Using modern methods of construction to build homes more
quickly and efficiently
Supporting material
Introduction
This material supports our report on how modern method of
construction can be used to build good quality homes more quickly
and efficiently. We make it available to help you understand the
details of the good practice described in the report and to
implement it.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Housing
Corporation asked us to undertake this independent examination to
identify how to get best value when using modern methods of
construction. The aim is to provide practical help to Registered
Social Landlords and private developers.
Our research has drawn on expert knowledge contributed by 50
leading sector practitioners in four workshops, together with
further detailed information from over 20 organisations active in
the home building industry.
Specific materials mentioned in supporting documentation are
used solely for the purposes of comparison, and do not imply
endorsement of particular products.
Process maps
Detailed process maps based on a sample development, available
in MS Project and PdF.
The National Audit Office makes these process maps available to
show in detail how plans need to change to get the best out of
different construction methods. They represent typical good
practice across a range of developers and do not necessarily match
exactly what any individual developer does. They are specific to
the reference development described in the associated
specifications, so they need to be interpreted appropriately for
any other development.
You should not use the process maps simply as they stand. You
should rather use the maps to guide how you need to tailor your own
existing practices to get the most out of modern methods of
construction.
Costs
Detailed breakdown of calculations and scenarios on which our
cost results are based.
The National Audit Office makes these papers available to
explain how we calculated costs in our example development and to
give sufficient detail to illustrate how to approach costing
differently when using modern methods of construction.
The materials spreadsheet gives examples of what is included in
the factory element for different modern methods of construction.
It is a reference point to illustrate what some specific
manufacturers include.
When entering negotiations, you will need to establish precisely
what the selected manufacturer offers. The calculations apply to
the example development described in the associated specifications.
Relative costs for different modern methods of construction will
change for other types and scale of development.
The scenarios paper examines some of these changes but you will
need to apply your judgement when interpreting our results for your
own proposed development.
Quality
Papers detailing whole life costs and durability of sample
development.
The National Audit Office makes these papers available to
provide more detail on how we examined quality.
The papers apply to the example development described in the
associated specifications. It is not necessarily applicable in
every detail to other developments.
Site Plans and Internal Layouts
Papers showing site drawings and internal layouts. For reference
purposes only
The National Audit Office makes these site drawings and internal
layout plans available as contextual material to aid interpretation
of the associated process maps, cost data and quality analyses.
They should not be taken as examples of best practice design. They
serve as a point of reference to ensure comparable results from the
different construction methods that we compared.