Investor buys 550,000 sq ft warehouse for world鈥檚 largest modular housing factory

Factory

Legal & General is gearing up to deliver around 3,000 modular homes a year from a recently leased mammoth warehouse in Yorkshire.

The investor has confirmed it has leased a 550,000 sq ft warehouse (pictured) 15 miles east of Leeds, which will become the world鈥檚 largest modular housing factory.

A market source said Legal & General鈥檚 target was to deliver 鈥渁round 3,000鈥 homes a year. Prototypes will be unveiled by June.

The source added: 鈥淎t the moment it鈥檚 just an empty factory - they鈥檝e just taken the lease. But they鈥檙e beginning to assemble all the machinery and build the expertise.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e aiming to establish a facility that can deliver fairly flexible and bespoke housing. They鈥檒l work with a wide range of firms, housebuilders, local authorities and at all levels.鈥

The modular housing business will trade as Legal & General Homes and will operate as a subsidiary of Legal & General Capital. The facility will initially employ 400 to 500 local people.

Legal & General hopes the factory will be able to churn out everything from 20-storey apartment blocks to rows of terraced, semi-detached and detached houses.

The facility will take lessons from Europe, where countries such as Austria, Germany and Scandinavia have increasingly used off-site manufacturing methods. 

Legal & General says time spent building on site will be reduced by more than 70% compared to traditional techniques.

Paul Stanworth, managing director of Legal & General Capital, said: 鈥淪ustainable, durable modern materials and proven technology will enable us to create high-quality homes meeting a wide range of housing needs and help solve the UK鈥檚 housing crisis.鈥