Collaborative ways to address housing crisis

Research impact

Increased offsite manufacturing will improve housing supply by reducing construction time up to 80%. By integrating the supply chain through offsite manufacturing, this $43 billion industry can prepare for a future where more construction occurs away from the building site. Offsite manufacturing can reduce materials waste by up to 90% and onsite accidents by up to 80%. The partners and researchers collaborated to develop a new model to implement offsite manufacturing for the housing sector.

Project outcomes include

• Development of supply chain theory and practice through the analysis of case studies
• Conceptual development, supported by practical examples, on innovation and collaboration for transformation within organisations and the industry
• Collaborative practice models for housing supply chains
• New simulation-based training programs incorporating industry-based collaboration scenarios
• Evidence to enable informed government policymaking for housing

Academic publications

Pablo, Z, London, K, Wong, PSP & Khalfan, M 2021, Actor-network theory and the evolution of complex adaptive supply networks, Construction Innovation. 21, 4, p. 668-684 DOI: 10.1108/CI-05-2019-0042 

London, KA & Pablo, Z 2021,Simulation-Based Collaboration Training: Strengthening the Industry's Capacity to Collaborate Handbook of Research on Driving Transformational Change in the Digital Built Environment. Underwood, J. & Shelbourn, M. (eds.). IGI Global Publishing, p. 404-429 DOI 10.4018/978-1-7998-6600-8.ch016 

Stable relationality and dynamic innovation: two models of collaboration in SME-driven offsite manufacturing supply chains in housing construction Pablo, Z. & London, K. A., 24 Apr 2020, In: Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management. 27, 7, p. 1553-1577 25 p. DOI 10.1108/ECAM-07-2019-0346 

London, K, & Pablo, Z, 2017, ‘An actor–network theory approach to developing an expanded conceptualization of collaboration in industrialized building housing construction’, Construction Management and Economics. Special Issue on Social networks in Construction. DOI: 10.1080/01446193.2017.1339361.

Pablo, Z, London, K & Wong, PSP 2017, ‘Adapting novel research techniques to analyse collaboration in offsite manufacturing housing construction innovations’, in P Chan and CJ Neilsen (eds), Proceedings of the 33rd Association for Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM 2017): Brutally Innovative Construction, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, UK, 124-133.

Pablo, Z, & London, K 2017, ‘Developing collaborative capacities in industrialized building: roadmap for knowledge transfer,’ in E Fidelis and M Behm (eds), in Proceedings of the Joint CIB W099 and TG59 International Safety, Health, and People in Construction Conference: Towards better Safety, Health, Wellbeing, and Life in Construction, Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT) and the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), 553-563.

Pablo, Z, & London, K 2016, ‘Actor-network theory as a processual approach to understanding collaborative practice in innovative construction supply chains,’ in Under New Management Innovating for sustainable and just futures 30th ANZAM Conference, ANZAM 2016, Brisbane, presented at ANZAM 2016, Brisbane, 06 - 09 December 2016, https://anzam2016.com/wp-content/uploads/ANZAM_Proceedings/ANZAM_Proceedings.pdf

London, K, Pablo, Z & Khalfan, M 2016, 'Mechanisms for industry transformation: analysis of organisational citizenship behaviours in a design-production innovation', in M Prins et al. (eds), CIB World Building Congress: Environmental Opportunities and Challenges (WBC 2016), Tampere University of Technology, 573-590.

Pablo, Z & London, K 2016, 'A collaborative practices typology for Australian prefabricated housing networks: convergence, alignment and coordination', Sustainable Housing 2016: The 2016 International Conference on Sustainable Housing Planning, Management, and Usability, Green Lines Institute for Sustainable Development, pp. 725-734.

Pablo, Z, London, K & Khalfan, M 2016, 'Walking the line: navigating the space between calculus-based and relational trust in construction supply chains', in Matthijs Prins, Hans Wamelink, Bob Giddings, Kihong Ku and Manon Feenstra (eds), CIB World Building Congress: Environmental Opportunities and Challenges (WBC 2016), Tampere University of Technology, vol. 2, pp. 536-547.

London, K & Pablo, Z 2015, 'Innovation in offsite manufacturing in the field of housing: a case study using Bourdivian and actor-network approaches', in C Egbu & MA Farshchi (eds), Going north for sustainability: Leveraging knowledge and innovation for sustainable construction and development, IBEA Publications Ltd, pp. 297-307.

London, KA, Pablo, Z & Khalfan, M 2015, 'A multilevel analysis of collaboration in offsite manufacturing supply chains using actor network theory', in Wang, X & Chi, H (editors), International Conference on Innovative Production and Construction (IPC 2015), IPC2015 Organizing Committee, pp. 117-122.   

Media and events

Three Industry Academic Events were hosted for this project and the following were supporting partners: Australian National Housing Supply Chain, Boral, CSR, HIA, Australian Sustainability Built Environment Council and Lean Construction Institute. The Breakfast Events were held in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.

• Kerry London's breakfast event presentation
• ARC linkage video below showing highlights about the project, including the development of training materials based on the team’s collaborative practice model

Key notes

Executive education

• For more information on the executive education program “Built Environment and Urban Transformation: Collaborative Practice to Deliver Change”, please see this brochure

Research team

Torrens University Australia

• Professor Kerry London (Chief Investigator)
• Dr Zelinna Pablo (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)

RMIT University

• Associate Professor Peter SP Wong (2017)
• Associate Professor Malik Khalfan (2015-2016)

Partners

Australian Research Council

Frasers Property

Master Builders Association

FMG Engineering

Metricon Homes

RMIT University

Research objectives

• Analyse the specific Australian housing barriers and enablers to introducing innovative OSM through a series of case studies.
• Develop an integrated supply chain practice model, based on the analysis, that includes measures of collaboration mapped to productivity performance and that can be used to guide OSM effectiveness.
• Test and evaluate the collaborative practice model through expert stakeholder panel assessments and then develop virtual OSM construction simulation training and then pre- and post-testing of live projects and cross-case comparisons.

Research approach