Collective steps forward

In the first of two blogs to sign off his term as BCIA President, Graeme Rees reflects on the progress made by the organisation during his tenure.

If you had asked me in March 2022 when I took on the role what I hoped to achieve over the next two years my answer might well have been along the lines of “getting through it without any Covid-induced lockdowns!” after my predecessor Terry Sharp had of course endured the unenviable task of steering the BCIA through the difficult times of 2020 and 2021. Thinking back to my first official engagement as BCIA President, at the 2022 BCIA Awards, we were all still fairly tentative about meeting in large groups – and you weren’t allowed to attend the event unless you could provide evidence of a negative Covid test! Things have, thankfully, improved since then and I consider myself extremely fortunate to have presided over a period without interruptions allowing us to make some significant, collective steps forward. 

In October 2022 we took the decision to appoint Catherine Walker as our first ever full-time Executive Officer. The BCIA’s Management Committee consists of volunteers and is run by its members, for its members. However, having a full-time person in place to take care of everyday matters and “rudder the ship” has been of huge benefit and in the long run will help to enhance the BCIA’s position as the leading voice in the building controls industry.

I have worked closely with Catherine in reviewing procedures and developing the BCIA as a corporate entity, to ensure our governance is robust and transparent, a fundamental requirement for a professional trade association representing the sector. The biggest change, by far, has been the incorporation of the Association, removing liability from members to a corporate entity. We also aligned BCIA Operations (the training company) to form a group structure. Given the scale and turnover of both entities, for the vote to be successful we needed at least 50% of members to give their support. I am delighted we achieved this as it was absolutely the right time to take the Association on this journey, ensuring – as I hand over the Presidency to Stacey Lucas – that we are fit for the future.

Skills development and raising standards and competence levels continue to be a significant part of our role in supporting the growth of the industry. In 2021 the BEMS Controls Engineer Apprenticeship was launched and it has since welcomed more than 165 apprentices, while more than 500 delegates are undertaking BCIA technical training courses. We launched a Young Engineers Network in April 2022 and this has continued to go from strength-to-strength, proving to be a crucial source of engagement for younger engineers entering and progressing in the industry.

Retaining valuable people

One of the industry’s biggest challenges has been to establish a way to help retain valuable people with extensive skills for the good of the building controls industry. It was clear that BCIA was the organisation that needed to find the solution to the challenge and a major milestone was reached in late 2023 as the Experienced Worker Assessment pilot got underway. This exciting breakthrough now means that an accessible and effective solution for experienced workers to be able to obtain ECS gold cards is just around the corner. Last year the BCIA also leveraged its position to work with the Electrotechnical Certification Scheme (ECS) to develop a suite of BEMS sector competency cards that better reflect the needs of the industry and one of the key challenges facing our workers.

Another important development has been the BCIA’s Corporate Plan, our blueprint which sets out the goals for the organisation and outlines how we will achieve our collective vision not only for the Association, but for the industry and our members.

Achieving an increased profile, offering an industry-leading training programme and the role we have played in key initiatives as outlined above has seen membership continue to grow with the total number of members currently standing at 160. The organisation and the industry as a whole are on an exciting upward trajectory, and I am confident that this will continue with increased member engagement going forward, which I will discuss in more detail next time.