NEWS
SPECIAL FOCUS
insideindustry T
he IIR International Conference on Sustainability and the Cold Chain, which
was organised by the IOR and took place online from 11 to 13 April, provided an effective platform for experts all over the world to share their latest findings on topics related to sustainability and the cold chain. The conference takes place every two years, and this year it featured over 50 presentations, and over 100 delegates from across the globe and covered important topical subjects such as decarbonising the grid, sustainable food and the cold chains, reducing energy use and utilising heat recovery among others. The event included three detailed workshops on carbon reduction for the food chain, projects on clean and efficient refrigeration solutions for food and healthcare sectors in developing countries and ammonia safety. The conference included three coffee lounges which provided the delegates with the opportunity to discuss themes and ask questions of a series of experts. The conference was held online which allowed participants from all over the world to interact not just with the expert speakers but also between themselves with one to one discussions and small group meetings and commissions meetings taking place during the three days. The online platform used
is remaining open for the whole of April, allowing delegates to carry on their conversations until the end of the month.
Commenting on the conference,
Conference Chair and Chair of the International Committee, Dr Andy Pearson FInstR, said “This conference has been very timely. The recent increases in energy costs have had an effect at all stages of the cold chain and have made the sustainability aspect of the conference more significant than ever before. It was very encouraging to hear from the United Nations and representatives of the UK Government in their keynote addresses that the critical contribution of the cold chain to modern life in all parts of the world has been acknowledged and that the opportunities that it affords are not being ignored. I hope that all stakeholders in the cold chain, from logistics specialists through construction and maintenance companies to researchers and teachers will find helpful content in the papers and workshops presented. It is also very good to note that the online conference platform provides a resource that can be used by all delegates over the coming weeks and months in a way that just would not have been possible if we had met face-to-face and then gone our separate ways.”
The conference was also used as an opportunity to welcome the work of student researchers. A prize for the best paper and presentation was awarded to Abdulquadri Alaka from Massey University in New Zealand for his research on Testing the Validity of Scale Modelling Theory in order to Develop a Physical Scale Model of a Refrigerated Container. He received a £500 prize from the Institute of Refrigeration. Conference delegates will be able to revisit any of the recorded presentations thanks to the on- demand library of conference sessions available until the end of 2022. They also have access to all 50 technical papers as part of the proceedings. Visit
www.iccc2022.org to find out
more about the programme and speakers.
T 10 May 2022 •
www.acr-news.com
he City of London Corporation has invited Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) chief executive David Frise to play a key role on a taskforce set up to address skills shortages in engineering and construction.
He is joining 14 other business leaders on the Skills for a Sustainable Skyline Taskforce which will look at defining and addressing skills gaps around the construction, retrofit and maintenance of low
carbon commercial buildings across the capital. Mr Frise will work with other experts from the commercial built environment, including local authorities, central government, employers, and training providers. The taskforce has been set up in
response to growing alarm about the shortage of skilled people available to help the corporation achieve its net zero carbon targets. It will run for three years, and its findings will be shared with other cities facing similar problems including Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, and Glasgow. It will be chaired by Chris
Hayward, who is deputy chairman of the City Corporation’s Policy and Resources Committee and follows a poll of built environment professionals which revealed the depth of concern over a lack of suitably skilled workers to deliver sustainable building projects. 91% of respondents to the poll said the commercial built environment sector lacked sufficient skilled workers to achieve net zero targets. 80% identified poor workplace diversity as a critical underlying weakness. The City of London Corporation has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions across its operations by 2027, and to support the achievement of net zero for the Square Mile financial district by 2040.
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