Innovation in offsite manufacturing in the field of housing : a case study using Bourdivian and actor-network approaches

![CDATA[The purpose of this paper is to apply the Bourdivian concepts of field, habitus, and capital as theoretical lenses to examine the Australian housing construction sector. Specifically, we demonstrate the usefulness of Pierre Bourdieu’s approach in understanding specific factors that drive innovations in offsite manufacturing (OSM), an approach that involves the manufacture and assembly of parts, components, and/or systems in a controlled environment away from the traditional construction site. We begin by exploring field, habitus, and capital. We then explore how these lenses have been applied by Bourdieu and by various authors to analyse the field of housing and the built environment. We explain how an actor-network approach can be mobilized methodologically to apply Bourdivian concepts to analyze the players and dynamics of innovative OSM housing supply chains in Australia. We then present our preliminary findings, one being the argument that the creation/ conversion of different species of capital forged a pathway to successful incremental change.]]