ilke
Homes has launched a guide explaining how factory-built homes for families and
young professionals could ease the housing crisis.
Speaking
at the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) conference in Manchester, Dave
Sheridan, executive chairman, ilke Homes, said that housing associations could
speed up delivery and improve quality by embracing offsite manufacturing (OSM).
Recognising
the need to produce a range of housing for different income levels, ilke Homes
manufactures customisable, precision-engineered homes to suit housing
associations and listed development partners alike. All homes are fully
mortgageable and are backed by the NHBC Buildmark warranty.
The new
guide, entitled ‘It all stacks up’ explains how precision-engineered homes are
far greener and more energy efficient than typical new build construction. It
goes into detail about volumetric housebuilding – where houses are engineered
in a factory, with complete modules being transported to sites and then
assembled.
Official
data from Homes England for the year to 31 March 2019, shows there were 45,692
housing starts on site and 40,289 housing completions delivered through
programmes managed by Homes England outside of London – the highest for nine
and four years respectively. Yet only a tiny fraction of these were built using
OSM – something many experts believe needs to change.
Dave
Sheridan, executive chairman of ilke Homes, said: “Housing associations are now
being recognised for their ability to deliver at scale and to play a vital role
supporting those most in need. We’re keen to help them build better quality
housing and to do so quicker, ensuring that together we support the
government’s housing delivery ambitions.
“We are
seeing interest growing substantially in the market and with such scale,
housing associations have a crucial role to play in supporting investment into
more factories using the same digital technology and precision engineering that
we employ in Yorkshire. Our guide aims to demystify the process and share some
of what we’ve learned to help break down some of the remaining barriers to
entry.”
Sheridan,
who has more than 30 years’ experience in the housing sector, believes that
there is an opportunity to step up delivery of affordable homes deadlines and
use grant funding in a clever way. Being only 21 months out from the original
Shared Ownership And Affordable Homes Programme (SOAHP) deadline, if an RP
hasn’t started on a scheme yet, they could even complete by March 2021, for
example, if they made it a volumetric scheme.
To
deliver more homes faster, RPs can take advantage of two key features of
volumetric delivery highlighted in the new guide:
- a cash profile that lends itself
to alignment with grant payments
- faster, more certain delivery to
meet completion deadlines
The new
guide includes contributions from key experts in and around the housing sector,
including Places for People, NHBC, Trowers & Hamlins and HTA Design, who
share tips and learnings for using volumetric and working with a manufacturer.
