Earlier this week, MMC Ireland was invited to participate in an event: ‘Collaborate to Innovate – Accelerating MMC Adoption in Housing Delivery’ , which was aimed at exploring ways to accelerate the adoption of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in housing delivery in Ireland. Pat Kirwan, Sarah-Jane Pisciotti and Tony McLoughlin attended on behalf of MMC Ireland.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney TD, recently hosted a stakeholder event focused on driving innovation and boosting productivity in residential construction. The event was part of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment led cross-Departmental and cross-agency initiative on modern methods of construction (MMC) under the Housing for All program. The event brought together various industry and professional bodies to identify ways to remove barriers to MMC adoption and encourage innovation. Stakeholders heard updates on various Government initiatives aimed at speeding up delivery times for new home construction, increasing the use of off-site manufacturing, and driving transformation in the sector. The initiatives included Enterprise Ireland’s new €5m Construct Innovate Technology Centre, Solas’s new Housing Modern Methods Demonstration Park at Mount Lucas Co. Offaly, TU Dublin’s Build Digital initiative, new innovation and productivity advisory and financial supports to the residential construction sector from Enterprise Ireland under its Built to Innovate program, and changes in procurement of social housing delivery under Housing for All.
Representatives from a cross-section of State agencies and bodies were also present, from certification through to procurement, digitisation, and upskilling. They reflected on the long-term vision for the industry and discussed effective ways of encouraging innovation. The feedback captured during the event will be used to inform the development of a roadmap for MMC adoption in publicly procured residential construction, a priority action the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is leading with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage under the updated Housing for All Action Plan. This work includes progressing MMC in procurement frameworks and addressing related implementation challenges across regulation, skills development, targets for MMC in public procurement, and capacity building/leadership in the construction sector.
Minister Coveney stressed the importance of collaboration between the public and private sectors to develop and implement workable solutions to accelerate the adoption of innovation and modern methods in construction. The feedback captured during the event will be used to inform the development of a roadmap for MMC adoption in publicly procured residential construction.
This event is the first in a series of construction industry engagements planned by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for 2023. The Department is committed to working with the construction sector to embrace innovation and boost productivity in house building, ensuring that it delivers the government’s ambition in Housing for All. Ireland has a track record of being an innovator in commercial and industrial building, and the abilities in house and apartment building need to be part of that reputation. The Department is focused on developing and implementing solutions to accelerate the adoption of innovation and modern methods in construction and MMC Ireland looks forward to supporting and actively contributing to this.