Are housebuilders' production strategies a barrier to offsite construction uptake in the UK?

More than three-quarters of UK housing is currently delivered by the private sector, and around 90% of homes utilise traditional, site-based, masonry construction methods. Recently, the UK housebuilding industry has found itself under increasing pressure to raise production output to alleviate a shortage in housing supply. Within this setting, government has strongly indicated that the industry should turn its attention to the potential offered by alternative methods of construction (AMC) to address this problem. Yet adoption of AMC – including off-site production (OSP) – could significantly affect house-builders' ways of working. The business models (or delivery methodology) employed by large private house-builders are a direct response to the characteristics of the market in which they operate. A move towards increasing OSP would arguably require a change of approach in delivery methodology. Hence, there is a clear need to understand the relationship between business model and construction method.Based on a case study of one of the largest private house-building companies in the UK, the potential operational effects resulting from the adoption of three AMC (insulating concrete formwork; closed panel timber frame; volumetric steel frame modules) have been explored. The results indicate that the adoption of OSP approaches may alter the manner in which housebuilders are able to operate during the construction phase. The housebuilder’s control over cash flow, working capital, construction specification and labour may be reduced along with flexibility in production speed and build programme. The conclusion is that the adoption of some AMC would require the house-builder to change their current delivery methodology. The findings have implications both for government and the private housebuilding industry given the current emphasis on AMC and OSP as means to address the UK’s housing supply issues.