MMC Champion

On 5 November 2019, Housing Minister Esther McVey MP announced Mark Farmer as a new Champion for Modern Methods of Construction (MMC).

This role will involve:

• Providing independent scrutiny and advice to the Government about how to increase the use of MMC in homebuilding.
• Developing the ‘Construction Corridor’ in the North.
• Promoting wider innovation in the sector.
• Acting as an ambassador overseas for UK MMC.
• Using international networks and trade opportunities to attract investment.

The announcement followed an injection of £30 million into MMC factory ilke Homes to help scale up production and bring down costs and allowing up to 8 homes to be built a day. To date, more than £233 million of loans have been agreed for projects using MMC from the Home Building Fund.

MMC involves a combination of offsite manufacturing and onsite techniques that provide alternatives to traditional building, allowing homes to be built more quickly, to be more energy efficient and better designed. It has been shown that some homes built using MMC have 80% fewer defects and 70% lower heating bills.

Some of the main benefits of MMC housing include:

• Less disruption than onsite construction.
• The reduction of carbon emissions through greater precision in the manufacturing process leading to more energy-efficient homes and reduced construction waste.
• Production lines enable companies to take on apprentices and train them on specific tasks irrespective of their backgrounds.
• Greater use of quality assured systems and less elemental construction onsite.

The MMC framework identifies 7 MMC categories:

• Category 1 – Pre-Manufacturing – 3D primary structural systems
• Category 2 – Pre-Manufacturing – 2D primary structural systems
• Category 3 – Pre-Manufacturing – Non systemised structural components
• Category 4 – Pre-Manufacturing – Additive Manufacturing
• Category 5 – Pre-Manufacturing – Non-structural assemblies and sub-assemblies
• Category 6 – Traditional building product led site labour reduction / productivity improvements
• Category 7 – Site process led labour reduction / productivity improvements

Esther McVey said: “I want to see modern methods of construction – the new gold standard of building - being used up and down the country to usher in a green housing revolution. That’s why it is such fantastic news that Mark Farmer has agreed to be our new MMC Champion – to really drive forward innovation, and to help the government deliver a new generation of green homes.”

Mark Farmer said: “This is a really important time for the construction industry and there is an urgent need to rethink how we build homes, delivering better quality, improved safety, carbon reduction and an array of exciting new career opportunities. I look forward to working with both industry and Government to make sure we now accelerate the uptake of modern methods of construction.”

Mark is Founding Director and CEO of Cast Consultancy. He authored a review of the UK’s construction labour model entitled ‘Modernise or Die’. He is a member of the Construction Innovation Hub Industry Board, the Construction Leadership Council Advisory Group and chairs the MHCLG joint industry working group tasked with enabling greater use of MMC in the residential sector. He is also a member of the Mayor of London’s Construction Skills Advisory Group, a board member for the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre, a co-chair of Constructing Excellence, a vice chair of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) UK Residential Council, a trustee of the MOBIE educational charity and is an honorary professor at The University of Salford’s School of Built Environment.

Ref https://www.gov.uk/government/news/housing-minister-announces-new-champion-for-modern-housebuilding

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