Develop Croydon received an exclusive update from partner Tide about its significant presence in Croydon and shared its perspective on volumetric construction as a solution to reclaim those hard-to-reach sites for efficient, sustainable, and high quality homes.

Croydon is on the rise. Since 2011, its population has increased by 7.5% in 2021. The borough’s growing young population is full of promise too, creating a boom in private renting, which increased by 4.8% to 25.8% in 2021, faster than nearby areas.

While this is great news, there is still a catch; we need more quality homes and fast to support this growth.

Having delivered over 1,500 homes to the borough in less than five years, Tide finds Modern Methods of Construction (MMC), and specifically volumetric construction, as one of the key solutions to delivering the homes needed at speed while simultaneously realising ambitions for a modernised, low-carbon, productive housing sector.

But what is volumetric construction? Our volumetric process is a form of off-site construction that translates buildings of up to 50 storeys into transportable 3D units – bringing the quality control and discipline of car manufacture to the built environment.

Tide’s developments at College Road (163m) and Ten Degrees (135m) have been key to the volumetric-driven urban development of Croydon. College Road comprises 817 co-living homes and 120 affordable homes, while Ten Degrees comprises 546 BTR homes.

They’ve also provided local landmarks for the borough to be proud of. At the time of completion in 2020, Ten Degrees was the tallest volumetric building in the world but has since been overtaken by College Road. With the pressure on to build housing at pace, speed of delivery is a key advantage of volumetric construction.

On our projects, by building offsite we are able to cut construction time by up to 50%. In Croydon alone, Tide has delivered over 1,500 homes, including 120 affordable homes, at speeds of sometimes up to 21 homes per week. This means that the homes and regeneration needed can be delivered faster, with investors getting a quicker return, all while improving the housing sector’s productivity, safety and quality.

Of equal importance, volumetric construction is capable of minimising the built environment’s carbon impact.  This is because our homes can be precision-engineered to meet high thermal and energy efficiency standards.

Embodied carbon is also dramatically reduced on our projects, thanks to offsite manufacturing using materials more efficiently, less transport, less waste, and more recycling.

Volumetric construction can also contribute to the circular economy too. Tide’s sister company and volumetric manufacturer, Vision, precision manufactures volumetric units with long-lasting materials, guaranteeing their longevity. However, at the end of a building’s lifetime, they can also be theoretically deconstructed and repurposed.

Tide’s approach has also unlocked constrained sites by taking construction offsite and manufacturing homes in purpose-built facilities, volumetric construction allows us to build on inner-city plots or brownfield sites – both Ten Degrees and College Road are highly constrained sites surrounded by live buildings and busy transport infrastructure including East Croydon Station – making derelict land viable for our clients by rapidly transforming it into revitalised housing and public realm.

Lastly air pollution is one of the most recognised and quantified environmental impacts from transport. By building on constrained inner-city plots using fewer construction vehicle movements, including less idling and circling for deliveries, we make further carbon savings on all of our projects by reducing transport-related emissions.

As we navigate Croydon and the UK’s wider housing challenges and strive for a more sustainable future, embracing volumetric construction methods offers a pragmatic approach, tailored to the needs of London’s growing boroughs. By leveraging the immense potential of volumetric to deliver high-quality homes quickly, efficiently, sustainably and safely, we can shape Croydon’s future.