First contract

The McAvoy Group has been awarded its first contract in the residential sector following the announcement of its expansion into offsite housing. The £4.7m contract for Clanmil Housing Association will be the first offsite housing scheme to be built in Northern Ireland. The use of the McAvoy offsite housing solution will reduce the build programme by around 60 per cent to just 40 weeks.

McAvoy will manufacture 111 steel-framed building modules and the homes will be installed on site, complete with bathrooms, kitchens, partitions and glazing. The new homes are designed in accordance with Lifetime Homes and Secured by Design standards, and will benefit from timber-framed double glazing, more precise factory construction processes, and high levels of insulation to help reduce heating costs and energy consumption.

Designed by Knox Clayton Architects, the Joymount development in Carrickfergus will provide 40 much needed homes to help address the severe shortfall in social and affordable housing in Northern Ireland.