TopHat has secured a partnership with France’s largest house builder Nexity, to accelerate off-site modular construction in France
The profile of off-site modular construction in France is set to rise after UK company TopHat will bring its expertise to Nexity’s extensive resources and development programs.
As part of their Imagine 2026 strategy, Nexity aims to have 10% of its housing production completed in factories by 2028.
Nexity delivered over 18,000 homes last year
Through the partnership, Nexity aims to grow its offering of affordable and low-carbon housing, as well as accelerating delivery times.
Benoit Mainguy, director of construction at Nexity, said: “Nexity has delivered over 2,000 off-site prefabricated timber frame homes and possesses real expertise.
“We are delighted to collaborate with a committed expert in construction industrialization to develop high-quality, innovative, and efficient homes that significantly improve our delivery times and costs. This is the beginning of an exciting adventure.”
Veronique Bedague, CEO of Nexity, said: “Low carbon and industrialization are two key drivers of our Imagine 2026 strategy, enabling us to better meet our customers’ expectations, affirm our low-carbon leadership, and control construction costs.
“Our partnership with a leading industrial player in Europe, combined with our experience in low-carbon off-site construction, allows us to confidently envision the acceleration of this new industrial sector in France and actively contribute to the ecological transition.”
The partnership follows a year of growth for TopHat
TopHat are currently building the largest modular housing factory in Europe in Northamptonshire, which is due to begin production in 2024 and will employ 1,000.
Jordan Rosenhaus, CEO and founder of TopHat, said: “Today’s announcement marks TopHat’s expansion into Europe, where we plan on applying and deploying the same precision manufacturing techniques that have helped us address the UK’s housing crisis.
“In partnering with Nexity, France’s leading residential development, we will benefit from Nexity’s tremendous local market experience, which will combine with TopHat’s best in class platform to speed up the delivery of affordable, high-quality, energy-efficient homes.”
Homegrown timber plays a huge role in offsite’s sustainability
West Fraser delivers a net carbon negative benefit in all the products produced in the UK, locking up more CO2e in the products (and lifetime of use) than is emitted in the manufacture of them. That accounts for everything from forest to customer, including harvesting, production, sales and logistics.
To find out more about the net carbon negative status of West Fraser’s home-grown panels, click here.
