Mass Customisation for Zero-Energy Housing

Abstract

This article describes the potential that co-design and marketing strategies have on increasing the consumption of energy-efficient dwellings. It explains how Japanese housebuilders are using ‘mass customisation’—a phenomenon that mirrors the production and marketing of the automobile sector—in order to produce zero-energy houses and how this applies to the UK. The research consisted of a comparative analysis of Japanese and UK housebuilding. It identifies how mass customisation strategies are used to drive the sales of zero-energy houses in Japan and infers how to apply these in the UK context. This research found that some housebuilders in the UK are already using production strategies that resemble Japanese practices; however, the sustainable benefits observed in the Japanese context are not present in the UK because housebuilders’ mass customisation strategies are limited to construction and not used as part of the marketing, co-design, and selling processes. Production and consumption of sustainable houses would increase in the UK if housebuilders implemented full mass customisation, meaning selecting existing robust production processes, defining an appropriate space solution, and using informative navigation tools.

Promoting Construction Industrialisation with Policy Interventions: A Holistic Review of Published Policy Literature

“…In Iran, the ‘polluter pays principle’ is treated as a practical guideline in formulating effective regulations and policies. In the UK, mass customization has been adopted as one of the main footpaths to provide a sustainable housing context [ 128 ]. In HK, more strategies have been proposed, mainly on public policies to promote waste sorting, research on the minimization and management of construction waste, development of a more mature recycling market, and government support for a green building industry [ 129 ].…”

Critical Review of Trends in Modular Integrated Construction Research with a Focus on Sustainability

“…To fully achieve this potential, modular building systems developed to address the targets set for net Zero Energy Buildings (nZEB) must pursue higher levels of quality in the built environment by adopting high-performance solutions [92]. Some attempts have already been made to appraise the mass customization for zero-energy housing because incorporating energyefficient components made using mass manufacturing techniques customized to address the specificities of each site and its future users is key for sustainable design [93]. Mass customization has been described by Japanese manufacturers as that which enables endusers to customize their future homes in detail, including a wide range of environmental features, while effectively communicating the dwelling's eventual operational energy costs and carbon footprints through sophisticated tools, visuals, catalogues, guides, and models.…”

Data-Driven Methodology for Coliving Spaces and Space Profiling Based on Post-Occupancy Evaluation through Digital Trail of Users

“…The potential of the SP was to understand the identity of spaces as an active space, that responds in different ways depending the user's needs and its specific design features. This methodology was tailored to the different spaces and local needs to be able to reproduce the best experience for colivers, for example reducing electricity consumption and therefore optimizing cost [79].…”