Modern Methods of Construction - Essay Example

Topic: Economics and Management Level Order 256174 Instructions: 1250 word essay Pages:5 Sources: 5 MMC- The New Face of Construction Engineering Modern Methods Of Construction (MMC) is a contemporary term used to encompass a "range of technologies and processes involving various forms of supply chain specifications, prefabrication and off-site assembly". (Modern Methods of Construction, 2008) The real estate industry is fast evolving. Market forces compel the industry to rethink and develop measures to suit the changing preferences of the consumers. Additionally, Governments of different countries have put various check points that compel the house builders to reconsider the way houses are built. Governments encourage the usage of modern methods of construction to boost the safety standards thus comforting the lenders and other stakeholders. The Housing Corporation of UK has stated that at least one-fourth of all new grant-aided construction should be by MMC. (Modern methods of construction (MMC), January 2008) According to the UK Government, by the year 2016, there will be 3 million new households in the country. However to successfully meet this huge growth in demand for houses, the Sustainable Communities Plan suggests a new house-building program using modern methods of construction. This will help not only in meeting the quantity challenge but also help produce better quality houses for the generations to come. (Modern Methods of House Building, December 2003) Implementation of MMC helps improve the quality of housing by making use of more environ friendly and better material, involving high standards of design quality, reducing resource consumption and thus speeding up the process of house delivery. It also helps reduce the time spent on site and overcomes skill shortages if any. Types of Modern Methods of Construction Modern Methods of Construction as discussed above are increasingly being adopted by house builders as a source of increasing efficiency and quality of end product. However there are multiple options available to the builders to choose from: Volumetric construction: In this method of construction the entire dwelling is prefabricated offsite in different three-dimensional modular units and then assembled on site. These units may be constructed in many different forms, right from a basic structure to fully finished units. Panelised construction: Even in this method, panalised units are produced offsite and then assembled on site to produce a 3D structure. While open panels consist only of a skeletal framework, the more complex and advanced or closed panels involve more prefabrication typically including lining material and insulation. At times even services, doors, windows, internal and external cladding are also incorporated. Hybrid: This method is also referred to as semi-volumetric as it combines both panalised and volumetric approaches. For constructing highly serviced areas like kitchen and bathroom, the volumetric units are used and for the remaining part of the building panelised units are used. Other modern methods of construction make use of floor or roof cassettes, pre-cast concrete foundation assemblies, pre-formed wiring looms, and mechanical engineering composites. They can also include innovative techniques such as tunnel form or thin-joint block work. (Using Modern Methods Of Construction to Build Homes More Quickly And Efficiently, November 2005) Why use Modern Methods of Construction: Using MMC is all about improved products and processes. The use of MMC in the housing industry help improve business and production efficiency, quality of the houses constructed, enhances customer satisfaction, improves environmental performance, takes care of the sustainability issues and ensures speedy and timely delivery. These methods of construction- be it panelised, volumetric, hybrid or any other method, are broadly based. That is to say they do not focus on a particular aspect of the product. They seek to improve every activity involved in the construction of a business. Modern methods of construction make it possible to build more without increasing the number of labour employed on site. Modern methods are much more time efficient i.e. they reduce the onsite construction time. However in making use of MMC and reaping the labour and time benefits, the builders need to keep a good rapport with the planning authorities. The advantages of using Modern Methods of Construction can be studied under the following heads: Labour savings: The more established or traditional building methods make use of much more on-site labour than the modern methods of construction. This is made possible because of division of labour and focus on specialization. For example, volumetric method of construction involve a quarter of the on site labour required for traditional methods of construction. If instead of brick, external claddings are used then even greater labour savings is possible. MMC also makes it possible to build upto four times as much using the same amount of on site labour. (Using Modern Methods Of Construction to Build Homes More Quickly And Efficiently, November 2005) Fig: MMC and labour saving Time savings: Modern methods of construction have the potential of decreasing the time spent onsite to build homes by 50 percent. For example, adoption of volumetric method of construction reduces the time spent on-site to 16 weeks as compared to 39 weeks for brick and block. Use of external claddings along with decreasing the amount of labour required also helps lessen the time spent. When using weather tight structures, MMC takes a quarter of the time taken by the traditional or more established methods. Use of weather tight structures further help ensuring quality as major damage to any building or dwelling is done by weather. It also takes care of the work force by protecting it from rain and excessive heat or cold. (Using Modern Methods Of Construction to Build Homes More Quickly And Efficiently, November 2005) Fig: MMC and timesavings MMC helps in building robust building structures that best suit the modern day needs. Incidences of severe flood in UK caught the attention of everyone including the Government, financial institutions, insurers, the building industry and also the public. MMC has been deployed in improving local flood protection to buildings. Modern methods use effective and good quality materials and processes to maintain the flood resistance of buildings. Unlike traditional methods, MMC focuses more on strategic planning and its timely implementation. Measures like wall and floor treatment have been adopted to improve flood resistance of buildings and dwellings. These make use of quality input material that can withstand damage caused by flooding, have enhanced drying and drainage properties and improved ability to be cleaned or replaced. (Improving The Flood Resistance Of Buildings Through Improved Materials, Methods And Details, May 2007) Modern methods of construction have thus become an integral part of the building industry. It helps meet increased housing demand not only efficiently but also restores customer faith by providing time efficient quality product. Reference: Improving The Flood Resistance Of Buildings Through Improved Materials, Methods And Details, (May 2007), CLG Research Database, retrieved November 28, 2008, from http://www.rmd.communities.gov.uk/project.aspintProjectID=11992 Modern Methods of House Building, (December 2003), Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, Government of UK, retrieved November 28, 2008, from http://www.parliament.uk/documents/upload/postpn209.pdf Modern methods of construction (MMC), (January 2008), retrieved November 28, 2008, from http://www.cml.org.uk/cml/policy/issues/107 Modern Methods of Construction, (2008), English Partnerships, What we do, retrieved November 28, 2008, from http://www.englishpartnerships.co.uk/mmc.htm Using Modern Methods Of Construction to Build Homes More Quickly And Efficiently, (November 2005), REPORT BY THE NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE - UK, retrieved November 28, 2008, from http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/nao_reports/05-06/mmc.pdf Read More