we have big targets on the horizon – from the government’s ambition of 300,000 new homes each year, to reducing construction’s impact on the environment. As we work to find ways to achieve these targets, the sector is increasingly looking to MMC. There is a case for homes created in this way: taking away the adverse risks of the British weather and manufacturing homes in a controlled, factory environment helps project schedules remain on course.
There are environmental benefits too. There is less waste when precision engineering a home on a production line rather than onsite, while the scheduled deliveries to site reduce construction traffic. Another benefit is that MMC homes are generally created quicker than traditional builds. Build programmes can potentially be cut by up to 50% with groundworks taking place onsite whilst the home is being created in a factory. There are quality considerations too, with precision engineering making for high quality homes, that are now seen across much of the country.
Learning Curve
As part of our strategic agreement with Homes England, we are committed to delivering circa 6,000 affordable homes over the next 10 years, and MMC is one of the ways in which we will deliver them. We are already onsite using MMC and this year alone we have completed homes at Maple Fields in Bordon, incorporating both MMC and traditional build to broaden the site’s offering. At St Anthony’s in Newcastle upon Tyne, we’ve just completed the delivery of a further 22 MMC homes.
But while there are positives, there are still challenges to overcome. Fundamentally, this means continued investment in research and development to refine processes, ensuring co-ordination and precision. Companies must also be open to collaboration – we are working with likeminded partners who bring expertise to the table including ilke Homes, and House by Urban Splash – whose modular homes have featured on our Birmingham and North Shields developments.
But it’s not just about finding expert partners, we need to invest in human resource and talent too, upskilling people with the traditional trade skills such as joiners, carpenters and plumbers, but applying them to MMC settings. We also must address end-user concerns when it comes to MMC through further investment and by instilling confidence – whether it’s the availability of mortgages on homes created in this way, through to the build’s longevity or how to make modular units adaptable in the future.
Many Methods of Construction
One area I am interested in, is the sector adopting other forms of MMC, many of which are easier to implement and at scale and can have the same impact on sustainability targets.
Modular homes and volumetric technology may grab the headlines, but you don’t need to create an entire home using MMC, instead we should look to bring other forms of construction into the MMC process. We’re exploring this with preassembled doors and composite ground floors which are placed onto a site’s foundations. By fusing construction methods in this way, we can create part-MMC homes that are more thermally effective and have less embodied carbon than a fully traditionally built home.
Moving forward there are ways in which the sector can pull together to deliver new homes, primarily through collaboration, with businesses recognising their skills gaps and reaching out to industry peers to join forces and meet new homes targets. We are always keen to find new land partners or sector colleagues with whom we can build homes that diversify our portfolio.
The government also has a role to play since it can enable the efforts of developers via the planning reform agenda. In giving the industry more certainty on planning and a more streamlined way of determining applications, this will help us to progress and deliver homes.
For now, we will keep on providing homes using all available construction methods, determining the build process on a site-by-site basis and in line with the needs of local people. New developments on the horizon include two new affordable neighbourhoods with ilke Homes – 307 homes in Burgess Hill, Sussex and 165 homes in Exmouth Junction, Exeter.
The industry must collectively push forward to deliver great examples of high-quality homes, so that we can learn, share our expertise and keep on delivering much-needed new homes across the country.
For more information visit: www.placesforpeople.co.uk
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