Your questions about MMC answered by our experts

You asked, we answered

Why is MMC so necessary when traditional housebuilding techniques are reliable?

The skill levels on site are dwindling, and it’s harder and harder to find the right subcontractors to do the jobs that need doing to put together a traditional home.

Alongside that lack of skills, there’s the huge 1.5m homes target from the current government – MMC and OSM will have to be a bigger part of our housing jigsaw to make a dent in that target.

That’s not to say that traditional site skills and roles will, or should, disappear – all types of building methods will play a role in pushing the national closer to its housing goals, but such a radical increase in the housing stock can’t depend on a diminishing talent pool of on-site skillsets.

Why would a house built off-site be higher quality than one built with traditional techniques?

In some ways, MMC can offer advantages that traditional build methods can’t match. For instance, factories are audited for quality (including inspections by warranty providers, like LABC Warranty), and certified to recognised standards such as ISO9001.

Because the standardised and repeatable construction process happens in a controlled environment, the outcomes are repeatable and every product is fabricated to the same quality.

How can builders feel confident in embracing MMC/OSM homes?

As we mentioned earlier, there’s the quality of the components – as opposed to being built in a different place, in different conditions every time, MMC/OSM parts are built in controlled environments.

On top of that, the lack of a need for fabrication on site means speed of build – less time on site, less time managing uncertainties, and a faster turnaround for buildings being constructed.

And as far as we can tell, there’s no reason to believe than an OSM-built home is of any measurably lower quality than a traditional method.

Can OSM and MMC be sustainable?

Off-site is as ‘sustainable’ as what goes into the materials, and how the factory is run. This doesn’t mean OSM is inherently sustainable or unsustainable, but it does mean that factories can be run using renewable power, and can process sustainable materials into building products.

How would we ‘sell’ a non-traditional build to customers?

Choosing the home to buy is a huge decision. It’s one of the biggest decisions that a consumer in the UK is going to make.

The closest comparison is your car. Would you buy a car that was built in a factory, in controlled conditions and proven consistency? Or would you prefer one that was built on your driveway by a different team of subcontractors every time?

What does LABC Warranty do to support MMC and OSM?

The LABC Warranty Innovations team works constantly with MMC manufacturers to establish the circumstances in which we can cover their work on our customers’ sites.

This includes working alongside our customers’ engineers, and conducting inspections on the production line itself; LABC Warranty’s teams visit factories and inspect the factory floor, the transport process, and the delivery of manufactured items to ensure quality is delivered and installed on site.

And of course, everything built and covered by LABC Warranty is done so according to the standards set out in the LABC Warranty Technical Manual.

We encourage any builder looking to expand upon traditional building methods to construct with MMC or OSM, and we’re happy to help them procure the correct systems for their development.

Feel like you missed out?

If you have a burning question that hasn’t been covered in this short Q&A, you’re still welcome to get in touch. You can use the form on this page to submit a question about MMC or OSM, and we’ll run it past our team for an answer.

If you have any other questions about MMC, OSM, or any other questions for a warranty provider, you’re always welcome to get in touch. Find the LABC Warranty representative in your area on this map, or use the form to get in touch here.