Building design for manufacture and assembly (BDFMA): Reframing the design-production relationship in industrialised construction

This thesis investigates the concept of Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) for industrialised construction. Originating in manufacturing industries, DfMA scholarship has typically been conducted within the field of engineering, with a heavy focus on the quantitative optimisation of the M, Manufacturing, and A, Assembly aspects. This study identifies the need for a construction‐specific DfMA, proposing a re‐evaluation and valorisation of the D, Design. Additionally, the research investigates how DfMA’s definition, objectives, and methods might be expanded to respond to the peculiarities and challenges of building design and production. While manufacturing and industrialised construction share many similarities, their fundamental differences are often overlooked. These arise from the variable nature of construction projects, site, and context. A comprehensive literature review shows that the complexity of product and process arrangements in the design of a building, and the implications of site production, are not addressed in any of the proposed DfMA methods to date. Despite this, the majority of DfMA research in construction has not questioned the applicability of manufacturing‐derived design principles in building production. The research in this thesis has been conducted in collaboration with industry partners. A design research methodology is applied to precedent studies, fieldwork, time‐lapse analyses, design projects, prototyping, and experimental assembly. The research identifies 35 parameters and their links of influence across six areas of focus that are significantly relevant to building production. The research outcome is a preliminary ‘Building Design for Manufacture and Assembly’ (BDfMA) framework, which serves to highlight the interdependence of design decisions with respect to production. Using a series of design prompts and graphics showing identified potential parameter interdependencies, the framework encourages the consequences of building design decisions to be investigated across temporal and physical scales. The research findings suggest that a critical and contextually responsive design approach will deliver more value than an unthinking adoption of certain design principles. While parameter metrics identified within the framework can help better understand performance, the research shows they cannot individually reflect production success, nor can they individually guide future design decisions. The design of buildings and building products must simultaneously engage multiple production factors, at a variety of scales, for the best DfMA outcomes.