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22 CASE STUDY


Affordable, modular, fast and flexible?


Housebuilder & Developer looks at the potential of the nHouse prototype to offer spacious, flexible homes constructed in three days


N


House is a new flexible, modular home design being pioneered by award-winning architect Richard


Hywel Evans, who is hoping to make waves in UK housebuilding with a contemporary style allied to short build times and affordability.


The nHouse modular solution was launched recently at MIPIM in Cannes. With prefabricated housing again high on the agenda as a much-vaunted solution to the volume housing needed to solve the UK’s housing crisis, reports are that the house received positive industry acclaim in the south of France. With the ’n’ in the name standing for


OFF SITE CONSTRUCTION HAS LONG BEEN HAILED AS THE UP AND COMING SOLUTION TO SPEEDY AND EFFICIENT BUILDS, BUT HOUSEBUILDERS HAVE BEEN SLOW TO TAKE UP THE METHOD


new, the nHouse is being hailed as a genuinely innovative design model for off- site construction. Unlike many of what Hywel Evans describes as “space- restricted, often featureless” homes of the present, the nHouse offers not only spacious but “tech-packed” accommoda- tion, with what he claims are ‘Grand Designs’ levels of styling.


Aimed firmly at addressing the UK’s housing problem in the mainstream however, the nHouse has been designed to cost £190,000, and takes just three days to construct once on site.


OFF SITE BENEFITS


The team behind the nHouse, which will be built in a factory in “the East of England” argues that little has changed from Victorian brick-built design in modern housebuilding, and that it offers


what is claimed to be a fresh approach. Britain certainly retains an adherence to


bricks, and while many customers appreci- ate that their house has been built quite literally brick by brick, this is a relatively slow and arduous process. It is also one which many countries have long since begun to leave behind, making way for the modular housing revolution. Off site construction has long been hailed as the up and coming solution to speedy and efficient builds, but house- builders have been slow to take up the method. While other countries have time and time again proved the benefits of building modular houses, housebuilders in the UK have been, as ever, reserved when introducing the new technology. In Germany for example, over 100,000 homes are built this way every year.


THE ARCHITECT’S VIEW With the housing crisis growing, many in the industry believe it is no longer viable to rest on our laurels, and progress must be made to speed up builds if the UK is to reach its ambitious target of 250,000 homes a year. This is where innovators such as Evans and his nHouse are leading the way towards a speedier, efficient delivery future. The architect explains his ethos behind the project: “Often I see standard houses being produced which are mostly built on a budget with an eye on the bottom line, rather than focusing on the happiness of the occupier.” He asserts: “A home isn’t just a machine for living in, it’s somewhere that captures your heart and shapes your life, so it needs to be special.” He continues: “There seems to be little thought put into to how a home must be at the heart of a community,” with builders and designers often forgetting “how a good home helps a family and supports its occupants realise and fulfil their dreams.”


A NEW APPROACH


Richard Hywel Evans holds that nHouse has some key benefits that set it apart: “I designed the nHouse as I wanted to put design first and see if we can build a home


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