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Get StartedWhat is Offsite Construction?
Offsite construction is the planning, design, manufacture and assembly of building elements at a location other than their final installed location in order to increase the speed of, and efficient construction of a permanent structure.
The term ‘Offsite construction’ encompasses a wide spectrum of innovations, not just volumetric modular units.
The construction industry needs to grasp the concept of construction industrialisation, and learn new competencies, as illustrated on the graphic below.
An industrialised approach requires five key competencies;
- Design for manufacture & assembly (DfMA),
- Offsite manufacture,
- Logistics,
- Onsite assembly, and
- Best-in-class maintenance.
These competencies are underpinned by eight management skills. You can find out more about these in the School’s management topic.

The School provides hundreds of free learning resources that help to build an understanding of offsite:
- Sub-topics – The five elements of industrialisation: DfMA, offsite manufacturing, logistics, onsite assembly and best-in-class maintenance;
- Format – Video, e-learning, workshops, webinars. documents or web links;
- Competency level – Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert or Leader.
Check out our latest resources, helping us to make Offsite ‘for Everyone’.
DfMA - Why now?
In this short video, industry leaders explain how offsite and Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) technologies can help address carbon, skills and productivity issues facing construction.
Key Reports:




The onsite assembly process is the management and culmination of…

DfMA is about embedding efficiency throughout a product’s life-cycle, including…

Implementation of decisions taken at the design stage through the…

Moving to an offsite approach has significant impacts on offsite…

Develop your leadership and management skills and drive sustainable change.

Bringing factory thinking to the construction process, to industrialise the…
Design for Manufacture and Assembly
The MMC Categories
Video
Standardised Work
How to Build a Lean Culture
Web link
Lean Maturity
Visual Management Systems in Construction Sites
Document/Presentation
Design for Manufacture and Assembly
DfMA: Design for Manufacture and Assembly
E-learning module
Onsite Assembly
E-learning module
Offsite Manufacture
Offsite Manufacturing Process
E-learning module
Biodiversity and Ecology
Introduction to Biodiversity – Lunch ‘n’ Learn
Event or Workshop
In use/maintenance
Best in Class Maintenance
E-learning module
The Supply Chain Sustainability School teamed up with Kier to create the Modern Methods of Construction database.
It’s really important for clients and professional designers to understand the capabilities of the offsite construction supply chain. This interactive map allows offsite manufacturers to have visibility of who does what in the supply chain and to start the process of building those really important collaborations.

“The School is an excellent source of knowledge on DfMA and offsite construction. Its combination of online resources and face to face training delivery means that you can choose the style of learning that best suits your organisation.”Nigel Ostime, Project Delivery Director, Hawkins Brown Architects

