Next month we will start transporting modules onto the Isle of Portland, where we’re delivering 41 new modular homes on the first phase of the redevelopment of the former Royal Manor Arts College which educated 11 to 16-year-olds until its closure in 2016.
This will be the sixth residential development we have delivered in partnership with Magna Housing, and the largest so far.
The site is in a registered area of deprivation so we are going to great lengths with Magna to deliver our latest Net Zero Carbon Ready all-electric homes to reduce living costs for Magna’s customers.
We are working with Magna to deliver 27 homes for rent, featuring one, two, three and four bedrooms, and 14 two and three-bedroom homes available to buy through shared ownership on this prominent site named Royal Manor Place.
The project has benefited from a £4.6m grant from Homes England, which specified the use of modern methods of construction, and £410,000 from Dorset Council.
The development will remain true to the local architectural styles by incorporating elements of local Portland stone in its design.
By using modular construction techniques we can enhance the overall quality and precision of our homes. Modules are built offsite in controlled environments, minimising waste and allowing for efficient use of materials, and offsite manufacture reduces the number of vehicle movements for local communities traditionally associated with new homes development.
Our focus on energy efficiency extends to every aspect of the design and construction of these homes, from insulation materials to the heating systems. These homes are heated with an air source heat pump.
Our Managing Director Steve Chivers said: “We’re very excited to be almost ready to deliver the first modules to the Portland site – a logistical challenge which is no mean feat in itself!
“These modern and energy-efficient homes will be a beautiful addition to the Portland landscape and a boon to the island, where affordable housing is at a premium.
“We’re looking forward to getting on site and we would like to reassure local residents that we will do everything we can to minimise disruption while we are delivering the modules.”
The modular construction sector may be going through turbulent times, but our business is going from strength to strength, writes Rollalong MD Steve Chivers.
We are the largest permanent offsite construction company in the south of England and we’ve built our reputation in the defence, education and healthcare sectors.
We’re now also winning significant residential contracts to provide modular homes for local authorities and housing associations.
In fact, we’re bucking the trend of some recent high-profile failures in the modular offsite construction sector.
Thanks to our many years of experience, our diverse product range and our long-standing partnerships, Rollalong is not facing the same challenges that others are experiencing in the industry.
We have a strong pipeline of work, such as the homes recently ordered by partners Magna Housing and Wilshire Council. With these houses now being produced in the factory, our business is continuing as normal.
Founded in 1932, Rollalong has been in business for over 90 years and specialises in the design, manufacture and installation of permanent offsite buildings. We currently have 1,000 homes on our order books and five proof-of-concept sites complete.
Unlike other offsite manufacturers, Rollalong does not operate solely in the residential sector – we also have a strong pipeline of work in defence, education and healthcare.
Thanks to our location and long history we also benefit from a robust supply chain, and through our current business model we procure factory materials locally wherever possible.
The residential sector is increasingly important to us, and we have demonstrated the value of collaboration through our partnership with Magna Housing, Wiltshire Council and the South West Procurement Alliance.
Working together, we can deliver the volumes that we require using a market-tested, BOPAS and NHBC Accepts accredited portfolio of standard house types in any step and stagger configuration and rollout through a regional delivery model.
These are exciting times as we roll out the delivery of almost 1,000 new net zero carbon ready and net zero carbon living modular homes across Somerset, Wiltshire and Dorset, using offsite manufactured, precision-engineered techniques to modernise and speed up the whole process.
We were pleased to welcome four visitors from Wiltshire Council to our factory on Tuesday.
Mike Dawson (Head of Estates and Development), Mike Kalvis (Senior Contracts Surveyor from the Asset Management Team) and Councillors Tony Jackson (a member of the Climate Emergency Task Group) and Sarah Gibson had a tour of the factory and visited our show home.
As a member of the Environment Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Jackson is interested in lower carbon activity, and topics for discussion were grey water recycling, rainwater harvesting and ground source heat exchange. Rollalong is part of a partnership with Wiltshire Council, Magna Housing and the South West Procurement Alliance which will build nearly 1,000 new homes in the South West over the next three years.
We were delighted to welcome a group from Yeovil College to our factory this week!
Six carpentry students and two lecturers from the college paid us a visit to learn more about modern methods of construction (MMC) and how the construction industry is evolving.
They heard a presentation about Rollalong and our offsite construction methods and had a tour of our factory so they could see the manufacturing process at first hand.
The college is looking to work closely with Rollalong so that MMC can become an integral part of the syllabus on its new T-Level courses.
Next we plan to show the students one of our Magna Housing construction sites near to the college so they can see the next phase of our MMC construction process.
We were very pleased to welcome a delegation from Wiltshire Council for a visit to our factory last week.
Seven colleagues from the council’s housing and climate change teams, alongside three members of the Wiltshire Climate Alliance, had a tour of our facility in Dorset to see how modular homes are manufactured offsite.
They were also keen to talk to us about our carbon reduction road map and how we are reducing the carbon footprint of both our operations and the buildings we manufacture.
We are part of a partnership with Wiltshire Council, Magna Housing and the South West Procurement Alliance (SWPA) which will build nearly 1,000 new homes in the South West over the next three years.
“Our latest range of homes are net zero carbon ready and net zero carbon living, supporting the Government’s objective of delivering net zero carbon homes by 2050,” said Steve Chivers, Managing Director of Rollalong.
“We were delighted to have an opportunity to showcase these homes to our visitors from Wiltshire Council, whose mission is to deliver high-quality, attractive homes that provide residents with affordable housing and lower energy bills.”
People across Dorset, Wiltshire and Somerset will benefit from a new partnership to build more energy-efficient homes for rent and ownership.
Magna Housing and Wiltshire Council have joined forces to address the housing crisis, appointing offsite manufacturing company Rollalong via the South West Procurement Alliance (SWPA) Offsite Construction of New Homes framework, to build nearly 1,000 new homes over the next three years.
At the forefront of this work in the local area, the partners are committed to accelerating the delivery of modular homes in the UK, using offsite manufactured, precision-engineered techniques to deliver much needed homes in the local area, as well as modernising and speeding up the overall process.
The latest range of homes are net zero carbon ready and net zero carbon living, supporting the Government’s objective of delivering net zero carbon homes by 2050. They are cheaper to run than traditionally built homes, with better insulation and more efficient heating, and people living in them will be better off as a result.
Designs can flex from traditional to contemporary to suit the towns and villages across Somerset, Wiltshire and Dorset.
The development of these new homes, designed with the end user in mind, supports the local economy by employing local people and using local suppliers. The construction process also reduces any environmental impact as it uses less energy, reduces waste and creates less disruption to local residents, thanks to fewer deliveries to site over a shorter period of time.
With a faster turnaround than traditional methods of construction, as well as a high-quality, standardised product, they will be available more quickly and will be more cost-effective and safer for occupants.
The partnership has made extensive efforts to make sure that the concept and approach works: Rollalong has already manufactured 120 homes and completed the first three sites at Barton Gardens, Woodland Way and McCreery Road in Sherborne, Dorset.
Paul Read, Magna’s Executive Director for Sustainability and New Supply, said: “We have been on an exciting journey leading this approach to modular homes. I am delighted that we are now seeing our hard work turn into reality with new homes now on site and people being ready to move in.
“Our priority, in addition to creating homes designed for living, is to reduce the amount of carbon in delivery and occupation of homes. So in addition to creating great places to live, and beautiful homes, they are also more sustainable and cheaper to run, providing huge benefits for our customers. This partnership will not only make more homes available for local people but will lead the way in how we can transform the delivery of these.”
Steve Chivers, Managing Director of Rollalong, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded the contract by Magna Housing and Wiltshire Council to design and build these modular homes that will provide a range of high-quality, affordable housing for everyone.
“We are building the homes of the future designed for living today. It’s another great opportunity to demystify modular housing and champion the benefits that this style of housing can provide in the face of a nationwide housing crisis.
“This unique partnership delivers the volumes that we require using a market tested portfolio of standard designs – we are aggregating demand through client cluster relationships and rolling out through a regional delivery model.
“We are now working with experienced clients in the South West, bringing jobs and apprenticeships and using our local supply chain partners which demonstrates our commitment to social value.
“Local communities built by local people, using local manufacturers for local people – we are creating systemic change in our transition towards a circular economy in the South West.
“The next step for us is setting work to further reduce carbon from the way we build and live in homes.”
Councillor Phil Alford, Cabinet Member for Housing at Wiltshire Council, said: “One of our key missions within our business plan is to deliver high-quality, attractive homes that provide residents with truly affordable housing, with reduced energy bills.
“Not only are we doing that, but we firmly believe we’re building the highest quality affordable housing in Wiltshire with the lowest rents.
“The work that has gone into securing this three-year contract with Rollalong will provide long-term benefits for residents and the environment and we are really pleased to be on this journey with Magna Housing. This work has demonstrated that when you collaborate and join forces, collective buying power is greater than working alone.
“We can’t wait to see our innovative vision become a reality.”
Mary Bennell, Director of SWPA, said: “We have worked closely for a long time with Magna Housing, and more recently with Wiltshire Council, to provide the innovative procurement solutions required to meet their housing aspirations.
“The demand aggregation approach used here will provide a stable pipeline of homes, via a manufacturing process, and demonstrates benefits in terms of value for money. We hope that this becomes the preferred route for all social housing clients to deliver affordable, high-quality and energy-efficient homes.”