Escaping from the heat of summer in London, over 50 professionals from across the property and construction sector attended our recent industry insights event. The morning featured plenty of networking opportunities between three sessions discussing key areas of interest, including The Golden Thread in building safety, Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) quick wins and an introduction to Micro-Industrial.
Following feedback from our last event, sessions were tailored to what our clients and contacts care most about – so that everyone gains valuable insights and knowledge on relevant and current topics in the industry.
Sharing their thoughts on the event, one attendee captured what we hoped to achieve, saying: I thought the speakers were informative, there was a good range of attendees from different consultancies and asset management companies, and a nice breakfast!”
Couldn’t make it? Keep reading for a short summary of each session.
The Golden Thread, and competence within the fire door industry for non-HRB projects
Kicking off the morning’s agenda was Gav Fielding from BRE, who explained the legality around working with high-risk buildings (HRBs) under the Building Safety Act (BSA) and how these principles can also be used as best practice on non-HRBs.
Safety considerations are often discounted on non-HRBs due to the lack of structural risk present, but Gav highlighted that many construction projects come with a life safety risk – examples given included schools, hospitals and workplaces. Although there is still the risk that people see this as a tick box exercise, and the standard of building safety remains low, there is hope in the way that some businesses are already acting responsibly through every project they deliver.
However, responsibility doesn’t just lie with contractors, it applies in equal measure to designers, installers and inspectors. The approach must be thorough when it comes to building safety, encompassing competence through skills, knowledge, experience, behaviours and due diligence, ensuring all reasonable steps are taken to meet responsibilities.
EPC quick wins and how to future-proof failing commercial assets under MEES
Hearing from Mat Lown at TFT, the second session centred around regulations for minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) on the lead up to the EPC B rating requirement in 2030.
There are a limited number of EPC triggering events including letting, letting renewals, sales and certain works, but recertifying EPC ratings is also important. If an asset is performing better than expected then ultimately you want the most accurate representation due to the direct correlation between better EPC ratings and better investment performance.
What EPC improvements look like will be different across industries and asset types and, unfortunately, there is not a catch-all answer. To give an example, for industrial units PV installation can be the factor that takes an EPC rating from A to A+ due to the large, flat roof space that is often available, but this isn’t often a viable option for inner city office buildings. In contrast, these can require careful consideration around lighting and gas usage.
Although EPC improvements can revolve around what to add in to make a building or unit more efficient, at the end of the day leaving something out can make just as much, if not more, of an impact.
Mat also explained that greater value can be derived from energy modelling than people are currently taking advantage of, so his advice is to take more time with this process and allow it to inform future investment decisions.
Micro-industrial – the new kid on the property block
For our final session of the day, attendees learnt more about an emerging opportunity for the industrial and logistics industry – micro-industrial. One attendee commented: “There was interesting talks on all topics, but it was nice to hear a talk from someone like FOUNDRY regarding a different market that I wasn’t fully aware of.”
Pioneer of the movement, Adam Walker and Garry James from FOUNDRY talked through their pilot scheme with Legal and General at Crayfields Park in Bromley – which we’re helping to deliver alongside Project Managers TFT.
The way industrial space is being used is ever-changing, and micro-industrial space – in the form of workspaces, workshops and studios – makes it more accessible for small business owners to scale into a space where they can make, sell and ship their products.
This concept is something that will continue to evolve, but it is rooted in the ideology that industrial parks can become flexible spaces where businesses grow together as part of a community. This concept is also seen as an opportunity to re-position tired or failing assets.
Nick Tagliarini, Director at Pexhurst said: “It was great to once again have the opportunity to bring together so many industry professionals from across our contact base. The way that the industry is evolving, we are learning new things every day from partners on our projects. It is a pleasure to share that new knowledge from sources of inspiration and innovation, and our team is delighted to add value in this way.”
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