In this episode of the Decarbonising the Building Industry Podcast, recorded live at Archibuild Expo 2025 in June 2025, host Fanni Melles, PhD, speaks with John Baxter, Business Development Manager and Architect at Modularity by Rendine.
John Baxter shares insights from the company’s modular and prefabricated construction arm, which has grown rapidly over the past seven years. Sitting inside a prototype modular home exhibited at the expo, he explains how modularity supports the circular economy through material reuse (including salvaged steel frames), waste reduction, design adaptability, and improved longevity. The conversation covers the benefits of factory-controlled construction versus traditional in-situ methods, challenges of industry risk aversion, and practical ways prefabrication reduces both embodied and operational carbon.
John Baxter is an architect and Business Development Manager at Modularity by Rendine, a company with over 50 years in commercial and residential construction that launched its modular offsite manufacturing division seven years ago. His work focuses on circular economy principles, material reuse, and delivering high-performance, adaptable modular buildings.
Key Discussion Points:
- [00:01:02] Introduction and Modularity by Rendine’s background
- [00:01:52] Connection to DBI and collaboration with University of Melbourne
- [00:02:20] The prototype modular home at Archibuild Expo 2025
- [00:03:08] How modularity and prefabrication reduce waste and support circularity
- [00:04:06] Factory vs in-situ wall construction – controlled environment advantages
- [00:05:20] Biggest challenges: risk aversion and resistance to new techniques
- [00:06:12] Biggest opportunities: minimal-waste envelopes and superior operational performance
- [00:06:56] Reducing embodied carbon through material reuse (e.g. salvaged steel saving ~2.9 tonnes CO₂)
- [00:07:52] Improving operational energy efficiency and thermal performance
- [00:10:58] Afterlife and adaptability of modular components (e.g. nail- and glue-free Durapanel systems)
- [00:13:58] Misconceptions about cost, design flexibility, and quality of modular homes
- [00:15:20] Future vision: sharing knowledge and scaling circular economy practices
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