The Hickory Building System that Mace has adopted uses bathroom pods, utility cupboards, MEP service modules and other components that are all made offsite.
For the UK, Mace has renamed it it High Rise Solutions (or HRS) and has set up a new business unit, Mace Tech, that will manage its deployment.
Mace claims that it can reduce the design and construction programmes by 25%, vehicle movements by 40% and waste by 70%.
Mace Tech business unit director Shaun Tate said: “HRS is more than just a new offsite construction method – it is a new digital approach to how we assemble and construct buildings. We interrogated the entire production to delivery cycle, taking inspiration from the auto industry with its integrated production and assembly line, looking at how we can develop smarter and more efficient offsite assembly methods to drive better outcomes.”
Following a pilot of the system at a London construction project, Mace is using the HRS system to construct N06, a Get Living build-to-rent scheme in East Village, the former London 2012 Athletes’ Village. Split across two towers of 26 and 31 stories, the project will deliver 524 new homes.
Mace has shortened the construction programme by 18 weeks with 20% fewer workers onsite compared to a traditional building approach. The construction of N06 is well under way, with four floors already built across each of the two towers.
Mace chief executive Mark Reynolds said: “The launch of Mace Tech marks an important milestone, not only for Mace but for the industry; unless we radically rethink how we build, we will never be able to deliver the housing and infrastructure that is desperately needed across the UK while reducing our carbon footprint.”
Get Living CEO Rick de Blaby said: “The industry is changing fast, and Mace is at the forefront when it comes to innovation. As a client we applaud the quality, time and safety advantages Mace is bringing to N06.”
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