Lewisham council has launched what is described as the first ever UK moveable mixed-use development.
Built through modular construction, PLACE/Ladywell is a £4.3m scheme that provides 24 homes and 880 sq m of business space that can be picked up and moved at a later date, allowing the council to make use of vacant brownfield land while longer-term projects are finalised.
The factory-built flats arrived on the site late last year, each home coming in two pieces: one is the living area with all of the services and kitchen built in, the second provides the bedrooms. The homes have been designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, and the scheme was built by by SIG Building Systems and Expedition Engineering.
PLACE/Ladywell is a £4.3m moveable scheme that provides 24 homes and 880 sq m of business space
Sir Steve Bullock, mayor of Lewisham, said that London was currently in the grip of a housing crisis and the scheme was a “great example of how we can use innovation to respond to this very real and growing challenge”.
Lewisham, which is driving a number of new housing schemes, has commissioned the temporary homes because it allows homes to be built for lower cost overall as well as faster completion time.
The flats were made in Derbyshire and delivered in two pieces, one the living area and kitchen, the other the bedrooms and the whole building is fully demountable and can be used, disassembled and moved up to five times.
It has an overall 60-year lifespan. Place/Ladywell will remain on the current site until the temporary planning permission expires in 2019, with permanent regeneration of the area set to begin then.
Speaking about the design of the units, Ivan Harbour, partner at Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, told Construction Manager: “This type of development can go up to 13 storeys and our only real constraint is the volume you can get on the back of a truck and get round the country.
“By using offsite construction you can can ship all the material and assemble it locally. It’s all about the flexibility of people.”
