Articles
A recent government-commissioned review that recommends modular homes and offsite construction as a way to solve the UK’s housing crisis is “fundamentally flawed,” according to an expert from Loughborough University.
In The Farmer Review of the UK Construction Labour Model: Modernise or Die, author Mark Farmer, chief executive of property and construction consultancy Cast, criticises the building industry’s lack of technological innovation and its “non-existent” research and development culture.
The report, which was widely welcomed by the sector, warns that, unless radical steps are taken to modernise and tackle key issues, including a shrinking workforce and insufficient homes being built, the industry faces an “inexorable decline”.
Ray O’Rourke, chairman of Laing O’Rourke, said: “We have invested in innovation and I welcome many of the findings. The adoption of new technologies and advanced manufacturing approaches will deliver the quality housing stock the UK requires and directly address the skills gap.”
But Jacqueline Glass, associate dean of the school of civil and building engineering at Loughborough University, said the report’s assumption that automation and offsite manufacturing will solve the housing crisis is “fundamentally flawed”.
“I think the report underplays the full situation and undervalues what already exists,” she said. “Offsite isn’t a new concept, so you’ve got to ask why more housebuilders aren’t picking it up.”
Research at Loughborough has found that offsite or prefab housing lacks the flexibility required for “economic development”.
Glass said that builders must be able to react to changes in the market, modify work schedules or site plans, and repurpose labour and materials that have already been paid for and are readily available. “There is more modernisation that you can do at grassroots level by using traditional, or near-traditional, technologies.”
Commenting on the Farmer Report’s call to increase R&D spending, Glass said: “The industry’s level of profit doesn’t leave much to invest. The report doesn’t take into account the nuances. We see companies, big and small, that invest cleverly in R&D.”
The report’s recommendation for a “wholesale reform” of the Construction Industry Training Board and its levy system, including a mandate to fund and drive forward skills development and innovation, has been broadly welcomed. “It is a role that they should play,” said Glass.