Firm hopes to be awarded the BRE’s BPS 7014 standard for modular systems for dwellings certification

Project Etopia has begun work on building a demonstration home at the BRE’s innovation park with the aim of being the first modular housebuilder to meet a new UK offsite construction standard.

The Cambridge-based firm is building the three-bedroom demonstration home at the park in Watford, and hopes to be awarded the BRE’s BPS 7014 standard for modular systems for dwellings certification.

The standard, a draft of which published in April 2018, will assess levels of performance of buildings using modern methods of construction (MMC) against sustainability and building standards.

Project Etopia’s house, built using panelised walls, will be tested for its resistance to hurricanes, fires and floods and will be evaluated to prove it can match and surpass equivalent building regulations for bricks and mortar homes.

Joseph Daniels, Project Etopia’s founder, said: “In years to come, people will look back at BRE’s introduction of BPS7014 and pinpoint that as the moment modern methods of construction really went mainstream.

“It’s fantastically exciting for the UK housing market and there is now everything to play for.”