Several Opinions of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and Other Departments on Accelerating the Development of New-Type Building Industrialization

Housing and Urban-Rural Development Departments (Commissions, Administration Committees) of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government; Education Departments (Commissions); Science and Technology Departments (Commissions, Bureaus); Departments in charge of Industry and Information Technology; Departments in charge of Natural Resources; Ecological Environment Departments (Bureaus); the Shanghai Headquarters of the People's Bank of China, its branches, operational management departments, central branches in provincial capital (or capital) cities, and central branches in sub-provincial cities; Market Regulation Bureaus (Departments, Commissions); All Banking and Insurance Regulatory Bureaus; Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau, Education Bureau, Science and Technology Bureau, Industry and Information Technology Bureau, Department in charge of Natural Resources, Ecological Environment Bureau, and Market Regulation Bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:

New-type building industrialization is driven by next-generation information technology and relies primarily on systematic integrated design throughout the entire lifecycle of a project and lean production and construction methods. It integrates the entire industrial chain, value chain, and innovation chain of construction projects, thereby achieving high efficiency, high quality, low consumption, and low emissions in building construction. Since the issuance and implementation of the "Guiding Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Vigorously Developing Prefabricated Buildings" (Guobanfa [2016] No. 71), new-type building industrialization—represented by prefabricated buildings—has been rapidly advanced, significantly improving construction standards and building quality. To fully implement the new development philosophy, promote green and high-quality development in urban and rural construction, and drive the comprehensive transformation and upgrading of the construction industry through new-type building industrialization, thus creating a “Made in China” brand with international competitiveness, the following opinions are put forward.

1. Strengthen systematic integrated design

(1) Promote collaboration across the entire industrial chain. Implement a system under which architects are responsible for new-type building industrialization projects, and encourage design firms to provide end-to-end consulting services. Optimize pre-project technical planning schemes, and coordinate architectural design, fabrication and transportation of components and parts, construction and installation, as well as operation and maintenance management. Guide construction entities and general contractors to focus on the ultimate building product and overall benefits, and promote resource sharing, system integration, and coordinated development throughout the upstream and downstream segments of the industrial chain.

(2) Promote multidisciplinary collaboration. By leveraging digital design tools, advance integrated, holistic design across multiple disciplines—including architecture, structure, MEP systems, and interior finishing—to enhance the overall integrity of buildings, avoid secondary redesigns, ensure that design depth meets production and construction requirements, and fully harness the comprehensive advantages of the new building industrialization system integration.

(3) Promote standardized design. Improve design selection standards, implement standardized designs for building floor plans, elevations, components and prefabricated parts, and interfaces, and popularize design approaches that feature fewer specifications but greater design flexibility. Focus particularly on schools, hospitals, office buildings, hotels, and residential buildings, strengthen design leadership, and promote prefabricated building systems.

(4) Strengthen the technical justification of design schemes. Implement architectural design requirements that organically integrate standardized design, industrialized construction, and distinctive architectural styles in new-type building industrialization projects, thereby shaping unique urban characteristics. During the review stage of architectural design schemes, reinforce the justification of how well the design requirements for new-type building industrialization projects are being met, and avoid uniformity in architectural styles.

II. Optimize the production of components and prefabricated parts

(5) Promote the standardization of components and parts. Develop guidelines for the dimensions of key components, and advance the factory-based production of standardized steel and concrete components, as well as prefabricated concrete wall panels, composite floor slabs, staircases, and other commonly used components. This will meet the requirements of standardized design and selection, expand the scale of use of standardized components and parts, and gradually reduce the production costs of components and parts.

(6) Improve integrated building components. Develop standard drawing collections for integrated and modular building components, enhance the industrial supporting capabilities of building components such as complete bathrooms, integrated kitchens, and prefabricated doors and windows, and gradually establish a standardized and serialized supply system for building components.

(7) Promote the balance between production capacity and demand. Taking into account comprehensively the transportation and service radii of components, parts, and prefabricated elements, guide the rational allocation of production capacity, strengthen market information monitoring, regularly release data on the supply and demand situation of components and prefabricated elements, and improve capacity utilization rates.

(8) Promote the certification of components and prefabricated parts. Develop technical requirements for new types of building industrialized components and prefabricated parts, implement a quality certification system, improve the supporting insurance system, and enhance product compatibility and quality standards.

(9) Promote the application of green building materials. Develop new types of building materials that are safe, healthy, environmentally friendly, and high-performing; advance the certification and widespread adoption of green building materials; encourage the early use of green building materials in new construction projects such as prefabricated buildings and other new industrialized construction initiatives; and gradually increase the proportion of green building materials used in newly constructed urban buildings.

3. Promote lean construction practices

(10) Vigorously develop steel-structure buildings. Encourage public buildings such as hospitals and schools to prioritize the use of steel structures, and actively promote the construction of steel-structure residential buildings and rural houses. Improve performance and technical measures for fire resistance and corrosion protection in steel-structure buildings, increase the application of hot-rolled H-shaped steel, weathering steel, and fire-resistant steel, and drive the comprehensive development of key technologies and related industries for steel-structure buildings.

(11) Promote prefabricated concrete buildings. Improve prefabricated concrete structural systems suitable for various types of buildings, and increase the integrated application of high-performance concrete, high-strength steel bars, energy-dissipating and seismic damping technologies, and prestressing techniques. Actively adopt prefabricated concrete structures in affordable housing and commercial residential projects, and encourage regions with favorable conditions to fully promote the use of prefabricated interior partition walls, prefabricated stair slabs, and prefabricated floor slabs.

(12) Promote fully-fitted construction. Prefabricated buildings and green building projects certified with star ratings should adopt fully-fitted construction practices. Actively develop ready-to-move-in homes, advocate menu-based fully-fitted solutions, and meet consumers’ personalized needs. Advance the application of prefabricated interior finishing methods in commercial housing projects, promote pipeline separation and integrated interior finishing technologies, popularize integrated and modular building components, enhance the quality of interior finishes, and reduce operation and maintenance costs.

(13) Optimize construction techniques and methods. Promote prefabricated, green construction approaches, and guide construction enterprises to develop construction techniques and methods—such as lifting, transportation, and stacking of components and parts, as well as component and part connections—that are compatible with lean construction practices. Widely adopt supporting equipment and machinery, such as rebar positioning steel plates, to enhance the level of industrialization in on-site construction, particularly in areas like material handling, rebar fabrication, and high-altitude welding.

(14) Innovate construction organization methods. Improve lean construction organization approaches that are compatible with the new industrialized building model, promote an integrated approach encompassing design, procurement, production, and construction, and implement coordinated construction of prefabricated building decoration and interior finishing with the main structure and mechanical and electrical equipment. Leverage the advantages of overlapping structural and finishing work to enhance the level of refined management at construction sites.

　(15) Enhance construction quality and efficiency. Strengthen quality and safety control over critical areas and processes, including the entry of components and prefabricated parts, construction and installation, grouting at node connections, and sealing and waterproofing. Intensify quality and safety technical briefings for construction management personnel and frontline workers. Through comprehensive process organization and integrated technological optimization, comprehensively improve construction quality and efficiency.

IV. Accelerate the integrated development of information technology

(Sixteen) Vigorously promote Building Information Modeling (BIM) technology. Accelerate the integrated application of BIM technology throughout the entire lifecycle of new-type building industrialization. Fully leverage social resources to jointly establish and maintain a standardized library of components and parts based on BIM technology, thereby achieving information interconnection and interactive sharing across all stages—including design, procurement, production, construction, delivery, and operation & maintenance. Pilot the implementation of BIM-based project approval and BIM review of construction drawings, promote seamless integration and linkage with City Information Modeling (CIM) platforms, enhance the capacity for information-based supervision, and improve resource allocation efficiency across the entire industrial chain in the construction sector.

(17) Accelerate the application of big data technologies. Promote the use of big data technologies in project management, tendering and bidding processes, and credit system development. Relying on the National Construction Market Supervision Public Service Platform, aggregate, integrate, and analyze relevant big data—including enterprise, project, practitioner, and credit information—to support market monitoring and data analysis, thereby enhancing public service capabilities and regulatory efficiency in the construction industry.

(18) Promote the application and popularization of IoT technologies. Drive the integrated application of IoT technologies—including sensor networks, low-power wide-area networks, 5G, edge computing, radio-frequency identification (RFID), and QR code recognition—on smart construction sites. Develop wearable devices to enhance the monitoring capabilities for workers’ health and safety. Further promote the application of IoT technologies in areas such as monitoring and management, energy conservation and emission reduction, and intelligent buildings.

(19) Promote the development of intelligent construction technologies. Accelerate the deep integration of new building industrialization with high-end manufacturing, and establish a building industry internet platform. Advance demonstration projects for smart photovoltaic applications and promote the integration of photovoltaic power generation systems with buildings. Launch initiatives to upgrade production equipment and construction machinery with intelligent technologies, and encourage the use of smart devices such as construction robots, industrial robots, and smart mobile terminals. Popularize smart home systems, smart office solutions, and building automation systems to enhance the convenience and comfort of buildings.

V. Innovate organizational management models

(20) Vigorously promote engineering general contracting. For new-type building industrialization projects, actively adopt the engineering general contracting model to foster deep integration among design, manufacturing, and construction. Guide leading enterprises to enhance their project management, technological innovation, and resource allocation capabilities; cultivate engineering general contracting enterprises with comprehensive management expertise; and ensure that engineering general contracting entities assume their primary responsibilities and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests.

(21) Develop full-process engineering consulting services. Vigorously promote full-process engineering consulting services that are market-driven and meet the diverse needs of clients, and foster full-process engineering consulting firms equipped with capabilities in surveying, design, supervision, bidding agency, and cost estimation.

(22) Improve the supervision and regulation of prefabricated components. Strengthen quality management of prefabricated components, actively adopt an on-site supervision system, implement full-process quality accountability and traceability, and encourage the use of measures such as registration and filing of component manufacturers and random quality inspections of components, thereby establishing a long-term mechanism.

(23) Explore the engineering insurance system. Establish and improve an engineering quality insurance and guarantee system, leveraging insurance’s risk-prevention mechanisms and premium adjustment features to help enterprises strengthen risk management and ensure the quality of construction projects.

(24) Establish a user-supervised oversight mechanism. Develop a guide for homebuyers to inspect green residential properties, and encourage the inclusion of indicators related to the green performance of residences and the quality of fully-finished interiors in commodity housing sales contracts, residential quality guarantee certificates, and residential instruction manuals. Clearly define quality warranty responsibilities and dispute resolution procedures to safeguard the rights and interests of homebuyers.

6. Strengthen technological support

(25) Foster technology innovation bases. Establish a group of new innovation bases, such as technology innovation centers and key laboratories for prefabricated building industrialization, and encourage leading enterprises, higher education institutions, and research institutes to jointly set up industry technology innovation alliances for prefabricated building industrialization.

(26) Intensify efforts in scientific and technological research and development. Vigorously support the R&D of BIM underlying platform software, step up joint efforts to tackle key challenges in steel-structure housing—such as enclosure systems, material performance, and connection technologies—and accelerate the development of technologies for quality inspection of grouting in prefabricated concrete structures and for efficient connections. Additionally, strengthen R&D on intelligent construction technologies such as construction robots.

(27) Promote the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements. Establish a database of major scientific and technological achievements in the new building industrialization, increase the public availability of these achievements, facilitate their application and commercialization, and drive innovative development of new technologies, new materials, new products, and new construction processes in the building sector.

7. Accelerate the cultivation of professional talent.

(28) Cultivate specialized technical management personnel. Vigorously develop professional talent for the new building industrialization, expand the ranks of professionals in design, production, construction, and management, strengthen continuing education for technical personnel specializing in the new building industrialization, and encourage enterprises to establish a Chief Information Officer (CIO) system.

(29) Cultivate skilled industrial workers. Deepen reforms in the construction workforce system, improve the evaluation system for the skill levels of construction industry practitioners, and promote the seamless integration and alignment between academic certificates and vocational skills qualification certificates. Smooth the career development pathways for construction workers, uphold the spirit of craftsmanship, strengthen vocational skills training, and vigorously cultivate a robust workforce of industrial workers.

(30) Strengthen the cultivation of reserve talent. Promote cooperation between enterprises engaged in new building industrialization and educational institutions, support joint establishment of modern industrial colleges by schools and enterprises, and encourage institutions to align with the emerging demands, new business models, and cutting-edge technologies in the construction industry. Offer courses related to prefabricated buildings, innovate talent-development models, and provide a solid supply of specialized professionals.

8. Conduct evaluation of new-type building industrialization projects.

(31) Develop evaluation criteria. Establish a technical indicator system for evaluating new-type building industrialization projects, with a particular emphasis on the application of information technology, thereby guiding construction projects to continuously improve labor productivity and building quality.
　　(32) Establish a mechanism for applying evaluation results. Encourage units involved in new-type building industrialization projects to conduct self-evaluations or commission third-party evaluations in accordance with the evaluation standards after project completion. Actively explore regional systematic evaluations of new-type building industrialization, and use the evaluation results as an important reference for incentive policies.
9. Increase the intensity of policy support.
　　(33) Strengthen the implementation of projects. Housing and urban-rural development authorities in various regions shall, in collaboration with relevant departments, formulate special plans and annual development programs for the new building industrialization, clearly defining development goals, key tasks, and specific implementation scopes. They should intensify efforts to promote new building industrialization by explicitly incorporating incentive measures at each stage—project initiation, project approval, and project management. Government-invested projects should take the lead in adopting the new building industrialization approach, and social investment projects are encouraged and supported to adopt this approach as well.
　　(34) Strengthen financial support. Support new-type construction industrialization enterprises in raising funds through the issuance of corporate bonds and company bonds, among other means. Improve the policy environment for green finance to support new-type construction industrialization, actively explore diversified approaches to green finance support, and provide green finance support to new-type construction industrialization projects that meet green building star-rating standards. Make good use of the National Green Development Fund and, without adding any hidden debt, encourage localities to establish special-purpose funds.
　　(35) Strengthen support for environmental protection policies. Support construction companies in conducting thorough environmental impact assessments and monitoring. During periods of severe air pollution, prefabricated and other new-type building industrialization projects may continue construction activities that do not involve earthworks or excavation. Establish emission limits for construction waste and implement public disclosure of construction waste emissions at construction sites. Encourage localities to provide incentives to construction companies that meet the requirements for reducing construction waste generation at their sites.
　　(36) Strengthen support for the promotion of scientific and technological advancements. Promote research and development under the National Key R&D Program and other scientific research projects to advance the development of new technologies for industrialized construction. Encourage localities to prioritize including technologies related to industrialized construction in the announcements of technologies promoted and applied in the housing and urban-rural development sector, as well as in catalogs of promoted scientific and technological achievements.
　　(37) Strengthen policy support for awards and recognition programs. Incorporate the level of urban new building industrialization development into the selection criteria for the China Habitat Environment Award and the evaluation indicators for National Eco-Garden Cities. Vigorously encourage new building industrialization projects to participate in the Green Building Innovation Awards.

Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Natural Resources of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People's Republic of China
People's Bank of China
State Administration for Market Regulation
China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission
August 28, 2020