MODERN METHODS OF CONSTRUCTION
The decision to use MMC may seem clear-cut. Health and care projects typically take a long time to deliver, making innovations that speed up construction programmes particularly relevant. On top of this, renewed focus has been placed on reconfiguring and replacing facilities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the need for the quick roll-out of new facilities highlighted by the growing backlog of elective procedures.
However, a decision to embrace MMC is nuanced. Like all complex design solutions, it is essential that the specific type of MMC used, and the techniques required, are clearly defined and of a high quality. We have found, from working across various projects, that utilising a combination of the MMC techniques available – rather than adopting a singular approach to MMC – can reduce the time on site for healthcare projects by around 30%, thereby minimising disruption.
Manufactured in a factory environment
We have also found that a design developed for delivery through MMC can produce a facility that has more than 90% of its component parts manufactured/installed within factory environments. This delivers significant improvements in finished quality and consistency, and consequent reductions in the time spent on site with snagging and remedial works before completion. Our view is that the best way of
The practice says it has ‘reaped the benefits of a flexible approach to offsite construction’ when designing the Ward Replacement Programme at City Hospital, Nottingham.
harnessing the benefits that MMC offers is to be dexterous enough to use multiple solutions – from volumetric pods and standardised structural elements, to panelised façade solutions and pre- approved products – rather than being wedded to one approach.
By treating MMC as a kit of parts that can be reconfigured to engage with the specifics of a brief, large projects – such as those outlined by the HIP programme – can gain significant efficiencies, while maintaining high quality. Guidelines need to be balanced against the client brief, to account for bespoke community and client requirements.
Design input and careful configuration
In the application of MMC across sectors – including in schools, offices, and homes – there has been design input and careful configuration, rather than a ‘copy and paste’ approach. The hotel sector offers a glimpse of the possibilities of MMC. The use of volumetric pods for our design for CitizenM Hotel, Tower of London, demonstrates that modular construction can be used in even the most sensitive and complex of urban contexts. Here, innovative façade solutions, coupled with careful engineering, were used to navigate the 370-room hotel’s proximity to a UNESCO World Heritage site, its location within a conservation area, and adjacency to the historic Roman London Wall, in addition to its position above, and shared ground floor space with, the busy Tower Hill underground station. This project is a far cry from dull architecture, and proves that MMC, if used with care and intelligence, can deliver efficiencies in even the most sensitive locations.
Building in future flexibility to hospitals
A considered, quality-driven approach to the use of MMC also allows hospitals to build in flexibility for the future. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed new pressures on our hospitals, and highlighted the need for responsiveness to extreme conditions. A much greater percentage of consultations between clinicians and patients is now being delivered remotely (an approach greatly accelerated by the pandemic), while there is also an increased demand for high dependency facilities that allow the isolation of individuals, as well as cohorts of patients, when necessary.
Sheppard Robson says its use of volumetric pods for its design for the CitizenM Hotel, Tower of London, ‘demonstrates that modular construction can be used in even the most sensitive and complex of urban contexts’.
56 Health Estate Journal June 2021
It is likely that hospitals will continue to have to switch between pre- and post- pandemic conditions, adjusting their use of space to cope with COVID-19 as it
©Hufton+Crow
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