Timber construction: making good with wood

In February, the UK government published its updated roadmap for increasing the use of timber in construction.

The commitment to sustainable and modern methods of construction (MMC) follows the government’s pledge to build 1.5 million new homes over the course of this parliament.

However, questions remain over whether the industry’s skills and capacity can meet this ambitious target.

Here, Robert Hairstans, founding director of the Centre for Advanced Timber Technologies at NMITE, discusses the imminent launch of a new construction management degree and the collaborative effort to bolster skills and competence across timber construction.

Can you tell us about the new course and why it has been developed?

In September, NMITE will launch the new BSc (Hons) in construction management, subject to securing a viable cohort.

However, we started this journey more than two years ago because we recognised that there was a competency deficit in terms of the use of timber in construction.

With that in mind, we established an industry working group with stakeholders from across the timber sector to explore the core technical competencies and softer skills needed.

What really came to the fore was that the requirements for timber and construction largely centre around construction management and professionalism.

We saw the necessity for considerations around design for manufacture and assembly, including the issue of circularity.

Fundamentally, it’s about how to deliver these projects safely, securely and robustly.

There are also complex issues such as moisture management and performance in fire, both in the temporary state where it’s being built but equally when the structure has been built.

All of the work that went into creating a competency framework – identifying those needs and aligning them to the core technical competencies and softer skills – brought to the fore the need for a new BSc for sustainable built environment delivery, with sustainable materials at its core.

Considering the skills and competence challenges you have identified, do you think the government’s new homes target is achievable?

To achieve the ambition of delivering 1.5 million homes, investment in skills and education is of paramount importance, with a particular emphasis on construction delivery.

A recent survey of Structural Timber Association members indicated that there was available capacity to manufacture 100,000 homes per annum, which is one third of the government target.

However, there does not exist the available timber in construction skills to support this level of output.

The uptake of timber in construction will also be undermined by misconceptions and bad practice if the educational provision does not keep pace with the sector and the innovations required for MMC.

In terms of the new course, what can learners expect?

The emphasis of the new course is to equip people with a deeper insight into timber construction, embracing an MMC ethos.

The degree has been conceived and will be delivered in partnership with the sector. It will also draw upon research on how to maximise the value of English forestry resources, which NMITE has led on.

In addition, learners will have an immersive experience as they will be hosted in the Construction Excellence Award-winning ‘living lab’ Skylon campus.

The campus is of hybrid form, with the studio spaces constructed from cross-laminated and glue-laminated timber that will act as an educational tool kit.

The course is a truly unique offering in the educational landscape. It comes at a pivotal moment for the sector, with a need to drive towards net zero carbon by utilising more sustainable products and regenerative delivery techniques.

How will teaching and learning be structured?

The course will focus on challenged-based learning. There will be opportunities to work with industry, so that students can better understand the practical applications of what they are learning. It is all about learning by doing.

We also will bring industry into the educational approach.

Basically, we will have academic facilitators working with industry partners. As students progress through the programme, the learning will be grounded in real-world applications.

We also want to take the lens that we’ve established through our short courses – covering topics including timber, technology, engineering and design – and apply that to the new course.

We’ve taken the course content and put it into a virtual learning environment so that learners can work through the content on a flexible basis while engaging with real-life challenges during the learning experience.

It’s about taking them on a journey, signposting to relevant information and assessing that they’ve understood everything.

We can then bring them together in-person to undertake things like design and build challenges to demonstrate that they’ve understood the course content.

We want to provide lots of opportunities for them to practically apply it and understand the challenges of practically applying it in the real world.

As we evolve the programme, we ultimately want to facilitate a more agile learning approach.

Not everyone can take a break from their career to complete a full-time degree over three years. We want to establish it in a way that allows individuals to engage with learning on a flexible basis. That’s the longer-term vision for the course.

How important has collaboration with the industry been?

One hundred per cent – collaboration is fundamental to the programme.

Ultimately, what we are trying to deliver into the market are the built environment professionals of the future.

We wanted to ensure that the course responds to the skills and competency needs across the industry.

There are a lot of individuals out there in the industry doing a great job. But this is about giving them the opportunity to upskill, reskill or transfer skills from carbon-intensive methods to new sustainable approaches.

It is important to understand the barriers and challenges surrounding the skills and competence requirements in the sector. We can’t second guess those issues. We have to work in partnership with the sector and ensure they buy in to what we are doing.

The programme has been created with them in mind, so that it delivers on their needs.  

Looking ahead, what do you hope learners will gain from the course?

A better understanding of environmental responsibility – both among individuals and across the broader construction industry – is the number one thing.

Beyond that, it’s about really understanding the nuances of sustainability at a high level, and what that means in terms of technical specification and delivery.

Ultimately, we want to help improve productivity in construction, but we can’t do that to the detriment of the natural environment.

By bringing the use of timber and other sustainable materials to the fore, we can make a real difference for generations to come.

For more information about the new BSc (Hons) in construction management and to register for the next open day on 22 March, visit the NMITE website.

Photographs supplied by NMITE.