Westbury launches into factory build

Westbury Homes has started production of timber-frame homes at its £15m Space4 factory at Castle Bromwich in the West Midlands. In the first three months Space4 will manufacture 50 units and then ramp up production to 1000 units within 12 months.

Space4's arrival gives a boost to the nascent factory-built homes industry in the UK. Recent industry mergers have meant that homebuilders have been concentrating on restructuring rather than implementing new build technology and Persimmon's acquisition of Beazer has led observers to ponder the future of its new Torwood2 timber-frame factory in Ipswich.

Westbury currently builds 6000 units a year in brick and block, but plans eventually to build all its housing in the factory. "In the first period we want to take things slowly to ensure that we are bedded in properly. The priority is to concentrate on quality first, and then by mid-summer we will start to move through the gears," said Ashley Lane, Westbury's technical director. Lane estimates that build times per unit will fall from 16-22 weeks to 6-10.

At the moment there are 60-70 staff at the factory, and Lane says the number will increase to 120-130. A training syllabus has been developed for the Construction Industry Training Board with Warwick University. Training will be given to both factory workers and subcontractor assembly teams in Westbury's regions.

So far Westbury is only manufacturing homes for itself but Lane says it will look to other markets in the future. "A number of parties have expressed an interest mostly in residential, but we have the ability to construct all types of buildings," he said.

The first 23 homes will be heading for sites in Taunton and Burton on Trent.

The future of Torwood2, the timber-frame factory established by Beazer last year, is still in doubt as new owner Persimmon has yet to announce its plans for its new acquisition. Beazer's social housing division, Beazer Partnerships, which has the contract to build homes for the Amphion consortium of housing associations, is seeking a management buyout, but it is not known whether any potential deal would include Torwood2, which is producing the Tee-U-Tec timber frame units for Amphion.

Wimpey is pressing ahead with its modular housing schemes in Romford and Chelmsford, Essex, with social housing partner Guinness Trust, despite its internal restructuring. Wimpey/Guinness module manufacturer Britspace believes that it could be producing 800-1000 units with Wimpey by the end of next year.