Hairstans, R and Smith, R E (2018) Offsite hub (Scotland): Establishing a collaborative regional framework for knowledge exchange in the UK. Architectural Engineering and Design Management, 14(1-2), pp. 60-77. ISSN 1745-2007
Abstract
The UK is set to become Europe's largest construction market by 2030. However, UK construction productivity performance is regarded as weak, with low skills levels considered to be a key contributory factor. Consequently, off-site construction has been identified by the UK Government as a vehicle for improving productivity levels if the skills deficiencies in this particular market segment can be addressed. A series of projects were, therefore, launched by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) to encourage an R&D approach to skills and development application in the workplace. This paper reports on one of these research projects, a University and Industry collaboration between two of the largest off-site timber platform frame manufacturers in the UK. The paper explains how a needs analysis process was utilised to develop skills training content tailored to the immediate needs of the industry partners. It also explores how working with academia and a wider community of stakeholders allowed this training content to result in sector-level impact via knowledge exchange activities and generic skills material creation. Finally, the novel approach of utilising 'Hoshin' planning to form a larger regional Offsite HUB (Scotland) Community of Practice, with a developed plan for collaboration aligned with international off-site research objectives, is also explained. The case study presented in this paper is evidence of success in mobilising industry through creating communities of practice to advance the construction sector regionally. It also provides a generalisable method that is reproducible by other university-industry cohorts in order to realise shared industry-wide goals.The UK is set to become Europe's largest construction market by 2030. However, UK construction productivity performance is regarded as weak, with low skills levels considered to be a key contributory factor. Consequently, off-site construction has been identified by the UK Government as a vehicle for improving productivity levels if the skills deficiencies in this particular market segment can be addressed. A series of projects were, therefore, launched by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) to encourage an R&D approach to skills and development application in the workplace. This paper reports on one of these research projects, a University and Industry collaboration between two of the largest off-site timber platform frame manufacturers in the UK. The paper explains how a needs analysis process was utilised to develop skills training content tailored to the immediate needs of the industry partners. It also explores how working with academia and a wider community of stakeholders allowed this training content to result in sector-level impact via knowledge exchange activities and generic skills material creation. Finally, the novel approach of utilising 'Hoshin' planning to form a larger regional Offsite HUB (Scotland) Community of Practice, with a developed plan for collaboration aligned with international off-site research objectives, is also explained. The case study presented in this paper is evidence of success in mobilising industry through creating communities of practice to advance the construction sector regionally. It also provides a generalisable method that is reproducible by other university-industry cohorts in order to realise shared industry-wide goals.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | closed panel timber frame; knowledge management; skills; collaboration; productivity; construction; regional development; markets; regional planning; research projects; construction sites; community relations; research and development; construction industry; case studies; training; cooperation |
| Index terms: | employment, productivity, contributory factor, construction site, closed panel timber frame, manufacturer, case study, market segment, platform, Europe, communities of practice, construction productivity, construction industry, off-site construction, cooperation, construction sector, needs analysis, markets, construction market, knowledge management, community relations, regional planning, knowledge exchange, research and development, collaboration, academia, regional development, evidence, Scotland |
| Subjects: | management, physical geography and landforms, professional development, digital design, urban design, Geography, community engagement, building construction, research management, educational institutions, market analysis, industry analysis, data collection methods, evaluation and assessment methods, risk assessment, scope management, practitioner, operations management, work location, psychology, urban planning, economic analysis, knowledge management |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Geographical Context, Project Management, Engineering Principles, Information Management, Business Strategy, Construction Technology, Governance, Risk Management, Roles and Professions, Stakeholder Management, Human Resources, Urban Studies, Digital Applications, Education, Organizational Design, Site Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here