CIBSE Conference brings sustainability focus to the north-east

At the end of April much of the building services profession, along with a number of CIBSE staff, descended on the north-east, eager to share knowledge, improve understanding and hear from some of the industry’s leading experts.

Why the north-east? Well, from the 29 – 30 April the Newcastle Gateshead Hilton was home to the CIBSE/ASHRAE Conference 2008, welcoming delegates from across the UK, as well as some well-travelled guests all the way from America.

Moving away from London, the conference location highlighted the ongoing regeneration work in the north-east and opened up the conference to a wider range of delegates who perhaps find it difficult to travel to the south on a regular basis. The theme of this year’s conference was ‘sustainability – from niche to norm’, reflecting the increasing influence that energy efficiency factors have on the building services industry.

Opening with a special Fringe Conference at Northumbria University on the 28th April, the following two days of conference were packed full of traditional presentations, panel sessions, case studies and optional fringe seminars. Speakers included ASHRAE President Kent Peterson, Jane Carlsen, Principal Planner for the GLA, Simon Harris, Director of Cost Consultancy at Cyril Sweett and Becky Warren from Eversheds. The social side of the conference was not ignored, with the opening Gala Dinner held at the Newcastle Civic Centre helping to welcome guests to the north-east and the ‘Niche to Quiche’ evening reception providing an opportunity to mingle with representatives from the local business community.

Naturally all the programme events are at the core of the Conference however the socialising and networking opportunities are also significant. Meeting new people, renewing contact and sharing experiences is also a key part of the event. To my mind the energy, self-confidence and general “buzz” is important too. Good to know we are still the fasting growing Engineering Institution; for all those that attended the Conference they left knowing why CIBSE is on the up. There is a job to be done and our members are proud of it.

This year’s conference was held in conjunction with ASHRAE, our US counter-parts, and follows a number of past successes such as the 2004 joint conference held in Edinburgh. Kent Peterson, President of ASHRAE, gave a comprehensive review of the US approach and the lessons we can learn, explaining how they are working to encourage industry in the US to ‘go green’. The joint conference was a further step in strengthening links between our two societies, links which were extended last year with the signing of a new membership agreement making it easier than ever for members of one body to join the other. CIBSE members are welcomed by ASHRAE without undergoing the usual admissions and advancement review and in return, ASHRAE members can use their professional engineering qualifications to join CIBSE’s growing membership.

Thanks must also go to the CIBSE staff who organised and ran the event, and to the sponsors and supporting organisations. The main sponsors of the conference were Cundall and Lochinvar, while Aliaxis sponsored the Gala Dinner.

I hope that all those who attended found it informative and timely, and I think all of us can relate to the title – the industry is now tied to the notion of sustainability and for much of the profession, working towards a sustainable built environment is already the norm.

Stephen Matthews
CIBSE Chief Executive