A brave new world

The adoption of offsite technologies into the mainstream building sector is well underway, with modern methods of construction being incorporated into a cross sector of developments. But what comes next? And who is driving innovation in a period of financial uncertainty and challenging sustainability targets? Bob Mears, Head of Sales and Marketing at Mtech Consult, the UK’s leading independent consultancy in offsite building methods, takes a look at what factors are shaping the market.

The benefits of offsite technologies are well acknowledged: the shorter build times ensure less time is spent on site and a more immediate return on investment; and the sustainability benefits, both during manufacturing processes and the building’s in-use performance, helps the project meet its ‘green’ requirements. In addition, the reduced work required on site lessens health and safety issues, addresses the ongoing workforce shortage, and also limits delay through inclement weather. What’s more, the increased levels of engineering within a controlled environment ensure the highest levels of accuracy and, therefore, fewer costly snagging issues.

Patterns of Change

As a result, it’s perhaps no surprise that many sectors, spanning both the public and private arenas, have opted for offsite technologies in one form or other when specifying the building fabric. The use of these products over time has not changed noticeably cross market, with the sector still too young to have experienced any significant pattern of change. In terms of which technologies have been adopted where, it’s a case of a natural fit, rather than a private/public sectoral choice. For example, bathroom and kitchen pods proving a natural choice for hotels, student accommodation, hospitals and commercial offices.

What is clear, however, is the difference in ranking of priorities. For example, in the UK the hospitality sector focuses on speed and quality of build, the public sector on cost efficiencies and sustainability, and education on speed and predictability of build to ensure build times coincide perfectly with holiday periods. The team at Mtech has also noticed a geographical pattern of priorities, with a recent consultation in Australia demonstrating a widespread concern for sustainable manufacturing and build, regardless of sector and/or use.

Moving forward

As with any forward thinking industry, those behind offsite technologies are striving for advances to ensure the sector continues to offer benefits that traditional build methods can’t. The key drivers, in our experience, are the manufacturers who are constantly looking to develop the systems and, importantly, push these through the routes to market.

There are three main factors currently driving innovation: cost, speed of build, and sustainability. The sustainability elements are largely due to requirements included in Government legislation, such as the Code for Sustainable Homes and Part L of the Building Regulations.

One example of innovation in practice is the work currently going on with the structural insulated panel (SIP). A SIP traditionally comprises a high performance foam insulated core, which although offering exceptional levels of thermal efficiency in use, provokes debate in the sustainable arena in terms of content. In response, manufacturers are testing new materials to develop alternate infills, such as super lightweight concretes which can offer weight savings of up to 88% over a traditional concrete mix.

The challenge does not lie within finding ways to innovate, but in keeping specifiers up-to-date and fully informed to enable them to feel confident in using offsite technologies. One influential group in question is the architectural community as, if offsite is to be incorporated into a project it needs to be included at design, and not build, stage if the full list of benefits is to be realised. If not then issues such as ‘double’ specification, where a pod is installed inside a volumetric modular envelope – doubling cost and reducing speed of build - can occur. This demonstrates the absolute necessity for professional support from the earliest stage within a project.

A balancing act

The result of combining innovation with sector priorities, such as accuracy of finish, is that existing solutions are being adapted and improved for use in new applications and sectors.

Demonstrating this is the specification of mechanical and electrical (M&E) plant rooms. Manufacturing plant rooms offsite ensures that there are no surprises when it comes to on site installation, and clients also benefit from a cleaner, tidier fit. Requirements such as mechanical ducting and pipe work are brought together in the factory ready for connection to the mains when the structure arrives on site. These have been used within hospitals, where removing the M&E element from a project on the Wirral enabled it to be completed some 6 months ahead of schedule. This is a good example of a UK system in which the US market has already shown great interest in adopting.

So what for the future?

The overriding benefits provided by offsite technologies will remain the same, as it is these that set them apart from traditional methods. What will change, however, is the ranking of those priorities, and these will influence aspects such as the future development of materials, use of product and manufacturing methods. We predict the drive towards sustainability will continue and this will influence all aspects of offsite, from manufacturing processes and transport to site, to the U-values achieved in situ.

Our advances within the offsite sector have already positioned the UK as the worldwide ‘centre of excellence’ with many countries across the world watching our progress in trialling new systems. With the UK’s drive towards innovation gathering speed, it looks as though we’ll be setting the pace for a long time to come which gives us a great opportunity to share our learnings with the rest of world.

DISCLAIMER: Neither Bob Mears nor Mtech Consult Ltd receives any remuneration or gain whatsoever for referencing manufacturers in editorial content; other suppliers may provide similar products and inclusion in no way implies Mtech recommendation of a product for any specific project.