CONSTRUCTION
A hospital waiting room constructed by Algeco offsite. All Algeco healthcare solutions are compliant with HTM, HBN, SHTM, WHTM, and HAI-SCRIBE standards.
NHS buildings, by maximising efficiencies at every level. For over 60 years, Algeco has been supplying high-quality modular buildings to customers across a variety of sectors – including the healthcare sector. We work under various NHS modular frameworks and solutions, and our buildings are are compliant with HTMs, HBNs, SHTMs, WHTMs, and HAI-SCRIBE standards.
Lean manufacturing and DfMA Lean manufacturing and Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) are central to our approach, and we have invested heavily in both, along with an extensive R&D programme. DfMA focuses on reducing time to
market and total production costs by prioritising the ease of manufacturing parts and simplifying assembly. By taking a DfMA-led approach, and adopting the principles of lean manufacturing, such as process optimisation and waste reduction, our offsite construction methods offer a faster way to deliver high-quality new buildings. Our methodology involves the design and fabrication of building components or ‘modules’ taking place offsite in a factory setting, prior to them being transported to the construction site for assembly.
An optimised supply chain Aside from DfMA, offsite construction in itself offers numerous benefits over traditional building methods, and there are many reasons why it represents the way forward for the NHS. Principally, offsite can deliver permanent healthcare buildings in up to half the time that it takes for an onsite build, while the fact that most work is done away from the hospital minimises disruption to care. By completing many of the construction
stages offsite, the supply chain can be optimised, disruption minimised, and the overall build time reduced by up to
An offsite-constructed healthcare facility in Canberra completed by an Algeco group company in Australia.
September 2023 Health Estate Journal 69
50%. Offsite construction also results in a higher quality end-product, better overall performance of the finished building, and better value for money, due to tighter cost control. Compliance with Building Regulations is also easier to manage, because elements such as fire ratings can be verified and quality checked before the modules arrive on site, mitigating the need to commission a third-party fire consultant. This level of factory completeness is measured by Pre-Manufactured Value (PMV), and for healthcare buildings, up to 85% PMV can be achieved. That means that the majority of the building work is already complete by the time modules arrive on site, with the remaining 15% consisting of finishing and commissioning.
Standardised modular designs Algeco was part of the industry-wide Seismic Consortium which developed a standardised platform for building modules, with the aim of further simplifying the design and manufacturing process. Designed in line with the
Government’s Construction 2025 targets, the Seismic platform was developed to drive a major shift towards a more productive, better quality, and lower carbon, construction industry. Ultimately, its purpose is to deliver high-quality buildings that can be mass-produced and delivered within shorter timescales. The platform, which has now been added to the Construction Platform Rulebook, facilitates the design, procurement, manufacture, and assembly, of buildings using standardised and interoperable components and assemblies. It uses a small number of repeatable base designs, which enable all modular manufacturers to work to the same specification when creating the basic building components. This delivers significant efficiencies. It also aligns with the creative talent of UK architects, because it allows bespoke elements to be incorporated into the design at later stages, while still facilitating the repeatability of large elements.
Addressing the needs of the health sector To us, the benefits of standardised offsite construction from a manufacturing point of view are clear – but why does this matter to the health sector? Quite simply, offsite construction has the potential to address the urgent needs of the UK’s health sector, by revolutionising the way that much-needed wards, hospitals, and primary care facilities, are built. Ultimately, standardisation will mean
that an architect can design a new A&E wing, or an entire hospital, to a clearly defined industry standard design. The design can then be tailored to meet individual hospital needs later on in the process, leading to significant economies of scale. In addition, an architectural practice can offer it as a repeatable design across the Trust, delivering important efficiencies in the process. At the same
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