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Presuming that funding is in place, Councils still face a number of challenges before building can take place. For example, focus on the environment and growing energy costs mean that Councils are under more pressure than ever to deliver low energy, efficient spaces – all while sticking to budget. Safety of pupils and minimising disruption during term time of course remain pressing issues. This need to focus on myriad issues, including the small task of ensuring the future sustainability of schools in their area,means that Councils are uniquely placed to take advantage of modern methods of construction.

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Modular schools, delivered to site over 2 or 3 days, such as those manufactured and installed by Wernick, are helping to solve many of the challenges presented by the education sector. And new frameworks are revolutionising the school building procurement process.

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Edinburgh, Inverness and Highlands Councils took receipt of ten new modular buildings from Wernick last summer. Installation,fit out and inspection took place over the summer vacation and the buildings were ready for pupils upon returning to school.

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Ben Wernick, Director of Construction at Wernick explains “Modular building projects can be completed up to 50% quicker than traditional construction methods as the indoor ‘offsite’ construction process can take place alongside site and foundations work which also means very little delay due to the weather.Finishing buildings over the summer holidays means no disruption to teaching and no risk to pupils.”

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“The preconceptions are there but the reality is that when people walk into a modern modular building, they realise this is a big step up from what they’re used to.“I’ve heard of teaching staff trying their best to avoid moving into the new building. Once the building has been handed over, they are trying to get in there first! They’re warmer, cleaner, bright and airy. From a teaching perspective,it’s a considerable improvement on a lot of the accommodation the teachers are currently working in.”

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Constructing buildings offsite, in a controlled environment, means that a building can be made water-tight and weather resistant with quality controls ongoing throughout the build. Modern modular buildings are simple to maintain, are well insulated and achieve high EPC ratings – and green technologies can be easily incorporated into the design to further support their eco credentials.

Building Specifier

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