Wivenhoe Apartments, Barking

						
							Client						

							Be First

						
							Solution						

							Permanent

						
							Size						

							20 x 2 bedroom apartments

						
							Programme						

							15 Weeks

The Brief

New housing is required for families in Barking who are in urgent need of accommodation. The homes are developed by Be First, the regeneration arm of Barking and Dagenham Council.

The £1.5m modular housing contract was awarded to Premier by main contractor Jerram Falkus and will provide 20 two-bedroom apartments in two blocks, all manufactured offsite.

The use of an innovative offsite solution for this project has reduced the programme to just 15 weeks for the procurement, manufacturing and fitting out of the apartments, installation on site and commissioning.

Each two-bedroom apartment occupies a single 12.5 tonne module to optimise efficiency and will be factory tested before arriving on site.

Premier were only on site for 25 days which demonstrates the speed of its modular housing solution very well. This is a huge benefit when there is an urgent need for homes for local homeless people in the borough.

Apartments fully finished in the factory

The apartments will be fully finished at Premier’s factory in East Yorkshire using high quality materials and will be delivered to site complete with bathrooms, kitchens, flooring, partitions, doors, windows and external cladding.

Only M&E connections, joint details between modules and service risers will need to be completed on site after the installation of the apartments.

The Challenge

Due for completion by the end of 2020, the building will occupy a highly constrained site in a residential area and adjacent to a live railway line. Premier will install a trackway across an open field to bring in the 250-tonne crane and the apartments.

There are also restricted hours for delivery of the modules as the site is located within the M25, requiring detailed logistical planning.

Modular construction allows us to halve the construction time, with obvious benefits to residents in the neighbouring areas. But, more importantly, it allows us to respond to the rapidly developing needs of our local community much faster than we would otherwise, by providing value-for-money, high quality housing for local people.

Marcia Kirlew, Development Manager, Be First

Sustainability

Designed by ATP, the scheme will have roof-mounted PV panels to generate electricity and bike shelters will be installed, as well as some car parking and landscaping.

The Wivenhoe Apartments project is Premier’s second emergency housing project to help meet Government targets to address homelessness. Also on site is a £7.5m contract for Buckinghamshire Council for the offsite construction of 58 apartments for homeless people in High Wycombe.