10 Dec

Building Confidence in Industrialised Construction: BOPAS and the Xpanel Building Technologies Case Study

The UK’s ambitions on housing and climate are clear. Government has set a target to deliver 1.5 million homes over the current Parliament – around 300,000 homes a year – alongside a legal commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Meeting those ambitions will demand new ways of building – faster, greener and more predictable. That is where industrialised construction comes in. But no matter how good the technology, one issue will always determine adoption: confidence.

As one of the founding partners of the Buildoffsite Property Assurance Scheme (BOPAS), BUILDOFFSITE has been focused on that confidence challenge from the start. Our latest case study with Xpanel Building Technologies shows how the right assurance framework can unlock industrialised construction for clients, lenders and communities alike.

Why confidence in industrialised construction matters

Industrialised and offsite approaches are already delivering:

Shorter construction programmes
More consistent quality
Better use of materials and labour
Lower embodied and operational carbon

Yet for many organisations, questions remain familiar:

Will these systems last?

Will homes be mortgageable over the long term?

How can we distinguish robust, well-governed providers from unproven offerings?

Without clear, trusted answers, innovation is perceived as risk. That is why BUILDOFFSITE helped create BOPAS – to provide the independent assurance framework the market needs.

BOPAS: an assurance framework built with lenders and industry

The Buildoffsite Property Assurance Scheme (BOPAS) was jointly developed by BUILDOFFSITE, RICS, LRQA and BLP, in consultation with major lenders, to address perceived risks around non-traditional and industrialised construction.

BOPAS is a risk-based evaluation that:

Demonstrates to funders, valuers, clients and purchasers that homes built using innovative or non-traditional systems will be durable and mortgageable for at least 60 years
Assesses not only the construction system, but also the end-to-end processes underpinning it – from design and engineering through to factory production, site installation, quality management and governance
Maintains assurance through ongoing surveillance and re-assessment, driving a culture of continuous improvement

In short, BOPAS is designed to give stakeholders the confidence that industrialised construction systems are fit for purpose, durable and properly controlled.

Xpanel Building Technologies: industrialised construction in action

The latest BOPAS case study with Xpanel Building Technologies illustrates how this assurance works in practice.

Xpanel operates an integrated, industrialised offsite model, managing the full value chain from structural and MEP design through to manufacturing, logistics and on-site assembly. This provides single-source accountability and allows performance, cost and programme to be optimised before anything leaves the factory.

In the UAE, Xpanel’s solutions have already demonstrated:

Faster construction cycles
Reduced labour requirements
Lower steel and concrete consumption
Significant embodied carbon reductions

These are exactly the kinds of outcomes required to build more homes, more sustainably, at the pace the UK needs.

Why BOPAS accreditation mattered for Xpanel

When Xpanel prepared to enter the UK market, the business already held respected international accreditations. However, it quickly recognised that UK funders, valuers and clients also look for domestic, lender-recognised assurance.

Securing BOPAS accreditation became a strategic priority for three key reasons:

Lender and valuer confidence
BOPAS provides a clear, independent signal that Xpanel’s system has been assessed against long-term durability and performance expectations – a critical factor for mortgageability and valuation.
Strengthened internal systems
The BOPAS assessment went beyond verification. It offered practical insights that helped Xpanel further refine its quality management, governance and operational frameworks, embedding best practice from offsite manufacturing into day-to-day processes.
Market visibility and opportunity
Being listed on the BOPAS searchable database increases visibility with developers, investors and project partners actively looking for accredited industrialised construction solutions.

By showcasing its BOPAS-accredited system at UK Construction Week’s 10th Anniversary, Xpanel has already seen how robust assurance can turn technical innovation into serious interest, new relationships and live opportunities in the UK market.

What this means for clients, lenders and partners

The Xpanel case study highlights how BOPAS benefits the wider ecosystem:

For developers and housing providers
BOPAS helps de-risk the adoption of industrialised construction by providing a clear, independent check on durability, governance and quality – supporting investment decisions and board confidence.
For funders and valuers
A transparent, standardised framework makes it easier to understand unfamiliar systems and to treat accredited assets with confidence in lending and valuation processes.
For residents and communities
Homes delivered using BOPAS-accredited systems are underpinned by a rigorous, ongoing assurance regime – helping to build long-term trust in industrialised construction as a mainstream way of delivering high-quality housing.

Industrialised construction, assurance and the road to net zero

The UK’s net zero target for 2050, set into law by Parliament, will require deep reductions in carbon emissions across the built environment – including both operational and embodied carbon.

Industrialised construction offers many of the tools needed to get there:

Precision manufacturing and better fabric performance

Reduced waste and more efficient use of materials

Greater repeatability and data to support performance monitoring

However, to unlock these benefits at the scale required to support both net zero and housing ambitions, the market needs clarity, comparability and confidence. That is the role BOPAS is designed to play.

A positive opportunity for policy and industry

The experience of Xpanel Building Technologies is one example of how assured industrialised construction can support the UK’s wider goals. Many other providers are already working within the BOPAS framework, and more are coming through.

For policymakers, funders and clients, the opportunity is to build on what already works:

Recognise accredited industrialised construction systems as a strong route to delivering high-quality, lower-carbon homes at pace
Use established assurance frameworks like BOPAS to provide a consistent benchmark for innovation and quality
Encourage collaboration between manufacturers, developers, lenders and local authorities around assured solutions rather than starting from scratch on risk each time

Looking ahead

At BUILDOFFSITE, we see the Xpanel case study as further evidence that industrialised construction – supported by robust assurance – is ready to play a central role in the UK’s housing and net zero journey.

BOPAS gives the market a common language of risk, resilience and quality.
Industrialised construction provides the tools to deliver better, faster and greener.

Together, they offer a practical, scalable pathway to the homes and infrastructure the UK needs.

For organisations interested in exploring BOPAS accreditation or learning more about the Xpanel Building Technologies case study, BUILDOFFSITE and the BOPAS team stand ready to support the next wave of innovators. Get in touch.