Concrete Centre backs call for the UK government to refine factory-made homes policy to prevent overheating

4363 The Concrete Centre has backed a call from the UK parliamentary environmental audit committee for the introduction of tougher rules to ensure homes can deal with extreme heat.

A spokesperson for the Central London-based Centre, which is part of the 2897 Mineral Products Association and a supplier of material, design and construction guidance to the UK’s concrete and masonry industries, said: “The Environmental Audit Committee warns of 7,000 heat-related deaths every year in the UK by 2050 and also complains about a lack of regulation to prevent overheating in buildings.
 
"The committee also wants the government to stop supporting the building of modular homes, which are factory-made then bolted together, suggesting they are concerned over the performance of such homes in hot weather.
 
"We sympathise with the committee on this issue, as the problem with most factory-made homes is their light-weight nature, which lacks thermal mass and causes them to warm up very quickly on hot days.”
 
The Concrete Centre spokesperson notes that thermal mass is a property found in heavy-weight masonry and concrete dwellings and describes the ability to soak up heat, helping control the internal temperature and maintain comfortable conditions.

The spokesperson continued: “Where modular, factory-made homes are required, the solution then is to build them from thermally massive materials, which means concrete products, for which there are a number of construction systems already on the market.

"We support the Environmental Audit Committee on this issue and would urge the government to refine its policy on factory-made homes so that the overheating is not an unintended consequence for the occupants who have to live in them."