Focus & Innovation
ADDRESSING THE OFFSITE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHANGING DEMANDS A number of industry reports reinforced by Government and major investment announcements have increased momentum in the offsite sector. This scale of investment has not been witnessed before, and many believe that there is an ‘off-site revolution’ taking place – a change that is predicted to see ‘traditional’ construction methods being phased out in a number of sectors. This represents a major opportunity for those operating in the off-site industry, but it is not without challenges. Steve Thompson, Managing Director for leading innovator in steel framing solutions, EOS Facades – part of the Etex Building Performance Group – offers his perspective. time around there T his is a feeling that the push for off-site construction is sustainable, due to the imposed drivers for change. A significant difference between the present and the previous off-site boom is the emergence of Building Information Modelling (BIM) – this has been a ‘game changer’ for EOS Facades. Without doubt, BIM is having an impact on the genuine adoption of Design
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for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) protocols which significantly aides the off-site manufacturer’s ability to address the issue of standardisation. BIM facilitates the opportunity for further upstream integration of components and systems and will, therefore, no doubt, generate new types of off-sitemanufactured technologies. Fundamentally, DfMA requires the design team to shift their thinking away from
‘construction’ to ‘assembly’. There are, of course, a number of challenges to the growth of off-site solutions. The lack of investment is frequently linked to a lack of certainty of demand or continuity of business. Construction is typically a project-based activity – therefore, the customer base can be difficult to retain. EOS Facades’ approach to this is two-fold. We have formed
strategic alliances with some of the UK’s largest developers and main contractors, such as Barratt London and Kier Construction, as well as establishing partnerships with major installers including Ardmore Group and SCL. Offering partnership services for conceiving, designing and manufacturing light gauge steel frame solutions. This approach offers benefits to all. EOS Facades continually invests in its advanced manufacturing facility together with product research and development. A major extension to our factory has just been completed and the development of a new fabrication plant. We have invested in our own fabrication plant to be self-sufficient in manufacturing our ancillary parts such as angles, brackets, windows and sills. This will support our market-leading ‘lump sum’, all-inclusive pricing initiative and complement our ‘total supply’ offering. In addition to the five Howick steel framing machines currently in operation, to further expand the manufacturer’s product portfolio and capacity, we have invested in a new multi-width (boxer) machine and installed overhead cranes for lifting and moving frames and steel coils around the extended facility. Off-site construction, the process of taking the building activity away from the site and into a manufacturing environment, is now potentially one of the fastest-growing industry sectors in the UK. It represents the natural industrialisation of conventional construction processes, moving the traditional site practices into the modern-day factory environment.
Products and services Through collaborative working and by forming strategic alliances, EOS provides specialist services to businesses, large and small, including some of the most prominent companies in the construction industry.
www.eos-facades.co.uk eos@insideoffsite.co.uk 01325 303030