London mayor Sadiq
Khan’s decision to fund a ‘developers’ toolkit’
to simplify the construction of offsite homes has been welcomed by pan European
insulation specialist Actis.
The project, towards
which the mayor’s office will contribute £50,000, will see the production of a
set of tools and guidance to speed up delivery of homes which are mainly
constructed within a factory environment (described by the London Mayor’s
office as ‘precision manufactured homes’).
The project, due for
completion in the autumn, is being led by Mark Farmer, author of the government
commissioned Farmer Review of the Construction
Labour Model, which calls on the sector to ‘modernise or die’ and
recommends the large-scale use of off-site
construction.
He says construction should be more like a car factory
production line, with every section deliverable to a pre-determined quality
standard.
The project, which
follows a recent London Assembly recommendation to help solve the London
housing crisis through building more offsite homes, is aimed at meeting the
capital’s target of building 65,000 homes a year over the next decade.
Actis,
whose Hybrid insulation, vapour control layer and breather membrane system is a
popular choice for timber frame manufacturers, is a long-time champion of
offsite production.
Regional
sales director Jemma Harris explained: “Building a timber frame house is around
30% faster than brick and block. With a shrinking workforce and the likelihood
that this situation will worsen in the light of Brexit, off-site is a vital way
of creating the homes we desperately need in this country.
“The bulk of the skilled element takes place off site. Timber frame walls, floors and roofs, complete with
electrical wiring, plumbing and insulation are built in factories at
relative speed. The site crew ‘just’ has to erect
everything in the right order with a typical build time of between seven and 12
days, depending on the size of house.”
