Project Overview

With modern methods of construction championed by the Construction Playbook as key for delivering “excellence” and BIM positioned by Dame Judith Hackitt as a “golden thread”, the approach demonstrated by DESL on the Chelsea Barracks project utilising digital technologies has arguably given a blueprint to the industry on how to achieve productivity gains and certainty of outcome through offsite construction.

From the very outset DESL firmly committed to modularisation of 376 assets taking 32,000 man hours offsite. This clear vision influenced the approach to the stage 4 design where DESL implemented a “BIM Freeze process”. This involved a collaborative 3D review process by key stakeholders where Awareness of DESL commitment to build such a high volume of assets offsite influenced behaviours through jointly focusing on safety, sequencing and programme. DESL also invested in an industry leading bespoke QR coding system linking assets digitally to a repository of information and QA procedures giving clients full visibility of the progress and process of the fabrication at all stages from conception to installation. The project provides a tangible example of how digital technologies can maximise benefits of offsite construction.