Andy Smith, Head of Business Development at Caledonian Modular, looks at how offsite construction

can help alleviate the shortage of school places.

 

For a number of years, councils have been warning about a shortage of school places, mainly because last decade’s baby boomers are now entering secondary education. Last year alone, about 20% of families in England failed to gain a place at their first preference school.

Although classroom overcrowding remains an ongoing issue, modular and offsite construction can provide a way forward. The government has already stated that it will favour offsite manufacturing on all publicly funded construction projects, and that should assist with tackling the shortage of school places.

Modular and offsite benefits

• 80 – 90% of the work can be completed in a factory, like our 40-acre Newark based facility, which is a quality-controlled environment unaffected by the weather.
• Construction schedule can be reduced by half because, for example, foundations can commence at the same time as the building modules are being manufactured in the factory.
• Minimises disruption to both operation of the school (which can remain a live teaching environment) and the local community by ensuring a rapid build and fewer deliveries.
• Less use of high embodied energy materials such as cement – traditional masonry builds can require more concrete foundations.
• Less waste because fewer materials are delivered to site.
• Manufactured offsite and then assembled onsite creates a safer workplace, because it is a more controlled environment that requires less need for working at height.

What can offsite be used for?

Our modular construction solutions can be used to create classrooms, catering blocks, laboratories, gymnasiums, changing rooms, large-span hall facilities and administration offices. In effect, we can manufacture anything from individual classrooms, through to complete schools. Buildings can also be designed and built to an exacting specification, with a wide range of finishes and roofing options that fit seamlessly alongside an existing structure.

By reducing the construction schedule by half, classrooms or whole schools can be completed within the school holiday, meaning significantly less risk-assessed people on or around the site. With transportation and trade reduced there is less traffic and noise impact on both the school and the local community.

 

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£38m schools’ contract

We recently secured two large school projects in quick succession with a total order value of £38m. Haygrove School and The Sir Frederick Gibberd College were secured under Department for Education (DfE) frameworks. We were selected for both projects because we offered a full turnkey package including lead design, planning and installation, through to hand over.

We will create a brand new £29m secondary school at the Sir Frederick Gibberd College in Harlow, Essex. It will comprise a 1,200 place secondary school built over three storeys including a school hall, dining hall, drama studio and a 500 place sixth form teaching area, as well as sports facilities and all associated external works and pitches.

Work being undertaken at Haygrove School in Bridgwater will involve utilising our component-based school solutions to replace the main school building with modern and efficient teaching environments. The construction work will be undertaken while the school remains open and works will be carefully planned to ensure minimal disruption.

The three-storey building will consist of classrooms, double-height hall and studio spaces, offices, kitchen and associated rooms for educational purposes, along with enabling, groundworks and external works.

Both schools incorporate factory-installed concrete floors to deliver an acoustically compliant, comfortable, safe and durable environment for occupants. Up to 96% of the work on each module is completed at our quality-controlled factory facility before being delivered to site.

Modular Frameworks

Our recent portfolio of projects within the education sector are testament to the fact that offsite construction is already proving a popular choice for schools at all levels including primary, secondary and higher education.

We deliver innovative design led solutions that promote the intelligent use of BIM, Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) and the use of Lean Manufacturing techniques to eliminate waste.

Caledonian, and our partner Architects HLM, secured first place on the £300 million ESFA Batch C Modular Framework to provide permanent, component-based buildings and facilities for ESFA’s new secondary schools block replacement programme.

 

www.caledonianmodular.com

 

Among the many benefits of modular construction is the speed with which a project can be completed, due to the fact construction of modular buildings can occur simultaneously with site and foundation work. By carrying out typically linear tasks simultaneously projects can reach completion 30%-50% sooner than with traditional construction methods.

 

The value of simultaneity in construction is also one of the benefits delivered by Performance Technology Group. By bringing together expertise and manufacturing capabilities across a wide range of disciplines, PTG are able to reduce the amount of activity required in ensuring a construction project meets fire, thermal, acoustic and other challenges.

Saving Time, Reducing Complexity

Whereas ordinarily, an architect, contractor or installer will have to liaise with multiple contacts across multiple businesses in order to source solutions for their construction project, with PTG there is a single initial point of contact. In principle, a project’s fire, thermal and acoustic requirements can be addressed in a single meeting, with PTG bringing all the necessary expertise to the table. This obviously represents a time-saving for customers (one meeting, rather than several), but there is also a subtler time-saving due to the reduction in complexity.

Complexity, particularly in construction projects, creates numerous opportunities for problems to arise. According to Sven Bertelsen, Senior Research Advisor to Lean Construction (Denmark), “Construction projects are in general rich in plan failure, delays, cost overruns and grief. Construction – along with most phenomena in our living world – must be perceived as a complex system, operating on the edge of chaos.” By reducing this complexity, PTG are able to mitigate the kinds of problems that can undermine and jeopardise the construction schedule.

System Solutions

PTG is also able to use its interdisciplinary structure to produce system solutions that would normally involve an architect, contractor or installer having to interact with a number of separate suppliers.

For example, in rainscreen cladding applications, PTG can bring together sheathing panels, the innovative Chi-Gasket cold-bridging solution (both from the Euroform arm of PTG) with a range of Open State Cavity Barriers from their AIM business to create an effective means of achieving compliance in relation to thermal performance and resistance to fire. PTG can also source and supply thermal insulation and high-performance cladding through their established third-party relationships and robust supply chains.

From Foundations to Fit-Out

PTG are involved at almost every stage of construction. They provide site protection from the very outset of a construction project. They supply both vibration isolation and thermal insulation for foundations. They are involved in every stage of the building envelope’s development, contributing to through-wall solutions to offer resistance to air, water, heat and noise transfer. They’re involved in HVAC solutions for both acoustic and thermal performance. They contribute to the acoustic effectiveness of wall, floors and ceilings, ensuring Part E compliance. Wherever and whenever, for example, an architectural technician finds themselves facing a challenge relating to the material performance of a building project, PTG will have, or will have access to, a solution.

The PTG Roster

PTG currently consists of nine businesses: AIM, CMS Danskin, Euroform, Mayplas, Ockwells, Central Refractories, IMS, Innogain and Insulslab. AIM is a manufacturer of mineral fibre and foam products, specialising in fire stop blocks and cavity barriers. CMS Danskin are experts in soundproofing and acoustic insulation. Euroform specialise in building boards and in ensuring fire and thermal compliance in building facades. Mayplas fabricate and supply a wide range of insulation materials, and specialise in highly bespoke cutting, lamination and encapsulation. Ockwells are a leading supplier of temporary site protection. Central Refractories, as their name suggests, a premier supplier of refractory products and services. IMS are experts in high-temperature insulation. Innogain are the innovators behind a revolutionary solution for through, anchor and precision hole-making in concrete. And, finally, Insulslab offer a complete foundation system, particularly for housing sites with difficult ground conditions.

Mark Fyfe, Group Sales and Business Development Director for Performance Technology Group, said, “We offer an industry-leading portfolio of trusted products, the interdisciplinary expertise to supply with confidence, and with an emphasis on highly bespoke fabrication and ambitious product innovation.”

 

www.sigpt.co.uk