BCIA leads successful London conference

The 10-80-10 Building Services Summit took place on November 27th at the Barbican in London. Its focus was the long-term operational efficiency of buildings – and how it can be achieved.

Delegates heard speakers from the client side and experts from leading construction associations. It became very clear that clients are putting greater emphasis on how much it costs to operate their buildings – not simply the capital cost of new projects.

The first speaker of the day was Michael Dick, director of operations and buildings of the Barbican. He spoke about the choices that engineers make about buildings: “We have to consider how our choices impact on buildings in the long-term.”

A number of speakers also pointed to the fact that buildings can appear to be designed and constructed to a high standard, such as BREEAM Excellent, but still disappoint in terms of long-term performance.

The role of the facilities manager was also a key topic of discussion. Geoff Prudence, head of CIBSE’s FM Group reminded delegates that operational efficiency is not only about energy: “It’s about maintenance, asset performance and prioritising work.”

And Deborah Rowland, head of property asset management for the Ministry of Justice, called on the construction industry to remember: “The FM has to run the building once you have left.”

The role of controls was also an important point made by a number of the speakers. All of the clients said that controls and BEMS were crucial for monitoring, measuring and targeting savings. They all used information from the BEMS to track progess and pinpoint areas for further improvement.

BCIA president Steve Harrison says: “The Summit was the BCIA’s first London-based conference and it was a great success. The message about working with other parts of the industry is one that we will take on board, and I hope that we can build on what has been achieved with B&ES, CSA and CIBSE.”