Housebuilder & Developer is an established business-to-business title for the residential construction sector. The brand brings its professional readers the latest case studies, thought leadership and product innovations, across the magazine, website, digital newsletters and social media.
Approaches to Water Efficiency in New Homes - October 2023
The pressure was already on to increase water efficiency, and reduce water use, as much as possible in new homes. But this has been turned up in the past couple of years, driven by the rise in people working from home post-Covid, and increased water shortages across the country.
The general push is to make homes and their appliances as water efficient as possible, against overall sustainability targets driven by climate change, and the leaks which water companies continue to wrestle with. Alongside manufacturers producing better products, developers are responding.
Building Regulations provide an ambiguous picture (125 litres per person per day is required, but 110 litres is an option). And rather than tightening regs, the Government has a new ‘fittings-based’ approach to compliance, hoping to empower customers rather than penalise industry. But will focusing on the demand side bring the efficiency gains?
We asked our housebuilder and developer readership what they thought of the current regime, and what more could be done. Is more supply-side intervention required to really cut our homes’ water consumption, what are practical current issues for housebuilders, and how are product solutions helping?
Read our industry white paper to discover some unique readership insights.
Solving the housing crisis with offsite constuction - August 2023
In 2021 Housebuilder & Developer conducted a study to gauge interest in modern methods of construction, finding that 40% of respondents reported they had never worked with any MMC, and 37% never anticipated doing so in the future – with a range of concerns preventing them from adopting the methods, from initial costs to a lack of Government support.
Two years later, Housebuilder & Developer revisits its reader’s thinking on MMC to see how their perceptions have changed. Are the technologies being adopted more widely? Or are they still being ignored by a third of the industry?
In this white paper, Housebuilder & Developer reveals that the same significant barriers are still prevalent – with those surveyed having utilised MMC even less than before (-9% YOY), and those who have being less likely to do so in the near future (+6% YOY) – and provides data that goes some way to explaining this.
Responding to change – the impacts of the amended parts L and F - October 2022
As of 15th June 2022, new homes starting construction must produce at least 31% less carbon than under the previous regulations, legislated under changes to Part L and F of the Building Regulations.
In this research, Housebuilder & Developer intends to find out how our readers are adapting to these changes, how well these and future changes are understood, and the impacts they will have on their businesses.
Building Safety into Law - June 2022
Five years after the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the Government introduced the Building Safety Bill, to attempt to address many of the construction industry issues which have been blamed for the devastating fire.
While the Bill was progressing through Parliament, Housebuilder & Developer conducted a survey of its audience on their knowledge of, and opinions of, the changes it brings. The results contain a variety of sometimes concerning findings, such as on the lack of information currently received from the Government on the Bill/Act. The Industry Viewfinder white paper report is a unique insight into housebuilders’ readiness to tackle the new safety regime, and safeguard future developments.
Future-Proofing Against Floods - May 2022
Flooding is on the rise in the UK, and the situation is only set to worsen as our climate changes.
Fortunately, there are many products and methods available today to attenuate flood risk, with Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SuDS) often argued to be the best route forward.
This white paper reveals how housebuilders and developers are using SuDS techniques, how often they are doing so, and what the barriers are for their adoption.
Delivering the Future Homes Standard - October 2021
The Government has confirmed that, from 2025, no new homes will be allowed to be heated using fossil fuels, such as using the typical gas boilers. Homes will also be required to be ‘future-proofed’ to utilise the electricity grid as it continues to decarbonise – meaning a push for housebuilders to install heat pumps, which only require electricity.
Despite the laudable ambitions, the FHS is not without its opponents, and it will prove challenging to achieve for many construction firms in the UK. In order to ascertain housebuilders’ views and understanding of the FHS, Housebuilder & Developer has conducted a survey of over 100 UK building professionals (over 80% of whom are in managerial roles).
Exploring current thinking on modern methods of construction - May 2021
Housebuilding in the UK is suffering multiple crises at present, from rising costs, to low supply and a lack of skilled tradesmen.
While not a new technology, modular housing is seeing a resurgence in this country, and many argue that it has the potential to address all these issues. With 40 per cent of housebuilders still having never used offsite methods, however, it appears the technology is not being utilised to its full potential.
This research aims to find out why this is, what housebuilders and developers currently think of the differing forms of offsite building, and what are its main benefits and barriers.
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