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Issue 86, February 2013

Welcome to your February 2013 E-newsletter of events, training, news, publications and recruitment opportunities in the built environment sector.

News

Energy Minister launches the BRE National Solar Centre

The new BRE National Solar Centre was officially launched by Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker on 16 January at the Royal Academy of Engineers. The Centre is based in St. Austell and will open in April. It will help industry and government to deliver on the solar PV opportunities set out in DECC’s recent 2012 Renewables Roadmap Update. More

Peter Bonfield to lead wood industry action plan

DEFRA Secretary of State Owen Paterson has invited Peter Bonfield, BRE’s Chief Executive Officer, to chair a panel of business leaders in establishing a market demand-led action plan for the wood industry. Called Grown in Britain, the aim is to create a viable economic, social and environmental future for the wood industry and its supply chain. More

BREEAM Awards at Ecobuild 2013

This year’s BREEAM Awards will be held during Ecobuild in Excel’s Platinum Suite on 5 March. The Awards are presented to the BREEAM rated projects that achieved the highest BREEAM scores in the preceding year, and so represent some of the most sustainable buildings in the world. More

News of emerging technologies

Technology4change is a new on line publication that aims to keep you up to date with built environment research, emerging technologies and innovative products being developed around the world. More

Scottish Minister glimpses future of housing

Scottish Housing and Welfare Minister, Margaret Burgess MSP, visited the BRE Scotland Innovation Park on 21 January. The Park is a mini-community of demonstration homes and buildings that will be used to shape future housing in Scotland. It is based at Ravenscraig, the former steelworks site in Lanarkshire, which is currently undergoing significant regeneration. More

Retrofit Briefing

Retrofit Briefing is a new regular e-publication from BRE providing news, analysis and data on building retrofit and refurbishment. This new publication provides the key facts and figures for decision makers, whether they are upgrading property, marketing new technologies or investing in the sector. It is available on annual subscription here.

Blue Ribbon Awards re-launched

The Ideal Home Show has re-launched its traditional Blue Ribbon Awards, which will give home builders, housing associations, developers, architects, and designers the chance to be awarded a mark of excellence in the house building industry. Industry partners supporting the Awards include BRE, the Home Builders Federation, the Prince’s Foundation for Building Community and RIBA. Entries must be submitted by 1 March, with the winners being announced at the Ideal Home Show on 20 March. More

All UK manufactured plasterboard is ‘responsibly sourced’

The UK’s three major producers of plasterboard, Knauf, Siniat (formerly Lafarge) and British Gypsum, have had their products independently assessed and certified to BES 6001 – the framework Standard for the Responsible Sourcing of Construction Products. The assessments were carried out by certification bodies, BSi, QSRMC and BRE Global respectively. Specifiers can now be confident that virtually all UK manufactured plasterboard is responsibly sourced. More

Solar Power UK Roadshow

Taking place in locations throughout the UK, the Solar Power UK Roadshow comprises seven half-day seminars. They offer SME solar installer businesses the opportunity to learn more about the latest tips and topics that are essential to running a successful solar business in 2013. More

Meet the international BREEAM family at MIPIM

BREEAM has a fast growing international family of national scheme operators. You can meet all the family at MIPIM this year, 12-15 March in Cannes. More

	From Rupert Pool and the Investigations Team: Why is it so hard to get the floor right? BRE experts share their knowledge to help you with common building problems. The number of floor problems that BRE investigates seems disproportionately large when compared to problems occurring in other, more complicated building elements. Their relative simplicity can often mean that floors are overlooked, and project timescales tend to leave them to the last minute. But a defective floor can have a huge impact on the operation of a building, and putting it right can cause long delays to the project and may incur large unavailability charges. Following best practice guidance can avoid such delays. Read on…

Events and training

Certified Passivhaus tradesperson training

25-26 February at BRE Watford
Distance learning with 2 days face-to-face training plus 90 minute exam. More

Building Information Modelling (BIM) for Passivhaus and low carbon buildings

27 February at Bidwells in Cambridge
Centre for the Built Environment seminar. For a full listing of Centre for the Built Environment events click here or call 01603 591366. More

Green Deal Advisor training

• Domestic training for new entrants on 27 February-1 March at BRE Watford. More
• Non-Domestic training for new entrants on 4-8 March at BRE Watford. More
• Domestic training for qualified Domestic Energy Assessors on 25-26 March at BRE Watford. More
• Non-Domestic training for qualified Non-Domestic Energy Assessor on 27-28 March at BRE Watford. More

Level 3 Certificate in Domestic Energy Assessment

27 February-1 March at BRE Watford
Three-day course plus on-line assessment and optional distance learning module. More

Ecobuild 2013

5-7 March at ExCel in London
Ecobuild is the world’s biggest event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment. Come and see us at BRE’s stand – number N2040. To meet any of the BRE experts at Ecobuild or for further information contact Dolores Kelly, kellydm@bre.co.uk

BRE BTEC Professional Diploma in Fire Risk Assessment

11-15 March at BRE Watford
Five-day training course followed by assessment for the qualification. More

Cities in the sky – challenging their safety

12 March at BRE, Watford
Around the globe high-rise buildings and super high-rise buildings are appearing like never before. This event focusses on the issues of fire and safety in tall buildings, with discussions on how sustainable and secure they are. More

Biodiversity and green roofs in Passivhaus and low carbon buildings

13 March at the NRP Innovation Centre, Norwich
Centre for the Built Environment seminar. More

Introduction to renewables

18 March at BRE Watford
A basic introduction to renewable technologies. More

Energy Management

19-20 March at BRE Watford
How to understand where and how an organisation uses energy, and the opportunities for cost-effective energy use reductions.More

Designing and delivering Passivhaus and low carbon buildings 2

20 March at Bidwells, Chelmsford .
Centre for the Built Environment seminar More

Passivhaus introduction and workshop

21 March at BRE Watford
Introductory course aimed at all those with an interest in low-energy design, construction and the Passivhaus standard. More

Energy performance contracting – delivering significant energy cost savings and carbon reduction targets

11 April in London
This joint BRE and British Gas one day conference will guide you through the process, providing impartial information and advice. More

Residential Sprinkler Systems in the UK – an update

24 April at BRE, Watford
A half-day seminar to update building control professionals, fire protection designers and fire brigades of the recent changes to the use of residential sprinkler systems. More

Thinking low carbon

February-June 2013
A series of interactive seminars and workshops aimed at businesses working across the built environment and sustainability sectors, which are looking to develop skills and knowledge. More

BREEAM training

For full details of events and training programmes on all aspects of the BREEAM schemes and built environment sustainability click here.

SMARTWaste Plan and SWMP training

A series of events on complying with Site Waste Management Plan (SWMP) regulations and training on how to use the free web based tool SMARTWaste Plan. More

Publications

Radon solutions in homes

This three-part Good Repair Guide (GR 37) is for builders and homeowners carrying out works to reduce radon levels in homes. Part 1 covers the installation of natural and mechanical ventilation to under-floor spaces. Part 2 gives guidance on positive ventilation systems. Part 3 covers the installation of active and passive sump systems. More

Dealing with difficult demolition wastes

This report gives guidance for improving the recovery of types of demolition waste that are difficult to reuse, recycle or recover, such as carpet underlay, insulated concrete formwork, industrial batteries, structural insulated panels and smoke alarms. More

BRE Bookshop

For full details of a vast range of construction and built environment publications visit www.BREBookshop.com

Jobs

BRE has a range of career opportunities in science, engineering and administrative disciplines. For more information click here.

Energy Minister launches the BRE National Solar Centre. More

BRE’s CEO, Peter Bonfield, has been invited to lead a new wood industry action plan. More

Technology4change is a new on line publication on emerging technologies in the built environment sector. More

Blue Ribbon Awards re-launched. More

Scottish Housing and Welfare Minister visits the BRE Scotland Innovation Park at Ravenscraig. More

From Rupert and the Investigations Team. Getting floors right.

Retrofit Briefing is a new e-publication providing news, analysis and data on building retrofit and refurbishment. More

Ecobuild is the world's largest event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment. More

Cities in the sky – challenging their safety . More

Radon solutions in homes. More

Dealing with difficult demolition wastes. More

See and buy the full range of publications from the BRE Group at our online bookshop, open 24 hours a day, every day, More

All the benefits of our great courses delivered online for your convenience. More

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