Offsite is due to make its mark on UK Construction Week (UKCW) by showcasing all its advantages in its very own dedicated Offsite area within the Build Show alongside an additional presence at Timber Expo.
Offsite construction will help take over Birmingham’s NEC between 9 – 11 October, with more than 10,000 products and 650 exhibitors, seminars, CPD sessions and networking opportunities across nine shows: Build Show, Energy 2018, Timber Expo, Surface and Materials Show, Building Tech Live, HVAC 2018, Civils Expo, Plant and Machinery Live and Grand Designs Live. To demonstrate how effective offsite construction is becoming, a two-storey house and student apartment will be installed at the show plus a high-end hotel bathroom pod and a timber house will be on display.
New Products and Innovations
With a wide and varied range of offsite exhibitors on hand there is a plethora of products to discover. Many of which are embracing new technologies that will enable faster, more efficient and better-quality buildings.
The Elliott Group will be discussing everything from telecoms packages through to fire equipment thanks to their 360 degree service package for offsite construction. REM will be showing its unique approach by using living containers to build schools,
offices and showrooms. And Containex will be showcasing its new selfcontained staircase modules, which are easy to transport and install, with strong and flexible guardrails that can be repositioned anywhere.
Other exhibitors include: KC Cabin Solutions offering personalised modular and portable buildings, Kerkstoel the precast concrete experts, Extenda Line with portable flat packed storage units and Morland will be displaying its new Forever FirecheckTM fire door frame and its brand-new Water Vapour Barrier tongue and groove panels.
Pods and the Future
Visitors won’t want to miss out Michael Dall from Barbour ABI’s talk, delving deeper into the market, where he looks at the key sectors for offsite, how it will develop and grow in the next few years and which sectors it appeals to most. Stephen Wade-Palmer from Offsite Solutions will talk about specifying factory-built bathrooms, looking at the critical considerations needed to optimise efficiency in using bathroom pods. An elegant bathroom pod, which is earmarked for luxury Canary Wharf hotel, will be on display in the Offsite area.
Visitors will have access to numerous CPD sessions and seminars. Don’t miss out on the Innovation Trail, networking
opportunities and the Offsite Theatre, supported by MPBA and the Structural Timber Association. Modular building
specialist, Vision Built, is installing a two-storey house and student apartment for all to experience at the Offsite Theatre. Following the event, the construction will be taken to its final location in Suffolk.
For visitors who want to learn as much as possible about the speed of modular construction, you won’t want to miss out on the following seminars:
• Building more homes, with the Central Housing Investment Consortium
• Developing your offsite strategy, with Action Sustainability
• Flexible and high-rise modular constructions, with MJH Structural Engineers.
Other essential seminars include:
• New assessment methodology and certification scheme for modular homes presented by David Gall, Associate Director, BRE
• Digitising offsite construction by David Clark, Head Of Manufacturing And Innovation, The McAvoy Group
• Routes to market for modular and volumetric housing delivered by Joanne Booth, Construction Business Manager, Lucideon.
The Future of Offsite Construction
This year’s ‘Future of Construction’ theme, there is plenty to discover for the future of offsite. The Future of Construction Hub, in collaboration with Birmingham City University, provides an immersive opportunity to discover pioneering techniques such as digital construction, 3D printing, robotics, AI and AR and modern methods of construction. Visitors will be able to try out these new technologies first hand and learn how they will shape the built environment in years to come. An Innovation Trail uncovers products from Danosa, Hekim Yapi, Max, SFL Mobile Radio, and Velux. Plus Carwyn Lloyd Jones will be building a timber home at Timber Expo, where he will deliver lessons on natural construction techniques too.
This year also sees the launch of the UKCW Role Models Campaign to champion the existing talent in the industry and to inspire the next generation. 36 inspiring men and women have recently been shortlisted for this campaign, and the overall Role Model of the Year will be announced on 10 October.
Debates on major national and international construction issues will take place on the UKCW Stage. Speakers already confirmed include: Barbara Res, Project Manager behind Trump Tower, Lord David Blunkett, Heathrow Skills taskforce Chair, Phil Wilbraham, Expansion Programme Director at Heathrow, Bridget Rosewell OBE, Commissioner at the National Infrastructure Commission; Ben Derbyshire, RIBA President and Ruth Davidson, National Housing Federation Executive Director.
Celebrations will all be in order at the Construction Enquirer Awards, the Structural Timber Awards and Voltimum Smart Solutions Awards, all taking place throughout UKCW.
Remember to Relax
Once inspired by the exhibitors and seminars it’s time to unwind at the Beer Festival, sponsored by Velux, with street food, rockaoke, and a gin and fizz bar. FIX Radio will be broadcasting from here throughout the event. You can also visit the Central Bar in Hall 11 sponsored by Elliott Group and the Timber Bar in Hall 9 sponsored by Germany Trade & Invest.
Keep up to date via www.ukconstructionweek.com and Twitter at @UK_CW or using the hashtag #UKCW2018.
To read the full article in Offsite Magazine, go to the digital version of Issue 13
