New accrediting board for offsite construction education formed

The Modular Building Institute (MBI) and the Center for Offsite Construction (CfOC) at New York Institute of Technology (New York Tech) have launched the Accreditation Board for Offsite Construction Education (ABOCE).

ABOCE is a new independent nonprofit organization dedicated to accrediting university degree programs in offsite construction. The new accrediting body will help colleges and universities build rigorous undergraduate and graduate degree programs that prepare students for careers in offsite construction, a field that combines architectural design, engineering systems, manufacturing processes, supply-chain logistics, transportation, site assembly, and coordinated project delivery, according to a news release.

While examining the need for an accreditation board, the joint MBI-CfOC task force found a critical gap in higher education. Although architecture, engineering, and construction management programs have established accreditation systems, no comparable accreditation pathway currently exists for degree programs focused specifically on offsite and industrialized construction.

“These programs are about preparing the next generation of professionals who can design buildings the way modern industries design complex products,” said Jason Van Nest, M. Arch., Executive Director of the Center for Offsite Construction. “Students must understand not only how buildings function, but also how offsite methods require manufacturing intelligence, and how components are fabricated, assembled, transported, and integrated into coordinated delivery systems.”

“Offsite construction demands professionals who master an entire ecosystem–design, engineering, manufacturing, logistics, transportation, precision site assembly, and coordinated delivery. Yet the workforce we need–designers, engineers, project managers, and construction leaders fluent in these integrated methods–lacks a dedicated educational home,” said Heather Packard, CAE, Professional & Workforce Development Director, Modular Building Institute, and Executive Director of the MBI Educational Foundation.

“That’s exactly the gap MBI and the Center of Offsite Construction identified in last year’s joint task force. The industry is rapidly developing its own advanced methods, but universities don’t yet offer a dedicated accreditation pathway built around them,” added Packard.