An Essex-based housing association is planning to set up an offsite development factory to build at least 500 market sale homes over five years.
Swan Housing Association, which owns 11,000 homes in Essex and London, is set to become the latest sector organisation to use alternative methods of building homes.
Swan has agreed a deal for factory space near Basildon and hopes to be using the premises by October.
Under the plans, which are subject to board approval, Swan would build pilot homes by January next year, before rolling out a full programme of development by summer 2017.
Swan is planning to use the factory to build at least 500 homes for market sale by 2022, although the total number built could be much higher than that.
In the long-term, Swan will look at selling the manufacturing services to other providers. The design and layout of the homes built by the factory will be customised to customers’ needs.
The organisation’s offsite plans are expected to be approved by the association’s board on 5 April.
Until the board have signed off on the plans, Swan is not confirming any details of the factory, including how it is funded, why it is doing it or what specific building techniques would be used.
The move by Swan would come at a time of increasing activity on offsite manufacturing in the social housing sector.
It was revealed earlier in year that institutional investor L&G plans to launch a £500m investment in offsite construction and is planning to build its first 30 homes on a test site within months.
West Midlands association Accord Group has since 2011 been producing timber frame factory-built homes through its Local Homes subsidiary. The factory has produced 400 homes and Accord Group is looking to franchise the business.
Original link - Inside Housing
