Modern Methods Of Construction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Modern Methods Of Construction - Essay Example 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. 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