Some may think it's too bold a statement, but there's a reason I'm inviting people to the launch of Horizon – our 137,000 square feet, state-of-the-art, light gauge steel panel assembly line – and declaring a Revolution in UK Construction.
A revolution because our hybrid offering lets you combine traditional methods with modern methods of construction. Ensuring every kind of builder, big or small, can embark on the scale of revolution that's right for them.
The rewards for taking the first revolutionary step will encourage even bigger and bolder steps on ensuing projects. The cumulative effect being huge changes for our industry. Yes, of course, in terms of how builders build. But also in terms of the value created for developers and for the users of buildings.
I guarantee that the holy grail of faster delivery, cost effectiveness, consistent high quality, exceptional safety standards and energy efficient buildings is achievable.
Robots and Resilience
Horizon is the big, big sister of our Skyline factory which now focuses on the manufacture of our BOS Fitout modular kitchen, bathroom and bedroom units.
Horizon will manufacture our UNisystem range, producing one UNipanel complete with windows, doors, insulation, fire stopping and cladding every 15 minutes and creating a complete set of panels for one apartment every 60 minutes.
UNisystem is one of the most advanced light gauge steel panel systems in the marketplace, proven in the 1,100 homes we've already delivered for Weston Homes across the Southeast.
When you visit Horizon you'll witness our incredible robots – mesmerising giants that have multi-jointed mobile 'arms' with claws and magnets that can transport, grab, cut, drill, nail, screw, weld, glue, fill, spray-paint and much, much more. Together with our skilled workforce, these robots have the capacity to deliver up to 4,000 homes every year.
This capacity is significant for the developers of homes, schools, student accommodation and hospitals alike. But just as important as capacity, is the capability Horizon has to take vital processes offsite, leaving developers less vulnerable to the risks and delays involved in traditional construction. That's labour and skills shortages, supply chain delays, onsite storage and delivery issues, and environmental sustainability and health and safety commitments.
As well as mitigating risks, taking vital processes offsite can reduce your costs and deliver a faster return on investment. We can reduce the time from first fork in the ground to first handover of keys by up to 20%. So why wouldn't you consider a little revolution in how you build?
Pre-Planning and Precision
While I can't stake a claim to modernising the UK planning process – a revolutionary claim too far! – I can assert that working with us at the very early stages of your project on land optimisation, pre-planning design and logistics will enhance your planning application.
With our knowledge of local authority expectations around design and implementation criteria (they may have a presumption of offsite being used to a specified level), we can help you to align your ambitions with theirs, and deliver an initial sequencing plan and preliminary estimates, ensuring you can answer any offsite construction questions with precision.
Precision is core to everything we do at British Offsite. It's built into the Horizon factory we've designed in partnership with Randek. It's inherent to the quality checks we complete at every turn. It's also embedded within our programme sequencing and approach to installation on site, which we always oversee.
End-to-end precision like this is an important added element of the revolution we're offering. It's what makes the holy grail of faster delivery, cost effectiveness, consistent high quality, exceptional safety standards and energy efficient buildings 100% achievable.
Shaun
Weston, Managing Director
British Offsite
For more information visit: www.britishoffsite.com
