Prefabs sprouting: Modern Methods of Construction and the English housing crisis

英国政府再次拥抱“预制”。然而，今天的产品不是战后住房紧急情况的标志性平房，也不是仍然主导许多城市天际线的老化混凝土塔楼，而是在受控的工厂环境中进行数字化设计和制造。2019年，英国政府渴望加速房屋建设、减少碳排放并挑战传统建筑行业，开始为这种通常被称为“现代建筑方法”（Modern Methods of construction，简称MMC）的房屋建造方法投入大量资源。他们之所以这样做，部分原因是由于持续的“住房危机”，即优质、负担得起的待售和出租住房供应不足，导致生活在不安全、质量差和临时住所的人数增加。MMC行业现在在英国发展迅速，像宜家和Legal and General这样的大公司正在接受政府拨款，建造MMC住宅。然而，很少有研究来了解MMC公司正在建造什么样的房屋和场所，或者MMC在解决住房危机方面正在发挥或应该发挥什么作用。我们的项目将填补这一空白，并围绕四个主要任务组织。首先，我们将建立一个MMC行业本身的图片，并建立我们找到什么样的公司，他们位于哪里，他们提供什么样的家园和经营理念。其次，我们将研究英格兰各地的客户和政策制定者委托MMC开发商交付什么样的房屋和场所，以及交付过程如何展开。第三，我们将分析围绕MMC的系统，并研究政策制定者和房地产行业如何改变或应对新公司。第四，我们将评估新的MMC住房和场所是否有助于解决英格兰的住房危机，例如，提供更实惠、安全、节能、耐用的、精心规划和选址的住房。这项研究的一部分是在国家层面上进行的，目的是了解整个英格兰的MMC情况。该研究的另一部分以唐卡斯特、利兹和博尔顿的三个mmc驱动的住房再生案例为基础。我们正在与建造这些新基地的三家公司（Bauman Lyons、Citu和Ilke Homes）合作，以获得关于MMC项目如何交付的第一手知识，并与居住在MMC住宅中的居民交谈。我们的项目创新地汇集了住房研究、地理、建筑、土木工程和项目管理方面的研究人员，我们的方法包括文献分析、访谈、民族志和GIS制图。我们的研究将使我们能够提供有益的新数据：对住房公平、技术标准、安全和可持续性感兴趣的学者；政府决策者渴望解决住房危机，了解MMC的影响和轨迹；MMC公司寻求最佳实践，并宣传他们的创新建筑方法；希望更好地了解MMC的房屋建筑行业专业人士；希望获得更多关于这一新产业及其影响信息的民间社会组织；想要深入了解购买和生活在现代“预制”房屋中的现实的普通公众，以及正在寻找与我们现在拥有的截然不同的替代住房系统的活动家。该项目将产生六篇学术文章、针对从事住房、规划、建筑、工程和项目管理工作的非学术专家的报告、一套可访问的博客和新闻以及地方和国家传播活动方案。

The UK Government is once again embracing the 'prefab'. However, rather than the iconic bungalows of the post-war housing emergency, or the ageing concrete tower blocks that still dominate many urban skylines, today's offerings are digitally designed and manufactured in controlled factory settings. In 2019, the Government - keen to accelerate housebuilding, reduce carbon emissions and challenge the traditional construction sector - began to commit significant resources to this method of housebuilding, what is usually called 'Modern Methods of Construction' or MMC. They did this, in part, because of the ongoing 'housing crisis' whereby an insufficient supply of good quality, affordable homes for sale and rent has driven up the numbers of people living in insecure, poor quality and temporary accommodation. The MMC sector is now growing rapidly in England and large companies like Ikea and Legal and General are receiving Government grants to build MMC homes. However, there is little research being done to understand what kind of homes and places MMC firms are building or what role MMC is playing or should play in addressing the housing crisis.Our project will fill this gap and is organised around four main tasks. Firstly, we will build a picture of the MMC sector itself and establish what kind of companies we find, where they are located and what kind of homes and business philosophies they offer. Second, we will study what kind of homes and places MMC developers are being commissioned to deliver by clients and policymakers across England and how this process of delivery unfolds. Third, we will analyse the system that surrounds MMC and examine how policymakers and the housing industry are changing or responding to the new firms. Fourth, we will evaluate if new MMC homes and places are helping to address the housing crisis in England by, for example, offering more affordable, safe, energy efficient, durable that are well planned and located. Part of the study works at the national level to understand what is happening with MMC across England. Another part of the study is anchored in three cases of MMC-driven housing regeneration in Doncaster, Leeds and Bolton. We are working in partnership with the three firms building these new sites - Bauman Lyons, Citu and Ilke Homes - to gain first-hand knowledge of how MMC projects are delivered and to talk to residents living in MMC homes. Our project is innovative in bringing together researchers working in housing studies, geography, architecture, civil engineering and project management and our methods include documentary analysis, interviews, ethnography and GIS mapping. Our study will enable us to deliver new data of benefit to: scholars interested in housing justice, technical standards, safety and sustainability; government policymakers hungry to address the housing crisis and understand the impact and trajectory of MMC; MMC firms looking for best practice and to publicise their innovative approach to construction; housebuilding industry professionals looking to better understand MMC; civil society organisations who want more information about this new industry and its impacts; the general public who want insights into the reality of buying and living in a modern 'prefab' home and housing activists who are looking for an alternative housing system that works very differently from what we have now.The project will result in six academic articles, reports aimed at non-academic experts working in housing, planning, construction, engineering and project management, a set of accessible blogs and journalism and a programme of local and national dissemination events.