By working with its members, government, key industry stakeholders and partners, the organisation seeks to deliver permanent, positive transformation and impact through collaboration.
The organisation is headed up by Dirk Vennix, who has spoken about offsite technology’s role in the future of construction in the UK and BUILDOFFSITE’s involvement with the upcoming Offsite Expo.
The Labour government has promised to ‘get Britain building’. Do you think the new government can live up to this promise and address the UK housing shortfall?
It’s up to the government to deliver its own promises, but anything that can help get Britain building again has to be welcomed.
The plans and promises do sound encouraging, but I think it could be quite a tall order.
BUILDOFFSITE knows members of key stakeholders that are really actively working towards helping the government achieve those housing targets and we believe that offsite construction could help accelerate house building.
It has shown that it can make a huge difference in transport infrastructure, utilities, commercial buildings, schools, privately built accommodation for students, prisons and hospitals. So I’m sure the offsite construction sector could do the same in housing if it is given the opportunities to do so.
The new Labour government is planning on introducing new powers to Metro Mayors and Combined Authorities to help support local growth plans. How do you think the offsite construction sector can assist with this?
I think it’s a good plan in principle and it could help get Britain back to building more in local authorities and regions. The recruitment of more planning officers and planning reform are welcomed.
We would welcome more government engagement with member organisations like BUILDOFFSITE as we are the voice of the industry and have been for 20 years and we know how our members could contribute.
I would also say what might help locally to get the required finance is to make sure that any manufacturers working on MMC projects are accredited or certified.
BUILDOFFSITE manages a scheme called the BUILDOFFSITE Property Assurance Scheme and that gives confidence to financial institutions and mortgage lenders that these offsite manufacturers and construction companies will be delivering a product which has been vetted, accredited and is sound.
People talk about the green credentials of offsite construction, but what do you think offsite construction can do to actually help tackle climate change?
BUILDOFFSITE members are very keen to help the government tackle climate change.
It’s a huge challenge for the globe, but it’s also a huge challenge in the UK and I have members who are actively coming up with innovative materials that they use for their advanced manufacturing products and they are very much supporting innovative ways of thinking, which encourage circular economy principles, sustainable waste management and recycling.
Offsite construction is one of the quickest ways to drive net-zero carbon because it has advanced manufacturing, it uses technologies which makes it cleaner, faster and more efficient than your more traditional processes.
Also adding to the driving net-zero carbon is digitisation, it’s really revolutionising our offsite sector.
I would appeal to the government to continue stimulating and harnessing those innovations through Innovate UK, and other grant funding it might be able to provide. But also, to always encourage and have a listening ear to companies in the offsite construction sector who are trailblazers driving net-zero carbon.
What do you think the offsite construction sector can do to ensure its financial stability?
It’s a very difficult question. It’s a very complex area with different market forces being at play. Supply and demand are hard to manage and there is no silver bullet.
I would argue that the two things our members ask for the most is pipeline and accreditation.
Pipeline is key and the government, with its huge procurement portfolio whether that is defence facilities, hospitals or schools, is helping and could help even more to provide that pipeline that our members need and that offsite manufacturers need.
The second thing that could help our sector is more accreditation and certification, because that underpins our credentials, gives us credibility, pulling power and also peace of mind and comfort for those clients who are maybe not fully aware of what’s feasible, and what good looks like in the offsite construction sector.
So we’re definitely encouraging more accreditation and certification.
BUILDOFFSITE is involved with Offsite Expo through the Offsite Summit. What can we expect from the summit and what are your thoughts on events like Offsite Expo?
Offsite Expo is unique as it’s the best exhibition in the world at bringing together clients and suppliers. It’s showcasing best practice through the Offsite Awards and Offsite Expo has years of experience in delivering high quality programming and exhibitions that are worth visiting.
BUILDOFFSITE has been going for 20 years, has been the voice of the industry for 20 years. We pride ourselves in providing a huge events programme, including site visits and webinars. We also contribute to national and international standards in our sector and we deliver one or two publications every year which provide industry guidance with regards to the offsite sector.
We are supporting the Expo and the industry through seminars, round tables and an innovation challenge. In all, we have about 50 UK-based and international speakers at our events.
Our showcase event is the International Summit on day one.
We’ve invited dozens of foreign speakers to share their best practise with us in areas like digitisation, infrastructure, transport infrastructure and also housing.
On day two, we’re shining a light on experts who are leading the way in driving net-zero carbon, reducing defects on projects and also tackling intellectual property issues.
We also are going to be running two innovation challenge sessions. They invite the public to choose the most innovative project from a shortlist, which has been selected and judged by BUILDOFFSITE members.
The International Summit takes place at Offsite Expo on September 17-18 and serves as a platform for international collaboration and knowledge exchange within the offsite construction industry.
The Summit features free-to-attend seminars, panel discussions and Q&A sessions, chaired by some of the most renowned global players in offsite construction. Sharing insiders’ information about the latest technical innovations, comparing international policies and promoting transparency and co-operation, the Summit will influence our thinking about the future of construction.
A key highlight of the Summit is the BOS International Innovation Hub Challenge. Competitors will present their breakthrough ideas in sustainable construction, each given 10 minutes to pitch and 5 minutes to answer rapid-fire questions from the judges. Information on how to enter for free can be found here.
