INDUSTRY EVENTS
BESA challenges industry to go ‘beyond compliance’
T
Andrew Palmer, executive editor of The Economist, will be one of the keynote speakers at the BESA Annual Conference
Speakers at this year’s BESA Annual Conference on Thursday, October 22 will argue that investment in workforce competence and compliance is essential for businesses to thrive in the current market conditions
he overall theme: ‘Beyond Compliance’: Raising Standards, Proving Competence, Delivering Better Buildings reflects the numerous challenges facing the industry. The conference, which
is sponsored by Mitsubishi Electric, will provide a variety of routes for ensuring long-term business growth. It takes place at The Brewery, London for the
third year in a row ahead of the Association’s annual Industry Awards taking place at the same venue that evening. The packed one- day programme will focus on how building engineering firms can turn legal and technical compliance into a strategic business advantage but go even further to raise professional standards in order to improve the delivery of safer, better-performing buildings. The Conference will feature twin keynote speakers including Dr Barbara Lane who is the first independent chair of the Building Advisory Committee – part of the Building Safety Regulator (BSR). She is one of the industry’s foremost fire safety engineers and is director and fellow of Fire Safety Engineering at Ove Arup and Partners.
Kicking off the day will be the leading financial
journalist, Andrew Palmer. He is executive editor of The Economist and oversees its business strategy and products. He also writes the Bartleby column which covers workplace matters, and hosts Boss Class, the internationally renowned publication’s management podcast.
Enforcement
Dr Lane played a key role in the aftermath of the Grenfell fire and made regular appearances during the public inquiry between 2017 and 2024. As chair of the advisory committee, she will support the BSR in its efforts to tighten enforcement and improve safety standards. Palmer joined The Economist as management
correspondent in February 2007 and has served as Britain editor, business-affairs editor, head of the data team, Americas editor, finance editor and banking correspondent. His economic analysis will provide valuable insights for BESA Conference delegates many
of whom are having to run businesses against a backdrop of growing cost and risk pressures. Product innovation will also be under the spotlight during the day, and this element of the event is sponsored by indoor air quality specialist airo. A quick-fire series of presentations following the ‘PechaKucha’ seven-minute format will also focus on BESA’s growing library of technical standards with focused Q&A to follow. There are also two CPD theatres sponsored by the BESA Academy and the whole conference is fully CPD certified. There will be key sessions focused on wider business challenges such as competence strategies that employers can defend in the face of increased legislative scrutiny; the risks of becoming an ‘inadvertent designer’ under the Building Safety Act, and how to thrive and stay profitable in a high cost, high compliance environment. The BESA Conference 2026 will also examine how net zero, technical best practice and AI are reshaping the future of the building engineering sector. A panel made up of senior figures from the firms featured in this year’s Top 30 Contractors’ Report will also examine key growth areas such as data centres, healthcare, defence and public sector upgrades. There will be the usual heavy focus on skills and recruitment with a WorldSkills UK Training Room taking pride of place for the first time. This will be a dedicated technical learning space offering accessible and practical sessions for all conference attendees.
“Once again we will be challenging our delegates to consider how we address some of the biggest issues we face while also offering them specific practical tools to help them in their day-to-day working lives,” said BESA’s senior group events and partnership manager Charlie Ward. “We are delighted to have secured two such eminent keynote speakers who will provide fascinating insights into the worlds of building safety and market economics. This is another example of the value BESA is looking to deliver in support of greater industry competence, compliance and business growth,” she added. Tickets to the Conference are available now from the BESA Conference website.
Awards place empasis on youth
The BESA Industry Awards shortlist has been unveiled ahead of the Awards which also takes place at the Brewery following the Conference. The awards, which comprise 21 categories,
reward individuals, teams, and companies responsible for delivering projects, products, innovations, and initiatives that demonstrate excellence in all aspects of building services engineering. The programme has a strong focus on young
learners this year reflecting the industry’s need to attract more of the best and brightest and to tap into the potential talent among the ‘NEET generation’ – the one million young people not in education, employment or training. Mitsubishi Electric is also the headline sponsor of the dinner which is supported by several individual category sponsors. There are awards for outstanding projects and firms as well as individuals who have gone above and beyond the call of duty for the greater good of the industry. Categories cover the full supply chain from manufacturers and distributors though contractors, engineers, and clients, and they reflect the industry’s efforts to get to grips with today’s big issues like competence and compliance, building safety, and decarbonisation. This year, as well as BESA’s long-standing
apprentice categories covering specialist trades like refrigeration and air conditioning, and facilities and energy management, the Awards have added a new overall Trainee of the Year Award sponsored by Milwaukee. This was created to recognise exceptional young achievers from all parts of the sector while also reflecting fast changing routes to entry and competence development in an evolving industry.
The highly sought after Rising Star Award sponsored by Mikroper is also up for grabs again celebrating exceptional young talent from across building engineering services. BESA is also offering ‘travel bursaries’ for
apprentices and young engineers to help them attend the Conference and Awards thanks to the generous support of the Manly Trust.
theBESA.com
14 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER SEPTEMBER 2026
Read the latest at:
www.bsee.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42
