A President in Hong Kong

This week sees me, along with Francesca Berriman MBE, Chief Executive and  Professor Sam Allwinkle PPBIAT MCIAT in Hong Kong. We are visiting the CIAT Hong Kong Centre and also meeting with educational establishments and like minded organisations to advance the Architectural Technology discipline and ensure that recognition continues.

Hermann Fong MCIAT (centre) with fellow Centre Members

Francesca and I meeting with the Hong Kong Centre

Support of a letter to Government

CIAT is a signatory to the Society for the Environment’s (SocEnv) letter to support the IMechE in its call for the Government to analyse carefully the benefits of energy storage to Edward Davey MP as Secretary of State.

Dear Secretary of State

The Society for the Environment supports the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), one of its members, in its call for the Government to analyse carefully the benefits of energy storage and to consider whether current regulatory and commercial policies and mechanisms are holding back the development of innovative technologies.

There is a need to balance supply and real-time demand as renewable energy sources, which are by their nature intermittent, form an increasing part of the UK’s energy mix.   Storage is one way of helping to do this.  A number of innovative storage methods have been developed and demonstrated in the UK, and some reports have estimated a potential global market of up to $25 billion.  These include, for example, cryogenic storage, where electricity is used to liquefy air, which is later expanded through a turbine to recover the energy as electricity.  This technology has recently been demonstrated at pilot plant scale by a UK company.  The demonstration was covered by the BBC in its Today programme and on its website, and a summit at IMechE on the subject was attended by your own officials.  Other approaches have been developed and demonstrated, at a range of scales which can be suited to all parts of the energy market.  Storage is also important for other forms of energy, including heat from such sources as wood-fuelled boilers, which work most efficiently when run continuously and where supply therefore needs to be balanced to demand.

The potential of storage is serious enough to be the subject of a proper analysis.  There are a number of constraints that could hold back further development, including the rate-of return-requirements applicable to transmission and distribution companies and the fact that electricity storage, if it is not recognised as a market sector in its own right, could fall foul of European rules that exclude network operators from generation.  If the development of appropriate technologies is held back there is a danger that they will be exported and that UK businesses will lose out.                                                                                                                         

The Society for the Environment works to champion a professional approach to environmental issues by licensing institutions, under a Royal Charter, to award the title “Chartered Environmentalist”.  We acknowledge that there is a range of views on energy policy, but all our members support the need for policy decisions to be based on evidence and sound science, and to be implemented by qualified professionals.  We therefore support IMechE in its call for energy storage to be subject to a thorough analysis so that it can be properly considered as policy development is taken forward.   

Yours sincerely,

                          

CAROLYN ROBERTS Chair

ALEX GALLOWAY Chief Executive

Supported by

FRANCESCA BERRIMAN MBE Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists	MICHAEL BROWN Chartered Institute of Building
NICK REEVES Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management	TIM BRIGSTOCKE Institute of Agricultural Management
DOUGAL DRIVER Institute of Chartered Foresters	MARTIN BAXTER Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment
CHRIS WHETNALL Institution of Agricultural Engineers	NEIL ATKINSON Institution of Chemical Engineers
WILLIAM POPE Institution of Environmental Sciences	MICHAEL DORAN Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
NICK JONES Society of Operations Engineers	TIM BOLDERO Institute of Water

 

Show time!

So, term time begins again at university and a quieter period in my role as President.

I'm very pleased to learn that the National Home Improvement Show held at Olympia at the end of September was a very successful show for us and Mark Wilson MCIAT is to be thanked for his Masterclass seminar all about Chartered Architectural Technologists and what we can do. I understand that the seminar was well attended and Mark had a queue waiting for him at the end! Excellent to hear.

I'm also very pleased to learn that Tony Holt MCIAT had a stand for his practice at the show and that he has for the past six months had his own column in the Homebuilding and Renovating Magazine - I shall have to source some back issues so that I can read them but what a great opportunity for the Chartered Architectural Technologist to be seen.

If you are going to Grand Designs Live at the weekend at the NEC, then keep an eye out for me as you may spot the President! I shall be visiting the show and also we have three Chartered Members in the Ask an Expert feature at the show. My thanks in advance to all those Members taking part and I hope to meet up with you there.

Across the waters, our Public Relations Director will be representing the Institute at the same time at the Improve Your Home Show in Belfast - it really is exhibition season at the moment!

Also, if you are a member then do join the CIAT Member Hub LinkedIn Group - there are plenty of debates going on and join them on Twitter as well @CIATHub - it is great to have this online CIAT community.

EcoShowcase in Birmingham

I had a most enjoyable day at the EcoShowcase event held in Birmingham yesterday (20 September) at the Villa Park Stadium - there was an exhibition to look round and a number of seminars to take in. CIAT has been supporting this traveling exhibition since 2011.

The highlight of my visit was meeting two passionate and inspiring students who were there to promote CIAT and the Architectural Technology discipline. I must make a special mention to Luke Dallison from Nottingham Trent University and Liam Barnett from Birmingham City University - having met both Luke and Liam, I know that the future of the Institute is in safe hands and I am delighted that they are both so involved with CIAT at this stage in their career.

Another highlight was sitting in on the seminar presentation given by Mark Wilson MCIAT on Specifying for a Sustainable Future - here is a Chartered Architectural Technologist who certainly knows 'his stuff' and I can only encourage you to go along and watch the presentation at the remaining shows for the year - all details can be found at http://www.ecoshowcase.co.uk/

Looking over the EcoShowcase exhibition

Luke Dallison, Mark Wilson MCIAT, Liam Barnett and yours truly

Mark giving his excellent presentation

Support of a letter to new Secretary of State

CIAT is a signatory to the Society for the Environment’s (SocEnv) letter of congratulations to the recent appointment of Owen Paterson MP as Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Our Chief Executive, Francesca Berriman is also the current Vice Chairman of the SocEnv

The Society for the Environment is the leading Chartered professional body covering all aspects of the environment, environmental management and environmental protection. Its unique product is the professional qualification, Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) which provides a common, postgraduate level, standard for all professions.  It is comparable to the Engineering Council and the Science Council, and Chartered Environmentalist is equal in status to Chartered Engineer and Chartered Scientist.

SocEnv is one of the few bodies that can act as a liaison point between Government and professionals working in the entire environmental area.

SocEnv professions and industries represent a huge growth opportunity for the UK in environmental goods and services. The market for these services is growing at over 5% per year, and the potential gains for British business stemming from more efficient resource use (including water, energy and materials) are enormous: some £23bn a year. The export opportunities from a low carbon economy are even greater. This market is already worth £3 trillion a year, rising to £4 trillion by 2015. Better environmental performance in UK industry will sharpen its competitive edge, as well as helping to deliver the outcomes we want in environmental protection and management.

The Society for the Environment has a key role in developing and spreading information, skills, best practice and influence. Our member bodies’ wide range of expertise makes us a vital part of the response to climate change, resource efficiency and the protection of natural systems using a growing army of professionals: there are currently almost 7,000 Chartered Environmentalists, and we are working to increase this number. 

Yours sincerely,

                           

CAROLYN ROBERTS Chair

ALEX GALLOWAY Chief Executive

Supported by

KEVIN BLUNDEN Association of Building Engineers	FRANCESCA BERRIMAN MBE Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists
MICHAEL BROWN Chartered Institute of Building	STEVE LEE Chartered Institute of Wastes Management
PETER MATTHEWS Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management	SARAH BEACOCK Energy Institute
TIM BRIGSTOCKE Institute of Agricultural Management	MARTIN BAXTER Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment
IAN DOLBEN Institute of Fisheries Management	DAVID ARTHUR Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining
CHRIS WHETNALL Institution of Agricultural Engineers	RICHARD HILL Institution of Chemical Engineers
WILLIAM POPE Institution of Environmental Sciences	MICHAEL DORAN Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
NICK JONES Society of Operations Engineers

All Party Parliamentary Group for Excellence in the Built Environment

Along with the Chief Executive, I represented the Institute at the All Party Parliamentary Group for Excellence in the Built Environment launch of the 'A Better Deal for Public Building' report yesterday (10 September).

The report endorses the Government’s aim of achieving 20 per cent cost savings for public construction projects over the course of the current Parliament, as outlined in its Construction Strategy unveiled last year.

Key recommendations include:

- Setting up a Best Practice Procurement Advisory Group to assist inexperienced public sector clients (including Government departments, agencies, non-departmental public bodies and local government) to define their objectives clearly and adopt appropriate procurement arrangements for the size and type of project. The Government should do this via its Chief Construction Adviser. Infrequent clients would also benefit from appointing a professional adviser to develop the brief.

- Procuring projects on the basis of integrated teams (designers, contractors and, if appropriate, asset managers). The selection of an integrated team must not be made on the basis of lowest price. Instead, as with the construction of the venues for London 2012, the decision should be made on the basis of a balanced scorecard. This means, marking the bid against a prescribed range of specified criteria, one of which should be long-term sustainability.

- Ensuring large-scale public projects (£100m-plus in value) have mandatory construction commitments, based on the 2012 Construction Commitments. Participants in the project should be required to report progress in meeting these commitments over the duration of the project.

- Government should encourage voluntary adoption of such construction commitments across a wide range of public and private sector projects with a programme of promotional activity, including awards, to highlight and celebrate success. Key indicators could include: client leadership, sustainability, team integration, design quality, health and safety, and commitment to people, which includes a commitment to employing local people and excellent facilities.

- Requiring the Government’s Chief Construction Adviser to prepare an annual report on the performance of public sector clients (including Government departments, agencies, non-departmental public body and local authorities) in construction procurement. This should highlight positive achievements in successful projects, as well as failure to deliver value.

Graduation at Wolverhampton

Back to my own university now and the graduation ceremony held at the University of Wolverhampton on 7 September. It was great to see the involvement of my own Region, the West Midlands Region, at the ceremony who were on hand to present the CIAT Outstanding Student Award along with the Region's own award for the students.

Steve Scaysbrook MCIAT, West Midlands Region Chairman with Rachel Bristow and Charlotte Grey congratulated by the CIAT President

C'est moi in my robes