When addressing the issues of Ireland’s housing shortfall, offsite construction is the ‘obvious solution’.
That’s the view of Declan Wallace, Chair of MMC Ireland, the industry body dedicated to supporting and promoting the use of offsite technology in Ireland.
And whether it should be called MMC (Modern Methods of Construction), or offsite construction is still up for discussion, what isn’t up for the debate is the urgent need to build thousands of new homes in Ireland.
Raising Awareness
The Irish Government recently released a major report which suggests the country needs to build 35,000 new homes a year if it is to keep up with population growth.
A major stumbling block for the adoption of offsite construction in Ireland and meeting this target, Declan believes, is the lack of awareness or understanding of the technology.
To this end, in 2023 the Irish Government published the Modern Methods of Construction Introductory Guide, with the intention of the guide to provide information about the offsite sector for the general public, and to increase awareness of the range of solutions available in the market.
MMC Ireland, which was formed to represent those involved in the planning, design, procurement or delivery of offsite construction in Ireland, has been in conversation with the Irish Government regarding the development of this guide.
MMC Ireland currently has around 80 listed members, using a variety of offsite technologies, including Category 1 – 3D volumetric construction and Category 2 – 2D flat panel construction.
“We need all the industries to accept MMC and see it as a suitable alternative to traditional construction methods,” said Declan, speaking at the recent MMC Ireland Conference.
“To do this, we’ll have to educate and bring competence into the industry at all levels. That’s going to involve collaboration and sharing knowledge.”
Project Pipelines
Declan also believes the relatively arbitrary pipeline of projects utilising offsite construction needs to be tackled in order to allow companies involved to become financially stable, which in turn will allow the sector to grow and operate at its most efficient.
He explained: “We have to create a sustainable pipeline of work to allow investment into the industry, and to do that we need to avoid over specification and too much red tape.
“With the exception of timber, I’m of the opinion that all our MMC manufacturers in Ireland are working at about 30 per cent efficiency. If we get them up to 90 per cent efficiency costs will align and these companies will be sustainable.”
If companies working with offsite technology are given the opportunity, the housing deficit can be cut considerably, says Declan.
“There is no supply chain issue in Ireland, the manufacturing companies have the capacity to increase output by 25,000 units per year, they just need to be given a pipeline to deliver,” he added.
“MMC is the obvious answer to this shortfall but we must convince government departments that it’s a solution. But it’s never been a better time for MMC now, because we can meet the supply.”
MMC Ireland will be present at Offsite Expo on September 17-18. For more information and to register for your FREE tickets, please visit offsite-expo.co.uk
To keep up with the latest news and views from the Offsite hub, follow us on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/exploreoffsite and visit offsitehub.co.uk
And to learn more about MMC Ireland, please visit mmcireland.ie
