Are you a business involved in the construction industry? Then BCU’s Centre for Future Homes is here to help. It will explore and evaluate resilient, scalable cost-effective solutions to the challenges facing the sector. It will also pave to way for a smooth transition to safe low carbon homes and meet vital climate change objectives.
The Centre for Future Homes, which will open on Birmingham City University’s (BCU) city centre campus on 14 November, is a research group consisting of BCU academics and construction industry experts providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions for the sector. It has been formed to help the construction industry measure its performance, improve the quality of new builds, and analyse the lived-in experience of residents.
Following the Grenfell Tower Inquiry report, a transformation is required in the building industry to end the race to the bottom. This means putting quality and safety first and ensuring the competence and behaviours of all those working in the sector. The industry also faces enormous challenges as it transitions to become more resilient in the face of climate change and seeks to meet the government’s target to build 1.5 million homes by 2030.
Rebuilding Trust
To rebuild the public’s trust and confidence in the construction sector and step up to the challenges ahead, the Centre for Future Homes research team will:
- Put the customer at the heart of the journey
- Provide the data and insights to allow policy makers to make evidence-based decisions and avoid unintended consequences.
- Drive a culture change, putting quality and safety first and measuring outcomes rather than inputs
- Deliver real impact to shape the future of safe comfortable, low carbon homes.
Future Homes Standard
The Centre for Future Homes is evaluating demonstration projects in new build and retrofit working with Midland Heart and Keep Moat. The team will transfer the knowledge gained from these Future Homes Standard demonstrators to the retrofit of 26 million existing homes.
This modernisation of our existing stock is the only way to achieve our climate change objectives, but it comes with significant challenges including upfront cost, resident engagement, skills gaps and return on investment.
However, the transformation also creates opportunities for many thousands of new people to enter skilled construction industry jobs. To achieve this the Centre for Future Homes will put in place a significant change programme to upskill the existing workforce.
Qualifications
Working with the Birmingham City University’s STEAMhouse team and the Awarding Body for the Built Environment, the Centre for Future Homes is committed to working with industry to meet their needs and create the qualifications to facilitate collaboration and behaviour change.
The College of the Built Environment at Birmingham City University already offers a wide range of part time and full-time courses as well as degree apprenticeships. Student involvement in real time projects being undertaken by the Centre for Future Homes will provide the opportunity for an immersive learning experience and give them the knowledge they will need to make real impact in their future careers.
Primary Research
To combat climate change, the Centre for Future Homes research team is focused on adapting homes to ensure they are resilient for the next 150 years.
The team is currently working with industry to deliver PhD research projects into critical elements that will feature in the change process. This includes making heat pumps more efficient, improving indoor air quality and preventing overheating. The Centre, supported by 15 industry partners, is also embarking on research into reducing the use of single life plastic in the industry and accurately measuring embodied carbon emissions.
Next Steps For The Centre
The team are keen to work with developers who want to respond to the ambition outlined in the Future Homes Standard to conduct post occupancy evaluation of 2000 homes. As a first step a series of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) challenges are planned in BCU’s innovation hub, STEAMhouse, focussing on a range of topics including the decarbonisation of energy intensive building materials and the education and integration of sub-contractors.
The Centre for Future Homes will work collaboratively to ensure the smooth transition to low carbon and safe homes. It will do this by showcasing the technology and knowledge required while offering learning opportunities for students and Continuous Professional Development for the industry. If you have a project you would like to discuss, please contact Mike Leonard at mike.leonard@bcu.ac.uk.
