Offsite & MMC

The cashflow model used in government procurement is not fit for promoting modern methods of construction (MMC), senior figures from contractors told a Parliamentary committee this week. The industry experts were giving evidence to the House of Lords’ Built Environment Committee, which has launched a probe into problems with the…

Doomed disruptor Legal & General Homes Modular Ltd has posted its seventh consecutive annual pre-tax loss, as it implements a plan to cease all operations within the next two years. The business, which launched in 2016 with grand plans to “modernise the homebuilding industry”, said it would wind down by…

The chair of modular builder Top Hat has said he is “extremely concerned” by government-backed plans to create a standardised kit of parts for modern methods of construction (MMC). In May, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities appointed a consortium to create sector-wide standards for modular parts and…

Homes England is set to receive just 0.1 per cent of the £69m it is owed by Ilke Homes, after the firm’s administration process was hit by equipment theft and problems selling completed modules. The collapsed modular homebuilder owes £321m to its creditors, including £68.7m to Homes England – but…

One company came close to snapping up Ilke Homes for £25m in June, a new administrators’ report has revealed. Administrators announced that 36 businesses were approached about buying the North Yorkshire-based modular specialist in May and June. One bid for the company was received that would have seen it sold…

Will new regulations be enough to reduce the fire-safety risk posed by cavities in modular built structures? Ian Weinfass reports More than eight months have passed since fire-service bosses published a five-page document outlining a litany of concerns about modular buildings. Their warning came a year after structural safety-reporting body…

The Department for Education (DfE) says it is reviewing all work carried out by Caledonian Modular after three schools it delivered have had to be closed due to fears over structural and fire safety. As Construction News reported yesterday, Haygrove School in Somerset and Sir Frederick Gibberd College in Essex…

Bedfordshire-based offsite data-centre construction specialist AC Plc has filed for administration. The firm, which posted a turnover of £49.1m – up from £20.7m the previous year – in its most recent set of accounts for the year ending 31 March 2022, lodged its court application on Friday. AC Plc also…

A prominent building-materials supplier has launched its own offsite construction arm to capitalise on demand for the activity. Brussels-based business Etex Group, which has a presence in 45 countries including the UK, created the Remagin brand to offer a “comprehensive” and “end-to-end” service to customers. Created by merging three of…

“Extensive” public sector work has helped offsite specialist firm Reds10 see its third consecutive year of growth in both revenue and profit. Reds10’s revenue for the year to 31 March 2023 rose by 32 per cent to reach £83.8m, more than doubling since 2020/21, when it was £37m. The company’s…