Modscape + Modbotics expand automated manufacturing capacity as demand for industrialised construction grows

Modscape + Modbotics will expand its Essendon Fields manufacturing facility to 55,000m² and install an additional Randek robotic manufacturing cell and associated production equipment as the company scales production in response to growing demand for industrialised construction.

The expansion will add 15,000m² of manufacturing space to the Victorian facility and incorporate a second robotic production cell supplied by Randek. Once operational in mid-2027, the additional robotics and associated equipment are expected to double automated manufacturing output.

The announcement follows a recent visit to the facility by Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers and forms part of the company’s broader industrialised construction platform, which combines manufacturing, automation, robotics and digital technologies.

Industrialised construction reaches a tipping point
Speaking with Built Offsite, Modscape + Modbotics CEO, Director and Co-Founder Jan Gyrn said the investment follows years of development and refinement of the company’s robotic manufacturing platform.

“We’ve been operating the robot line now for two years, but it’s been a seven-year journey,” Gyrn said.

“We’re still improving, but every day of the week and every week of the year we’re getting more efficient. We’re creating more product on the line at a better price.”

According to Gyrn, the company is beginning to see industrialised construction reach a significant commercial milestone.

“What we’re now starting to achieve on medium-density apartments using a timber panelised floor, wall and roof cassette assembled as a volumetric timber module, we are now starting to hit the tipping point where we are becoming cheaper than conventional construction,” he said.

“We’re now generally within one to three per cent, and when you factor in time and programme certainty, we far exceed that.”

Gyrn said growing market acceptance of industrialised construction, combined with a strong project pipeline, provided the confidence required to proceed with the investment.

“We’re starting to see demand in a space where the value of industrialised construction is starting to play out. It’s happening with scale,” he said.

“We’ve obviously got a pipeline of work which underpins it.”

Jason Reints, Randek ANZ Managing Director said the purchase represents more than an increase in production capacity.

“The investment gives Modscape + Modbotics a significant increase in manufacturing capacity, but it also demonstrates confidence that industrialised construction is delivering the outcomes they expected when they began the automation journey,” Reints said.

For Reints, the investment also reflects a broader shift towards digitally enabled manufacturing systems.

“Modern methods of construction means using a digital model directly in the manufacturing process, allowing both machinery and people to work from the same source of information. That creates a more efficient process and a higher quality outcome,” he said.

From construction site to production line
Gyrn said the expansion reflects a broader transition from traditional construction thinking towards manufacturing-based delivery models.

“One of the challenges we’ve had to learn over the last 20 years of operation is understanding how to be a manufacturer as opposed to a builder,” he said.

Beyond the additional Randek robotic cell, the expansion will also introduce a conveyor-based module handling system designed to improve the movement of modules through the factory.

“The next bottleneck is the ability to move product through the factory,” Gyrn said.

“We’re moving to more of a production-line process where the workers stay stationary and the module rolls through the factory.”

According to Gyrn, as robotic manufacturing becomes faster and more efficient, factory logistics are becoming increasingly important to overall productivity.

“Once we are getting into the scale of projects that we’re now doing, that’s becoming a fundamental piece in how efficiently we can take a project through the factory from both a time and cost point of view,” he said.

Randek ANZ Managing Director Jason Reints said the long-standing relationship between the two companies had been characterised by collaboration rather than simply supplying equipment.

“There is always collaboration between the manufacturer and the technology provider. The manufacturer understands its product and market requirements, while our role is to translate those requirements into manufacturing systems that support the way they want to build,” he said.

The Essendon Fields expansion is scheduled for completion in mid-2027 and, together with the additional robotic capacity, will further increase Modscape + Modbotics ability to deliver projects across housing, education, health and government sectors.

Find Modscape + Modbotics HERE