Bryden Wood, the architecture and operations consultancy, has become one of the first architects to win a Queen’s Award for Enterprise, for innovation that changes the fundamentals of design and construction.
The company’s vision is to close the gap between construction and manufacturing to create a highly productive, digitally-led industry.
It is a vision in which construction is delivered using simple sets of components anywhere in the world. A small multiskilled workforce is able to build a structure with very few speciality trades required.
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These techniques have already been used to build airport buildings, schools and pharmaceutical facilities.
Bryden Wood claims to be the only consultancy to bring together architects and engineers with business analysts, mathematical modellers, software coders and data analysts to provide tools for strategic thinking that bring information to life.
The process allows clients to test hundreds of possible building solutions, optimising their investment by selecting those with the greatest benefit.
The process seeks to eliminate as much site work as possible through the use of offsite fabrication. Composite, modular components are designed to work together and be assembled.
Rather than using traditional construction techniques, the structure effectively slots and bolts together. Costs are reduced by 30% and time to build by 60% while delivering extensive improvements in safety.
Bryden Wood is currently working with several major government departments, including the Ministry of Justice, Highways England and the Education and Skills Funding Agency to deploy its approach at scale, bringing huge benefits to the UK taxpayer.
The same approach is also being applied by the company to housebuilding in London. Last month, the mayor of London announced that Bryden Wood will work to create a common framework to build new homes from standardised, pre-manufactured components, as reported by BIM+.
“This award recognises the brilliant work our team has been doing to tackle low productivity in the sector and drive a more manufacturing-led approach,” said co-founder Mark Bryden.
“Since Martin Wood and I started the company in 1995, we have led the adoption of more advanced construction techniques and the application of design for manufacture and assembly. The work continues today as we strive to attract more creative, digitally-savvy people to construction.”
