Agencement in housing markets: The case of the UK construction industry
This paper addresses a paradox in UK housing construction, namely its ‘lock-in’ to masonry house building – a socio-technical assemblage which endures, despite recognised shortcomings, even in the wake of government policies encouraging factory-based prefabricated alternatives. Combining theoretical...
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Published in: | Geoforum 2010-05, Vol.41 (3), p.457-468 |
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Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Subjects: | |
Citations: | Items that this one cites Items that cite this one |
Online Access: | Get full text |
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Summary: | This paper addresses a paradox in UK housing construction, namely its ‘lock-in’ to masonry house building – a socio-technical assemblage which endures, despite recognised shortcomings, even in the wake of government policies encouraging factory-based prefabricated alternatives. Combining theoretical inspiration from recent work on the cultural economy and material sociology of markets with empirical research on innovation in the home building industry, we weigh up the forces for inertia against the impulse for change in methods of housing construction. The analysis shows that while the case for and against innovation appears to turn on financial costs and benefits (it is a calculation debate), in practice, social, cultural and technical differences – struggles over the assemblage and
agencement of housing construction markets – are the critical issues underpinning UK resistance to prefabrication. Practically, we argue that government needs a better appreciation of this complexity if its aim is to encourage innovation. Theoretically, we advocate a firmer distinction between the concept of assemblage – a description of markets – and that of
agencement – a property or quality of them. |
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ISSN: | 0016-7185 1872-9398 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.geoforum.2009.11.015 |