The development of packaged, reusable building services components: a pilot study in the uk national health service
Abstract (summary)
This thesis investigates a potential response to the growing need to service buildings in new, more adaptable ways that are better able to support increasingly dynamic building use. A response to the increasing numbers of services components that are becoming functionally obsolete is presented by proposing their reuse to recover their residual physical and economic properties. The technical feasibility and economic viability of reusing building services components is modelled by a pilot study, deployed in the UK National Health Service.
The principles of building services component reuse are exposed and issues requiring further investigation identified. An understanding of the provision required before services components reuse can become a standard construction industry practice, and the willingness of construction industry members to adopt that practice, is contributed.
Package, reusable building services components are proposed. The steps required to package a services component to promote its reusability are identified as a combination of design and procurement practice revisions. The infrastructure required to facilitate component exchange between organisations for reuse is anticipated. A component reuse mechanism linking building operators with members of a new industry sector possessing the specialised skills to recondition components prior to reuse is described. An information system co-ordinating these industry sectors is also proposed.
Models of revised organisation function when practising component reuse anticipate the technical feasibility of the practice. Cost models are also constructed and predict the potential economic viability of component reuse, when practised in accordance with the proposals of this thesis.
The study concludes that component reuse is a potentially practical solution to industry needs. Industry members are willing to implement it, provided that a number of issues are clarified by more detailed research.