THE BESA BOOK

2019

A CLIENT’S GUIDE TO
BUILDING
ENGINEERING
SERVICES
An in-depth guide for specifiers looking
to procure quality, independently
audited building engineering services
SEE PAGE 144-145

Apple’s news was BIG.

Ours is BIGGER.
 BESA BOOK 2019
A CLIENT’S GUIDE

A CLIENT’S
GUIDE TO
BUILDING Published by:

BESA
Rotherwick House, 3 Thomas More St,

ENGINEERING
St Katharine's & Wapping,
London E1W 1YZ

T: +44 (0)20 7313 4900

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W: www.thebesa.com

SERVICES Whilst every effort is made to ensure

the accuracy of the advice given,
the company cannot accept liability
for loss or damage arising from the
information supplied.

All rights reserved. No part of this

The BESA Book covers all
aspects of building energy
management to help clients
make those important
decisions to meet corporate
social and financial goals, and
to find the right contractor to
deliver the job.
BESA provides a free online search service
(www.thebesa.com/find-a-besa-member)
designed to make it easy and quick to
find BESA member(s) that you require to
deliver heating, ventilating, ductwork,
facilities management, refrigeration,
air conditioning, commissioning and
maintenance services.
The service allows users to search for a
BESA member by region (postcode), name
and by specialism. It also now details the
geographic areas that a member operates
in, as well as highlighting those services
which are carried out in-house.
publication may be reproduced, stored
in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form, by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording
or otherwise, without the prior
permission of the copyright owners.
© BESA 2019
The publisher gratefully acknowledges
the support of the firms whose
advertisements appear in this
publication. Whilst every care has been
taken in compiling this publication, the
publisher cannot accept responsibility
for any inaccuracies, or for the products
or services advertised.

The inclusion of adverts and

Advertising sales information herein does not in any way
& production by: imply or include endorsement or the
approval of or from the BESA Group.
Open Box M&C
Regent Court Please note: The information contained
68 Caroline Street in the list of members was correct as of
Jewellery Quarter 15th October 2018.
Birmingham B3 1UG
All photographs and drawings
T: 44 (0)121 200 7820
+ © BESA, except as noted otherwise
E: inside@ob-mc.co.uk in captions.
W: www.ob-mc.co.uk

03
THE BESA BOOK
2019
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 BESA BOOK 2019
CONTENTS

CONTENTS
08
BESA BOOK 2019
11
BESA BOOK 2019
14
BESA BOOK 2019
17
BESA BOOK 2019
WELCOME INTRODUCTION MEMBERSHIP MARKET OVERVIEW
BESA President Tim Hopkinson BESA chief executive David Frise on An introduction to the Building Preparing for culture change
discusses the birth of a new era the benefits of a BESA membership Engineering Services Association

21
BESA BOOK 2019
22
BESA BOOK 2019
24
BESA BOOK 2019
29
BESA BOOK 2019
BESCA SKILLCARD TRAINING PENSIONS
Rising to the compliance challenge The industry’s skills certification Employers embrace new To move, or not to move?
register shows its value training model

32
BESA BOOK 2019
43
BUILDING SERVICES
44
BUILDING SERVICES
47
BUILDING SERVICES
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE CONTENTS OVERVIEW DIGITAL TOOLS
The latest news from the 2018 Digital and off-site backed to Digital tools set to transform
BESA National Conference tackle productivity crisis work and payment

53
BUILDING SERVICES
57
BUILDING SERVICES
59
BUILDING SERVICES
63
BUILDING SERVICES
OFFSITE EXPORT DIVERSITY FUTURE LEADERS
The case for off-site MMC could deliver Setting out on the path It is time for the industry to get
– no more time for delay £40bn export boost to a career in engineering in touch with its feminine side

05
 BESA BOOK 2019
CONTENTS

66
BUILDING SERVICES
69
SPECIFIERS
71
INTRODUCTION
79
STRATEGY
MENTAL HEALTH CONTENTS COMPLIANCE PARTNERSHIPS
Mind your language Compliance is king in BESA sets out future
post Grenfell era with strategic partners

83
SPECIFICATION
85
PIPEWORK
89
PIPEWORK
91
HEATING
PAS 91 TATA STEEL BISPA HEAT INTERFACE UNITS
The gateway to specification Cold-formed or hot-finished? BISPA joins BESA to tackle What can HIUs do for us?
pipework challenges

97
WATER PRESSURE
103
WATER HEATERS
106
TECHNICAL
109
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
HIGH RISE SYSTEMS ENERGY EFFICIENCY CONTENTS SFG20
Big can be beautiful Is compliance enough for Grenfell inquiry raises stakes
water heaters? for building maintenance

113
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Stepping up to lead
119
WATER SYSTEMS
123
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
129
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
LEGIONELLA CLEAN AIR ACT INDOOR AIR QUALITY
Legionella still on the rise UK poised to adopt Soaring asthma rate
new clean air act strengthens case for IAQ

06
 BESA BOOK 2019
CONTENTS

137
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
VENTILATION HYGIENE
Ventilation hygiene specialists
target kitchen safety
147
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
155
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
159
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
SMOKE CONTROL AIR FILTRATION KITCHEN VENTILATION
Why Grenfell’s smoke control Breathing easier BESA revamps kitchen
system didn’t stand a chance ventilation guidance

165
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
HEATWAVES
UK heatwaves may kill thousands
167
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
173
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
179
HEATING SOLUTIONS
OFF GASSING LEV ENERGY EFFICIENCY
What is it and why it matters Time to get tough in the kitchen Integrated approach will help
industry reach efficiency heights

185
AIR CONDITIONING
193
AIR CONDITIONING
196
SUPPLY CHAIN
198
CONTROL SYSTEMS
REFRIGERATION RAC80 BG6 REVISION KNOWLEDGE
Air conditioning sector facing RAC80 provides latest AC Engage brain and redraw The power of people
safety fears and heat pump guidance the ‘fuzzy red lines’

202
BESA CONTACTS
204
BESA CONTACTS
209
BESA BOOK 2018
277
BESA BOOK 2018
BESA OFFICES BESA AFFILIATES BESA MEMBERS BESA MEMBERS INDEX
Contact details for all of We welcome a wide range of Affiliates, Full details of BESA member An alphabetical index of
BESA’s UK locations from suppliers, manufacturers and companies listed geographically BESA member companies
business services providers

07
 TIME TO
MOVE ON
The shocks and surprises of the past two years
continue to resonate throughout our industry, but
we are now moving into a new phase. 2019 feels like a
year for moving on, says BESA President Tim Hopkinson*.

The aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy;
the controversy around Carillion and payment
practices; business uncertainty over Brexit;
and the huge resource and skills issues facing
employers are converging to bring about a
complete transformation of our industry and
its professions.
We are seeing the birth of a new era where
the traditional way of doing things no longer
works and where our professional credibility is
under scrutiny like never before.
Tim Hopkinson Over the next two to five years, we will witness
BESA President the emergence of an industry that embraces
modern methods of construction; modern
ways of working; and future technologies like
never before – creating a new culture and a
new image.
BESA will play a major role in this new
era because it will increasingly be called
upon to set the technical standards and
help companies provide evidence of their
competence. The Association will be crucial in
helping companies transition to new ways of
working and in helping them to comply with
both legislation and new client requirements.
Building engineering firms must reshape
themselves in line with this new era or find
themselves left out in the cold.
Specifically, we are going to see:
• Increased use of offsite and modular construction
• True collaboration between organisations
and professions
• Digital dominance of procurement
• More (and more diverse) apprenticeships
Transformation is inevitable because the UK
construction industry physically cannot deliver
all of the projects coming down the pipe unless it
works in a completely different way. The industry
is already at full capacity; there are tower cranes
all over London and we are continually being
exhorted to employ more skilled people.
EngineeringUK has long forecast that the country
will need 1.8 million new engineers (in all fields)
by 2025. The latest call from the Chartered
Institute of Building suggested construction
needed more than 150,000 new recruits by 2021
to keep up with the current demand. Increasingly,
these figures look simply unattainable.
We have a huge resource void and we also have
some mega projects on the horizon. Some
estimates suggest that the third runway at
Heathrow could absorb more than 15,000 site
workers. There are two nuclear power stations
in the pipeline at Hinkley Point and Wylfa
Newydd – each of which could require more
than 6,000 site-based technical staff.

08 BACK TO CONTENTS

“Over the next two to five years, we will witness the
emergence of an industry that embraces modern methods
of construction; modern ways of working; and future
technologies like never before – creating a new culture
and a new image.”
HS2 is more widely spread and so will look to
absorb people from all over the country, but
from a pool of skilled labour that is already
almost dry.
The status quo is not going to deliver all of this
so we will have to become less and less about
contractors working on building sites and more
and more about deploying technology and
modern working methods to deliver a better
and more profitable product.
In the past, employers’ knee-jerk reaction would
have been to scour the EU for low cost workers
to throw at projects. That will no longer be an
option from next March and this could well turn
out to be one of the long-term benefits of Brexit.
Rather than simply bringing in bodies with
varying levels and types of qualifications, we will
have to ensure that everyone has completed
the right training and has appropriate skills for
how we want to work in the UK. In short, the
Hackitt Review has turned the spotlight
on compliance and competence – and
Brexit has reinforced the need for
developing a proper strategy to
address them.
Of course, we will still be
short of people for some
years, but our lack
of manpower will
fuel the offsite
revolution, which
will further
improve
quality.
BESA BOOK 2019
WELCOME
If you build something in a factory – rather
than on a building site – you have a far
better chance of ensuring it is finished
to the right quality. You can manage the
quality control process much more easily
and you provide better and safer working
conditions for your employees.
The need for the industry to embrace offsite
methods was also stressed by the House of
Lords Science and Technology Committee.
In a recent report, it argued that offsite
manufacture could improve productivity by
as much as 70% while also delivering better
and more energy efficient buildings.
Outdated
However, it said the use of offsite
manufacture had been patchy because the
industry uses “outdated and unsustainable”
business models. It also attacked the
fragmented culture of the sector and the
lack of trust, which led to poor levels of
the collaboration needed to make offsite
manufacturing work.
“There are clear and tangible benefits from
offsite manufacture for construction which
make a compelling case for its widespread
use,” said committee chair Lord Patel.
“The construction sector’s business models
are no longer appropriate and are not
supporting the UK’s urgent need for
new homes and infrastructure.”
If the modular offsite approach is going
to work, you need full collaboration from
the outset to get the designs right. If you
succeed, you also create a whole new
atmosphere of co-operative working. And,
what’s more, you don’t let anything leave the
factory until you have been paid for it! >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 09
BESA BOOK 2019
WELCOME

“EngineeringUK has long forecast that the country will

need 1.8 million new engineers (in all fields) by 2025.
The latest call from the Chartered Institute of Building
suggested construction needed more than 150,000 new
recruits by 2021 to keep up with the current demand.”

Adopting more of a production line approach
will allow us to develop a less disruptive supply
chain management and payment model. It
should also ensure that the finished product
works better in the long-run – so addressing
many of our performance and safety problems
in buildings.
Collaboration should, in time, lead to a new
contract model that will remove old areas of
conflict. Revitalising the way we work could
consign issues like late payment to the dustbin
of history.
Also, many of the things that make our
industry so unattractive to young people will
be transformed. If it becomes safer, cleaner
and more technologically driven – and more
profitable and less adversarial – it suddenly
looks a lot more like a promising career.
This subtle shift is a great opportunity for
employers in our sector to reach out to a new
generation of potential recruits, who they can
train on the job up to and beyond degree level.
BESA has been at the forefront of developing
new standard apprenticeships and we are
seeing demand for these growing steadily.
Our Future Leaders programme (see page 63) is
also bearing fruit as more young people come
forward, eager to help us set the agenda for
the future of the Association and the building
engineering sector.
2019 promises to be a year when we put the
worst of our political and technical traumas
behind us; learn the lessons – and move
forward with greater confidence to embrace a
new construction culture. n

This culture change, therefore, brings *Tim Hopkinson is serving as BESA President
about a change of image just at the for a second year. He is also managing
time when UK further education director of E Poppleton and Son.
is going through its own
transition. Young people have
more options these days
and many no longer
regard a ‘traditional’
degree route as the
best way to access
the right career.
 BESA BOOK 2019
INTRODUCTION

RE-STARTING
HISTORY
There is no point trying to hide the fact that
BESA has been through a time of unprecedented
change and upheaval, but then so has most of the
industry. It is time to turn those experiences to our
advantage, says BESA chief executive David Frise.

BESA has changed its name twice in a very
short period of time. It has a new headquarters
and has seen some changes in senior staff.
Three events of national prominence had a
direct bearing on our sector: Brexit; Grenfell
and Carillion – three names that will live long
in history.
Yet, the Association endures as it has through
many turbulent periods since it was formed
in 1904. We have a strong and proud heritage
from our HVCA history – and we have always
led from the front.
David Frise
BESA chief executive BESA represents engineering companies
that are technically proficient. The design
and installation work they do is complex
and difficult. There are numerous technical
standards that must be interpreted
and adhered to in order to comply with
specifications. Their technical competence is
their USP and their ability to integrate complex
systems brings a building to life.
The make-up of our membership also gives us
the authority to speak on behalf of the building
services industry, we represent the high end
of technical competence and we should
enhance that by strengthening member
participation in rejuvenated committees. This
has allowed us to be influential in areas like
negotiated wage agreements, late payment,
legislation and procurement.
It is therefore sensible that a primary strategic
objective of BESA is to either set or influence
the technical standards that impact our
members. Technical standards should be
the friend of good contracting companies;
they set out the requirements and should
level the playing field at tender stage and set
the objective requirement on completion.
Has the right design and equipment been
tendered and has that design been met, is it
all compliant?
If you set a technical standard, you need the right
skills and competence to meet that standard.
Collaborative
Solutions should be sought from as wide
a stakeholder group as possible, including
manufacturers, consultants, clients, professional
bodies and non-members – we are learning to
be more collaborative and to welcome more
companies as full or affiliate members.
On the skills front, we have seen a record
number of enquiries from companies of all
sizes wanting apprentices and signing up to
our New Standard courses. We are helping
employers deal with the confusion surrounding
Apprentice Levy funding and those clouds are,
finally, starting to clear. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 11
BESA BOOK 2019
INTRODUCTION
“BESA can provide information and intelligence that you
cannot find on Google. We deliver technical updates;
specific legal advice, market intelligence and a national
wage agreement that provides a settled workforce.”
As well as creating the New Standard
apprenticeships, we have revamped end point
assessment of candidates to make it more
meaningful and focussed on life-long learning.
The system now provides real evidence that
the apprentice has the knowledge, skills and
behaviours to operate as part of a modern
workforce. This is what employers have been
calling for and presents real value for money
for BESA members who can now receive
apprentices with fully rounded competence
ready for productive work.
Within our technical framework, our specialist
groups already provide forums for discussion of
the key issues relating to many of the technical
areas that need examination in the wake of
Grenfell, in particular.
Their committees are at the heart of our drive to
produce leading edge technical guidance and they
provide so much valuable input by volunteering
their time and sharing their expertise.
This is all part of re-energising the community
of BESA, which has been serving our industry
so well for over a century. Our heritage and
tradition is a great strength – it reflects where
we come from, but also where we sit in the
modern industry.
It can be a lonely business running a
business at any level, there are days
when you truly believe the world
is against you – particularly in
our industry. Then you meet
another member and find
that you share a concern
or a problem and you
find out there is a
solution or that
your concern
will pass.
One of the major benefits of membership is
access to a community of people who are in the
same boat as you, share the same concerns, can
laugh about the absurdities of the industry. You
make friends in the association because you
work in the same environment.
Support can take many forms, from being an
empathetic friend, to providing expert advice
on legal or technical issues. It can also be
attending a meeting or reading a document
where you find out something of commercial
value to you. This may well be something “you
didn’t know you didn’t know” and therefore did
not realise this would be very important to you.
The cost of being a member of any trade
association is under greater scrutiny than ever.
Like many business expenses, companies
are – quite rightly – looking at their return on
investment. While that is an obvious concern,
it also is a challenge we are rising to meet
because we need engaged members if we are
to achieve our objectives.
Community
You will see many examples of the specific
commercial value we can add to your
businesses in this publication, but access to the
community is hugely valuable in its own right –
but in a less easily calculated way.
BESA can provide information and intelligence
that you cannot find on Google. We deliver
technical updates; specific legal advice, market
intelligence and a national wage agreement
that provides a settled workforce. All of that is
available – and more – but it needs to be better
communicated to the membership. That is a
critical task for our staff this year.
Our members operate in a difficult commercial
environment: Clients do not always value our
members’ services and their contribution to a
sustainable, modern, low carbon economy is
ignored. However, the Grenfell Tower tragedy
will lead to a cultural shift in attitudes to quality
in the industry. Members may finally start to
gain the recognition they deserve.

The proposed new
output based building
regulations, will shift
the emphasis from what
you promise to deliver, to
what is actually delivered. In
the future, contractors will need
to provide evidence of compliance
with regulation and specification. They
will need to be able to demonstrate their
competence – and that is where we come in
with our support services for our members.
We also provide increasingly popular financial
services through our subsidiary Welplan, which
is playing a crucial role in helping small firms,
in particular, to meet new requirements for
workplace pensions and back office functions.
We are proud of its status as a Master Trust
pensions provider – one of only a small number
in the country – and we accept the additional
scrutiny that comes with the territory.
Construction is a strategic enabling industry,
without the buildings and infrastructure the
industry delivers, modern society would not
function. The construction industry builds the
homes, schools, hospitals, transport links, factories
and offices needed for a modern economy.
BESA members are responsible for the installation
and correct operation of building mechanical and
electrical systems within the built environment. If
a building were a body, then the services are the
vital organs, the heart, lungs and brain.
If the building services engineer succeeds,
the user is unaware of the service provided, as
they are neither too hot nor too cold; and they
cannot hear, see or smell the produce we deliver.
They are, in fact, content and only recognise and
notice the services when there is a problem.
It is for this reason that clients undervalue
building services.
Sadly, building services can also be regarded
as a “problem sector” by many clients and main
contractors. It is difficult to understand; it is
usually more expensive than they anticipate
and creates difficulties with late changes to
the design. Clients want to occupy buildings
when they look ready, so services are rarely
given adequate commissioning time. It should
therefore come as no surprise when building
services do not perform to design.
BESA BOOK 2019
INTRODUCTION
Specification
It is frequently the case that the occupier of the
building is not the same as the specifier. It can
be very difficult for an occupier to understand
that they have a building that performs badly
and fails to meet energy targets or ventilation
rates, for example. Set this problem against a
background of non-compliance with building
regulations and specification and it becomes
easy to see why many clients and main
contractors dismiss the work of the building
services engineer.
Defects in building services are often hard to
spot and they are usually more difficult for
occupiers to rectify or to allocate responsibility.
Building services are known as “the dark arts”,
all a bit mysterious and to be treated with
suspicion, but often account for up to 50% of
the total cost of the building – a significant
contribution. Crucially because the services
infrastructure is hidden away and embedded in
the structure it is very difficult to put right if the
design is wrong or the installation defective
Yet if the government wants to deliver on
its industrial strategy, it needs properly
performing buildings. If you want smart
cities, you need to start with smart buildings
– a fact that seems to be poorly understood in
political circles.
It seems perverse that such a crucial industry
for everyone is so undervalued and subject
to lowest price tendering. Truly, it is a service
you do not value it until you do not have it,
but this also makes it a great profession and
BESA represents the very best companies
in the sector. If they succeed, the country
has better hospitals, schools and offices
that benefit all of society and help deliver a
vibrant, sustainable economy.
That is the message we will be delivering to
the wider world this year and, thanks to some
of the negative experiences we have all just
lived through, it seems like the world might
just be ready to listen this time. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 13
 AN
INTRODUCTION
TO BESA
The Building Engineering Services Association
is the UK's leading trade organisation for building
engineering services contractors – representing the
interests of firms active in the design, installation,
commissioning, maintenance, control and management
of engineering systems and services in buildings.

BESA has a proud heritage, having been
established in 1904 as the National Association
of Master Heating and Domestic Engineers.
BESA has been known by several names through
the years, most notably as the Heating and
Ventilating Contractors’ Association (HVCA)
for nearly 50 years. We have evolved to reflect
the changing needs of our members and the
sector, and in 2012 we rebranded to the Building
& Engineering Services Association (B&ES) to
reflect the growing range of specialisms covered
by our members.
Now trading as BESA, our name highlights
the fact that first and foremost we are an
association, and our members will always be our
primary focus.
BESA’s headquarters are in London, but we are
active throughout the UK. We have a separate
presence in Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland, as well as eight regional offices across
England. This regional presence facilitates
member networking and sharing of best
practice, business opportunities and advice on
local and national developments.
turnover of £400m. While very much an integral
part of the association as a whole, BESA Scotland
has its own chairman and executive committee.
BESA Scotland is a member of the Specialist
Engineering Contractors’ (SEC) Group
Scotland, which represents the interest
of the wider specialist contracting sector,
and provides the secretariat for SEC Group
Scotland’s Safety Forum.
BESA Northern Ireland
Membership of BESA Northern Ireland
comprises around 60 companies. While very
much an integral part of the association as
a whole, BESA Northern Ireland has its own
chairman and executive committee.
BESA Northern Ireland is a member of
Specialist Engineering Contractors’ (SEC)
Group Northern Ireland, which represents the
interest of the wider specialist contracting
sector, and provides the secretariat for SEC
Group Northern Ireland’s Safety Forum.

BESA Scotland
Membership of BESA Scotland comprises
around 200 companies with a combined
BESA Cymru/Wales
Membership of BESA Cymru/Wales comprises
some 85 companies. While very much an
integral part of the association as a whole,

14 BACK TO CONTENTS

“BESA has been known by several names through the years,
most notably as the Heating and Ventilating Contractors’
Association (HVCA) for nearly 50 years.”
BESA Cymru/Wales elects its own Officers,
including a dedicated Council Representative.
BESA Cymru/Wales in its own right, also being
a founder and active member of the Specialist
Engineering Contractors’ (SEC) Group Cymru/
Wales, each of which have developed ongoing
relationships with Welsh Government Ministers
and Officials, representing the interest of the
wider specialist contracting sector in general
whilst also seeking to promote the interests of
SME’s to Welsh Government.
Members
One of the key requirements of membership is
the demonstration of technical competence,
commercial capability and adherence to health
and safety best practice.
This is assessed through regular, third-party
inspection and auditing, ensuring our members
are upholding what is affectionately referred to
as the association’s ‘badge of quality’.
BESA membership means that clients can be
sure they are employing firms who work to the
highest standards, giving reassurance that their
project is in safe hands.
The online Find a Member facility allows
clients who require the services of a
building engineering services contractor
to identify and select members of
the BESA according to the range of
services they provide and their
geographical location.
This publication also contains
a comprehensive guide
to members including
full contact details for
each. See page 209.
BESA BOOK 2019
MEMBERSHIP
Our Role In Industry
BESA is committed to lobbying on behalf of
its members on a wide range of issues that
affect their businesses and the commercial
environment in which they operate.
Priority topics of current concern include:
• Unfair payment practices;
• promoting digital business;
• improving indoor air quality;
• implementing apprenticeship reform;
• replacing Part L of the Building Regulations.
Visit our Representation page to find out more.
Collaboration And Alliances
BESA is itself a member of the Specialist
Engineering Contractors' (SEC) Group, which
provides a united voice for all engineering
specialists working in construction, and of the
Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Industry
Board (ACRIB), which provides a central
forum for matters of specific interest to the
refrigeration and air conditioning industry.
BESA provides the secretariat for the
Building Services Engineering Employment
Agency Alliance, a voluntary grouping
of employment businesses that supply
personnel to contractors across building
engineering services.
The BESA works closely with other bodies
throughout the sector – including the
research organisation BSRIA, the Chartered
Institution of Building Services Engineers,
the Electrical Contractors’ Association and
the Federation of Environmental Trade
Associations (FETA), and is a member of the
CIBSE Patrons corporate supporters’ network.
In Europe, the BESA is an active member
of GCP Europe, the umbrella body
for the building engineering services
sector and the Air Conditioning and
Refrigeration European Association (AREA),
which represents refrigeration and air
conditioning contractors. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 15

PREPARING
FOR CULTURE
CHANGE
Last year saw huge strides taken towards creating a
fairer payment culture for sub-contractors – and 2019 should
be when we see supply chains starting to reap the benefits,
says BESA’s public affairs and policy manager Alexi Ozioro.
2018 was a momentous year on many fronts.
It started with the collapse of Carillion, which
had enormous implications for supply chain
finance and the mooted Aldous Bill. It saw
the publication of the Hackitt Review and the
details of the government’s construction sector
deal; and concluded with the country bracing
itself for Brexit.
All of these things have had a dramatic – often
traumatic – impact on our industry, but also led
to a number of really positive outcomes.
Alexi Ozioro
BESA - Public Affairs For example, Network Rail set a great example
and Policy Manager on fair payment, which others are likely to
follow in the coming months. Its decision to ban
retentions and adopt project bank accounts
as part of its new five-year £48bn investment
programme showed just what can be done when
an organisation is willing to embrace change.
Large contractors who work with the railway
operator will also be obliged to pay their own
supply chains within 28 days under new terms
of engagement.
The company’s own chief executive Richard
Beresford said the management had taken this
step because “healthy supply chains” are, quite
simply, better for everyone. “Culturally, this
sends a huge signal as to the value we place on a
sustainable supply chain and the way we want to
do business,” he explained.
BESA BOOK 2019
MARKET OVERVIEW
Invest
Most specialist contractors operating within
supply chains are keen to provide top quality
projects and realise that, in order to be able to do
that, they have to invest in apprentices and other
forms of training and recruitment to ensure they
can access a well-stocked pool of skilled people.
However, the way many supply chains are
structured and the difficulty of extracting
payment in full and on time plays havoc with
cash flow. This makes it hard for SMEs, in
particular, to plan for the future and invest in as
much recruitment and training as they need to
keep up with demand for their skills.
So, the collapse of Carillion had a silver lining. It
has been a salutary lesson for both clients and
politicians. The penny has dropped and they now
recognise that it is hard to deliver top quality
projects without ‘healthy’ supply chains that work
well and in harmony. If suppliers are continually
chasing cash and having to compromise on
quality in order to stay in business, the result is
bound to be disappointment all round.
Of course, nobody should take payment for
granted – and if work is not up to standard
they should not be paid until it is. The beauty of
project bank accounts is that they are structured
to ensure payment is made when work has
been completed to an agreed standard. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 17
BESA BOOK 2019
MARKET OVERVIEW
“The call for performance-based Building Regulations in the
wake of the Grenfell disaster will require a complete change
of culture from the construction industry and its investors.”
They remove the need for retentions – a system
that has been widely abused for decades.
In a similar vein, the call for performance-based
Building Regulations in the wake of the Grenfell
disaster will require a complete change of culture
from the construction industry and its investors.
Carillion then laid bare construction’s fractured
financial model and demonstrated the ferocity
of a late payment culture that destroys supply
chains and fosters a deeply uncaring approach.
To many a building is an investment vehicle,
which needs to be delivered on time and on
budget in order to gain a return on investment.
If you subsequently sell the asset on, you
have no “skin in the game” as far as long-term
performance is concerned. This leads to
short-term investment decisions that have
a detrimental impact performance and the
whole life cost of the building.
And, if you don’t care about the end product,
why would you care about skills and people
– and why would you be concerned about
payment down the supply chain? The result is
broken buildings put together by people who
are also broken down by stress. Who could
possibly thrive in a situation where they are
forced to start working to a loose design on
payment terms of 126 days?
This is the culture that Dame Judith
Hackitt and her independent review
team are seeking to change by
challenging the sector to adopt
‘performance based’ Building
Regulations. They are calling
for a shift in responsibility
that makes those who
procure and deliver
buildings recognise
and “feel that
responsibility”.
This task should now be much easier because
of Carillion’s demise. That sorry episode has
exposed the fact that SMEs have been starved
of vital cash flow for years – money that they
could have been investing in people, skills and
modern methods of working.
Wriggle
Dame Judith said people must stop doing
work for the “least cost” and change their
mind-set so that buildings could remain
safe and fit for purpose throughout their
full lifecycle. She criticised the complexity
of the guidance documents used to
support the Building Regulations. They
allow for too much wriggle room and loose
interpretation; and the silo thinking behind
them has made things complicated and
difficult to enforce. The fact that supply
chains started work too early was another
key observation of her committee.
To deliver her vision of projects that focus on
future performance and long-term safety, we
need to move to a planning system that only
allows projects to proceed once at least 80%
of the design is in place and to supply chains
that are financially supported and working in
some kind of harmony.
Getting people to meet output-based
regulations will not happen voluntarily,
however. The Hackitt vision needs to be backed
up with strong financial (and sometimes
criminal) penalties that are far more severe
than the possible cost benefits achieved by
cutting corners.
Dame Judith also urged the industry not to wait
for the government to tell it what to do, but to
take responsibility for reforming its competency
– and in this aspect the industry does have
something to build on: We already have a
range of third party accredited competent
person schemes in place that can support her
call for a more robust method of establishing
professional competence.
However, if we want product installers to
take responsibility for ensuring the specified
product is appropriate, they need to be
working in a joined up and functional system
with security of payment and employment.

The sector will, therefore,
need to adopt a digital
engineering and smart
whole-life asset model that
makes a record of each installation
and monitors how it performs. This
must be supported by digital business
and payment systems along with project-
based insurance to encourage buy-in from
all parts of the supply chain and to keep cash
flowing through the supply chains.
All of this is technically possible now, but
requires a similar change of culture to the one
that transformed the industry’s health and safety
landscape a couple of decades ago.
The Hackitt Review and the fall-out from Carillion
must now foster a more caring approach to
projects so that the ‘value engineered’ cut-price
solution that delivers short-term returns at the
expense of performance and safety no longer
looks attractive.
However, the government also has a steep
learning curve to confront this year.
The House of Commons Public Accounts
Committee inquiry into the way the government
deals with its suppliers uncovered considerable
weakness in the way it procures vital public
sector works and deals with its suppliers –
including the habit of putting capital cost ahead
of lifetime value and performance.
Influential
A group of BESA members were invited to
provide evidence to this highly influential
committee in a private session and many of
their key messages were included in its final
report to government.
In particular, the report recommended that
the government consider “the lifetime cost
and value of a contract, not just the bottom
line at the point the contract is commissioned”.
It added that government procurers should
“get better at managing contracts through
their life” and would need “a significant uplift
in skills” in this area.
The issue of late payment, which was brutally
exposed by the Carillion episode, was also
highlighted by the committee of MPs, who said
there was “no excuse” for small and medium
suppliers not being paid on time.
BESA BOOK 2019
MARKET OVERVIEW
It called for the government to adopt project
bank accounts to secure the cash flow of
suppliers and, therefore, ensure a smoother
process of delivering vital works. It also said
the government should make greater use
of standard contracts, which should include
measures for addressing:
• Delays in payment
• Retentions
• Preferred supplier discounts
• Increasing the use of Project Bank Accounts
• Reducing the barriers to the direct bidding
to Government
• Supporting consortia bidding.
“Standard contracts should be designed to
make it easier for SMEs to bid and make it
clearer where variance occurs,” the report said
while also advising departments to consult
with their SME suppliers on how best to adopt
these measures.
The committee piled even more pressure on
the government to act over the issue of late
payment and retentions, which complement
the work BESA has been doing around the
Aldous Bill and fair payment in general.
Their report made clear reference to the ‘race
to the bottom’ culture highlighted in the
Hackitt Review and which BESA has been
campaigning against for many years.
So, change is clearly in the air and on the
ground – we expect to see considerable
movement forward during 2019, particularly
around reforming supply chain culture.
BESA members should have nothing to fear
from this and they will thrive in the new
caring environment because they are more
than capable of taking responsibility for their
work and for investing in their people.
However, companies who have failed to invest
in quality standards and skills in readiness
for this new approach will struggle. n
For more information about the Association’s
public affairs work please go to:
www.theBESA.com/representation
BACK TO CONTENTS 19
 BESA BOOK 2019
BESCA

RISING TO THE
COMPLIANCE
CHALLENGE
The BESCA Competent Person Scheme (CPS),
authorised by the DCLG (Department for Communities
and Local Government), allows businesses to self-certify
that their works comply with the building regulations in
England & Wales without the need to notify Building Control
in advance or incur costly local authority inspection fees.

An alternative to submitting a building notice
or using an approved inspector, the principles
of the Competent Person Scheme are based on
recognising people who are competent in their
field and delivering work that complies with the
Building Regulations.
BESCA’s Competent Person Scheme is ideal for
installers working in electrical, plumbing, oil,
solid fuel, heating and hot water, ventilation and
air conditioning, and renewables – including
heat pumps, solar and biomass – professions.
It offers an efficient and cost-effective solution
for your business because self-certification not
only saves you money, but also time which can
be invested in gaining new business, as you no
longer need to arrange local authority visits.
The average cost saving from notifying direct is
£241 per notification based on DCLG figures.
Within a competitive industry it is also becoming
increasingly vital for businesses to prove their
value to consumers. Being part of the BESCA
Competent Person Scheme allows you to
showcase your commitment to compliance, quality
and safety – acting as a badge of competency
against competitors, providing reassurance and
a quality service to building owners.
It is also a legal requirement for building owners
to notify of any works that are being carried
out which fall under the Building Regulations.
New energy efficiency requirements have been
introduced in the latest regulations relevant to
works undertaken within the building services
sector, concerning any works that may cause
a change to the energy status of a dwelling.
For example: changing a boiler or the type of
fuel serving an existing boiler; or fitting a large
fan on a ventilation scheme with a different
performance output.
BESCA Competent Person Scheme members
receive regular updates on the latest industry
thinking including building regulations and
health and safety guidance, with access to training
opportunities to ensure they remain compliant.
If you need to improve your knowledge of the
latest Building Regulations and to be certain of
your legal obligations as an installer, we can help
you with that too.
We also offer six-year insurance-backed
warranties as part of the membership fee for
domestic works to ensure installed works are
protected in the unlikely event a member is no
longer able to trade. This guarantee protects
your customer's deposit and your warranty.
You will also receive free advertising because
all BESCA Competent Person scheme members
are added to our public ‘find a BESCA member’
search facility and Competent Persons register. n
For more information go to: www.besca.org.uk

BACK TO CONTENTS 21
 SKILLCARD
SHOWS ITS
VALUE
The operators of one of the construction industry’s
largest skills certification registers were quick to close a
loophole that had left the scheme open to abuse last year.

BESA operates the Engineering Services
SKILLcard, which is held by over 60,000
operatives. The scheme managers were
alerted to the fact that a number of people
working in the thermal insulation industry had
managed to secure Heating and Ventilating
(H&V) Installer cards in order to gain access to
construction sites.
As a result, some managers were in danger
of being duped into allowing workers
without the right qualifications onto their
projects. However, SKILLcard and the Thermal
Insulation Contractors Association (TICA)
quickly closed the loophole before it could
cause any lasting damage.
SKILLcard and TICA both run Construction
Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) affiliated
programmes that underpin the government’s
2025 industry strategy by helping clients
check whether workers have the right
qualifications for the job in hand and have
suitable health & safety training. For thermal
insulators, this means holding qualifications
that lead to competency as defined by the
Sector Skills Council (SSC).
More than 60,000 people working in the
heating, ventilating, air conditioning and
refrigeration industry hold an Engineering
Services SKILLcard, which also covers
building engineering services supervisors
and managers. It was the first CSCS card
scheme to go ‘smart’ easing the process
of updating the holder’s qualifications
and making it simpler and quicker for
site managers to check skills and prevent
potential fraud.
Flattered
The TICA Skill Card competence is different to
the SKILLcard scheme, but thermal insulation
operatives found that it was possible to secure
an engineering services card on completing
an NVQ Level 2 course as a standalone
qualification. There were also reports that
social media was being used to encourage
others to follow suit.
“Of course we are flattered that operatives
from outside our industry see the value of
Engineering Services SKILLcards, but this is
a blatant abuse of the competence system,”
said Rachel Davidson, BESA’s director of
certification schemes.
“As soon as we were alerted, we closed this
loophole in line with our responsibility to
uphold professional standards and provide
quality assurance to construction clients.”
She said it was clear this loophole was being
exploited knowingly because the applicants
felt they would not immediately qualify for a
TICA Skill Card.

22 BACK TO CONTENTS

“This does not mean the H&V Installer card
requires lower standards. Rather, it is applied to
an entirely different occupational skillset that is
not appropriate for thermal insulators,” said Ms
Davidson. “The route to qualification is different
and allows the candidate to apply directly on
receiving their NVQ whereas the TICA card
requires an additional technical certificate or
competency assessment of those technical skills.”
SKILLcard is rejecting these applications and is
directing applicants to the TICA scheme. It is
also auditing its database to ensure no other
H&V Installer SKILLcards have been issued
on this basis. Any that are uncovered will be
withdrawn, it stated.
“While this has been an unsettling episode, it
has served to demonstrate how CSCS partner
organisations work together to uphold
professional standards for the benefit of clients
and every other skilled trades person who has
taken the trouble to apply for their competence
card in the right way,” added Ms Davidson.
She also committed the organisation to auditing its
entire database to ensure no other cards had been
issued via similar loopholes – and encouraged
other CSCS card operators to do the same.
“We have been aware for some time that some
insulators were applying outside of the TICA
Skill Card to gain access to construction sites,”
said TICA chief executive Marion Marsland. “We
have made a commitment, as part of the wider
Construction Leadership Council mandate, to
ensure all operatives within our industry are
qualified and competent to a transparent and
consistent set of standards.
“We will continue to work to that end, and
believe that open communication with other
partner schemes, including the Engineering
Services Skillcard, is of huge benefit to the
whole sector.”
BESA BOOK 2019
SKILLCARD
CSCS chief executive Graham Wren explained
that, in order to meet the industry’s aim of
a fully qualified workforce, it was vital for
cardholders to hold the right card for the
specific job they do onsite
“This helps site managers by ensuring that
workers only undertake work they are qualified
to do. It is great to see our partner card
schemes TICA and BESA working towards this
goal,” he said.
Why do you need a SKILLcard?
Many construction and site managers request
that their workers hold a SKILLcard before
coming on site. Over 60,000 people hold a
SKILLcard, and the scheme was the first affiliate
of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme
(CSCS) to go ‘smart’.
Engineering Services SKILLcard provides the
following benefits:
• Using smartcards can help improve health
and safety onsite by ensuring workers have the
right qualifications for the job they do, and by
eliminating the possibility of fake cards being
used to access sites
• Checking you have the right qualifications
for the work you do is quicker, easier and less
time-consuming using smartcards
• If you are self-employed, you can use
smartcards to keep your training records and
certifications up to date.
Anybody working in the heating, ventilating,
air conditioning and refrigeration industry,
including ductwork and other specialisms
associated with the building engineering
services industry - such as service and
facilities, domestic heating and plumbing,
and refrigeration and air conditioning can
apply for an engineering services SKILLcard.
The scope of SKILLcard also covers those with
supervisory and managerial responsibilities in
the building engineering services industry.
You do not have to be employed in order
to register. You could be self-employed, an
agency worker or unemployed. There is also
no need to register separately with CSCS. n
For more information please go to:
www.skillcard.org.uk
BACK TO CONTENTS 23
 EMPLOYERS
EMBRACE NEW
TRAINING MODEL
The building engineering sector’s training
routes are starting to look very different,
says director of BESA Training Tony Howard.

Last year was turbulent and saw a barrage of
negative statistics about numbers of people
entering the industry – with apprenticeships
coming in for a particular pounding in the
national press. This year feels different.
They finally announced a welcome shake up
that allowed large employers to transfer up
to 10% of their levy funds to more than one
company in their supply chain to help smaller
employers take on apprentices.

The impact of the Hackitt Review following

Tony Howard
BESA Training director
the Grenfell Tower is starting to be felt. It
called for ‘radical culture change’ and a new
focus on competence linked to the value of
companies being able to demonstrate their
professional compliance.
The Department for Education (DfE)
admitted to a drop in apprenticeship starts
last year and this prompted many business
leaders to call for the Apprenticeship Levy
to be scrapped. Many SMEs said they were
struggling to access the funding and that
much of the training on offer by the 2,500
recognised providers was not fit for purpose.
Subsidise
Only the country’s very largest employers
– about 2% of all UK companies – actually
pay the levy. The idea being that they would
subsidise apprenticeship training so that
more smaller companies are able to take on
apprentices. The government saw this as
crucial to its policy of creating three million
new apprenticeships by 2020.
Originally, levy payers could only share some
of their funds with one other company, but
now they can pass on up to 10% of their funds
to as many other employers as they choose.

However, at BESA we believed the policy
thinking behind the levy more or less right
and it was the implementation that needed
sorting out. SMEs, in particular, started to get
their heads around how the funding from the
Levy works – with help from bodies like BESA
– and the government bowed to relentless
pressure to tweak their approach.
Apprenticeships and Skills Minister Anne
Milton said this was an opportunity for more
employers to become involved in the new style
apprenticeships being created across industry.
For building services firms, it is a chance to
receive funding support for investing in the
‘new standard’ apprenticeships that have
already been developed by employers for
employers in our sector.

24 BACK TO CONTENTS

This has to be the future: Training designed
by employers for employers. This is the model
for the New Standard apprenticeships, which
are just getting up and running and will need
backing up with more fleet-footed course
providers willing to offer practical and targeted
training. That is where employers will start
to see the big difference and where the DfE
should intervene this year.
All apprentices – of all ages and all stages of
their careers – can have a qualification for life
that is easily updated. Employers were rightly
distrustful of the old system that used to focus
on a lot of untargeted repeat training.
That is being swept away with the advent
of the New Standards and replaced by
apprenticeships focussed on producing skills
that are practical, relevant – and that evolve as
markets and technologies change.
However, employers are currently restricted to
a relatively small number of large organisations
able to provide non levy-funded apprentice
training on programmes that employers
evidently don’t want – and many of those do
not cater for specialised industries like building
engineering services.
This is hugely frustrating for employers, but at
BESA we saw a record number of enquiries from
companies of all sizes wanting apprentices last
year – and a significant rise in new apprentices
signing up to our New Standard courses.
As well as creating the New Standard
apprenticeships, we revamped end point
assessment of candidates to make
it more meaningful and focussed
on life-long learning. The system
now provides real evidence
that the apprentice has the
knowledge, skills and
behaviours to operate
as part of a modern
workforce. This is
what employers
have been
calling for –
for years.
BESA BOOK 2019
TRAINING
The assessment involves a series of interviews,
practical tasks and questions where students
are examined – independent of their training
provider. This should give employers greater
peace of mind that they are receiving
apprentices with fully rounded competence
ready for productive work.
Previously, the system was based on continuous
assessment, but employers often felt there were
weaknesses in that approach. The assessments
were carried out by the trainers, whose
employers were incentivised to ensure all of their
candidates completed the courses successfully.
Although there is no question that much of
the training was perfectly good, having an
independent assessment at the end does
provide a much more satisfactory conclusion and
makes certification that bit more meaningful.
Scathing
As New Standard apprenticeships are rolled
out, independent end point assessment is
being gradually adopted for most industry
sectors. This is all timely because the curse of
‘inappropriate’ qualifications has dogged our
sector for decades. The trade union Unite was
particularly scathing when it highlighted the
problem of “dead end courses”.
Unite forced the Government’s Skills Funding
Agency to reveal that of the 203,400 people
who undertook a full-time or part-time
construction course in 2016/17, only 10%
were linked to an apprenticeship; and most
were purely classroom-based. It said too many
young people were “having their hopes of a
construction career crushed”.
Many training providers promote lower cost
‘plumbing courses’ at the expense of the wider
scoped building services apprenticeships,
which can actually deliver two apprentices
for the price of one i.e. one with a good basic
grounding AND a higher specialist skill that
employers actually need.
Rather than continuing a process that
encourages basic plumbing courses – many
from the comfort of their own bedrooms
– the government should be heavily
promoting the added value apprenticeships
that give employers what they need and can
help them plug their skills gaps. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 25
BESA BOOK 2019
TRAINING
“As well as creating the New Standard apprenticeships,
we revamped end point assessment of candidates to make
it more meaningful and focussed on life-long learning.”
The implications are pretty serious: If we can’t
meet demand then vital projects may not be
completed – and if we seek to meet demand with
unskilled labour; quality will continue to suffer.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer also seems
to recognise that – if we are to solve our
productivity problems in this country – we
must target apprenticeships. He has promised
to release £80m in funding to help companies
recruit more apprentices. We would argue
that money should be ring-fenced for SMEs in
high value industries with severe skills gaps
like building engineering services. Support in
our sector could deliver major gains on built
environment and infrastructure projects.
The tools that could make us work smarter
and, therefore, more productively – Building
Information Modelling (BIM); 3D printing; off-
site manufacturing etc. – are widely available,
but they cannot be fully embraced because they
require investment to equip the people who
would use them with the right skills.
The government has talked a lot about
embracing digital technology to improve
productivity, but you need to train the people
who are going to use that technology so we
can build smarter – and improve post-Brexit
business confidence.
It was illuminating to see Costain reveal that
one third of its current staff – over 1,300 people
– now work in technology or consultancy
roles. This reflects the changing face of
construction-related professions (see
digital future article on page 44).
Fortunately, our emerging
training model is more suited
to taking on this challenge.
One where qualifications
are regularly re-assessed
to ensure skills and
competency are
keeping pace
with changes in
the industry.
Meaningful
Developing and setting new standards in
apprenticeships, backed up by meaningful
end point assessment, is the starting
point for a qualification for life. This can
be regularly refreshed via continuous
professional development and targeted
specific short courses for upskilling, or even
further apprenticeships.
This is crucial because, in the past, employers
had to work with the system them were given
– in other words, loads of people ending up
studying to be plumbers because colleges
found those courses easy to sell and cheap to
deliver. Our research showed that most building
engineering firms ended up recruiting plumbers
and then had to set about re-training them to
carry out the work they actually needed.
That is why BESA, and its member companies,
decided to take the bull by the horns and set
about assessing and quantifying the challenge
so we could redefine the sector’s training needs.
Some decisions on what apprenticeships we
needed to develop were easy. They already
existed and were being used by industry – so we
could work out what was required straight away.
We then took those to the usual suspects – the
awarding organisations – and asked them if
they would become involved. However, the
response was not what we were expecting:
They wanted exclusivity, funding AND support
– and many simply turned us down flat
because they felt the numbers were not there
to guarantee demand.
So, we took a different tack and, by researching
the skills gaps and rates of churn in the industry,
we were able to define a business case and
assess the viability. It also proved to us that we
were better off doing this ourselves.
The value of analysing the sector was
quickly rewarded by the recognition of the
need for a new and emerging qualification:
‘Ventilation Hygiene Technician’ that had
not previously been designed or used.
(See ‘Ventilation Hygiene Specialists target
kitchen safety’ on page 137).

Our involvement
with employers
enabled us to prove
to the Institute and the
Department for Education
that this job or occupation
actually existed – in fact there
are thousands of them – and now
by helping the same employers
become ‘employer providers’ we will
have the right skills being delivered by
the employers for a real job.
However, the Apprenticeship Standard and the
Assessment Plan are just the tip of the iceberg.
To make it truly valued you have to ensure it has
portability between nations; that it meets or
exceeds previous occupational standards; and that
it can be trained and assessed.
There must also be a big push to encourage
employers to take this up and work with us.
However, by creating the apprenticeship, we
succeeded where the Qualification Credit
Framework had failed. We found:
• Things that everyone in our industry needed
to know
• Things that persons following a particular
route needed to know
• And things that the specialists needed to know
These things were always there and we, as
employers, have tried to describe them before, but
somewhere along the line they kept vanishing into
the sausage factory of the education system and
awarding organisations – and came out looking
like something else.
This time round we have the opportunity to do this
for ourselves and get it right.
As we are from inside the industry, and advocating
our employers’ needs, we were able to section
qualifications out in a way that worked for
employers and not in a way that the all-pervading
awarding organisation wanted. So, we now have a
ready-made group of competencies that will help
career progression as well as industry recruitment.
Detail
We have also found that being an end point
assessment organisation is the best way to influence
what actually comes out of the apprenticeships.
Most external quality assurance schemes cannot
look at the detail, but the end point assessor does.
Revolutionising the training model so that it
reflects the real world of building engineering as it
is today; could also help us tackle our woeful lack
of diversity. We are severely under-represented by
BESA BOOK 2019
TRAINING
gender and race; yet if we have a new model, we
also have a chance to repackage our careers in a
way that makes them more widely appealing.
Also, if there is no need to take the gamble
of building up an enormous student debt
and employers are willing to train you as
you learn, people from more disadvantaged
backgrounds will look on our sector favourably
and, therefore, expand the pool of talent
available to our employers.
Some old-fashioned degrees and Higher
Nationals will remain, but as money tends to be
a pretty strong driver, more people are likely to
opt to be supported through further education
– especially as there is the offer of a real job at
the end of it.
However, employers have to feel confident about
investing in apprentices and sometimes it is
tempting to take the low cost option. This is a
false economy. You receive a far better return on
your investment by enrolling your staff on more
technically demanding training, such as the new
apprenticeships we now offer to our sector for
higher skilled professions, rather than a lowest
common denominator ‘sausage factory’ solution
where you end up having to retrain them yourself.
Churning out thousands of people with only
basic qualifications might improve the numbers
– for political purposes – but it will not meet the
country’s real needs. If you are going to build
big projects like Heathrow and HS2 etc – as
well as all the other less glamorous, but equally
crucial built environment assets – you need a
broad range of skilled people. That does not
mean just young people either.
The new funding system is a great opportunity
to re-skill; upskill; and move existing workers
– of all ages – into areas where they are
most needed. In fact, almost anyone at any
stage of their career path can now start an
apprenticeship, which is a radical and welcome
change. It means you can catch people who
might otherwise fall through the net and, if they
missed some early qualifications, you can still
bring them in via the New Standard scheme.
In short, we are setting up a system that will
work for an employer’s apprentices – at all
levels and at all stages of their careers – and
link continuous training and assessment to a
company’s actual business needs.
All of this might seem obvious, but it hasn’t
been done before. n
For more information about training
and apprenticeships please go to:
www.theBESA.com/training
BACK TO CONTENTS 27

PENSIONS
– TO MOVE, OR
NOT TO MOVE?
Employers should now be asking whether they are
getting value for money from the fees they pay to their
pension administrator; and whether they are getting good –
and personal – service, says Welplan chief executive Bruce Kirton.
Employers have always faced heavy
responsibilities when managing staff pensions
and the advent of automatic enrolment
has increased the level of focus on how
contributions should be managed. It has also
expanded the range of pension providers and
advisors out there.
It is always a good idea to review periodically
the provisions you have put in place for your
staff and you might want to ask yourself the
following questions:
Bruce Kirton •Does my pension provider make it easy to
Welplan chief executive upload monthly contribution data?
• Is the administrator prepared to speak to me
on the phone – rather than interacting through
an impersonal online system?
• Am I receiving timely reminders of changes
to regulations and the ongoing need for
compliance?
Like individual savers, many employers have
built up a number of pension schemes over the
years and are now considering consolidating
them with one provider. This can considerably
cut down on admin time and cost – after all most
employers don’t really want to be spending too
much time on this when it could be spent more
productively on their core business.
BESA BOOK 2019
PENSIONS
Things to consider:
Employers should look closely at the issue of
charges they are likely to incur. A number of
schemes charge set-up fees, which will also
apply if an existing scheme is transferred to
a new provider. Some schemes also charge
monthly fees of as much as £50 per member per
month so the costs can really ramp up.
Welplan Pensions does not charge employers
any fees.
Another key area is the transfer of data, which
can be streamlined and efficient, or onerous and
time-consuming. With a requirement to send
payroll information on a weekly or monthly
basis to your pension provider, It is important
that the operation is kept simple so staff are not
tied up for hours on unproductive activities like
trying to upload data.
Some pension providers offer a fully automated
process for uploading member details, using simply
templates, which again, Welplan Pensions offer.
Employees will also want to be able to see how
their pension funds are performing – so it is
important that the provider offers transparency
allowing them to check online how their hard-
earned cash is building up for their retirement
24/7 and 365 days of the year. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 29
BESA BOOK 2019
PENSIONS
“Some schemes charge monthly fees of as much as £50
per member per month so the costs can really ramp up.
Welplan Pensions does not charge employers any fees.”
Welplan Pensions provides this functionality
for all employees, enabling them to check
investment performance, fund selection and
contribution levels.
They should also be able to select from a range
of funds offering flexibility of risk and reflecting
the stage of their working life that an individual
investor has reached.
Welplan Pension funds are invested with leading
global investment managers Legal & General
Investment Management and HSBC, and the
funds are regularly reviewed to ensure they
meet member needs. Recently, a Sharia Law
compliant fund, an ethical investment fund and
a fund to address the long-term financial risks of
climate change were introduced in response to
member feedback.
Time to retire
The introduction of retirement freedom
and choice has made effective employee
communications an even greater necessity.
The challenge facing defined contribution
(DC) members is profound as they try to
plan for a happy retirement.
The combination of auto-enrolment
and the rise of the default fund
have created a paternalistic
pensions attitude. Unless
they choose to do so, the
need to make investment
decisions has been taken
out of the hands of
scheme members
during their
working lives.
However, that changes in the run-up to
retirement. Now that members have the
freedom to use their pension pots as they see
fit, they face the daunting task of deciding
how to use those pots to provide them with
an adequate income throughout retirement.
Over the longer term, some of this
responsibility may once again be lifted from
the shoulders of scheme members with the
development of retirement income options,
but in the meantime, communications
strategies are needed to help scheme
members manage these complex decisions
and reduce the risk of facing pension poverty.
Current strategies are not fit for purpose.
Recent research by the employee benefits
consultancy, Lemonade, showed that 60%
of the 60 employers surveyed thought their
members did not know when they could
afford to retire. 75% thought the member
should receive support from their employer to
prepare them for retirement.
While many small companies want to help
their members with their retirement plans,
this can present a considerable challenge.
Larger firms, with their greater scale, may
have the resources to meet the burden
of formulating and providing an effective
communication programme, but not all will.
It is not unreasonable to ask your pension
provider to supply things like template letters
to help with this communication challenge,
something which Welplan Pensions gives
employers access to.
The personal touch
For member communications to change
members’ behaviour, they need to be carefully
planned and targeted. These communications
need to start long before retirement age.
A member will only be able to afford to
retire when they want to – if they contribute
enough to their pension throughout their
working life.

“Recent research by the
employee benefits consultancy,
Lemonade, showed that 60% of
the 60 employers surveyed thought
their members did not know when they
could afford to retire. 75% thought the
member should receive support from their
employer to prepare them for retirement.”
A well-crafted strategic plan will fail if the
pension provider does not offer the right tools.
A master trust needs to use all the options at
their disposal including direct emails, websites,
online accounts and, of course, well-trained staff.
For example, online forecasting and modelling
tools are an effective way to show the range of
options available at retirement and the benefits
of saving more each month.
Communication should not be a one-way
street. Frequent direct discussion and
feedback from members helps to improve
communications and ensure that the options
available give them the best chance of
achieving a well-financed retirement.
The best way to encourage members to talk
about the scary topic of pensions is to ensure they
can always contact a real person who can talk to
them in plain English. A help desk needs to be
exactly that: helpful, friendly and informative.
While online tools can be used to show the
member the advantage of different investment
options at retirement, a conversation with
another human being can give often members
peace of mind when they are trying to navigate
their way through retirement choices.
This kind of attention to detail and professional
service is all part of the package that small
employers, in particular, need and should expect.
Accreditations
The Pensions Regulator is committed to
ensuring there are a range of high quality
schemes for employers to choose from.
BESA BOOK 2019
PENSIONS
To this end, all master trust pension providers
intending to continue in the market are going
through a process of re-authorisation to prove
their ongoing competence against a number
of stringent criteria. Schemes could apply
for authorisation from 1st October 2018, and
Welplan Pensions submitted its application
before the end of 2018.
Another accreditation to consider are
Defaqto Star Ratings, which show how
financial products and services rank in
comparison with each other in order to
help employers, advisors and consumers
make better-informed purchasing decisions.
Welplan Pensions holds a Defaqto 5 Star
rating. This is the highest-achievable rating,
given only to financial products or services
assessed as “excellent, with a comprehensive
range of features and benefits.”
Being listed as ‘Pension Quality Mark Ready’
is another good way for employers to rate a
scheme as this measures communications
and governance. In April 2017, Welplan
Pensions was awarded the Pension Quality
Mark (PQM) READY standard for the third year
running, in recognition of the scheme’s clear
communications and strong governance. Only
11 other pension providers in the UK hold this
industry standard,
By working with their pension provider, small
companies have a good chance of ensuring
their employees make adequate contributions
and make the right decisions to ensure a long
and happy retirement. n
Visit www.welplan.co.uk or call our friendly
team on 0800 195 8080 to find out more.
BACK TO CONTENTS 31
 GOVERNMENT
SHOULD DO
FEWER THINGS,
BUT DO THEM BETTER
Former cabinet minister Caroline Flint MP
praised BESA members during her keynote address
at the Association’s 2018 National Conference in London.
She criticised successive governments for
failing to deliver infrastructure projects and
urged politicians to step back and allow
industry to find the solutions to many of the
country’s requirements.
The former Housing and Planning Minister
added that BESA and its members had a big
part to play in British people’s quality of life.
“You have a unique insight into the built
environment and bring architects’ visions
to life,” she said. “You make our buildings
function and keep their occupants safe.
It is so important that BESA continues to
set standards and quality benchmarks,”
said Mrs Flint.
She added that trade associations like
BESA also played an important role in
supporting SMEs.
“SMEs are vital to our economy, but you
wouldn’t believe it from the business voices
you hear on the radio and TV,” said Mrs Flint.
“We only hear from the big corporates with
the huge PR budgets…but BESA is crucial in
getting the views of smaller businesses heard.”
She also pointed out that British SMEs were
owed £586bn as a result of poor payment
practices, which “can’t go on”.
32 BACK TO CONTENTS
Scandal
“The government has rules on late payment,
but it is not enforcing them. Major suppliers on
public sector projects are getting paid on time,
but they are not passing the money down their
supply chains. That’s a scandal.”
Mrs Flint, who held cabinet posts under Tony
Blair and Gordon Brown, said SMEs were also
missing out under the new Apprenticeship
Levy regime.
“Apprenticeship starts fell by 40% earlier this
year. How can a basically good idea like the
Apprenticeship Levy fail in this way?” she
asked the conference. “I fear that Levy-paying
companies are being favoured over SMEs
and all sorts of training is being badged as
‘apprenticeships’, but doing nothing to tackle
skills shortages.”
However, she said concerns over how Brexit
will affect the skills gap should not mask
“home-grown” problems.
“Freedom of movement is a worry for your
sector, but as a country we have to be honest
with ourselves about how we have not focussed
enough on training the people we need.
We should not be relying on other countries
to train our people for us,” said Mrs Flint.

“You have a unique insight into the built environment and
bring architects’ visions to life. You make our buildings
function and keep their occupants safe. It is so important that
BESA continues to set standards and quality benchmarks.”
She also criticised the industry’s record on
diversity. “There are more women getting STEM
qualifications, but once in the workplace many
leave because the structure and culture have
not changed,” she added.
Lack of productivity is another home-grown
problem, she believes, which requires better
and faster investment in infrastructure
including mobile broadband all over the
country – not just in the big cities. However,
successive governments continually repeat the
same mistakes, she explained.
Delay
“HS2 is late and over budget; the third runway
at Heathrow will cost £40bn to build – but
who is costing the delay [since 2001 when the
project was first proposed].”
“It would be better if government did fewer things
better,” she said. “On the low carbon agenda,
politicians should create the framework, but
then allow industry to do the rest.”
She described the Grenfell Tower fire as
“a major shock” that should lead to
an examination of “the rigour of
our building inspection regime”.
“BESA members are in a
great position to provide
helpful advice and
solutions as they
understand these
issues,” said
Mrs Flint.
BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Earlier, BESA chief executive David Frise said
the Association was making excellence in
technical matters its top priority as it seeks to
help contractors demonstrate competence and
compliance in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy.
“Technical is the friend of the contractor,” he
said, before stressing the role of conferences
and meetings in helping to drive improvements
right across the industry.
“You can’t Google this stuff. You only find out
what you need to know when you attend
events and speak to people face-to-face…you
don’t know what you don’t know,” said Mr Frise.
Let’s be honest about ‘home
grown’ skills gap
Mrs Flint also told the Conference that the UK
must face up to its training and productivity
failings.
As part of her keynote address, she told
delegates that the UK should not expect other
countries to train up the skilled people it needs
“Freedom of movement after Brexit is a
worry for your sector, but as a country we
have to be honest with ourselves about
how we have not focussed enough on
training the people we need. We should not
be relying on other countries to train our
people for us,” said Mrs Flint.
She also urged the industry to address its
diversity and productivity failings.
“How can we say we have tried to improve
skills if we are missing out on 50% of the
population…women. There are more women
getting STEM qualifications these days, but
once in the workplace many leave because the
structure and culture have not changed,” said
Mrs Flint. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 33
BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE
“As a country we have to be honest with ourselves about
how we have not focussed enough on training the people
we need. We should not be relying on other countries to
train our people for us.”
“Lack of productivity is another home
grown problem. We have to invest more in
infrastructure including mobile broadband all
over the country – not just in the big cities.”
However, Sarah McMonagle from the
Federation of Master Builders said migrant
workers from the EU would remain crucial to
the industry after Brexit.
“Grenfell was a wake-up call for training
and apprenticeships, but we will still need a
significant amount of migrant labour coming
in,” she said. “If we are going to build all the
new homes the government envisages, we will
need this labour and we will also need small
housebuilders to build many of them as the
large companies cannot do it all on their own.”
Frustration
Speaking as part of the conference’s Brexit
Panel, she added that late payment was another
hindrance to productivity in the sector and
expressed frustration at the government’s
approach to retentions.
“The government accepts that the
status quo on retentions is not
acceptable, but has gone back
to do some more work on this,
which is hugely frustrating.
It is being kicked into the
long grass because
everyone is too
busy focussing
on Brexit.”
Deane Flint of Mitsubishi Electric said it
would probably need another Carillion-style
corporate collapse before “anything will
change on late payment”.
However, the government’s Small Business
Commissioner Paul Uppal said he was trying
to change the business perspective on late
pay. Although his remit does not yet cover
construction, he said he was pushing for more
influence and was introducing audits to target
late payment.
“We want to change people’s perspective
because this is just bad business practice
with no winners,” he said during a public
discussion with BESA’s policy manager Alexi
Ozioro. “We will use the data we gather on
this to publicise the depth of the problem,
but having the power to fine people would
make a real difference.”
Mr Uppal also said it was time for the
Construction Act to be reviewed and updated
in light of the worsening problem around poor
payment practices and said it also made sense
to link a company’s payment record to whether
it can be awarded public sector projects.
Naming and shaming has already transformed
the gender pay gap issue and he wants to see
something similar with late payment.
“This is a major ethical issue and I believe
it will simply become a taboo to behave in
this way,” he added. “It is simply not good
business practice.” n
 BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

COMPLACENCY
AND COMPLEXITY
BLAMED FOR
GRENFELL FIRE
Technical incompetence was to blame for the Grenfell
Tower tragedy, but the disaster was a culmination of
growing complacency across the fire safety industry and
over-complex building regulations, according to a panel of
experts speaking at the 2018 BESA National Conference.

“Before Grenfell, the number of fires and deaths
in fires were in decline. This led to complacency
and a race to the bottom on price,” Conor
Logan, technical director of Colt International,
told the conference. “However, it would appear
that insurance claims were rising for a smaller
number of fires, but nobody seemed to relate
that to a bigger issue.”
“Fire engineering is often seen as an
additional cost not an integral part of the
process – and if the team is led by an architect
it will not be considered until well into the
m&e phase,” said Mark Farmer, CEO of Cast
and author of the seminal government-
sponsored review of the construction labour
market model ‘Modernise or Die’.

He also pointed out that a big part of

competence was being able to recognise when Prescriptive
you should not be carrying out specialist work.
“There has been very little change in client
behaviour since Grenfell – everything is still
“We have the crazy situation of fire alarm
driven by lowest cost,” he added. “We need to
companies being given contracts to service fire
impose more prescriptive regulations, at least
and smoke control systems when they clearly
until we sort ourselves out. That is why I would
do not have the expertise. Hopefully, one of
favour a complete ban on combustible cladding,
the outcomes from the Hackitt Review will be
for example, because the current system of
an end to that sort of corner cutting,” said Mr
regulation is fundamentally flawed and very hard
Logan, who is a former chairman of the Smoke
for building control to sign off.”
Control Association.
He also called for the industry to make better
The conference also heard that fire engineers
use of digital technologies that could provide
were rarely involved at the design stage of
remote visual inspection of installations,
building services projects so fire safety elements
verify competence of the work and create a
often had to be bolted on after the rest of the
digital record.
m&e works were completed.
The current process is also too complex,
according to Will Pitt of NG Bailey, who is chair
of the BESA Technical Committee. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 35
BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

“We have the crazy situation of fire alarm companies

being given contracts to service fire and smoke control
systems when they clearly do not have the expertise.
Hopefully, one of the outcomes from the Hackitt Review
will be an end to that sort of corner cutting.”

“Competence is the single biggest issue

to emerge from the aftermath of Grenfell,
but the whole project process has become
so complex that building control officers
Grenfell Panel
are signing off things they can’t possibly
– proposals and solutions
understand,” he said. “It is unreasonable
to expect the MEP contractor to take • Greater support and promotion of
responsibility for all of this and solve all the 3rd party accreditation schemes that
technical problems – other specialists need evidence technical competence and
to step up.” training – including BESA membership
and SCA’s certification scheme.
The panel agreed that the current privatised
model for building control was flawed as it did
not incentivise inspectors to take tough action
• Add specific fire safety responsibilities
to CDM regulations.
against developers.

Poor quality specification is also a major

problem, according to Roperhurst managing
director Bob Lane. “They are often cut and
paste exercises carried out by the most
junior member of the project team – yet the
success of the whole design depends on
them,” he explained.
While the panel identified many of the
technical problems that led to the
Grenfell tragedy, Ian Doncaster from
the Smoke Control Association
said many of the real issues were
“cultural”, which are much
harder to change “because
you are asking people to
change their behaviour”.
He said the Hackitt
Review had already
pointed this out. n
• Train and regulate fire risk assessors –
many are unqualified and simply carry
out visual inspections, but are unable
to spot gaps in fire safety strategy.
• Hackitt recommendations are
currently restricted to ‘high rise’ and
‘high risk’ buildings – this should be
extended to all buildings at risk of fire.
• Review current system of privatised
building control – no incentive for
those signing off work to be tough on
the developer.
• Improve clarity of Approved
Document B (guidance that
accompanies Building Regs).
 BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

OFF-SITE
TAKING OFF
Increasing the proportion of building
engineering services systems produced off-site
will help the industry to improve productivity and
quality, according to BESA President Tim Hopkinson.

He chaired a session during the Conference that
heard from specialist Adrian Mitchell of Balfour
Beatty, which is aiming to have 25% of its work
produced off-site.
Mr Mitchell said the factory-based model could
reduce programmes by between 20% and 60%
depending on the nature of the project and cut
delivery costs by as much as 40%. It could also
lead to a 70% reduction in project labour – with
some major projects benefitting from a saving of
more than 100,000 man-hours.
“The industry does not currently maximise
the pre-construction phase as well as it
should,” said Mr Mitchell. “We need to stress to
clients how this approach can add value to all
aspects of a project and model ourselves on
the motor industry, which makes great use of
standardisation and multiple modules.”
He said off-site approaches could help to
narrow the skills gap, but in a way that is
complementary to on-site skilled trades “not
forcing them out the door”. n

Working off-site improves safety and working

conditions for staff by minimising elements
like working at heights and ‘hot works’. He said
that manufacturing m&e risers off-site was
one of the most valuable activities contractors
could now deliver.

However, the session also heard about the range

of barriers to wider adoption of off-site methods
including the fact that many projects start with
incomplete designs – a factor that can be “fatal
to off-site”. Other issues like site restrictions can
hold back off-site specifications and the fact that
many refurbishment projects are not suited to
this approach can be overcome by adopting a
‘design for manufacture and assembly’ (DfMA)
approach where the contractor operates more
like a manufacturer.

BACK TO CONTENTS 37
 FM SECTOR
MUST STEP UP
Facilities management professionals must develop
their leadership skills and take greater responsibility
for what goes on in buildings following the Grenfell fire
tragedy, according to CIBSE FM Group chair Geoff Prudence.

He told the 2018 BESA National Conference Impact

that FMs were best placed to lead the
industry’s process of improving how it
measures, monitors and improves ‘real time’
operational performance of buildings and
urged the industry to step up and grasp that
opportunity.
“Grenfell may show that, as with many other
retrofit projects, decisions had been taken
without fully considering the operational
impact even though they were signed off at
various stages of the process,” said Mr Prudence.

“For too long, risk management has focussed
on whether work could be delivered on
time and within budget, and with some
element of quality – but the real risk to
building occupants is long-term operational
performance and business impact,” said Mr
Prudence. “When the FM signs off work,
they need to make sure they understand the
consequences and have the experience and
expertise to assess the regulatory risk.
“Operational systems thinking is essential in
the design team,” he added.
Mr Prudence told the BESA Conference, which
was held at the Park Plaza Victoria hotel in
London, that the industry had the tools to
carry out more accurate analysis. However,
there was also great value in an experienced
professional being able to use their “gut
instinct” to decide whether “something just
doesn’t feel right” and offer alternatives to the
design team.
“We have all experienced problems and
significant building related incidents in our
working lives, but when the s*** hits the fan, it
is the real leaders who step forward and do the
right things with the information available.
“Of course, after the event, everyone will have
a view and be an ‘expert’. That is just the way
it is, but I believe that real leadership means
acting with authenticity and integrity every
day. We have to develop that in our industry’s
future leaders.”
As well as the highly regarded CIBSE Guide
M for maintenance and management, and
other guidance developed in collaboration
by CIBSE FM, RICS and BESA, Mr Prudence
urged the sector to make proper use of digital
tools to improve their overall service to clients
including BESA’s SFG20 building management
programme. This could help deliver the
‘Golden Thread’ of valuable operational
information identified by the Hackitt Review
into the Grenfell tragedy, he said.

38 BACK TO CONTENTS
 BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

“For too long, risk management has focussed on whether

work could be delivered on time and within budget,
and with some element of quality – but the real risk to
building occupants is long-term operational performance
and business impact.”

BESA’s head of business development Steve
Tomkins added that SFG20 was developing
solutions to address the issues identified by
the Hackitt Review using the recent update to
CIBSE guide M as the foundation.
Mr Tomkins told the seminar that “golden
threads of building information” should be
created to address the complex issue of change
management and help deliver compliance and
competence. He said that risk management
control would highlight accountability and help
to evaluate potential risks linked to proposed
cost cutting.
“If you have a proper, digital asset model, you
can also see what is likely to happen if you
make a change to an essential service – like the
fire stopping,” said Mr Tomkins.
The new SFG20 model will be linked to
BESA Training and the Association’s
competence registers SKILLcard and
REFCOM. This should help end users
understand the competence
requirements needed to deliver
maintenance and check they
are only using competent
people to carry out tasks
essential to long-term
performance.
“There has been a race to the bottom on cost
and quality around building operation because
cost is the primary driver in a competitive
market with high risks and narrow margins,” Mr
Tomkins told the BESA Conference. “Grenfell
was a wake-up call and the information
chain has to be completed by assigning
responsibility – people need to put at the
end of a pointy stick and reminded there are
consequences to their actions.
“FM procurement is often carried out by teams
who do not stick around to see what happens
if they buy maintenance contracts at the
cheapest price,” he added. “Indoor air quality
is one crucial area that has suffered from cost
cutting, but the publication of the new BB101
design rules for schools and the general focus
on NOx emissions means this can now be
addressed by the FM community.” n
For more information go to: www.sfg20.co.uk

BACK TO CONTENTS 39
 CLEAN AIR
ACT COULD
TRANSFORM IAQ
Draft legislation currently being considered by
the House of Lords could transform the industry’s
approach to delivering indoor air quality (IAQ),
the 2018 BESA National Conference heard.

During a special session chaired by BESA
President-elect Giuseppe Borgese, delegates
heard that the potential new law would
enshrine people’s right to breathe clean air as
a “fundamental human right”.
Mr Borgese said the perception that people
were protected from outdoor pollution inside
buildings was misguided and the need for
reformed clean air legislation was now urgent.
He explained that the draft Clean Air Act
introduced by Baroness Jenny Jones in July
would replace outdated legislation introduced
in the 1950s to tackle smog. Its launch
coincided with the 62nd anniversary of the
first Clean Air Act receiving Royal Assent and
the National Health Service’s 70th birthday.
“The first reading of the Clean Air (Human
Rights) Bill was unusual because it introduced
30 pages of proposed legislation that could
be adopted in full immediately to address air
pollution. It also addresses indoor air quality
specifically for the first time – making the
important health link to buildings,” Mr Borgese
told delegates at the Park Plaza Victoria hotel
in London.
“This makes our work to establish buildings as
clean air ‘safe havens’ particularly timely.”
At the launch of the Bill, Baroness Jones said
local people and communities would be able
to take legal action “to defend their right to
clean air” if the Bill became law.
Legal
“Given the premature deaths from air
pollution and the complacency of successive
governments, I think that making clean air a
human right is the quickest way of getting
the problem sorted,” she added. “I think that
giving parents and communities the ability to
take legal action would focus the minds of the
car manufacturers, the civil servants and local
authorities. We should all enjoy clean air even
when we are working in a busy city or living
under an airport flight path.”
Peter Dyment of Camfil, who was an advisor
to the Clean Air in London campaign that
helped to draft the Bill, told the BESA
Conference that the draft legislation showed
“great insight”. He said it would use ISO,
CEN and BSI technical standards to achieve
compliance with World Health Organisation
guidelines for IAQ where people work and
have public access to city buildings.

40 BACK TO CONTENTS
 BESA BOOK 2019
BESA NATIONAL CONFERENCE

“Given the premature deaths

from air pollution and the
complacency of successive
governments, I think that
FACT making clean air a human right
is the quickest way of getting
the problem sorted.”
We drink 2kg of fluids
and consume 1kg of food
per day, but breathe in 15kg
of air…and there are 25
million particulates in every
breath. That is why clean
air is important. “It is entirely
deliverable and
New filtration standards are focussing on PM1
particulates (the smallest easily measurable),
necessary to give including those from diesel engines, which have
people the right to been identified as a Group One carcinogen by
clean air in buildings. the WHO and have also been linked in recent
Using international standards studies to early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
means that the legislation could
be easily copied by other countries,” said Mr “People are more aware of the pollution
Dyment of a Bill that is expected to become a problem these days, particularly in connection
model for similar legislation in other countries with schools and hospitals,” added Mr Dyment.
and the United Nations. “The government is publishing more air quality
data and it is easy for people to assess local
“Having this legislation will be highly pollution levels using mobile phone apps and
significant,” added Mr Borgese. “It will allow other low cost monitoring devices.” n
us to apply specific measures to protect IAQ
across the whole building engineering www.theBESA.com/iaq
sector. This makes our work to develop
targeted standards and best practice
even more timely.”

Mr Dyment explained to the

conference that harmful
particulates were getting
smaller, which makes
them more dangerous
when inhaled
as they can
penetrate
further into
the human
body.

BACK TO CONTENTS 41
42
 BUILDING SERVICES
CONTENTS

BUILDING SERVICES
BESA is the leading UK trade association for engineering
companies delivering energy efficient and high performing
building systems. Our experts have their fingers on the pulse
of the major trends and changes that will help clients make
key decisions about their built assets in 2019.

44
BUILDING SERVICES
OVERVIEW
Digital and off-site backed to
tackle productivity crisis
47
BUILDING SERVICES
53
BUILDING SERVICES
57
BUILDING SERVICES
DIGITAL TOOLS OFFSITE EXPORT
Digital tools set to transform The case for off-site MMC could deliver
work and payment – no more time for delay £40bn export boost

59
BUILDING SERVICES
DIVERSITY
Setting out on the path
to a career in engineering
63
BUILDING SERVICES
66
BUILDING SERVICES
FUTURE LEADERS MENTAL HEALTH
It is time for the industry to get Mind your language
in touch with its feminine side

43
 DIGITAL
AND OFF-SITE
BACKED TO TACKLE
PRODUCTIVITY CRISIS
Success of the government’s construction sector deal will
depend on growing the role of digital methods and offsite
pre-fabrication in project delivery. However, renewables
have been pushed to the back of the investment queue.
Details of the government’s special ‘sector deal’
for construction took a long time to emerge,
but now set the context for the industry and its
biggest client for the coming few years.
The £420m budget finally allocated by business
and energy secretary Greg Clark to improve
value for money and project delivery times
through the Industrial Strategy Challenge
Fund includes £170m of new funding from the
government and £250m that the industry will
have to contribute itself.
Mr Clark said this would be used to “transform
construction through use of digital building
design, new manufacturing technologies and
offsite manufacturing”, which he said should
help to cut the time taken to deliver new build
projects by 50% by 2030.
The Minister also proposed a standardised
approach to procurement, based on whole-
life asset value and digital designs, with
performance benchmarks and improvement
payment practices to protect SMEs and improve
supply chain collaboration.
The deal is designed to kick-start a partnership
between the industry and the government
designed to tackle the sector’s woeful
productivity through innovative technologies
and a more highly skilled workforce.
44 BACK TO CONTENTS
Sustainable
The Specialist Engineering Contractors’ (SEC)
Group welcomed the deal on behalf of the
building engineering sector. Chief executive
Rudi Klein said it was an opportunity to deliver
a more sustainable business model in the wake
of the Grenfell tragedy and the collapse of
Carillion, which he said had “highlighted the
dysfunctionalities in procurement and delivery”.
“Abusive business practices and the lowest
price culture have had a detrimental impact on
quality,” he said.
SEC Group urged the government to set up
implementation mechanisms to ensure that any
changes would transform existing practice.
The deal should drive the adoption of more
smart construction methods, such as offsite
modular manufacturing techniques, AI-assisted
digital design tools, new manufacturing
technologies and smart building management
systems, according to the government.
“Major infrastructure projects like High Speed
Rail 2 and the commitment to deliver 1.5
million homes by 2022 mean that we need a
construction sector that can drive innovation,
delivering homes and infrastructure quicker,”
said Mr Clark.

“As buildings account for around 30% of total
emissions, we also want to ensure that we are at
the global forefront in designing and building
smart, energy efficient and affordable homes
and buildings through the Clean Growth Grand
Challenge, saving families money on their bills.”
The Deal includes provision for:
• Developing digital building designs for use in
procurement for all projects
• Continuing the development within the
product and manufacturing sector of tools to
allow accurate, repeatable, machine-readable
product information
• Industry funded and led initiatives such
as digital object indicators to speed up
construction and increase confidence in
product performance and building safety
• A common metrics methodology for
capturing and analysing data on the use of
smart construction in the housing sector
• Supporting the development of digital
technologies, including BIM, sensors, data
analytics and smart systems technologies.
As well as energy efficiency and emissions, the
Deal will also set about reducing the 120 million
tonnes of waste produced by construction every
year – 60% of the UKs total annual waste output.
Investing in technology to reduce waste from
construction, demolition and excavation
could create a more ‘circular sector’ in line
with the government’s wider Clean Growth
Grand Challenge.
However, the government is not showing
the same largesse to renewables, which
could undermine clean growth. This
was the conclusion drawn by an
investigation carried out by the
parliamentary Environmental
Audit Committee (EAC),
which found that the
amount of money
invested in clean
energy projects fell
by 56% in 2017.
BUILDING SERVICES
OVERVIEW
The cross-party group of MPs said investment
was now at its lowest for a decade and was as
a result of changes in government policy.
Cutting
The committee said that scrapping the Zero
Carbon Homes Policy, cutting Feed-in-Tariffs
(FiTs) for small-scale renewables and curtailing
the Renewables Obligation (RO) all contributed
to the drop. The EU referendum result also
led to a fall in lending from the European
Investment Bank.
The EAC believes the government should try
to maintain the UK’s relationship with the
European Bank after Brexit to help “riskier
early-stage green projects” and called for the
creation of a Sovereign Green Bond to help
raise capital for low carbon schemes.
The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
(BEIS) department also announced that there
will be no replacement for the Feed-in Tariff
(FIT) scheme when it ends this year.
The scheme has been one of the key factors
contributing to the huge increase in solar
photovoltaic deployment from 100MW when it
was launched in 2010 to 12.7GW at the end of
last year, of which 4.8GW is supported by FITs.
FITs provide payments to owners of small-
scale renewable generators at a fixed rate
per unit of electricity produced, enabling
the cost of installation to be recouped. New
small-scale low-carbon generation will now
have to compete on the open market to sell
surplus power.
BEIS will examine changing the capacity
market rules to allow the participation of low-
carbon generation, which is currently excluded
due to its access to other forms of subsidy,
according to the paper.
However, it said: “Consumers should not be
expected to support sectors indefinitely and
that as costs fall, so too should support.
“We do not believe that the current FIT flat
rate export tariff aligns with Government’s
vision for the future, given our desire to
move towards fairer, cost reflective pricing
and the continued drive to minimise support
costs on consumers.”
However, the consultation paper also states
Government intervention may still be required
to support solar and wind projects. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 45

DIGITAL TOOLS
SET TO TRANSFORM
WORK AND PAYMENT
The use of digital construction techniques is turning
projects on their head – and could also solve the industry’s
damaging culture of late payment, writes Ewen Rose.
The government’s long-awaited ‘sector deal’
for construction puts digital technology and
building techniques at the heart of its bid to
tackle the industry’s weak productivity (see
page 44).
A £420m fund drawn from the industry itself
and taxpayers’ money is intended to build on
existing initiatives such as the Centre for Digital
Built Britain to boost digital technologies
and offsite manufacture as the government
struggles to meet its infrastructure and new
Ewen Rose housing targets.
Freelance journalist
and communications
consultant to BESA Part of the strategy is a standard approach
to how built assets are procured, based
on whole-life asset value and digital
designs, with benchmarks that will allow
performance to be measured clearly; and a
new, fairer approach to contract and payment
practices to ensure SMEs are not unfairly
disadvantaged, reducing risk to SMEs and
supporting collaborative supply chains.
So, does this mean our future will all be about
drones and robots?
Future gazer Dr. Ian Pearson certainly thinks so.
He was commissioned by contractor Colmore
Tang Construction and Virgin StartUp to write
a report that predicted drones would be
“commonplace” on construction sites by 2025.
BUILDING SERVICES
DIGITAL TOOLS
They will be able to carry large materials up
construction sites while plastic bottles recovered
from the world’s oceans will be recycled to create
biometric buildings, according to Dr Pearson.
Artificial intelligence (AI) will also be
commonplace, linking to sensors and cameras
around construction sites, ensuring that
buildings are being developed according to
the architect’s plans and humans will work
alongside AI-driven robots – even developing
working relationships with them.
Looking further ahead, by 2075 Dr Pearson
suggests that self-assembling buildings under
AI control will allow a new form of structure –
kinetic architecture – where a structure is thrown
into the air and assembled while gravity forms
the materials into functional forms.
All of this will be underpinned by 3D printing,
which is seen by many as the savior of the
housing market allowing low cost homes to be
built quickly.
Companies such as Mace are already using AI
on their sites. They have a system that uses
360 degree cameras in every room across all
floors to capture progress on a project, before
the firm's Computer Vision technology detects
changes week-on-week, measures progress,
and identifies anomalies. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 47
 BUILDING SERVICES
DIGITAL TOOLS

“Dr Pearson suggests that self-assembling buildings under AI

control will allow a new form of structure – kinetic architecture
– where a structure is thrown into the air and assembled while
gravity forms the materials into functional forms.”

This approach has already been used on a warehouse and distribution centre
number of sizeable projects and expect to see construction can expect to be busy as the UK’s
more of it throughout 2019 and going forward. online shopping habits grow and traditional
So what is AI? high streets decline.

It is a range of software algorithms that can The specifications for this type of building
carry out tasks that normally require human will become increasingly sophisticated with
intelligence, including visual perception, huge amounts of automation built into
speech recognition, translation and, now, structures that were once seen as little more
decision making. It is a form of ‘machine than huge ‘boxes’.
learning’ that improves as it is subjected to
more and more data.
Embedding
As digital techniques, like this, become more
As our industry embraces digital methods and
common in our industry so we will see the
data management tools so we are preparing
greater involvement of the digital behemoths
ourselves for embedding the systems used
that already inhabit our everyday lives i.e.
by the big tech firms into the infrastructure of
Google, Amazon, Apple etc.
buildings themselves. If we can’t, then we can
be sure that Amazon, Facebook and co will find
There is increasing speculation that at least
ways of doing it themselves.
some of these giant organisations will launch
their own construction companies in order to
This also holds out hope for how financial
force the pace of digital delivery of projects.
transactions are handled in construction
supply chains. If you are working increasingly
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has his eyes firmly
off-site in more sophisticated chains and in a
set on urban development as he believes
transparent, fast moving digital environment –
having city-based offices is better for the
surely we can signal the end to antiquated and
environment because it means staff are less
adversarial contracting?
likely to drive to work. Facebook’s Mark
Zuckerberg, on the other hand, has
The impact of millions of pounds of unsecured
actually decided to build a whole new
debt attached to Carillion’s projects exposed
‘town’ to house his expanding firm.
just how fractured the traditional construction
model has become with thousands of SMEs
On a more pragmatic level, we
left critically exposed. It had been clear to the
will see much greater use
industry for years that a new kind of chain was
of off-site construction
needed to improve construction efficiency and
techniques thanks to the
restore some semblance of trust – and that
availability of digital
truth was made abundantly clear to the wider
methods (see
world in January.
page 53) and
contractors
That chain is likely to be ‘blockchain’.
working in
Created by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto
– person; entity? – blockchain is gaining
traction as a global financial exchange that
provides the ultimate in transparency and,
therefore, security for every transaction. It is
based on the principle that if everyone can
see what is happening nobody can break the
rules and rip anyone off. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 49

“The impact of millions of pounds
of unsecured debt attached to
Carillion’s projects exposed just how
fractured the traditional construction
model has become with thousands of
SMEs left critically exposed.”
The concept can appear baffling, but it is, in
effect, a virtual version of good old double
entry book-keeping. It is a ‘connected’ ledger
where incomings and outgoings are matched
up – the big difference being that it is totally
transparent to everyone involved in a linked
group of transactions –or ‘block’.
Taking a construction project as an example;
each party would have a synchronised copy of
the ledger and be able to view each transaction
as it happened. Each block has a built-in code
that checks all the figures match up.
The data is encrypted, but the encryption
‘engine’ creates a ‘key’, which is supplied to each
involved party. This allows access to the data in
each particular block and also ensures it cannot
be tampered with. If someone tries to alter the
information, the chain becomes corrupted and
the transaction is rejected – in plain sight.
The ‘blocks’ of transactions do not need to be
financial they can also be pieces of information
– so there are other potential benefits for
engineering projects. Design spreadsheets and
3D models could be included in a block along
with other computer-generated information
– and the first blockchain project to stabilise a
power grid is already underway in Germany.
Blocks of information are added to the chain
when work is completed; goods delivered;
power produced; a design submitted etc. and
this will then trigger payments of previously
agreed amounts instantly once proof of
completion is established.
The system is extremely difficult to hack
and defraud, but more importantly from
a construction payment point-of-view it is
impossible to cheat. The code ensures that a
payment is triggered once the other relevant
information is added to the block e.g. a
completion certificate – thus removing the
need for retentions, for example.
BUILDING SERVICES
DIGITAL TOOLS
Retentions
Payment would only take place once
completion information is added to the
block – so removing the need for discredited
conventions like payment retentions. The chain
also provides a complete history of the project
once completed – stored and available to
anyone with a ‘key’.
The financial exchanges are carried out using a
crypto-currency – such as Bitcoin. This creates
a whole new layer of bafflement for those of
us more used to traditional forms of financial
transaction, but now an everyday occurrence
for anyone working in the modern virtual
world of finance.
The current furore over the fluctuating values
of virtual currencies is ruffling feathers right
across the financial markets, but the old
institutions are having to accept a new reality
that they are no longer essential to every
global transaction – and are adjusting their
models to suit. Construction can benefit in a
similar way by replacing the current discredited
model where all the money sits with one party
at the top of the supply chain.
Blockchain is disrupting many aspects of
modern business and, clearly, not everyone is
comfortable with it yet.
However, the hugely damaging impact on
up to 30,000 smaller firms by the Carillion
insolvency shows that now is the time to think
more radically about how our industry carries
out its business. It will be increasingly vital to
the employment of thousands of people that
we find a better, fairer, more secure and faster
way of carrying out transactions.
So, our future is digital…digital buildings;
digital processes; and digital payment.
What’s not to like? n
BACK TO CONTENTS 51
 BUILDING SERVICES
OFFSITE

THE CASE
FOR OFF-SITE
– NO MORE TIME
FOR DELAY
The construction sector needs a radical overhaul and
will struggle to meet the UK’s need for housing and
infrastructure unless it makes greater use of offsite and
modular methods, according to a House of Lords report.

The Lords’ Science and Technology Committee

said the government and the industry must
‘urgently find solutions’ to growing productivity
problems and labour shortages. It argued that
offsite manufacture could improve productivity
by as much as 70% while also delivering better
and more energy efficient buildings.
The report, Offsite Manufacture for Construction:
Building for Change, said the use of offsite
manufacture had been patchy because the industry
continues to use “outdated and unsustainable”
business models. It also attacked the fragmented
culture of the sector and the lack of trust, which
led to poor levels of the collaboration needed to
make offsite manufacturing work.
It welcomed the presumption in favour of
offsite working contained in the government’s
Construction Sector Deal, but said a series of key
performance indicators against which the success
of this approach could be measured were required.
It also criticised the tendency for public sector
procurers to put low cost ahead of “lifetime value”.
“There are clear and tangible benefits from
offsite manufacture for construction which make
a compelling case for its widespread use,” said
committee chair Lord Patel. “The construction
sector’s business models are no longer
appropriate and are not supporting the UK’s
urgent need for new homes and infrastructure.”
Trust
He urged the Construction Leadership Council
to provide the necessary leadership to improve
levels of trust and collaboration across the
industry because, so far, the take up of off-site
manufacture has been patchy – partly because
off-site methods are not appropriate for every
type of construction project.
The report highlighted the fact that off-site
manufacture for construction provides clear
and tangible benefits including:
• Better quality buildings and infrastructure
• Enhanced client experience
• Fewer labourers and increased productivity
• Creating more regional jobs away from
large conurbations
• Improved health and safety for workers
• Offering building safety advantages –
making it easier to ensure buildings meet
quality assurance standards
• Improved sustainability of buildings
and infrastructure
• Reduced disruption to the local community
during construction. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 53

“While off-site manufacture has the potential to mitigate
some of the problems with the current workforce, it requires
the next generation of construction sector workers to be
equipped with new skills.”
While off-site manufacture has the potential to
mitigate some of the problems with the current
workforce, it requires the next generation of
construction sector workers to be equipped
with new skills, the report said.
The Lords also called on the government to
work with the sector to make sure that new
technical qualifications will close this skills gap
and equip the workforce for off-site working.
It also welcomed the Government’s
commitment to changing its procurement
models so that the public sector can procure
for whole-life value rather than upfront
cost. This, along with the Government’s
‘presumption in favour’ of off-site manufacture
across five departments, will provide an
important signal to the construction sector that
there will be a consistent pipeline of projects,
allowing companies to invest in off-site
manufacturing facilities.
“Finally, it is important that Government
funding for research and development focuses
on showing the value that off-site construction
can bring over the lifetime of buildings and
infrastructure, and we recommend that the
Government should work harder to foster
an understanding of the R&D tax credits
system within the construction sector.”
Designers, contractors and suppliers
must all have early involvement in
a project for off-site manufacture
to be successful. This requires
a change in business
models in the sector and
amongst clients, both
private and public
sector, as well
as far greater
collaboration.
BUILDING SERVICES
OFFSITE
Capacity
“Transformation is inevitable because the
UK construction industry physically cannot
deliver all of the projects coming down the
pipe unless it works in a completely different
way,” said BESA President Tim Hopkinson.
“The industry is already at full capacity; there
are tower cranes all over London and we are
continually being exhorted to employ more
skilled people.
“We have a huge resource void and we also
have some mega projects on the horizon.
We will have to become less and less about
contractors working on building sites and
more and more about deploying technology
and modern working methods to deliver a
better and more profitable product,” he added
(see President’s welcome on page 53).
The Lords’ committee also pointed out that
the upfront finance required to set up off-site
manufacture appears greater than the finance
required for conventional construction. It
welcomed the commitment in the Sector
Deal to identifying sources of funding
available to the sector.
It also said that many of the barriers to the
greater uptake of off-site manufacture for
construction facing the construction sector,
such as a lack of collaboration and attitudes
to risk, are cultural and can only be dealt with
by the sector itself.
“The use of national frameworks for
procurement that include different suppliers
should help maintain a visible and reliable
pipeline,” the report added. “It should also
ensure that there is no loss of learning
between projects and that knowledge can
easily be transferred from one project to the
next, unlike the current system where learning
is often lost as each project is re-tendered.
“Having different suppliers signed up to the
frameworks will enable these benefits while
also ensuring that there is still competition
between suppliers.” n
BACK TO CONTENTS 55
 BUILDING SERVICES
EXPORT

MMC COULD
DELIVER £40BN
EXPORT BOOST
The dramatic rise in city living presents Britain with
a unique opportunity to build on its historic legacy
as a global leader in construction and engineering
projects and develop a £40bn export market,
according to the construction consultancy Mace.

So called Modern Methods of Construction • The construction sector would need to

(MMC), which include off-site manufacturing and
advanced digital design, have been identified
by the Government as a way to produce well-
designed, energy efficient homes at pace with a
leaner and high-skilled workforce. With more than
half of all global populations living in cities, there
will be a major increase in demand for high rise
living. By embracing MMC techniques developed
in Britain, homes, offices and schools across the
world could be built more quickly and more safely.
increase its productivity by 30% if it is to build
the homes these cities needs
The paper argued that unless the construction
sector and the Government embraced MMC, the
UK will be unable to deliver on the number of
homes that have been pledged by politicians. The
report also sets out a number of recommendations
to reform the sector and establish Britain as a
global leader in MMC including:

A report commissioned by Mace and authored
by a former Bank of England economist, said
that if MMC allow UK construction to export the
same amount of global industry value as the UK
automotive sector, then its annual exports would
increase by £39bn. It identified the United States,
India and China as the fastest growing markets
that Britain should target.
New analysis in the report also highlighted:
• In the UK’s 12 biggest cities, 1 in 6 of the homes
that will be required over the next 20 years are
yet to be built
• 10,500 new homes need to be built across
these cities every month of every year for the
next 20 years to keep up with demand
• Eradicating the shortfall in the necessary
supply of new homes to these cities would add
£53bn to their combined economic output over
the next 20 years
• Accelerating planning consents for projects
using MMC that can demonstrate faster, better and
greener developments than traditional approaches
• Using major events such as the Birmingham
Commonwealth Games in 2022 to showcase
Britain’s expertise in MMC
• Earmarking unused or underused urban
spaces for pop-up off site construction sites
• Creating ‘construction clubs’ in schools to
teach students the basics of how buildings are
designed and built using new technologies
Mark Reynolds, Chief Executive of Mace,
said: “The construction sector can be a jewel
in Britain’s post-Brexit exporting crown.
Embracing modern methods of construction
and exporting our knowledge around the
world could lead to billions of pounds more
in trade and help build new relationships with
major markets around the world.” n

BACK TO CONTENTS 57
 BUILDING SERVICES
DIVERSITY

SETTING OUT
ON THE PATH
TO A CAREER IN
ENGINEERING
17-year-old Arkwright Scholar Holly Farrow explains
her first steps on the journey to becoming an engineer.

Starting in the autumn term of Year 11, my
journey began with the ‘Arkwright Engineering
Scholarship’. It looks for those who are
interested in an engineering-based career, and
the next generation of leaders in ‘engineering,
computing and technical design’.
Over the Christmas holidays I completed an
online application based on my achievements
and projects so far. I talked about the chair
I had designed and made with 52 biscuit
joints and 9 sets of dovetails, and how the
process had challenged my ability to problem
Holly Farrow solve. I wrote about my interests in backstage
Arkwright Scholar management of school productions, and the
different sets and stages I helped to build.
They asked for times where I had shown
leadership, so I wrote about a Christmas
wreath making session I had run whilst
volunteering at a local youth club “The
Underground”. The application allowed me
to ask myself where I had shown creativity,
leadership and practical ability. Writing about
my experiences enthused me and reinforced
that this was the career I wanted.
Next came the technical design aptitude
test. I attempted to solve 2 complex
problems challenging my scientific and
creative sides to work in unison. It pushed
me to think of solutions to concepts like
utilising rainfall in the UK to make electricity
for household appliances.
I was then invited to an interview hosted
by Loughborough University. During the
interview, I had to speak for 15 minutes
about my GCSE Design Technology project,
my interests in stage management and set
building, and my career aspirations. The
interview, with two professional engineers,
felt different from anything I had done
before; they were keen to hear about what
I could bring to their profession, and how I
was specifically interested in the design of
buildings and structures.
Personality
It was important for me to show my own
personality through our conversation, so
Arkwright could pair me up with a sponsor
that was the best match. As we talked, I
found myself learning and seeing my projects
from different perspectives as we discussed
the reasons behind decisions I had made.
I was grateful to be one of the 425 students
to be awarded the Arkwright Scholarship in
2017. I am sponsored by the Patrons of the
Chartered Institution of Building Services
Engineers (of which BESA is a member) who
were paired with me because of my interest
in the built environment. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 59

“When speaking to a woman in the office I found that
she (like me) chose engineering for its mathematical
and practical applications. She inspired me and built
my confidence telling me engineering wasn’t black and
white and there is so much creativity.”
In November 2017, I was invited to the awards
ceremony at the Institution of Engineering and
Technology in London where I met my sponsor,
and we talked about the opportunities that
were available to me.
At my work experience for Westlakes
Engineering in Cumbria, I experienced the office
life of a structural engineering consultancy.
When speaking to a woman in the office I found
that she (like me) chose engineering for its
mathematical and practical applications. She
inspired me and built my confidence telling
me engineering wasn’t black and white and
there is so much creativity.
I am now in my first year of A Levels,
taking Physics, Design Technology,
Maths and Further Maths. In my DT
lessons, we have started our major
design project, and I have chosen
to solve a real-life problem
based around my interests
for theatre management
and set building.
BUILDING SERVICES
DIVERSITY
I came across the problem of props storage
and display whilst working on the five-night
production of Hairspray, which my school
performed this year, so I am redesigning
the concept of a props table. Drawing
from personal experiences for my research
means I can use focus groups and conduct
interviews with people that have knowledge of
the theatre environment.
Looking forward to university, encourages me
to do things that push my boundaries. In March
I built a 3D printer that arrived flat pack with no
instructions. I found a silent video and followed
its method. The eight hours of construction
were worthwhile, as I challenged myself
to understand the electrics and technical
construction of a 3D printer and gained
experience in electrical work.
In April 2018, my Arkwright sponsor – the CIBSE
Patrons of which BESA is a member – invited
me to their annual lunch at the House of Lords.
I was asked to give a presentation about my
experiences and future aspirations. This unique
opportunity to gain contacts and listen to the
stories of leading professionals was extremely
beneficial. The support Arkwright has
given to me on my path to engineering is
invaluable.
I highly recommend the scholarship scheme
to anyone looking for a career with creativity,
practicality and the experience of solving real
problems. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 61

LEADER OF
THE PRIDE
The new chair of the BESA Future Leaders group,
believes it is time for the “alpha male” building
engineering industry to get in touch with its feminine side.
Reanna Evans is a passionate believer in the
role of women in engineering and thinks the
building services industry will not survive
unless it makes far greater strides towards
embracing gender diversity.
“The culture in contracting is wrong,” she says.
“The consulting engineering sector is getting
this right, but we aren’t. This is still an alpha
male industry that simply must change to
survive. We need more women at the sharp
end helping to get things built.”
Reanna Evans
Chair - BESA Future She also believes that having more women in
Leaders group contracting will help the profession adapt to
new ways of working. “Women are good team
players and we are also very process-driven,
which is just what the industry needs right
now,” says Reanna. “Our ability to work as part
of a team reminds me of a pride of lions where
there is no need for an alpha male to get things
done. A team with a diverse membership is far
stronger than one person trying to go it alone.”
She believes more focus and investment
into recruiting and retaining people with
craft skills like plumbers, pipe fitters and
electricians is essential. “Building services is
an art that I feel is currently lacking some of
its artists,” she said. “Craft skills are the heart of
our industry, and we need to value the men
and women who fulfil those roles.”
BUILDING SERVICES
FUTURE LEADERS
Honour
She describes taking the chair of the Future
Leaders group as “a real honour” and hopes
she can have “a real impact on the future of
the engineering industry”. Her chances of
success have also just increased as Reanna
was named CIBSE ASHRAE Graduate of the
Year for 2018 following a testing final round of
presentations at the Institution of Mechanical
Engineers in London.
It is also highly appropriate that a woman is
leading the Future Leaders in the centenary
year of Women’s Engineering Society (WES).
The Society was founded just one year after
the Suffragette movement finally secured
votes for women and, to celebrate this major
milestone, BESA is launching a ‘Woman
Engineer of the Year’ Award, which will be
presented at the BESA National Conference
in November. It will recognise a woman who
has made an outstanding contribution to the
work of the Association and the championing
of women in the building services workforce.
Like Reanna, the Association believes
engineering professions in general – and
building engineering in particular – will not be
able to meet their future business goals without
a far more gender diverse workforce. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 63
membership
means more
engaged,
talented
employees

www.thebesa.com

According to
the Office for
National Statistics,
just 8% of British
engineers are women
and BESA is backing the
WES Centenary Campaign
to raise that figure to 30% by
2030.
“Creating more career opportunities
for women in engineering is not just the
right thing to do morally – it is the right
thing to do for our businesses,” says BESA
chief executive David Frise. “There is plenty
of evidence to prove that the most successful
businesses are those with the most diverse
workforces.”
ASHRAE President Reanna became interested in buildings at a
Sheila Hayter young age when helping her grandfather in the
presented the family joinery business. She was fascinated by
Graduate of the how things were put together and wanted to
Year 2018 award
understand how building systems worked, but
to Reanna Evans
assumed the only professional route she could
take that would be anywhere close to that was
interior design or architecture.
“However, I heard there were apprenticeships in
something called building services. I knew this
was the way I wanted to go to help build and
service a brighter future,” she says.
She joined NG Bailey as a first year building
services engineering apprentice in 2011 and
the company then sponsored her through a
degree in Building Services Engineering. During
this time, she was also asked to be the lead
electrical engineer on a large project.
Reanna was promoted to senior project
engineer and is the lead mechanical engineer
on a prestigious project in Manchester City
Centre. She has also become a mentor to
prospective young engineers herself and is a
STEM Ambassador in the North West because
“I want to help people and show them what a
great career this can be”.
“I get a tremendous amount of satisfaction
from building something for the future – and
want to pass that excitement on to others. If I
have worked on a hospital, then I have helped
to save lives…if we were part of the team
delivering orthopaedic facilities then I have
helped people to walk again.
“So, it is not just about the services, but what
they do – and that is a powerful message to get
over to potential recruits,” says Reanna.
BUILDING SERVICES
FUTURE LEADERS
As chair of the Future Leaders group, she
wants to prioritise encouraging 12 to 13 year
olds to look at engineering, both in design,
and on the tools. There are a large number
who are not even aware of the opportunities
and it is at that age when the industry should
grab their attention and introduce them to all
the possibilities a career in engineering can
offer, she believes.
Placements
“We can offer them work placements in the
industry and show them what is possible,” she
says. “We can show them BIM, estimating and
planning; how things work on site – and the
opportunities in M&E, which are probably roles
unfamiliar to most.”
Inspired by her own experience with the NG
Bailey apprenticeship scheme, she wants to
work with other BESA members and encourage
them to offer work experience opportunities.
Reanna also wants to work with charities to
encourage former army veterans to come into
the industry because many already have the
skills the sector needs and they are eager to get
back into work. This should not just be about
young people, but about training and re-
training for adults too, according to Reanna.
“There is a really great, valuable set of skills
available,” she says. “Let’s attract them before
any other industry does. The training and
discipline veterans have could be crucial in
helping us transition to becoming a more
structured and compliant industry.”
This kind of far-sighted and ambitious thinking
is just what BESA President Tim Hopkinson had
in mind for the Future Leaders group when he
launched it as the first big initiative of his time
in office last year.
“We need to have a clear purpose and some
tangible goals,” adds Reanna. “As chair, I intend
to get us all pulling in the same direction
by focusing on making this industry more
diverse; by broadening our appeal and
creating opportunities for even younger
people to follow in our footsteps into this truly
rewarding career.
“The industry is ready for change. As the
engineering generation of the future, we need
to be leading that process.” n
For more information about the BESA Future
Leaders go to: www.thebesa.com/future-leaders
BACK TO CONTENTS 65
 MIND YOUR
LANGUAGE
The industry remains in the grip of a mental health
epidemic and the language we use reinforces a brutal
culture, says BESA chief executive David Frise..

Bullying is rarely out of the headlines these
days. Social media has unleashed a tsunami
of abuse with teenagers often the worst
affected. The problem has also reached deep
into the heart of our democracy with female
MPs, in particular, the focus of some highly
offensive online comments.
Language is powerful – especially in an
information age.
The use of language to reinforce a bullying
culture also has major implications for
building engineering firms. Our industry has
David Frise
BESA chief executive made huge progress on improving workers’
rights and protecting their physical safety.
Working conditions are better in almost
every area – yet work-related suicides remain
all too common.
Suicide is the leading cause of death
for men under 50 and about four in five
(10,688) deaths were among men, according
to research carried out by Public Health
England last year. The figures, compiled by
the Office for National Statistics, showed
that the suicide rate among male low-skilled
construction workers was 3.7 times the
national average.
Late payment is also having an increasingly
damaging impact on the industry’s collective
mental health. According to research carried
out by the Prompt Payment Directory, 48%
of small construction firms said poor cash
flow had led to panic attacks, anxiety and
depression among owners and managers.
Some respondents admitted to having suicidal
thoughts due to unpaid bills and almost a
quarter (22%) had experienced emotions of
“severe anger”.
Macho
Late payment is another form of bullying
and another symptom of our so-called
‘macho culture’.
Last year’s Mental Health Awareness Week,
organised by the Mental Health Foundation,
turned the spotlight on this growing workplace
stress. High levels of work absenteeism and
poor productivity are being widely reported
across our sector and blamed on stress. This
is also leading to increased dependency on
prescription drugs and alcohol, which in turn,
has serious implications for physical safety.
Recognising the problem is a huge step
towards solving it and improving productivity,
safety, employee retention and job satisfaction.

66 BACK TO CONTENTS

“Bullying is, of course, physical in nature too. What about
the impact of the tricks played on apprentices, often
filmed, that are hilarious to everyone except the victim?
What message do those send out to prospective new
entrants to our industry?”
Therefore, there are sound business, as well
as moral, reasons for people in our industry to
mind their language.
British men routinely insult their best friends
as a “sign of affection”, but that might be
intended as “banter” can actually be very
offensive. The language used in hundreds
of posts on construction Facebook groups
is often offensive and discriminatory –
seeking to target and isolate anyone who
does not conform to the tough, hard-bitten
site caricature or who voices an opinion or
technical solution others reject.
Bullying is, of course, physical in nature too.
What about the impact of the tricks played
on apprentices, often filmed, that are
hilarious to everyone except the victim?
What message do those send out to
prospective new entrants to our
industry? It is little wonder that
young people are not attracted
to this rough, crude work
environment and why
we have such a lack of
diversity when the
bullying is so often
discriminatory.
BUILDING SERVICES
MENTAL HEALTH
The fact that you can have a great career and
earn a good living is lost when there is so
much online content that portrays our industry
as backward and unpleasant. The message
delivered is: “This is a tough industry and you
will be ridiculed when you get it wrong. Only
the strongest and most resilient need apply.”
Ironically, it is often those who we think are
the toughest and most resilient that are most
vulnerable to mental health issues.
The construction initiative Mates in Mind
(www.matesinmind.org) is making progress.
It works closely with the British Safety Council,
the Construction Leadership Group, and
mental health charities, but it has a long way
to go because our problem runs deep.
The tough combination of hard-bitten working
practices and the language that accompanies
it makes our industry particularly vulnerable
to mental illness. We are trying to address the
bullying culture behind late payment through
legislation, but tackling the wider ‘macho
culture’ is, arguably, much harder.
Language is important. It is often just as
significant how you say something as what you
say. Managers often justify a brutal put down
as simply “being honest”, but it may further
undermine an already fragile confidence.
Most of us work under pressure at times and
it is tempting to put someone in their place
quickly and harshly when the heat is on,
but it is always better to pause for thought
and consider the wider implications before
opening our mouths. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 67
68
 SPECIFIERS
CONTENTS

SPECIFIERS
A guide to companies involved in the production
and distribution of heating, ventilating and air
conditioning equipment in the UK.

71
INTRODUCTION
79
STRATEGY
83
SPECIFICATION
85
PIPEWORK
COMPLIANCE PARTNERSHIPS PAS 91 TATA STEEL
Compliance is king in BESA sets out future The gateway to specification Cold-formed or hot-finished?
post Grenfell era with strategic partners

89
PIPEWORK
91
HEATING
97
WATER PRESSURE
103
WATER HEATERS
BISPA HEAT INTERFACE UNITS HIGH RISE SYSTEMS ENERGY EFFICIENCY
BISPA joins BESA to tackle What can HIUs do for us? Big can be beautiful Is compliance enough for
pipework challenges water heaters?

69
 INTRODUCTION
COMPLIANCE

COMPLIANCE
IS KING IN POST
GRENFELL ERA
The work of building engineering firms will come
under increasing scrutiny following the Grenfell fire
tragedy. The industry will be challenged to provide
more evidence of workforce competence and technical
compliance, says BESA’s key account manager Kevin Kingaby.

Building services is often seen as a bit of a
‘problem area’. Clients and main contractors
find our work difficult to understand and
frequently condemn it for being more
expensive than they anticipate. This often
leads to difficulties – usually as a result of
late changes to project designs as they try to
massage the cost downwards.
lowest price tendering. Truly, it is a service you
do not value it until you do not have it, but it is
also a great profession with excellent companies
working with the very latest technology. If
they succeed, the country has better hospitals,
schools and offices that benefit all of society and
help deliver a vibrant, sustainable economy.

Crucially because the services infrastructure is

hidden away and embedded in the structure it
is very difficult to put things right if the design
is or the installation is not right first time.
Kevin Kingaby
BESA key account manager Yet, there is a reason why services now account
for a greater proportion of the overall cost of
a project – commonly between 35 and 50%.
Our technologies are increasingly required
to deliver improved comfort and health
conditions inside buildings while supporting
clients’ strategies for minimising energy use –
and above all – making buildings safe.
If the government wants to deliver on its
industrial strategy, it needs properly performing
buildings. If you want smart cities, you need to
start with smart buildings – and, if a building
is a body, then the building services are the
vital organs: The heart, lungs and brain.
It seems perverse that such a crucial industry
for everyone is so undervalued and subject to
Blame
A major stumbling block to successful projects
is the insistence of many clients on occupying
their building when it ‘looks’ ready. This often
leads to the squeezing of the commissioning
period needed to ensure control systems
are working properly. This, in turn, leads to
buildings failing to perform as designed – and
it is the services engineer who gets the blame.
However, if the building services engineer
succeeds, the user is often blissfully unaware of
the service provided. As long as they are neither
too hot nor too cold; and they cannot hear, see
or smell anything, they are content. We only
come to their attention when there is a problem.
It is also often the case that the occupier of
the building is not the same as the specifier.
It can be very difficult for an occupier to
understand that they have a building that
performs badly and fails to meet energy
targets or ventilation rates, for example. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 71
 A B
Airflow Developments
Limited
Lancaster Road
Cressex Business Park, High Wycombe
Buckinghamshire HP12 3QP
Tel: 01494 525252
Fax: 01494 461073
Email: info@airflow.com
Website: www.airflow.com
Airflow produce Ventilation solutions
from simple Extract Fans to residential
Manufacturer of a comprehensive range
and commercial Mechanical
of low energy products with EC motors
Ventilation Systems with Heat
Recovery. All equipment complies with
supply and extract units together with
the latest Building Regulations.
72
Air Vent Technology Ltd
56 Reith Way,
West Portway Industrial Estate,
Andover, Hampshire SP10 3TY
Tel: 01264 356415
Email: sales@airventtechnology.co.uk
Website: www.airventtechnology.co.uk
including heat recovery, air handling,
associated controls and accessories.
Beehive Coils Ltd
Studlands Park Avenue
Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 7AU
Tel: +44 (0)1638 664134
Fax: +44 (0)1638 661623
Email: info@beehivecoils.co.uk
Website: www.beehivecoils.co.uk
Manufacturers of all types of CO2,
evaporator, condenser, water or steam
coils. Design assistance & fast lead
times for bespoke or bulk supply.
Brilliant. British. Beehive.
Find us on Facebook
Casaire Limited
Unit L Castle Estate, Turnpike Way,
Cressex Business Park, High Wycombe,
Bucks HP12 3TF
Contact: kevin.knight@casaire.co.uk
Mbl: 07970 851218
Contact: James.Clayton@casaire.co.uk
Mbl: 07970 851219
Fax: 01494 469549
Website: www.casaire.co.uk
Specialists in the design, supply,
installation and commissioning of high
velocity induction heating, ventilation
and cooling systems for industrial and
commercial applications.
Circulating Pumps Limited
21 Tuesday Market Place
Kinds Lynn, Norfolk PE30 1JW
Tel: 01558 815 005
Fax: 01553 815 058
Email: sales@circulatingpumps.co.uk
Website: www.circulatingpumps.co.uk
Circulating Pumps Limited is a
leading manufacturer of domestic
circulating pumps and has over
forty years experience of providing
cost effective pumping solutions to
domestic heating installers.
Constant Air Systems Ltd
Unit L Castle Estate, Turnpike Way
Cressex Business Park, High Wycombe
Buckinghamshire HP12 3TF
Tel: 01494 469529
Email: admin@constantair.co.uk
Website: www.constantair.co.uk
CAS are one of the UK Market
leaders providing offsite fully fitted
out Prefabricated Weatherfproof
plantrooms and skids for the
Building Services Industry.

“Crucially because the services infrastructure is hidden
away and embedded in the structure it is very difficult to
put things right if the design is or the installation is not
right first time.”
Set this problem against a background of
non-compliance with building regulations and
specification, and it becomes easy to see why
many clients and main contractors dismiss the
work of the building services engineer.
Defects in building services are often hard to
spot and they are usually more difficult for
occupiers to rectify or to allocate responsibility.
However, all that might be set to change.
It is a sad fact that it often takes a tragedy to
bring about necessary change. Last June’s
terrible fire at Grenfell Tower in West London
that claimed 72 lives has had a profound
impact on our industry.
There have been two strategic reviews and
the public inquiry is ongoing. The Hackitt
Review of Building Regulations is the one of
most significance to us and has led to some
pretty damning statements and hard-hitting
observations about the industry’s failure
to comply with regulations; its lack of
competence and its inability to provide
evidence of quality.
The Review’s chair Dame
Judith Hackitt successfully
revolutionised the culture
around health and safety
16 years ago – now her
sights are trained
on achieving
something
similar with
construction
standards.
INTRODUCTION
COMPLIANCE
Dame Judith’s final report ‘Building a
Safer Future’ was published last year.
She observed an industry involved in a
destructive “race to the bottom” – one that
displays ignorance, indifference, and lacks
clarity about the roles and responsibilities.
All of which is further undermined by a
complete lack of enforcement.
She has, therefore, proposed a radical
overhaul of the Building Regulations, but
crucially says that industry should not wait for
that change because they may take several
years to implement. Instead, we are urged
to set about reforming ourselves now. She
further recommends a system of rigorous
enforcement where the penalties far exceed
the potential gains from cheating the system.
Sensible
It is clear that changes will require installers
to provide greater evidence of compliance
and competence. The sensible contractor
will keep better and more complete records
of what products they installed, how they
installed them and who carried out the
installation. Clients will now be watching
as they fear the terrible consequences
witnessed at Grenfell.
At the BESA, we are already hearing from
members, who are being asked to provide
evidence of installation work on projects they
completed years ago.
Part of the response to Grenfell proposed
by the Hackitt review team was the creation
of a “golden thread” of asset information,
which is available throughout the life of
the building. They also encouraged the
re-emergence of the largely forgotten role
of Clerk of Works (COW) to help clients
discharge their responsibilities. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 73
 INTRODUCTION
COMPLIANCE

“The Hackitt Review of Building

Regulations is the one of most
significance to us and has led to
some pretty damning statements
and hard-hitting observations about
the industry’s failure to comply with
regulations; its lack of competence and its
inability to provide evidence of quality.”

These changes are precisely what BESA
has been campaigning for and are
therefore welcome. Good companies
who carry out work to specification have
nothing to fear from these changes. Those
that cheat the system and cut corners have
much to lose. Every BESA member has
already been assessed by the Association’s
Competence Assessment Scheme (CAS)
before being accepted into membership.
This is a third party verification scheme
so is the idea model for how firms can
give evidence of their competence and
dedication to quality.
The Association has also been developing a
suite of tools that both contractor members
and supply chain partners can use to
demonstrate technical competence and
regulatory compliance.
For example, the BESCA Competent Person
Scheme (www.besca.org.uk) is authorised
by the Department for Communities and
Local Government and allows businesses
to self-certify that their works comply with
the building regulations in England & Wales
without the need to notify Building Control.
An alternative to submitting a building
notice or using an approved inspector,
the scheme allows firms who have already
proved their competence to considerably
speed up the project delivery process and
reduce the administration burden involved
with getting worked signed off. This is
a significant commercial benefit to all
involved including local authorities.
SFG20 (www.sfg20.c0.uk) is already widely
used by major property clients to manage
their strategic maintenance programmes,
therefore keeping their buildings compliant
with legislation and meeting comfort and
energy consumption targets. It has huge
potential to be further used as an evidence
tool to match the ambition of Hackitt’s ‘golden
thread’. It already provides this function post-
completion, but could be extended to provide
full cover from design to demolition.
We also operate the sector’s SKILLcard
(www.skillcard.org.uk) scheme that provides
evidence of competence and the qualifications
of more than 50,000 engineering services
operatives. It was also the first construction
skill card to go ‘smart’.
For the air conditioning and refrigeration
sector there is Refcom (www.refcom.org.uk)
– the UK’s largest F Gas register. It works with
the Environment Agency to ensure the F
Gas Regulations are properly enforced and
refrigerant reclamation carried out in line with
our obligations to reduce global warming
gases. Refcom now accounts for more than
80% of mandatory company certificates
covering the UK refrigerant handling market.
Competitive
Against a backdrop of growing concern about
rising pollution, the Association’s Ventilation
Hygiene Elite scheme supports the work of
companies who are highly proficient in the area
of ensuring improved indoor air quality (IAQ) and
the safe operation of ventilation ductwork. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 75

“If you want smart cities, you need to start with smart
buildings – and, if a building is a body, then the building
services are the vital organs: The heart, lungs and brain.”
This is an example of a scheme that contractors
can use to make them stand out from the crowd
in a highly competitive marketplace where, too
often, less scrupulous operators have indulged
in a race to the bottom on price at the expense
of quality work and consumer safety.
In terms of data management, the Association
has developed the cloud-based PRINT system,
which allows industry firms to manage their
workforce from one central database, including
the co-ordination of training requirements,
CPD experience, qualifications and certificates
as well as health & safety records. It is a
convenient way for an employer to manage a
worker’s career path and keep them updated
with important information.
The ability to co-ordinate services using
these various tools makes it easier for firms to
demonstrate how they manage competence
and compliance across their workforces – to
provide peace of mind to their clients. This
will be increasingly in demand as end clients
adapt their own working practices to the
post-Grenfell environment and face up
to their own considerable liabilities.
Manufacturers have a huge role
to play in all of this. Clients do
not buy products shrink-
wrapped on a palate, they
buy them installed and
operating within an
integrated system.
INTRODUCTION
COMPLIANCE
One of the early lessons of Grenfell is that
manufacturers must take a greater interest in
where their products end up. Currently their
interest stops at the factory gate until something
is reported back to them as a defect – usually
because they are kept away from many stages
of the design and construction of a building.
This damages their reputation and leaves
clients disappointed, but the harnessing
of their partnerships with contractors –
working through BESA – is an opportunity for
manufacturers’ detailed technology expertise
to be deployed through every stage of the
project to everyone’s benefit.
This kind of more vertically integrated supply
chain is the logical outcome of Dame Judith’s
insistence that the construction industry puts
its own house in order and does not wait to
be told what to do by government.
Alliances
Specifically for involvement with industry
bodies, this is leading to more firms taking up
affiliate memberships and enjoying increased
participation in our events, specialist groups
and discussion forums where best practice is
shared and alliances forged.
Contractors and manufacturers working
together serve the industry by promoting good
practice, raising knowledge and skills levels
and solving problems that impact both sides.
The proposed new ‘output based’ building
regulations expected to eventually emerge from
the Hackitt Review and subsequent consultation
period, will shift the emphasis from what you
promise to deliver, to what is actually delivered
and experienced by the building occupant.
When setting out to deliver those aims,
clients will have to be reassured that the
organisations they work with have robust
competence and compliance credentials.
How you present those credentials will be
the biggest challenge from now on. n
BACK TO CONTENTS 77
 E G

Gilberts (Blackpool) Ltd

Clifton Rd, Blackpool
Lancashire FY4 4QT
Tel: 01253 766911
Email: sales@gilbertsblackpool.com
Frese Limited Website: www.gilbertsblackpool.com
402 Merlin Park, Ringtail Road
Burscough, Lancashire L40 8JY Leading designer and manufacturer
Tel: 01704 896012 of Air Distribution and Natural
Email: info@frese.co.uk Ventilation solutions:
Website: www.frese.co.uk
Product Range
Manufacturer and supplier of pressure • Air Grilles & Diffusers
independent flow and temperature • External & Architectural Louvres
control valves, heat interface units and • Natural Ventilation Systems
associated equipment for hydronic • Smoke & Fire Dampers
heating, cooling and hot water systems.
Natural Ventilation
‘Mistrale’ expands on our vision to
provide the best in modern, energy
efficient air distribution solutions.
A complete series of designs
incorporating patented design features
that position Mistrale at the leading
edge of modern natural ventilation
and hybrid natural ventilation design.

ESG Pool Ventilation Ltd

25 Burrel Road, St Ives FläktGroup UK Ltd
Cambridgeshire PE27 3LE
Dolphin House, Moreton Business Park
Tel: 01480 492140
Hereford, HR4 8DS
Fax: 01480 492026
Tel: 01432 277 277
Email: enquiries@esgpv.co.uk
Email: uksales@flaktgroup.com
Website: www.esgpv.co.uk
Website: www.flaktgroup.co.uk
Leading pool ventilation specialist.
FläktGroup UK Limited is a leading
ESG provide the complete package from
global supplier of Air Technology based
start to finish. Design, manufacture,
solutions for buildings, focusing on
installation, commissioning and
Air Comfort & Fire Safety.
maintenance of energy saving pool
ventilation systems.

78

BESA SETS
OUT FUTURE
WITH STRATEGIC
PARTNERS
BESA is now an affiliate member of the
Builders’ Conference and has also agreed a
strategic partnership with Constructionline.
Both of these relationships create significant
business opportunities for Association members
and open up new routes to winning work.
The Builders' Conference (www.builders
conference.co.uk) is a fellow member-based
trade association open to any business involved
in the construction industry including multi-
million pound main contractors, specialist
sub-contractors and consulting engineers.
It provides new business leads – including
11,000 contract opportunities every year worth
more than £50bn gleaned from its extensive
database – as well as market intelligence,
statistical data and networking opportunities.
Constructionline (www.constructionline.co.uk)
is the UK’s largest business-generation platform for
SME contractors in the construction industry. It
connects suppliers with buyers, who are looking
for contractors and sub-contractors to work on
their projects. Buyers will post available contracts
and search the Constructionline database for
appropriate contractors to invite to tender.
As a result of this new strategic partnership, BESA
members will receive 15 months membership
of Constructionline for the price of 12, which is
equivalent to a 25% discount. Constructionline will
also add ‘buyer' status for free – something that
normally costs £500 – so members can contact
other 'suppliers' across the construction industry.
STRATEGY
PARTNERSHIPS
Benefit
Invitations to ‘Meet the Buyer’ events across
the UK are another significant benefit as these
provide opportunities to meet peers and partners
to discuss potential business. The dates of these
events will be published on the BESA website
and Constructionline hosted a special meet
the buyer session during the BESA National
Conference on November 1 (see pages 32-41).
Members will also receive alerts about buyers'
construction projects, which are directly
tailored to their geographic location and area of
expertise. They can also include their company
information on the Constructionline database
for potential clients in line with the PAS91
pre-qualification format. BESA companies will
also be invited to take part in Constructionline’s
supplier engagement days, which are run for
main contractors.
BESA members can now also take advantage of
discounted membership of Builders’ Conference.
Sole traders receive a 53% reduction on the
normal membership fee; SMEs a 41% discount
and main contractors get 26% off their fees.
BESA members can access the Builders’
Conference data platform and express an interest
in national construction projects across all sectors.
They will also receive an exclusive preview of
its in-depth monthly market analysis. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 79

“BESA members can now also take advantage of discounted
membership of Builders’ Conference. Sole traders receive a
53% reduction on the normal membership fee; SMEs a 41%
discount and main contractors get 26% off their fees.”
Details of construction tenders and the
main contractors who are bidding can be
delivered direct to a member’s inbox along
with the opportunity to express an interest
in the work. BESA members can now also be
automatically included in searches based on
trade, specialism and location.
There are also a number of publicity and
profile-raising opportunities on the Builders’
Conference website and in its newsletter
thanks to this new tie-up between the two
organisations.
At the same time, the Association has finalised
details of its new Public, Private Sector
Specification Partnership (PSP) scheme, which
is designed to cement the reputation of BESA
members with specifiers across the building
engineering services and construction sectors.
The partnership scheme is open to private
sector clients, public sector bodies and
consultants who recognise the benefit BESA’s
technical standards and guides provide to the
industry and the advantages to be gained from
having access to the quality assurance and
technical competence of BESA members.
Assurance
The scheme is only open to
organisations that do not employ
their own direct workforce
and who agree to include
a statement in their
invitations to tender that
specifically refers to the
quality assurance
provided by BESA
members.
STRATEGY
PARTNERSHIPS
“We are aware of the important role BESA
plays in the built environment sector,
the authoritative standards and guides
it produces and the ‘Mark of Quality and
Assurance’ its members represent,” the tender
documents say. “As a procurer of building
services mechanical solutions, it is important
that we ensure quality is maintained
throughout the supply chain.
“Therefore, we require that all contractors
pre-qualifying for mechanical works
demonstrate that they are either BESA
members or are qualified to the standards
set out in BESA’s mark of quality and
assurance or equivalent.”
The Association’s chief executive David Frise
hailed these groundbreaking developments
as cornerstones of BESA’s evolving strategy.
“Collaborating with specifier organisations
like Constructionline and Builders’ Conference
give our members access to extremely
valuable routes to win work,” he said.
“This will help companies derive maximum
benefit from their BESA membership.
“Also, by creating close partnerships with
specifying organisations we can continue to
build relationships of mutual benefit. This
will help to make sure that the considerable
investment made by our members in training,
technology and compliance gets appropriate
recognition and reward.” n
For more information about these and
other member benefits, please visit:
www.thebesa.com/besa-group-services
BACK TO CONTENTS 81
 R S W

Swegon
Swegon Pavillion, St Cross Chambers,
Upper Marsh Lane, Hoddesdon,
Hertfordshire EN11 8LQ
Tel: 0800 093 7929
Email: sales@swegon.co.uk
Website: www.swegon.co.uk
Walraven Ltd
Thorpe Way, Banbury
Oxfordshire OX16 4UU
Where others can specialise in one part Tel: 01295 753400
of a building’s construction, at Swegon Fax: 01295 753428
we have a unique understanding of the Email: sales.uk@walraven.com
entire construction process. We design Website: www.walraven.com
innovative solutions in air distribution,
fire and smoke control, natural
Specialists in M&E fixings - we offer
ventilation, filtration, heating, cooling,
a wide range of fixings and fire
hire and service.
protection products alongside a
free technical support service.
Take advantage of our application
knowledge right from the beginning of
Smart, innovative solutions for you.
your project and you can be sure you
are getting the right system selection,
the best products, dedicated support
and peace of mind throughout the
lifetime of a building.

membership
means setting
market-leading
technical
standards

www.thebesa.com
82

PAS 91 – THE
GATEWAY TO
SPECIFICATION
It is widely accepted that there is a tremendous amount
of wasted time and cost in the pre-qualification process.
Common sense tells us that a standardised
set of questions would help to reduce the
administrative burden placed on suppliers
having to complete huge amounts of
paperwork and on buyers who have to
continually reassess a supplier’s responses.
PAS 91 was created to streamline the pre-
qualification process through standardising
the question set to reduce the need for
suppliers to complete a variety of different
pre-qualification questionnaires for different,
and in some cases, the same clients.
Developed by the British Standards Institute
(BSI), the standardised questions were
commissioned by the government and is a
recommended common minimum standard
for construction procurement.
Updates to PAS 91 were introduced five years’
ago following consultation with professional
bodies and trade associations including BESA;
the National Federation of Builders (NFB), the
Specialist Engineering Contractors’ Group (SEC)
and Safety Schemes in Procurement (SSIP).
It aims to help suppliers understand
what information is required from them
at pre-qualification stage and increase
consistency between various pre-qualification
questionnaires and databases. It also helps
buyers identify suitably qualified contractors.
SPECIFICATION
PAS 91
Buyer benefits
• Helps buyers identify suitably qualified
contractors with less time and resources
• Is one of government’s common minimum
standards for construction procurement
• Helps achieve more sustainable procurement
• Gives more time to focus on the project-
specific areas of the pre-qualification process
• Encourages suppliers (particularly SMEs) to apply
for work by simplifying the tendering process
Supplier benefits
• One standard question set across different
clients, ensuring you understand what
information will be required from you at
pre-qualification stage
• You can develop standard responses to the
‘core’ questions which can be used time again
in response to any Buyer using PAS 91
• Exemptions from sections if you hold industry
recognised accreditations
• A less time consuming pre-qualification
process should give companies more time
to focus on winning and delivering work.
The latest revision of PAS 91 is available for
download here: http://shop.bsigroup.com/
en/Navigate-by/PAS/PAS-91-2013/ n
BACK TO CONTENTS 83
 PIPEWORK
TATA STEEL

COLD-
FORMED OR
HOT-FINISHED?
Not all steel tubes are the same – and if you
get the specification wrong, the consequences
can be extremely serious, says Stewart Jones, senior
customer technical services field engineer at Tata Steel.

To reduce the risk of different types of steel
tubes being installed, resulting in system
contamination, compliance, warranty and
service life issues, it is vital that pipework
specifications are up to date and correct.
The product being delivered to site should
also be checked against the initial hot-
finished, multi-certified specifications to
ensure it is correct.
If not addressed this may result in the need
to replace sections of pipe. Furthermore, in
hard water areas, scale can build up impacting
on system performance, or resulting in costly
maintenance work. Therefore, it is of vital
importance to select the correct steel tube
for the application to avoid the need for any
costly repairs as well as to reduce the risk of
product failure.

When choosing a suitable air conditioning Commodity

system for an installation, the operational
Unfortunately, there has been an influx of
stresses, system pressures and level of use
commodity, non-UK manufactured carbon
required are taken into account before a
steel tubes into our market. Although many
system specification is defined. Similarly, these
of these tubes are produced according
same factors along with legislation compliance,
to similar product standards and have
installation and service life benefits need to
comparable mechanical properties, they may
be considered when choosing the system’s
not behave in the same way in service. Whilst
steel tube.
such tubes may look the same, appearances
can be deceptive as these tubes may deliver
Air conditioning pipework can be exposed
a very different level of performance and
to both internal and external corrosive
hence be less suitable for use in building
conditions. External localised corrosion may
services applications.
occur as a result of condensation on the
exterior of the pipework. Internal corrosion
It is, therefore, critical that specifiers and
may be seen as a result of Ph variations,
engineers understand the different tube
oxygen content or poor inhibitor use.
manufacturing processes to ensure that the
correct tube specifications are used in order
to ensure tracability, compliance, operational
performance and service life. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 85
PIPEWORK
TATA STEEL
“When choosing a suitable air conditioning system
for an installation, the operational stresses, system
pressures and level of use required are taken into
account before a system specification is defined.”
Carbon steel tubes are generally produced in
one of two ways, either cold-formed or hot-
finished. Cold-formed products are created
by shaping steel strip into a cylinder and then
welding the edges together to create the final
tube product. Whilst undergoing this process
the material hardens due to the cold working,
making it more brittle and the welding stage
also introduces internal stresses into the
material structure.
The heat from the welding also creates a
distorted region commonly known as the
Heat Affected Zone (HAZ). The altered grain
structure of the HAZ results in a harder, more
highly stressed region with an increased risk
of corrosion, cracking and service failure.
In addition, any further product working or
manipulation carried out on site can increase
the level of internal stress, heightening the
risk of product failure.
Hot-finished tubes follow a similar
manufacturing process to cold-
formed products, but with a vital
additional process step. These
tubes, following welding,
are heated to a high
temperature sufficient
to remove both the
internal stresses
and the distorted
grain structure
in the HAZ.
This removes any brittleness and results in
highly ductile tubes with a uniform fine grain
structure throughout the entire product.
Hot-finished steel tubes can provide the
following 10 benefits for air conditioning
applications over cold-formed alternatives:
• A more ordered consistent microstructure
• No internal stresses that can promote
cracking
• More consistent and reliable mechanical
properties
• Improved structural integrity and ductility
• Improved and more consistent toughness,
particularly at low temperature
• A higher pressure integrity
• A greater factor of safety
• No loss of strength due to additional
welding or heating
• An improved performance against corrosion
• An improved ability to be threaded,
grooved and bent to tight radii without
splitting, creasing or collapsing
Typically, air conditioning applications refer
to tubes manufactured to BS EN10255, the
successor to BS1387 (which was withdrawn
in 2004). However, specifying this standard
alone will not guarantee that a hot-finished
steel tube will be supplied. It is only by also
requesting a BS EN10217 Part 2 compliant
product, with its GH (Get Hot) grade, that a
hot-finished tube will definitely be supplied.
 PIPEWORK
TATA STEEL

“By removing all the internal

stresses and weaknesses,
hot-finished tubes and their GH
(Get Hot) grades, have a multitude
of benefits over their cold-formed
counterparts – and offer a longer,
more reliable service life.”

An example of such a product is Tata Steel’s
INSTALL PLUS 235 hot-finished, multi-certified
carbon steel tube. Specifically developed
and manufactured within the UK, ensuring
alignment with both the Construction Products
Regulations (CPR) and the Pressure Equipment
Directive (PED) as per BS EN10255 and BS
EN10217 Part 2.
Furthermore, the superior durability and
strength of hot-finished tube products
compared to cold-formed alternatives means
that Tata Steel INSTALL PLUS 235 range can
withstand internal temperatures as low as
-20oC, ideal for most cooling systems operating
between 6-10oC.
In addition, to reduce the risk of corrosion by
external condensation, the INSTALL PLUS 235
hot-finished tube range is available with the
enhanced Tata Steel red paint finish as standard.
This coating has undergone significant testing,
including accelerated salt spray and humidity
susceptibility, to ensure optimum performance
for the tube within its lifespan.
To ensure the longevity and durability of
the steel pipework for air conditioning
applications, it is necessary to take a
deeper look beyond the initial product’s
specification, to the actual product’s
process of manufacture and the key
manufacturing standards.
By removing all the internal stresses and
weaknesses, hot-finished tubes and their
GH (Get Hot) grades, have a multitude
of benefits over their cold-formed
counterparts – and offer a longer, more
reliable service life. n
For more information visit:
www.tatasteelconstruction.com

To highlight the importance of the steel

tube production process within the tubes
and pipework sector, Tata Steel has formed
a partnership with the School of Civil and
Building Engineering at Loughborough
University to establish the Building and
Industrial Services Pipework Academy
(BISPA). Focused clearly on issues of interest
to industries such as air conditioning, BISPA
offers courses and training to support on-going
professional development.

BACK TO CONTENTS 87
 PIPEWORK
BISPA

BISPA JOINS
BESA TO TACKLE
PIPEWORK
CHALLENGES
BESA and the Building and Industrial Services
Pipework Academy (BISPA) are working together to
tackle pipework and installation challenges in the
UK building and industrial services market.

BISPA was set up to support the building and
industrial services industry by improving
the awareness of pipework related issues
and innovations. They offer a free project
pipework specification review service, as well
as providing CIBSE CPD approved courses on
pipework, corrosion, installation and Building
Information Modelling (BIM).
By joining BESA as a bronze affiliate member,
BISPA has the perfect platform to engage
with the pipework users, working closely
with the BESA to raise awareness of correct
technical specifications and contribute
practical knowledge and insights to the trade
association’s national pipework guidance
documents.
“This is a significant issue for the UK market
as it can lead to poor quality or non-
compliant products being used, this may
then result in installation, performance and
service life issues and can add delays and
additional costs to installations.
“For example, we’ll be working to highlight
the risks associated with non-compliant
imported cold-formed products, as well as
the problems with galvanic corrosion as a
result of mixed carbon and stainless steel
systems and the use of VR for CPD training.
We’re pleased to be partnering with such
a prestigious trade organisation to help
promote best practice within the building
and industrial services industry. n

In addition, BISPA will be partnering with For more information please visit:
the BESA to jointly promote a variety of CPD www.bispa.org
training initiatives, with the aim of improving
pipework awareness within the market
place and taking part in several regional
events throughout the next year, to promote
emerging technologies such as BIM and VR.

“The main goal of our membership is to create

a dialogue with specifiers and end users, so
that we can help them understand the risks
to their projects due to incorrect or poorly
defined pipework specifications,” said BISPA’s
Mark Owens.

BACK TO CONTENTS 89

WHAT
CAN HIUs
DO FOR US?
HIUs are playing an increasingly pivotal role in delivering
high efficiency, low carbon heat from heat networks.
Gary Perry, managing director of Altecnic, explains how.
Modern Heat Interface Units (HIUs) boast an
impressive array of ‘smart’ features that provide
close control of heat output and energy use.
This is helping to fuel a steady increase in the
market and, according to data from the recent
World Heating Report, around 38,300 HIUs
were installed in the UK, of which the large
majority was fitted in buildings served by
central plant systems. The market had already
grown by 4% in 2016.
HIU’s provide control centralisaton and
metering point at each dwelling. Ease of
accessibility, either from inside or outside
the property, makes the meter reading ideal
for energy providers, as well as saving time.
Additionally, the space requirement for a unit
is optimal when compared to a combi boiler’s
space requirement.
Primary flow rate limitation protects the
network from failure caused by poor apartment
heating control, high start-up demand and
ensures reduced demand peaks
Return Temperature Limitation (RTL): The
HIU automatically controls output (heating
and DHW) to hold a configurable low return
temperature. Ensuring network efficiency, even
if the radiators are poorly balanced.
HEATING
HEAT INTERFACE UNITS
Smart
A configurable integral room controller can
be set up to customise the level of access and
features that the tenant is allowed to use.
Compatible with smart controllers such as ‘Nest’,
Hive’ etc. it can be set to on, off or timed to come
on only when the tenant requires, saving energy
and cost for the tenant and the network. Each
HIU can be configured individually or globally
remotely via the BMS or Modbus network.
Typical UK apartments have a heating demand
around 3 to 4 kW. However, for the first 10 – 15
minutes of the heating coming on, the apartment
can take 8 or 9kW from the network. If a large
number of apartments are on heating at the same
time, say at 7am on a weekday morning, then
the network may not have enough capacity and
it will fail to provide hot water at the extremities.
Some HIUs have the facility to set the maximum
flow rate a HIU can take from the network. A HIU
connected to a 3kW apartment can only take 3kW,
nothing more, therefore the network is protected
from failure and its demand peaks are reduced.
The low heating demand in today’s apartments
mean that only a very small flow rate is
required on the heating circuit. This low flow
rate makes it very difficult to balance the
radiators in an apartment. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 91

“Some HIUs have the facility to set the maximum flow
rate a HIU can take from the network. A HIU connected
to a 3kW apartment can only take 3kW, nothing more,
therefore the network is protected from failure and its
demand peaks are reduced.”
The result is that most apartment heating
systems are not balanced correctly, and
the return temperature will be high and
subsequently transferred to the network and
the efficiency of the whole network will be
greatly reduced.
Many HIU’s are equipped with Return
Temperature Limitation (RTL), which allows the
installer to set a maximum return temperature
on the network. Once enabled, the HIU will
control its output into the apartment to ensure
that this pre-set, primary return temperature
is met. The network is again protected from
inefficiency and failure caused by small Delta Ts
and high primary flow rates.
Many HIU’s on the market have a permanent,
built-in preheat function. This bleeds energy
through the HIU constantly 24 hours a day.
Bearing in mind that the tenant may only
use their hot water a few times a day,
having preheat on permanently makes
no sense and costs the tenant money.
The configurable controller can be
set to allow the tenant to set the
preheat function, just like their
heating system, to come on
and go off automatically
only when required.
HEATING
HEAT INTERFACE UNITS
An HIU with full Modbus output/input can
be set up and commissioned remotely.
Any faults or error message on the HIU can
also be read remotely. If a tenant believes
there is a fault with the HIU, the unit can
be interrogated remotely and the fault
diagnosed prior to any attendance on site.
The engineer can then ensure that he has the
spare parts required prior to any attendance
on site. Even the actual temperature within
the apartment can be checked to see if it is at
the set point set on the HIU.
Efficient
The drive to make buildings ‘smart’ continues
apace and there are now companies that
specialise in the operation and running of
these smart buildings. The Modbus output
from the HIU removes much of the hardware
that needs to be installed on a smart
network and therefore cost. The Modbus
allows more accurate network control based
on demand and the HIU facilitates a much
more efficient network.
Another feature of some HIUs is the weather
compensation option. The HIU has the ability
to vary the heating output based on outside
temperature.
A prepayment unit can also be wired into
the HIU controller and, when the tenant runs
out of credit, the HIU will close down the
heating and DHW output without the need
for a separate motorised prepayment valve.
This not only saves money, but allows for
prepayment to be retrospectively installed
without the need for any plumbing work.
For more information please visit:
www.altecnic.co.uk/heat-networks/
heat-interface-units/
BACK TO CONTENTS 93

HIU STANDARD GETS TESTING BOOST
The UK’s first test standard for Heat
Interface Units (HIUs), which is managed
by BESA, was revised and updated last
year in response to growing demand from
the district heating industry.
Two UK-based test houses were also approved
to carry out testing to the standard – BSRIA
and Enertek International – in addition to the
Research Institutes of Sweden (RISE), which
was previously the only organisation able to
test to the new UK standard.
HIUs extract heat from district heating
networks to feed individual buildings and
dwellings. How they perform is central to the
overall efficiency of a district scheme. The
Standard was developed, therefore, to help
developers of UK heat networks procure HIUs
based on comparative performance data.
The availability of a UK standard has prompted
considerable response from manufacturers
with several HIUs already tested at RISE with
several more already going through the
process at BSRIA and Enertek.
Testing to the standard is a two-stage process:
The HIU has to achieve a UKAS or equivalent
national accreditation through one of the
three test houses and this result must then
be verified by the Standard’s Steering Group
before being published on the BESA website
(www.theBESA.com/ukhiu).
The BESA Standard originally emerged
from a heat network efficiency
research project supported by
the Department for Business,
Energy & Industrial Strategy.
Testing to the Standard
is helping to create
a comprehensive
product database
and improve
performance
of UK heat
networks.
HEATING
HEAT INTERFACE UNITS
It is modelled on a well-established Swedish
methodology, which was adapted to
suit typical UK operating conditions, and
makes it possible to compare products and
equipment types so that network designers
can evaluate the performance of individual
HIUs against their design parameters.
Compliance
The test calculates the annual volume
weighted return temperature (VWART)
from the HIU and provides evidence of
compliance with other performance and
reliability metrics, such as domestic hot
water response time.
As part of the revision process, the steering
group overseeing the Standard has been
expanded and a technical sub-committee –
comprising industry experts and the three
test houses – has been set up. It will make
recommendations to the steering group
on developing the standard, including a
planned expansion of the regime. An HIU
Manufacturers’ forum has already had its first
meeting at BESA’s headquarters in London
and provided valuable feedback to the
steering group.
“One of the Standard’s great strengths is that
it has been developed by users, for users,”
said UK HIU Steering Group chair, Gareth
Jones. “It provides users with a clear basis
on which to evaluate HIU performance and
is rapidly becoming the default point of
reference for those making procurement
decisions within the industry.
“As a result, HIU manufacturers must now
ensure that their HIUs perform well and
we are seeing a significant increase in R&D.
Ultimately this raising of standards will help
improve the health of the heat network
industry as a whole.” n
For more information visit:
www.thebesa.com/ukhiu
BACK TO CONTENTS 95
 WATER PRESSURE
HIGH RISE SYSTEMS

BIG CAN BE
BEAUTIFUL –
HIGH RISE SYSTEMS
It seems unusual in our industry to consider all the
aspects of a system working together, even though this is
what we are aiming for, but in high rise structures a ‘joined up’
approach is crucial, writes Rob Clemson, technical director Flamco.

Water is strange stuff, the only substance

that gets bigger (expands) as it gets hotter
Gauge pressure vs Absolute
and as it gets colder, when viewed from a pressure
4°C starting point.
When we talk about pressure, as an industry
we normally default to gauge pressure (as
Water is not compressible, for practical
in the above static height example). In real
purposes, and as a result the ‘pressure’ that
terms the universe is geared to work in terms
we see in water systems comes from the
of absolute(a) pressure, where Outer Space is
physical weight of water and the associated
taken as being 0 (zero) bar(a), as a result on
equipment for moving it around.
planet earth we live at 1 bar(a).
The physics of static height are easily
Practically, however, a plumber takes a pressure
simplified in our industry. For practical
gauge out of a box, and without it being
purposes 10m of vertical height on a water
connected to anything, they expect it to show
system relates to a 1 bar pressure at the
0 bar. In this way we are talking about gauge
bottom, to have 0 bar at the top. We can
pressure, 0 bar(g).
think in terms of the sea, easy to swim and
float on the top, difficult to exist on the
A circulation pump is designed to do one thing,
bottom of the sea with lots of water above.
move water around a system at the required
flow rate. To do this it has to effectively push,
In terms of physical engineering, a submarine
and sometimes pull, the water. Back to Physics
to go 10m underwater in a swimming pool
again, push and pull are simply forces, that affect
is the same submarine that can go 10m
the perceived pressure of the water at that point.
underwater in the Atlantic. Weight of water
This is also referred to as ‘pump head’.
is the key to understanding here, it does not
matter if a pipe is 15mm diameter, 1000mm
‘Pump Head’ is what is required to push the
diameter or 10,000mm diameter, for a 10m
water round a system, not to overcome the static
system height, 1 bar is the water pressure
height, it is there to overcome frictional resistance
(weight) at the bottom with no pressure
of the system in terms of pressure loss through
(weight) at the top.
heat exchangers, pipework, fittings, emitters and
valves. This way, a system with a 200 meter static
height does not need a ‘Pump Head’ of 20 bar. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 97

“For practical purposes 10m of vertical height on a water
system relates to a 1 bar pressure at the bottom, to have
0 bar at the top. We can think in terms of the sea, easy to
swim and float on the top, difficult to exist on the bottom
of the sea with lots of water above.”
The neutral point is the location in the system
where the static pressure is unaffected by the
operation of the circulating pump. Effectively
the circulating pump discharge pressure (or
the pump suction pressure) has no bearing on
the pressure seen at that point regardless of if
the pump is running or not (on or off).
A little known fact is that the physical position
of expansion equipment forces the neutral
point to that location. This then will always
affect the way that the circulation ‘pump head’
impacts on the pressures of the wider system,
either moving the ‘pump head’ more to the
discharge side or to a more even split across
the pump.
Another little known fact is that for systems
above 60m in static height, the setup and
commissioning of the expansion vessel is more
complicated. The vessel diaphragm cannot
see a pressure differential of more than 6 bar,
in favour of the gas side, during operation and
commissioning. In effect a gas overpressure, of
6 bar or more, pushes the diaphragm out of
the water connection and will damage the
rubber membrane.
As a process, the water pressure
and gas pressure must be
incrementally stepped up during
commissioning to prevent
this happening. This takes
time, experience and care
to achieve successfully.
Failure to do so will
cause damage,
delays and most
importantly,
cost.
WATER PRESSURE
HIGH RISE SYSTEMS
A final little known fact is that expansion
vessels are calculated based on ‘efficiency’.
This is taken as the smaller of two figures,
either the design efficiency of the vessel or
the system efficiency. This is a relationship
between the maximum working pressure
and minimum working pressure (all taken as
absolute pressure). This relationship is:
The real implications of this, however, come
into effect with taller and taller systems. A 2
bar differential between maximum (3 bar) and
minimum (1 bar) operating pressures on a
10m system result in a 50% system efficiency.
However, the effects on taller systems are
dramatic, assuming a 70m system with a 2
bar differential between maximum (9 bar)
and minimum (7 bar) pressures:
Dramatic
The effects on even taller systems are more
dramatic, assuming a 120m system with a 2
bar differential between maximum (14 bar)
and minimum (12 bar) pressures. Therefore
the higher a system is, with the expansion
vessel at the bottom of the system, the less
efficient a system can be.
The real interest then comes from the choice
of installation location on tall systems,
especially on systems with typically more
than 60m of static height.
The example shows the effects on the
circulating ‘pump head’, the effects on static
height and the resulting system pressures.
It is clear to see how these technologies and
principles work together.
With the expansion equipment sited at the
top of the system the overall running pressure
can be properly controlled, with the ‘pump
head’ being efficiently applied and balanced.
The associated pressurisation equipment can
be kept at low pressure, and as a result becomes
standard equipment, serviceable and reliable. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 99

“With the expansion
equipment sited at the
top of the system the overall
running pressure can be
properly controlled, with the
‘pump head’ being efficiently
applied and balanced.”
Higher pressure pressurisation equipment
typically uses DOL (Direct On-Line) pumps,
the run time of these pumps generally is
very short. As a result the extra cost of VSD
(Variable Speed Drive) is often not accepted,
sadly with greater operating pressures, the
need for VSD increases. A false economy is
the result and potential problems on the
system over time.
In short, solutions exist for traditional
expansion equipment to be sited at the
top or bottom of a system, but the sensible
approach is to locate equipment as high up a
system as possible. The cost savings, pressure
control and knock on effects to the other
system components speak for themselves.
With careful use of Plate Heat Exchangers
(PHX), tall systems can be split into multiple
manageable systems, each of which could
then be kept below common pressure
classes which would in turn reduce the cost
of the associated equipment and increase
the availability.
Therefore on systems that are so tall as to
have pressure breaks, best practice leads us
to install the expansion equipment for each
pressure break at the top of each segment.
For modern pumps to work effectively, a
suitable positive pressure is required on
the suction side of the pump. This is called
the nett positive suction head (NPSH) and
is generally not a consideration when the
pump equipment is sited at the bottom of a
tall system, with the pump seeing the whole
static head of the system.
WATER PRESSURE
HIGH RISE SYSTEMS
However, following our overall approach of
joined up thinking, the circulating pump cost
may be significantly reduced if it is moved
to the top of the system. In doing so it must
also be considered that a slight increase in
fill pressure is required at this point to make
sure that the NPSH requirements of the
pump are also met.
It is also worth remembering that while
pump flexibles may have braided stainless
coverings, the inside is flexible rubber.
When the NPSH is not properly considered
(on any size of system), the flexibles can
collapse internally and starve the pump
(and system) potentially causing significant
damage and cost.
Happily, traditional expansion vessels are not
the only solution, balanced pressurisation
equipment offers an efficient atmospheric
vessel solution that is not affected by the
static height of the building. Unfortunately,
there is no way to ignore or negate the
effects of static height at the point of
connection, and so the associated pumpsets,
required to overcome high static pressures,
are still an expensive and sometimes
bespoke solution.
This takes us straight back to the main
purpose of this document, best practice has
expansion vessels and pressurisation units,
whether traditional or balanced, installed
at the top of a system, especially those that
have a static pressure greater than 60m. n
www.flamco.co.uk
BACK TO CONTENTS 101
 WATER HEATERS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY

IS COMPLIANCE
ENOUGH FOR
WATER HEATERS?
The Energy-related Products Directive has provided
welcome transparency and a marked shift towards energy-
efficient products in the heating and hot water sectors, but we
need to go further, says Kevin Potter, business development
manager for hot water solutions at Hamworthy Heating.

Kevin Potter
Hamworthy Heating -
Business development manager
Last year saw an alarming trend across the
globe. Heatwaves with temperatures at an
all-time high and a considerable shortage of
rain caused countless fires across the UK and
mainland Europe.
Are these the late or early warning signs for
global warming?
Climate change, without question, is a matter
concerning us all. One piece of legislation to
help reduce the impact on carbon emissions
was the introduction of the Energy-related
Products Directive (ErP) in 2015 for heating and
hot water products.
With an aim to achieve a carbon reduction of 20%
compared to the 1990 baseline by 2020, the newest
set of rules is coming into force in September.
Which ErP standards have been introduced over
the last three years for water heaters and what
can be expected from the future?
The Climate Change Committee (CCC) has
warned, the public might be facing an
“unnecessarily expensive deal” to transition to
a low-carbon economy. Although the UK has
saved 43% carbon emissions compared to the
1990 baseline with steady economic growth at
the same time, reaching future carbon targets
will be a challenge.
While many sectors have seen a significant
reduction in emissions since 2008, other
sectors such as buildings have fallen behind in
the last five years. The consequence? We won’t
meet the fourth (2023-2027) 51% reduction
or fifth (2028-2032) 57% reduction carbon
budget – unless the delivery risks of planned
policies are reduced and new additional
measures to cut emissions are announced.
We saw the introduction of the first set of ErP
rules in 2015. Among others, one of them were
the minimum energy efficiency standards
which eliminated most atmospheric heating
boilers. In the case of water heaters, these are
most visible in the form of an ErP energy label,
which is applied to lower output water heaters
≤70kW and hot water storage tanks ≤500 litres.
The underlying Ecodesign requirements,
however, cover not only domestic appliances,
but water heaters with an output of ≤400kW
and storage volumes of ≤2,000 litres – a
large part of the commercial sector. These
are general product design requirements
regarding water heating energy efficiency,
storage volume, nitrogen oxide levels, and
standby losses etc. Especially in terms of
efficiency, manufacturers felt encouraged
to not only comply with the legislation, but
exceed the requirements. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 103

WATER HEATERS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
“The enforcement of minimum energy efficiencies has
been a welcome step towards the reduction of CO2
emissions, thanks to lower gas use. Additionally, it has
had a positive effect on energy bills.”
September 2015 saw the introduction of
Tier 1 of the minimum energy efficiency
requirements for water heaters. Energy labels
for lower output models were introduced, with
energy efficiency classes ranging from A to G.
The enforcement of minimum energy
efficiencies has been a welcome step towards
the reduction of CO2 emissions, thanks to
lower gas use. Additionally, it has had a
positive effect on energy bills. The application
of energy labels has also allowed consumers
for the first time to identify how efficient is a
new product.
Tightening energy efficiency requirements
and label updates
On 26 September 2017, stricter energy
efficiency requirements (Tier 2) were
introduced. Additionally, standing loss limits
for hot water storage tanks and solar water
heaters were applied. These are aimed at
reducing energy wastage caused by
heat being lost to the environment.
To reflect the shift towards
higher energy efficiency
products, the energy label
was also updated to
range from A+ to F,
as products rated
as “G” would
not meet the
requirements
anymore.
On 26 September 2018, energy efficiency
requirements have tightened again (Tier 3).
NOx emissions limits to combat air
pollution will also be introduced.
The impact on atmospheric
water heaters
The changes affect mostly atmospheric water
heaters with lower efficiency and generally
higher NOx emissions compared to their
condensing counterparts. There may be
ErP-compliant low NOx non-condensing
products on the market.
However, is it enough to comply, given our
carbon emission situation as outlined in
the Clean Growth Strategy and the fourth
and fifth carbon budget? Non-condensing
water heaters will not reach the same high
efficiency levels as condensing water heaters,
which also recover heat from exhaust gases.
As previously mentioned, the G-rated
Energy Label category was removed in
2017 while the “A+” band reflecting highest
efficiency was introduced. The trend should
be clear – the higher the efficiency, the
better. Both carbon emissions and NOx
emissions will become harder to achieve
and the energy rating bands pushed up
higher. We should be looking at the energy
(cost) saving long-term goal and not the
lower upfront cost short-term fix.
Refurbishment
When is an atmospheric water heater the
default choice? In refurbishment projects,
like-for-like replacements are economical
and more convenient, especially with
restricted budgets, difficult flue situations
and in distress purchase scenarios.

“While low NOx atmospheric
water heaters are ‘the easy way
out’ in the short term for like-for-
like replacements, we advise a long-
term planning approach. Opting for a
condensing model means more efficient
operation, lower carbon emissions and in
turn energy cost savings.”
Atmospheric water heaters are often used as
minimal flue changes are required. However,
efficiencies compared to condensing models
are lower. Notwithstanding, condensing
water heaters do require a full flue system
change to deal with the acidic nature of the
flue condensate.
What if there is a bank of atmospheric boilers
and atmospheric water heaters on a combined
flue where only the latter need replacing?
If the water heaters are being upgraded to
condensing models, the flue system will need
to be separated as condensing appliances
cannot be combined on the same flue as
atmospheric models.
However, if separating the two appliance
groups is not possible due to space and
budget constraints and possible flue runs, an
indirectly heated calorifier can be an option
if sufficient boiler capacity is available. If not,
a replacement of both the boiler and water
heaters to highly efficient condensing models
for greater efficiency and energy saving gains
is a viable alternative.
Although they may be more expensive than
atmospheric models, condensing models
benefit from higher efficiencies, which achieve
cost savings for the consumer.
When the CCC points out “buildings” (which
implies energy usage, too) as one of the
sectors lagging behind in terms of carbon
savings, it makes sense to opt for the most
efficient option.
We also cannot foresee legislation changes
which is why a planned, long-term
“prevention is better than cure” approach
for refurbishments is advisable.
WATER HEATERS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
This means distress purchases can be
avoided and systems can be fitted out with
the most efficient water heater alternatives,
namely condensing water heaters.
The carbon saving potential in our sector
becomes clear just looking at the sheer
number of HVAC products installed in
commercial, public and domestic buildings.
Climate change is a threat and the
carbon budget gap outlined by the CCC
a real concern. Only a joint effort and the
introduction of concrete measures will make
achieving the carbon budgets realistic.
It is our responsibility as manufacturers
to educate about and work on providing
the most efficient solutions. While low
NOx atmospheric water heaters are ‘the
easy way out’ in the short term for like-
for-like replacements, we advise a long-
term planning approach. Opting for a
condensing model means more efficient
operation, lower carbon emissions and in
turn energy cost savings.
For situations where flues and budgets are
a constraint, calorifiers might become the
most cost-effective choice.
Taking on the carbon reductions and with
the price hike of natural resources such as
gas in mind, choosing the best efficiency
available is in the best interest of end user
and environment. n
www.hamworthy-heating.com
BACK TO CONTENTS 105
 TECHNICAL
The technology available to building engineers
and their clients is changing all the time. In this
section, we take a look at the most important
options and how to make the right choices.

109
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
SFG20
Grenfell inquiry raises stakes
for building maintenance
113
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
119
WATER SYSTEMS
123
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
LEADERSHIP SKILLS LEGIONELLA CLEAN AIR ACT
Stepping up to lead Legionella still on the rise UK poised to adopt
new clean air act

129
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
INDOOR AIR QUALITY
Soaring asthma rate
strengthens case for IAQ
137
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
147
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
155
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
VENTILATION HYGIENE SMOKE CONTROL AIR FILTRATION
Ventilation hygiene specialists Why Grenfell’s smoke control Breathing easier
target kitchen safety system didn’t stand a chance

159
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
KITCHEN VENTILATION
BESA revamps kitchen
ventilation guidance
165
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
HEATWAVES
UK heatwaves may kill thousands
167
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
173
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK /IAQ
OFF GASSING LEV
What is it and why it matters Time to get tough in the kitchen

106
 TECHNICAL
CONTENTS

179
HEATING SOLUTIONS
185
AIR CONDITIONING
193
AIR CONDITIONING
196
SUPPLY CHAIN
ENERGY EFFICIENCY REFRIGERATION RAC80 BG6 REVISION
Integrated approach will help Air conditioning sector facing RAC80 provides latest AC and Engage brain and redraw
industry reach efficiency heights safety fears heat pump guidance the ‘fuzzy red lines’

198
CONTROL SYSTEMS
KNOWLEDGE
The power of people

107

GRENFELL
INQUIRY RAISES
STAKES FOR BUILDING
MAINTENANCE
The lessons learned from the Grenfell Tower tragedy
must lead to a new culture of improved building
management and maintenance, according to BESA’s
head of business development Steve Tomkins.
‘Systemic failings’ in the way buildings are
designed, delivered and managed were
harshly exposed in the report produced
by the independent Review of Building
Regulations and Fire Safety chaired by Dame
Judith Hackitt following the tragic Grenfell
Tower fire.
The review team emphasised the importance
of making sure building regulations now focus
on the whole lifecycle of buildings and are
backed up by higher levels of competence
Steve Tomkins and compliance – particularly in higher risk
BESA - Head of business residential buildings.
development
The report is a once in a generation call for
fundamental change in the way that we
regulate the operation of buildings with a
strong emphasis on viewing buildings as a
system, rather than a collection of separate
components.
The Hackitt Review highlighted the need for
better reporting processes for buildings after
they have been handed over and a new way
of managing the way projects are signed off
via a reformed building control process. The
construction and building services industries
will be required to provide enhanced
digital information to support the ongoing
management of buildings, it said.
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
SFG20
There will be much clearer roles and
responsibilities for duty holders during
occupation, including regularly updating the
safety strategy, which will be supported by a
mandatory incident reporting mechanism if
the review’s recommendations are adopted.
Competence
The government will continue to manage the
regulatory regime, but will be expected to
make it clearer and simpler to follow, while the
industry will be expected to improve technical
standards and professional competence.
The inquiry also made recommendations to
improve procurement practices including a
focus on the whole life cost, which should lead
to a new culture around the management and
maintenance of buildings – particularly those
considered to be ‘complex’ or ‘high risk’.
There is no doubt that our industry is moving
into a new era and, in the future, we will look
back on Grenfell as a defining moment for the
whole building management regime. We will,
undoubtedly, see greater use of digital tools to
support the changes proposed by the Hackitt
Review and the industry will need improved access
to data that allows it to manage and maintain
buildings more effectively – and safely. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 109
 FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
SFG20

“Our SFG20 maintenance

tool (www.sfg20.co.uk)
makes best practice widely
available and easy to access. As
well as featuring 970 maintenance
task schedules covering more than
60 equipment types, SFG20 also gives
users the opportunity to customise
maintenance schedules, including service
times, frequency and criticality ratings.”

BESA has been following the post-Grenfell If Dame Judith’s recommendations are
process very carefully and we take our adopted, as is widely anticipated following
responsibilities seriously. We are also the current consultation process, the
supporting members and the wider industry industry will need to use all the tools at its
to step up competence and compliance in disposal to bring building management and
line with the improvements envisaged by maintenance into line. These are going to be
Dame Judith. challenging times, but the ultimate reward
will be better and safer buildings. n
Our SFG20 maintenance tool (www.sfg20.co.uk)
makes best practice widely available and easy
to access. As well as featuring 970 maintenance
task schedules covering more than 60
equipment types, SFG20 also gives users
the opportunity to customise maintenance
schedules, including service times, frequency
and criticality ratings.

It highlights equipment that requires regular

maintenance in order to keep a building
compliant with legislation. It is also aligned
with rapidly emerging digital working methods
and is constantly updated to capture evolving
service and maintenance techniques.

SFG20 is also helping to smooth the way for

the wider adoption of digital design methods,
including Building Information Modelling
(BIM), by helping building managers present
information in a standard, usable format.
It has been adapted so it can now accept
building design information imported directly
from BIM software.

BACK TO CONTENTS 111

 FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
LEADERSHIP SKILLS

STEPPING
UP TO LEAD
The expansion of the FM profession has diluted
the involvement of specialists from a technical
background. However, a rapid shift in the market
requires them to step forward again and lead from the
front, according to Geoff Prudence*, director of facilities
and infrastructure at University College London.

Geoff Prudence
University College London -
Director of facilities and
infrastructure
Facilities managers find their way into the
profession from backgrounds as varied as
business administration, HR and hospitality,
but the world is changing. The game-
changing impact of new technologies, means
those from engineering or building/surveying
backgrounds are in greater demand again –
those charged with managing so-called ‘hard’
FM services.
It is particular to FM engineering that senior
positions are often held by white, middle-
aged-to-older males. While there are efforts
to increase greater inclusivity in engineering
and technical subjects across the spectrum,
the emerging shift in the labour market for
technical FMs is tied to the retirement of
those entering the profession in the 1970s
and 1980s.
In those days, there were plenty of large
organisations with the capacity and the
requirement to invest in training and resources.
These included bodies such as the Property
Services Agency (PSA) and National Health
Authority, as well as the nationalised utilities
such as British Rail, British Gas and the Central
Electricity Generating Board (CEGB).
Further demand came from the motor
industry (Ford, and the giant British Leyland)
and from production and manufacturing
(British Steel, the National Coal Board).
Where such entities remain today, in general
they have neither the demand nor capacity to
invest in training and apprentices. And where
they still exist as client-side functions, in many
areas the requirement for strong technical/
management skills has diminished.
A combination of altered political priorities,
an evolving economy and an associated shift
in working culture has led to a well-publicised
demise in the number of applicants for
engineering service posts and the attraction
of science and technical subjects in schools
and universities, the latter despite a variety of
efforts and initiatives from both institutions
and government to spark fresh interest.
Today, those who do take up a career in
building services engineering typically end
up in a design/construction or operational
management/maintenance/facilities
management role.
And while there is slightly more interest
in technical/engineering careers now, the
sector is having to deal with the many senior
experienced personnel now retiring from
the profession. The routes that shaped their
experience and skill sets no longer exist; there
is no formal development of a pipeline of new
technical FMs to take their place and thus meet
the many challenges that our technologically
fluid future demands. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 113


“Workplace performance is directly influenced by the
design, operation and maintenance of lighting, heating,
cooling, and thermal comfort. The drive towards smart
buildings, big data and artificial / automated intelligence
provide further opportunities.”
It is the critical building service environments
– data centres, financial services, production,
manufacturing – that have continued to attract
those at the high end of the building service
engineering market, the nature of the risk
and potential impact of failure on corporate
reputation putting a premium on specialism.
Given the mission-critical nature of the
role, it is relatively easy to isolate the
priorities that technical FM demands of
its practitioners. While physical resilience
in building engineering systems is key,
so increasingly, is the resilience of the
technical FMs managing them.
Paramount
In particular, while technical specialism is
part and parcel of the role, interpersonal
relationship management is becoming
paramount. Strong leadership skills are
now essential to manage in these
environments, with demanding
clients and closer links between
technical FM and other
departments introducing
new management skill
set demands.
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
LEADERSHIP SKILLS
CIBSE Knowledge Series KS21 document
explains that “management of existing
building stock is suffering from a decline in
skilled staff…as a result of political change and
corporate pressures to perform financially”.
So, we need a further intervention of
technical management and leadership
skills to meet the future. The market, types
of contract, the drive to ‘commoditise FM’,
outsourcing models and transfer of risk
to supply chain and so on may all have
contributed to the current position. Good
technical managers are now very much at a
premium – but their potential future is also
very exciting.
Workplace performance is directly
influenced by the design, operation and
maintenance of lighting, heating, cooling,
and thermal comfort. The drive towards
smart buildings, big data and artificial /
automated intelligence provide further
opportunities. This doesn’t just apply to
building services, but to the expanding
‘workplace’ across industry sector
boundaries, but to be effective, leadership
in hard FM provision demands a much
wider skills set.
The idea that you cannot simultaneously
be a “people person” and an excellent BSE/
technical manager has to be challenged.
Leadership will be the differentiating
factor to drive the change required both
in organisations and the sector potential
as a whole – creating the physical and
emotional environment for people to
perform and grow. This in turn, will unlock
the innovation and deliver the results and
respect the FM sector aspires to. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 115
membership
means setting
market-leading
technical
standards

www.thebesa.com

“Energy and sustainability have
highlighted a growing need for
excellent FM. As well as challenging
the need for property, successful
businesses are not only driving out
unnecessary costs and utilisation through
efficiencies, but also maximising the benefits
of effective workplace regimes and practices
to enhance their business performance.”
To support that, leaders will guarantee
effective succession planning through skills
development and opportunities to learn,
challenge and reflect on varied aspects of work
in the sector.
While it is always recognised as part of the
project design function, there continues to
be an even greater awareness for operational
and maintenance (systems thinking) in the
design process.
Acknowledging that a need for collaboration
and effectiveness in the BSE role is demanded
through such documents as RIBA’s Plan
of Work, the government’s Soft Landings,
management of building information models
(BIM), among other drivers, it is here that the
opportunity (and challenge) exists to make it
happen in practice.
Building services engineers must fuse existing
technical design/operational capability (and
experience) with leadership and its associated
influencing skills in the marketplace of the future.
Focusing on energy shows why this
matters. A performance gap created by an
incomplete design stage assessment of
operational energy use is often made wider
by ‘value engineering’ during the design and
construction phases. The overriding duty of
an FM is to ensure that the buildings they are
responsible for work effectively. Their practical
involvement in value engineering would be as
a stakeholder to champion building energy-
efficiency measures during this exercise.
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Here is where leadership skills come to
the fore. Energy and sustainability have
highlighted a growing need for excellent FM.
As well as challenging the need for property,
successful businesses are not only driving out
unnecessary costs and utilisation through
efficiencies, but also maximising the benefits
of effective workplace regimes and practices to
enhance their business performance.
To feed this need there is the additional
dimension required to attract, develop and
retain the best people in their chosen field.
It is not possible to recreate the skills drive
that informed the technical FMs of the 1970s
and 1980s, but we can recognise the elements
that, back then, produced rounded, technical
experts who developed into managers and
leaders – and create similar technical FMs for
the future.
We must grasp the opportunity that such
technical leadership skills will provide for the
benefit of future design, builds and effective
operation of future workplaces and the
exciting career structure it could generate. n
*As well as his role at UCL, Geoff Prudence
is a former chair of the CIBSE Facilities
Management group and a widely respected
FM industry expert.
BACK TO CONTENTS 117
 WATER SYSTEMS
LEGIONELLA

LEGIONELLA
STILL ON
THE RISE
The number of cases of Legionnaires’ disease
is still rising around the world with cutbacks
in building maintenance often to blame.

Deaths and serious illnesses resulting from Danger

Legionnaires’ disease remain prevalent in hotels,
hospitals and other public buildings, and are
usually the consequence of poor maintenance
regimes or management complacency.
There are around 300 reported cases in the UK
every year and 120,000 people are thought
to have died in the US since the cause of the
disease was established there more than 40
years ago. [It was first identified and received
its name following an outbreak among
delegates at a meeting of the American Legion
in a Philadelphia hotel in July 1976.]
In the UK, it is 15 years since the landmark
outbreak in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria that
led to seven deaths and another 180 people
taken ill, but still we have regular outbreaks
in workplaces, hotels, hospitals and other
public buildings.
Reporting of cases and diagnosis have both
improved. However, there is also concern
about mutation of the bacteria some of
which are now becoming resistant to higher
temperatures and multiplying in lower
temperatures. Also, as the focus increases on
saving energy, more building operators are
switching off and/or turning down hot water
systems overnight and at weekends to save
money and cut carbon emissions.
This can lower the temperature of the stored
hot water into the ‘danger zone’ between 20°C
- 50°C range, which is the ideal temperature
range for legionella bacteria to thrive. The
optimum temperature is thought to be 37°C.
With more solar thermal heating systems
in use, risks can increase because more hot
water can be stored with these systems in
temperatures that allow the bacteria to flourish.
Solar installations need particular care, special
control measures to maintain temperatures
and regular checking.
Another contributory factor has been the
measures used to tackle hot water scalding
including the use of blending valves, which
can also lower hot water temperatures into the
‘legionella zone’. Some strains of the legionella
bacteria are able to survive the low level dosing
of chlorine dioxide that goes on in larger
facilities like hospitals.
However, the general threat is poor
maintenance and monitoring. Budgetary
pressures have forced many facilities
managers and building operators to reduce
the frequency and thoroughness of system
checks. In many instances, a vital initial risk
assessment is never carried out. >>

BACK TO CONTENTS 119


“Legal obligations for building owners and occupiers are
set out in a single document, published by the Health and
Safety Commission (HSC), called ‘Legionnaires’ disease –
The control of legionella bacteria in water systems’.”
A regular programme of inspection and
maintenance of air conditioning, water holding
and water supply systems is essential if future
deaths from Legionnaires’ disease are to be
avoided. When clusters of cases occur they can
typically be traced back to poorly maintained
cooling tower systems, air conditioning plant
or hot and cold water systems.
Legal obligations for building owners and
occupiers are set out in a single document,
published by the Health and Safety
Commission (HSC), called ‘Legionnaires’ disease
– The control of legionella bacteria in water
systems’. This is an HSC Approved Code of
Practice (ACoP), commonly referred to as L8.
This makes it clear that it is the building
owner’s responsibility to put a proper control
strategy in place that includes a system for
managing the maintenance of water systems.
Regular monitoring, with the records kept
for five years and training for everyone in the
management chain with their skills updated
periodically – are also obligatory.
In the US, the technical society
ASHRAE revised its Standard 188
last year to provide a more
comprehensive approach to
preventing the growth and
spread of Legionella.
WATER SYSTEMS
LEGIONELLA
Enforceable
ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 188-2018, Legionellosis:
Risk Management for Building Water Systems
establishes minimum legionella risk management
requirements for building water systems.
The 2018 edition provides clarification of
compliance requirements and uses enforceable,
code-intended language. Copies can be
purchased here: www.ashrae.org/bookstore
“Standard 188 was the first industry standard
in the US to address Legionnaire’s disease
prevention,” said Paul Lindahl, chair of the
Standard 188 committee. “Since it centres
on the development and implementation of
good design, operations and maintenance
procedures, it is important to make updates on
a regular basis. The 2018 edition of the standard
focuses on improved usability, offering better
guidance to minimise the risk of this potentially
fatal disease and save lives.”
The revised standard also provides a description of
environmental conditions that promote the growth
of Legionella; annexes and bibliography with
suggestions, recommendations, and references to
additional guidance; minimum risk management
requirements for buildings and associated
potable and non-potable water systems; as
well as control strategies and documentation.
That is highly valuable guidance and is
increasingly being adopted by US state
administrations. However, in the UK L8 already
has legal status. Therefore, if a building operator
here does not follow its instructions they leave
themselves open to potentially expensive
action. It is also not enough to simply focus on
cooling towers. The legionella bacteria can be
present where ever water is used or stored.
However, the main message from experts
on both sides of the Atlantic is to put robust
management systems in place and, above all,
to avoid complacency about a threat that lies
dormant for most of the time until given the
right conditions in which to flourish. n
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UK POISED
TO ADOPT NEW
CLEAN AIR ACT
Momentum is building behind a powerful political
campaign to deliver a new Clean Air Act for the UK. This
could have a significant impact on the building engineering
sector’s growing workload in Indoor Air Quality (IAQ).
The draft legislation placed before Parliament
last summer to update the existing Clean Air Act,
which was passed in the 1950s when Winston
Churchill was Prime Minister and was persuaded of
the need to tackle urban smog, includes a strong
provision for tackling air quality inside buildings.
It includes a section on ‘action to reduce
emissions in the home’, which looks at the steps
households should take to reduce exposure to
airborne contaminants – including increasing
and maintaining ventilation. It also mentions a
commitment to improve consumer awareness of
the potential impacts of poor indoor air quality
(IAQ) and the medical implications – particularly
for the young, elderly and infirm.
The draft policy also looks at the impact of
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) alongside
the effect of pollution from external sources.
The Background
Pollution is said to be responsible for around
40,000 premature deaths in the UK every year
and costs the NHS over £20bn annually.
As awareness of outdoor air pollution has risen
in recent years so indoor air quality (IAQ) has
started to hit the headlines – not least with the
publication of a number of hard hitting reports
on its impact on human health.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
CLEAN AIR ACT
It is, however, less well understood and publicised
than outdoor pollution – and politicians seem
particularly confused by the concept. However,
clearly the two are linked with buildings standing
as potential barriers between the worst of what
lurks in the outdoor air and their occupants.
Unfortunately, it is not as simple as that
because the indoor environment also generates
its own hazards and it is this complex equation
of risk factors that confronts the building
engineering profession.
Those most at risk from poor IAQ, such as
the young, elderly or seriously ill, are often
demographic groups that spend the longest
periods of time indoors – and a growing number
of urban areas are well outside World Health
Organisation (WHO) limits for airborne pollutants.
Biological and chemical pollutants contribute
to poor IAQ and are injurious to health.
Biological pollutants include: Bacteria, moulds,
viruses, dust mites, pollen etc:
Chemical Pollutants include: Carbon Monoxide;
Carbon Dioxide; tobacco smoke; perfume; body
odours; VOCs from paints, varnishes, cleaning
products; dust, asbestos, lead; ozone... and more
‘Create a clean air zone every time you close your door’
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BESA indoor air quality group
Against the backdrop of growing alarm over
toxic external air pollution, the Association’s IAQ
Group wants to deliver practical guidance so the
building engineering industry can turn buildings
into safe havens and promote indoor spaces
as ‘indoor clean air zones’ to complement the
current political momentum behind much-
needed legislation.
The group is working on guidance to ensure IAQ
engineering is undertaken to a good standard
to prevent the health risks that come from
breathing in poor quality air.
People spend, on average, more than 80% of
their time indoors and measures to protect them
from the worst effects of outdoor pollution when
they are inside buildings are relatively cheap and
easy to deliver being primarily linked to service
and maintenance best practice. In the main, they
do not require major capital cost outlay.
Creating indoor clean air zones can be
done rapidly and at low cost – if everyone is
clear about what is meant by IAQ and what is
required to deliver it.
This guidance will draw on all the existing guidance
and expert knowledge considered relevant by
the Group with a view to making it available to
BESA members and the industry at large.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
CLEAN AIR ACT
The drafting process will draw on the expertise
from within the Group and the first stage will
be to draw up a list of members and industry
contacts who should be invited to feed into the
process. (See list overleaf).
It is also envisaged that the Standard could be
used as the basis for a building inspection
scheme to help owners and landlords promote
their buildings as ‘Safe Havens’ from external
pollution. The inspection regime could lead to
a rating system similar to EPCs with buildings
graded from A-G for indoor air quality based on
a range of parameters outlined in the Standard.
It could also be used as a basis for future
statutory annual IAQ inspections– a building
‘MoT’ – as both national and local governments
ramp up action over pollution in wake of
various legal actions.
The Standard will be published as a series of
chapters which can be released in the form
of BESA Technical Bulletins as they become
available. These can be offered for public
review and amendment before being added to
a more comprehensive Standard in due course.
It will be a ‘dynamic’ document available
online and able to be regularly updated
and revised. It will also reference and link to
sources of more in-depth information on each
section/topic. As well as keeping it relevant,
this will also avoid the need for the Standard
to be overly large and unwieldy. It will also be
accessible and understandable for a non-
technical audience – particularly clients and
end users, who can use it to set targets and as
reference for their expert teams.
Ultimately, the Standard will create a level
playing field so that the definition of IAQ
becomes standardised across the sector. It will
clearly set out how audits should be carried
out and ensure remedial actions follow a
set process with clear aims and targets for
safeguarding occupant health and well-being.
Technical background
Air is full of many different types of pollutants
which include carbon dioxide (CO2), volatile
organic compounds (VOC) and particulate
matter (PM). These can all have an impact
on our health. Particulate matter can be
responsible for respiratory problems and can
lead to lung cancer. Meanwhile high levels of
CO2 can cause oxygen deprivation which leads
to dizziness, suffocation or even death if the
levels are high enough. >>
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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

CLEAN AIR ACT

“Creating indoor clean air

zones can be done rapidly and
at low cost – if everyone is clear
about what is meant by IAQ and
what is required to deliver it.”

Although poor outdoor air quality impacts indoor air quality, some of the internal air contains
contaminants which have not been bought in from the outside, but originate indoors.
There are two types of indoor air pollutants: biological and chemical.

Biological pollutants include mould which can start to grow if the levels of humidity are high within
a building or if there are leaks in the plumbing or even excess condensation. This mould contains
biological chemicals which can be highly dangerous or even fatal for people asthma sufferers or
the elderly. Radon can also be a cause for concern as it can come from the buildings and has been
responsible for over 1100 deaths from lung cancer each year in the UK.

Name of Pollutant Source Associated Risk

Excess humidity, plumbing Harmful to breathing especially for asthma

Mould
leaks, condensation sufferers and the elderly

Responsible for over 1100 deaths from lung

Radon Building materials
cancer each year

Carbon Monoxide and Dioxide Smoke, Faulty central Oxygen deprivation leading to dizziness,
(CO and CO2) heating, Space heaters nausea, unconsciousness

Particulate Matter (PM) Dust, smoke, pollen Respiratory problems leading to lung cancer

Volatile Organic Compounds Paint, cleaning supplies,

Respiratory problems
(VOC) adhesives etc.

There are certain thresholds set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for these pollutants to
highlight what is considered safe to inhale. These are:

CO2 VOC PM2.5 Humidity

<800ppm <300ppb <25μg/m3 30%-50%

Ppm = parts per million

Ppb = parts per billion

Further negative impacts from Pollution can be found at: www.cleanairday.org.uk/references n

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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

INDOOR AIR QUALITY

SOARING
ASTHMA RATE
STRENGTHENS
CASE FOR IAQ
Building occupants are under siege from a
battery of potential health threats, according
to BESA’s Indoor Air Quality group.

The UK has one of the worst asthma rates in
Europe with deaths linked to the condition
rising by 20% in the last five years. We are
now languishing fourth from bottom of the
European league table with a fatality rate
50% higher than the EU average, according
to research published to coincide with World
Asthma Day.
An estimated five million people suffer from
asthma in the UK, including a very high
number of children, and falling air quality
is one of the biggest contributors to this
growing health crisis.
At the same time, the UK and five other nations
have been referred to the European Court of
Justice for failing to tackle air pollution, which
is linked to more than 400,000 early deaths
across Europe each year.
Along with France, Germany, Hungary, Italy
and Romania, we have been issued with a
‘final warning’ over concentrations of nitrogen
dioxide (NO2), which have been above the
legal limit in most urban areas since 2010. The
government now has until the end of this year
to impose tougher air quality measures or
face potential multi-million pound fines.
All of this is building up a head of steam for
ongoing efforts by the building services sector
to increase investment in indoor air quality
(IAQ) measures for buildings.
Emergency
Last year, no less than four parliamentary
committees slated the government’s approach
to air pollution and called for a new Clean Air
Act, which may finally be passed this year.
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs;
Environmental Audit; Health and Social
Care; and Transport committees produced
a joint report in which they dismissed the
government’s Air Quality Plan as “box ticking”
and said the pollution problem should be
treated as a national health emergency.
The report came hot on the heels of a third
successful legal action taken by environmental
law firm ClientEarth in the High Court. It
secured a ruling that UK air quality policy
continues to be ‘unlawful’ because it fails to
require 40 English local authorities to take
action despite breaching EU pollution limits.
The committees’ report claimed that the £3bn
Plan, launched by the government last year,
was not addressing the fact that air quality
breaches World Health Organisation (WHO)
guidelines in 44 UK towns and cities. >>

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“An estimated five million people suffer from asthma
in the UK, including a very high number of children,
and falling air quality is one of the biggest contributors
to this growing health crisis.”
This costs the country £20bn a year because
it contributes to an estimated 40,000 early
deaths, the MPs said.
They accused the government of failing to
take “bold, affirmative action” by opting for a
compliance-led response. The Environmental
Audit Committee’s chair Mary Creagh said
the country needed a new Act that would
continue to hold the government “accountable
for failures to achieve air quality commitments
after the UK leaves the EU”.
Unfortunately, most measures envisioned by
pollution campaigners and politicians focus
exclusively on methods for reducing outdoor
pollution. While that is clearly the right way
to go for the long-term health of the nation,
speedier and lower cost measures aimed at
improving indoor air and which could quickly
reduce asthma cases, for example, get very
little air time – if you pardon the pun.
Local and central government officials have
missed (or ignored) the link between
outside air pollution and building related
health problems for years. Within the
building engineering community
we have been pointing out for
some time that polluted air
does not simply mysteriously
disappear when it reaches
a building. On the
contrary, it has a
catastrophic impact
on indoor air
quality (IAQ).
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
INDOOR AIR QUALITY
Yet, while there have been plenty of
high profile efforts to measure outside
air pollutants and lots of political
grandstanding on the issue – there has been
almost total silence on what all this means
for the indoor environment. This is despite
the fact that we spend most of our lives –
more than 80% – indoors.
Traffic is responsible for most of the NO2
pollution imposed on building occupants.
This is known to cause inflammation of
the airways, reduce lung function and
exacerbate asthma with particulates
also linked to heart and lung diseases as
well as certain cancers. NO2 alone is held
responsible for more than 23,000 premature
deaths every year in the UK.
Vehicles produce 42% of carbon monoxide,
46% of nitrogen oxides and 26% of
particulate matter pollution – exacerbated
by the now discredited policy of promoting
diesel vehicles. In the wake of the VW
‘dieselgate’ scandal, the main focus of
political pressure – and the planned
new Clean Air Act – is, therefore, on ultra
low emission zones in cities and vehicle
emissions restrictions with total bans
planned for decades hence, but what do we
do in the meantime to protect people?
Invisible
The BESA Indoor Air Quality group
continues to ram home the message that,
while ventilation systems may be ‘out of
sight out of mind’ and the air we breathe
is invisible, that does not make the link
between airborne pollutants and increasing
rates of respiratory disease less obvious. It
is campaigning for indoor clean air zones
to be included in the legislation envisioned
within the proposed new Act. >>
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INDOOR AIR QUALITY

“Traffic is responsible for most

of the NO2 pollution imposed
on building occupants. This is
known to cause inflammation of
the airways, reduce lung function and
exacerbate asthma with particulates
also linked to heart and lung diseases
as well as certain cancers.”

This would help to address current anomalies
like NHS technical design guidance being
exclusively focused on managing the risk
posed by the transmission of infections
inside a building. Measures to mitigate the
threat from external air and its impact on
patients (most of whose immunity systems
are compromised) should be a consideration
for every healthcare facility.
The building engineering services industry
has a wide range of solutions to offer
including filtration, but also other (mainly low
cost) improvements, such as upgrading fans
and simple maintenance. These would not
only reduce health risks to building occupants,
but also do it in a way that improves the
overall efficiency of the ventilation and so
significantly cut running costs.
This same argument applies to a wide range
of buildings with vulnerable occupants at risk
from outside air pollutants – schools being the
most obvious example.
Those most at risk from poor IAQ, such as
the young, elderly or seriously ill, are often
demographic groups that spend the longest
periods of time indoors – mostly within the
growing number of urban areas that are
outside WHO limits for airborne pollutants.
An air filtration system from the Danish
company Airlabs claims to remove 95% of
traffic fumes and residual airborne pollutants
to protect staff and customers in the Bond
Street shop, which suffers – like all central
London streets – from exceptionally high levels
of NO2 – particularly at street level. The Body
Shop is also using the Airlabs system.
The BESA Group continues to work on practical
guidance so the building engineering industry
can turn all buildings – even ones with much
more modest budgets than luxury fashion
retailers – into safe havens.
Creating indoor clean air zones can be done
rapidly and at low cost – if everyone is clear
about what is meant by IAQ and what is
required to deliver it. They will also buy us
valuable time as politicians wrangle over
ways of cleaning up our toxic outdoor air in
the coming decades. n
For more information please visit:
www.theBESA.com/IAQ

And, where there is a will, there is a way. For

example, Stella McCartney’s new London store
has just opened complete with “cutting edge”
filter technology.

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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

VENTILATION HYGIENE

VENTILATION
HYGIENE
SPECIALISTS TARGET
KITCHEN SAFETY
With the spotlight firmly fixed on fire safety in
buildings following the Grenfell Tower tragedy,
building owners and operators are becoming increasingly
aware of the high risks posed by poorly cleaned and
maintained ventilation systems in commercial kitchens.

The need to provide a safe working Responsible

environment for staff; reduce fire risks; and
avoid contamination of food preparation areas
are all reasons why ductwork and kitchen
extract cleaning now sits at the top of the
agenda for many more building owners.
All employers are subject to health & safety
at work legislation, which requires them to
maintain conditions in occupied spaces that
protect the well-being of their staff. Building
owners also face rising costs and more stringent
conditions imposed on them by insurers
concerned about fires being spread through
poorly maintained ventilation systems.
Around a quarter of the 24,000 accidental fires
in UK non-domestic buildings each year are
caused by cooking appliances. London Fire
Brigade reports the outbreak of, at least, one
fire every day in a commercial kitchen in the
capital. They also confirmed that 90% of fires in
catering premises are intensified by ignition of
deposits inside grease extract ductwork.
It is not surprising; therefore, that grease
extract duct cleaning is the fastest growing
area of the ventilation hygiene industry.
However, while standards are improving, there
continues to be a large number of commercial
kitchen fires exacerbated and spread even into
neighbouring buildings by poorly maintained
and cleaned ventilation ductwork.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order
(RRO), which came into force in 2006, stipulates
that a ‘responsible person’ must ensure all
components of the fire safety system in a
building are kept in “efficient working order”
and “good repair”. They must carry out a fire
safety risk assessment and then put a planned
maintenance regime in place.
Failure to meet the requirements of the RRO
can lead to fines of up to £10,000 and two
years in prison for the designated responsible
person. Prohibition notices can close a
business down if the local fire officer is not
satisfied that the right measures, including
regular testing and maintenance of all system
parts, are in place.
That seems clear enough, but in a large
percentage of cases the ventilation system
is ignored because the designated fire risk
assessor does not recognise it as part of the
fire safety system.
They are more familiar with more obvious
items like sprinkler systems, fire escapes
and extinguishers, but grease from cooking
processes that coats the inside of ductwork very
quickly becomes a highly efficient medium for
transmitting fire throughout a building. >>

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VENTILATION HYGIENE

“Around a quarter of the

24,000 accidental fires in UK
non-domestic buildings each year
are caused by cooking appliances.
London Fire Brigade reports the
outbreak of, at least, one fire every day
in a commercial kitchen in the capital.”

Often a fire will start inside the ductwork
simply because the temperature becomes
high enough to ignite the grease – and
it can then spread to other parts of the
building (or other buildings) with potentially
catastrophic results.
The latest revision provides clarity about
when and to what standard grease extract
systems should be cleaned, and provides
a detailed explanation of the frequency
of cleaning required based on the type of
cooking and the hours of kitchen usage.

Many UK insurance providers now put
conditions and warranties in their policies
that can lead to claims being rejected on
the grounds that the building operator has
failed to maintain the ventilation effectively
– or, simply, can’t prove that they have
maintenance strategies in place.
The ventilation hygiene industry’s primary
source of guidance is TR/19 – a Guide to
Good Practice; ‘Internal Cleanliness of
Ventilation Systems’, which is published by
the Building Engineering Services Association
(BESA). Since it first appeared in 1998, TR/19
has been widely accepted within the building
engineering services sector and by the UK
insurance industry as the standard to which
ventilation systems should be cleaned.
The guiding principle of TR/19 is that a
defined, measurable level of cleanliness
should be achieved to improve safety and
comfort in buildings. It was recently updated
and expanded to complement the British
and European Standard BS EN 15780:
‘Ventilation for Buildings – Ductwork –
Cleanliness of Ventilation Systems’, which
highlights the important role ventilation
hygiene plays in maintaining healthy indoor
conditions for building occupants.
The biggest issue for many ventilation
hygiene companies is difficulty of gaining
access to the ductwork for cleaning, but it is
not acceptable for them to say that a system
was not fully cleaned because it was difficult
to gain access. TR/19 clearly states that, if
access panels are required, they should be
fitted by the cleaning contractor.
Impossible
Of course, the very nature of ventilation
ductwork means that it is often impossible to
access certain parts of the system – if they are
hidden behind walls, for example. However,
this must be clearly stated and explained
on post-clean reports. And, in general, most
access issues can be solved by fitting panels,
which is something most reputable firms do.
The importance of this aspect of the
process was illustrated by a recent case
in Nottinghamshire, where a cleaning
contractor’s insurers were forced to make
a payment of close to £1million to a hotel
following a fire damage claim. The nub of
the issue was that the contractor had relied
on reporting that ‘all accessible areas were
cleaned’ rather than actively pointing out
those that were not accessible. >>

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“Failure to meet the requirements of the RRO can lead
to fines of up to £10,000 and two years in prison for the
designated responsible person. Prohibition notices can
close a business down if the local fire officer is not satisfied
that the right measures, including regular testing and
maintenance of all system parts, are in place.”
The problem is that the booming grease
extract market has attracted some of the
‘wrong’ kind of cleaners who really don’t
understand ductwork; their responsibilities;
or the importance of delivering clean systems,
good advice and proper post-clean reporting.
We hear of many quotes for full system cleans
that are priced so low that they simply cannot
be carried out properly – in fact, the chances
are they are not carried out at all and the end
user is simply getting a superficial clean of a
kitchen canopy and any other visible parts of
the system.
While they might have been presented with
a nice certificate that suggests their system
has been cleaned, in reality they are being
lulled into a false sense of security as grease
continues to build up inside their ductwork.
The need to keep food preparation
areas free of contamination is
another increasingly important
area of potential reputational
risk and depends on air
systems being kept clear of
airborne contaminants.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
VENTILATION HYGIENE
Ensuring a robust process to verify the quality
of cleaning, particularly of grease extract
systems used by commercial kitchens, has
become a priority aspect of maintenance
strategies in thousands of buildings up and
down the country – and BESA has responded
by launching a registration scheme to help
building managers select appropriately
qualified companies able to provide a full
professional service.
The Ventilation Hygiene Elite (VHE) scheme
is approved and administered by the
Association’s independent certification arm
BESCA and is based on the best practice
outlined in TR/19. It is designed to give clients
the peace of mind that comes from employing
a verifiably competent specialist ventilation
hygiene contractor so they can keep their
building occupants safe; satisfy the increasing
demands of insurers; and protect their
corporate reputation.
BESA also runs a training scheme that
supports TR/19 and seeks to ensure
high standards throughout the sector
by promoting the high level of technical
competence needed to ensure ventilation
cleaning meets legal requirements.
Positive
The VHE scheme will help managers create
an auditable trail for the ventilation hygiene
provider and is also a good way of recording
employees’ work and ensuring they are
maintaining high standards. It also reduces
insurance risk and should, therefore, have a
positive impact on premiums. >>
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VENTILATION HYGIENE

“Ensuring a robust process to

verify the quality of cleaning
has become a priority aspect of
maintenance strategies in thousands
of buildings up and down the country
– and BESA has responded by launching
a registration scheme to help select
appropriately qualified companies able
to provide a full professional service.”

BESCA will audit firms’ work to ensure
standards are maintained and manage a
database of post-clean reports, which can
be used as an auditable trail by the member
firm; their clients and insurers. BESCA will
also carry out ongoing surveillance of each
registrant to confirm continuing compliance.
A BESCA certificate for all notified cleans that
meet the requirements will be automatically
generated for issue to the end client and
stored on a database for future reference.
“Such systems are without doubt a high
fire risk element, particularly when serving
commercial catering environments
and the scope and scale of damage is
often disproportionate to the size of the
establishment,” he added.
“It is essential, therefore, that standards of
cleanliness and the competence of those
engaged in the work are raised through
schemes like the VHE and the training
implemented in support.”

The scheme is now open to any firm
operating in the sector, who can provide
proof of competence and professionalism.
Eligible BESA members, who meet the
scheme’s criteria, will be allowed to join
for free, but all firms will be subject to the
ongoing audit process.
The scheme is also an excellent way for a
ventilation hygiene company to market
themselves, with help from BESA, as
providing a robust and verifiable industry
recognised expert service.
Mr Passey said insurers would continue
to push for improved standards “across all
facets of risk” through recommending the
use third party certified contractors because
they recognised the benefits this offers in
“ensuring good practice standards are met
routinely” and how this enhances “the safety
of occupants, protection of property and
business continuity”. n
For more information about the VHE scheme
please go to: www.besca.org.uk

“Fire spreading into and through kitchen

extract ductwork continues to be a significant
concern to property owners, occupiers
and insurers,” said Howard Passey, principal
consultant at the Fire Protection Association.

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SMOKE CONTROL

WHY GRENFELL’S
SMOKE CONTROL
SYSTEM DIDN’T
STAND A CHANCE
No smoke control system could have coped with the
extraordinary conditions that developed during the
Grenfell Tower fire, according to Conor Logan*.

The failure of the smoke ventilation system to Compliant

help firefighters evacuate Grenfell Tower is not
an indictment of the way we design, specify
and manage smoke control systems in the UK.
The Grenfell fire was unprecedented and no
smoke control system would have been able
to cope with the extraordinary circumstances
caused by a fire spreading so quickly up the
outside of the building. Neither, for that matter,
would sprinklers.
Conor Logan Fire will spread very rapidly up any building
Colt International - wrapped in highly flammable plastic with air
Technical director gaps or chimneys all the way to the top. Once
the fire was racing up the cladding, all active
fire protection measures were outside of their
design parameters.
That does not mean, however, that the fire and
smoke control industry has nothing to learn
from Grenfell – particularly around how systems
are procured, commissioned and installed –
but it would be completely wrong to use this
extraordinary incident as a reason to abandon
our current standards and technical approach.
An interim report by Arup fire engineer Dr
Barbara Lane, which was commissioned by the
Grenfell inquiry team, produced some useful
insights, but it also left a number of important
questions unanswered.
For example, she stated that the installed system
was not compliant with the building regulations,
but did not say why; she revealed that the
original supply and extract system designed by
Max Fordham was changed, but it is not clear
why or by whom.
Dr Lane also established that the system may not
have been properly commissioned. Why not?
Why are there no testing and service records for
the system as required by the Regulatory Reform
Order? Did the control cabling (which should
have been fire rated) survive the fire – if not, why
not? And why was the system so difficult for the
fire brigade to operate?
As more evidence emerges, hopefully many of
these important questions will be answered. Dr
Lane has, however, clearly established that the
fire safety measures at Grenfell were designed
for a single fire on a single level and therefore
“could not have protected lobbies and the stair
from smoke generated by fire on multiple levels”.
Nearly all active fire safety elements are
designed on this basis – as stipulated in
Approved Document B. It appears, therefore,
that there was no problem with the design
intent, but there may well be problems with
what was actually installed. >>

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“For Grenfell’s legacy to be safer buildings the inquiry
needs to stress the importance of correct installation
of both active and passive fire protection measures
and the avoidance of ‘value engineering’ out critical
elements of any life safety design.”
Why were there so many deviations from the
original design?
This goes right to the heart of the systemic
problems highlighted by the Hackitt Review
including the need to establish professional
competence at all levels and cease the unedifying
“race to the bottom” that compromises so many
building services designs.
Some observers have suggested that using a
pressurisation system would have provided
better protection to the Grenfell residents.
However, pressurisation would not have
been a viable solution because it depends on
maintaining pressure in the staircase, which
would not have been possible with so many
doors open.
Most pressurisation systems also operate
with the air intakes on the roof. The
images of Grenfell show the fire
completely enveloping the roof
space, which suggests that the
only pressurisation system
likely to be of benefit would
have been one with the
intakes arranged on
the lower floors of
the building.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
SMOKE CONTROL
Pressurisation can work well in high-risk
buildings as it offers greater protection than
other forms of smoke control, but should
be designed to the appropriate European
standard and not the simplified National Fire
Protection Association standards developed
for the US and widely used in the Middle
East, which some are proposing should be
adopted here.
In fact, it is extremely important that the UK
industry recognises it does not need new
forms of regulation or new building codes.
What we need is better enforcement of what
we already have. This was clearly identified
by the Hackitt committee and highlighted in
its report.
Competence
Hackitt also stressed that the industry
needs to improve its delivery of projects
by investing in competence. Part of being
competent is to recognise when you are out
of your depth and this is particularly true
when it comes to safety critical systems. If
an engineer does not have the technical
expertise to deliver a system that meets the
design intent, they should employ someone
who does.
For Grenfell’s legacy to be safer buildings
the inquiry needs to stress the importance
of correct installation of both active and
passive fire protection measures and the
avoidance of ‘value engineering’ out critical
elements of any life safety design. >>
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“Smoke control systems are
designed to prevent smaller
fires becoming the larger ones
because once there is a large
fire, any smoke control system will
generally be overwhelmed. Smoke
control systems are installed to provide
assistance in the early stages and thereby
to reduce the risk of this.”
As part of the ‘performance based’ regulations
proposed by Hackitt, a competent engineer
should be engaged to review any changes
that affect the fire safety strategy during
construction and refurbishment. Also, system
design and performance should not be
allowed to deviate from specification without
full consideration of the implications; and,
above all, cost should never be the prime
motivator when it comes to life safety.
12 lessons to learn from
Grenfell:
• Active and passive fire protection systems
have a symbiotic relationship and depend
heavily on the correct installation of each other
• Any changes made to the smoke control
system during construction and refurbishment
must be reviewed by a competent engineer
• System design and performance
should not be permitted to deviate from
specification without full consideration of
the implications – above all, cost should
not be the prime consideration
• ‘Value Engineering’ of life safety systems
should be prohibited
• Specification of components for life safety
systems should be more tightly regulated
and enforced
• Management of life safety systems
should be a professional and controlled
process from design all the way through to
operation and maintenance
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
SMOKE CONTROL
• Smoke control systems, as with all active
systems, can never be designed for a whole
building fire, but simplicity of use and
change of use are essential functions for the
control interface
• Systems requiring air to be drawn into the
building should be located at low level to
prevent smoke contamination
• Competence is not just knowing what you
are doing, but also about recognising that
you should not be operating outside your
level of expertise
• Evacuation procedures and fire fighter
training should anticipate systemic failure and
first responders should be trained to recognise
the signs and how to react
• Education of evacuation procedures is a must
for all involved and the ability to communicate
effectively with all building occupants in a fire
is hugely beneficial
• Early planned evacuation of vulnerable
occupants should be a consideration and again
the ability to communicate is critical.
Why use smoke control
Smoke control systems are designed to
prevent smaller fires becoming the larger ones
because once there is a large fire, any smoke
control system will generally be overwhelmed.
Smoke control systems are installed to provide
assistance in the early stages and thereby to
reduce the risk of this. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 151
 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

SMOKE CONTROL

“If smoke can be kept above fire fighters’ heads, then they
can do their job better: they can get in and see where the
fire is and fight it more effectively.”

During the fire at Sainsbury’s in Chichester in The advantages of smoke

1993 the fire was able to spread above ceilings
without the fire fighters being aware, and
control systems
the building was a total loss. The store was
The two main reasons why people will specify
unoccupied, the fire protection was not as
and install smoke control systems are to
good as it should have been and it took a year
protect escape routes and to assist fire fighters.
or two before Sainsbury’s could re-open on
Legislation such as BS 9999 and BS 9991
that site. Thankfully, there was no loss of life,
focuses on the protection of escape routes.
but there was a significant loss of property and
In addition, if smoke can be kept above fire
disruption to business continuity.
fighters’ heads, then they can do their job
better: they can get in and see where the
Another example of a major fire was that
fire is and fight it more effectively. Some
at Dusseldorf Airport in 1996. It was not a
legislation relates to this secondary aspect,
big fire, but unfortunately the smoke was
especially for buildings such as car parks.
uncontrolled and a number of people were
killed and injured owing to the fact that
Another advantage of smoke control systems
the smoke moved through the terminal to
is that stock and machinery can be protected
locations remote from the fire.
and the risk of loss of the building (perhaps
due to roof collapse) can be reduced. None
Statistics show that if there is a fire, it is smoke
of these aspects are legislated for, but many
and not fire which is the largest contributor to
owners and occupiers of the buildings value
deaths and injuries: over 60% of deaths are
the protection that such systems afford in
directly due to being overcome by gas or
protecting buildings and businesses, and will
smoke. It is not necessary to be close
specify smoke control for these reasons. n
to a fire to be affected. The statistics
for injuries follow a similar trend:
*Conor Logan is technical director of
around 60% of injuries are due
Colt International and a former chairman
to the inhalation of smoke.
of the Smoke Control Association.
This means that if smoke is
controlled, this will play a
www.coltinfo.co.uk
large part in reducing
deaths and injuries,
as well as protect
the building.

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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

AIR FILTRATION

BREATHING
EASIER
As concern grows over rising traffic air pollution
levels, authorities are responding urgently to the
pressing need for action to protect people, especially
those in cities, but what can building services professionals
do to help? Camfil technical manager Peter Dyment explains.

The notorious London smog of December
1952 was the single most deadly air pollution
tragedy in UK history. A jawdropping 12,000
people were killed after inhaling a lethal
cocktail of sulphur dioxide, smoke particles,
carbon dioxide and hydrochloric acid and a
further 100,000 were taken ill.
I see no reduction in the levels of this pollution
in the foreseeable future – the government has
said that it will be 2030 before any significant
decrease and, even then, the experts think it
will be well beyond that time before we reach
anywhere near safe levels of ambient pollution.

Peter Dyment
Camfil - Technical manager
Alarm over the scale of death and misery
caused by this catastrophe (which became
known as the ‘Big Smoke’) led to the Clean
Air Act of 1956. This pioneering law offered
a series of measures to reduce air pollution,
one of the most important of which was the
introduction of smoke control areas in certain
towns and cities.
Although the legislation helped ease the
problem of poor air quality, it failed to
eradicate it altogether; even today, more than
40,000 fatalities annually can be attributed to
exposure to outdoor air pollution in the UK,
with more linked to indoor pollutants.
Two critical facts together make a compelling
argument for greater action to protect people
from the harmful (and potentially terminal)
effects of airborne pollution – first, we typically
spend about 90% of our time inside buildings;
secondly, there is an intrinsic link between
outdoor and indoor air pollution.
ISO 16890 – Measuring the
efficiency of filters
A new air filtration standard, ISO 16890, is set
to replace the current European standard EN
779 in June 2018. This heralds a radical change
in the way air filters are evaluated because
ISO 16890 considers particle size ranges
from 0.3 to 10 micrometers and is therefore
far more accurate than its predecessor.
Particle sizes ranges and profiles are derived
from the typical dispersion concentrations
found in urban and rural locations. The filter
test takes into account the actual airborne
particle sizes.
Particulate matter (PM) affects more people
than any other pollutant. PM comprises a
complex mixture of solid and liquid particles of
organic and inorganic substances suspended
in the air. Its major components are sulphate,
nitrates, ammonia, sodium chloride, black
carbon, mineral dust and water. >>

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• PM10 is the fraction of all airborne particles
=/< 10 microns (?m) in size.
• PM2.5 is the fraction of all airborne particles
=/< 2.5?m in size.
• PM1 is the fraction of all airborne particles
=/< 1?m in size (1?m = 1/1,000th of a millimetre).
Man-made PM is typically produced in areas of
high population density in city centres. A big
contribution to the concentration of ultrafine
airborne particles (PM1) comes from diesel
vehicle exhaust fumes.
ISO 16890 classifies filters into four groups –
PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and coarse dust (ISO coarse).
To be assigned to a specific PM classification,
the filter needs to stop at least 50% of the
corresponding particle size range. Filters that
capture less than 50% of PM10 particles are
designated as coarse dust filters.
Which begs an obvious question: Is there an
alternative approach to defending people
against airborne pollution? The obvious
strategy is to use buildings as ‘safe havens’ to
shelter individuals from exposure to harmful
traffic contaminants.
The need is urgent. The European Commission
has just referred the UK to the Court of Justice
of the European Union for its failure to comply
with limit values for nitrogen dioxide (a major
constituent of traffic fumes).
Indeed, the government is coming under
renewed pressure to introduce a new
Clean Air Act to tackle the UK’s toxic
levels of air pollution. The Clean
Air in London campaign and
Baroness Jenny Jones, the Green
party peer, have released
a proposed clean air bill
calling for breathing clean
air to be a human right.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
AIR FILTRATION
Separately, the Institution of Mechanical
Engineers has called on the government to
introduce “a modern Clean Air Act, equivalent
to the one produced in the 1950s, in response
to London’s Great Smog, in order to reduce
harmful emissions across the UK”.
Small but deadly
We must ensure our homes, businesses,
hospitals and schools are places where
it is safe to breathe. I carry out training
for consulting engineers, designers and
specifiers and bring with me with me an air
monitor which I like to turn on when I visit
these places. Particulate matter below 10
microns in diameter is invisible to the naked
eye and what is out of sight is also far too
often out of mind.
There are two main types of traffic air
pollution – fine combustion particles and
toxic gases, in particular NO2. The WHO has
labelled these types of pollution ‘group 1’
contaminants – the highest level of toxicity
it ascribes. They are carcinogenic and cause
cardiovascular disease as well as the early
onset of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms
of dementia, so it is critical that there is
something in place to protect people.
Thankfully, there is a solution – air filtration.
New standards have been published recently
referencing improved air filter testing and
the selection of air filters for particular types
of pollution. One of these – EN16798-3 –
identifies 14 categories of building air, in
particular outdoor air and supply air which
are the two most important categories with
regard to air entering buildings through
ventilation systems.
Buildings, especially those in cities, must
be ventilated. The problem is that there is
no option but to bring outside air, often
containing toxic particles and gases, into
the building.
This is where filtration can play a critical role
in protecting people. The building envelope
has become increasingly airtight over the
years. The fact that many modern buildings
are sealed and employ effective filtration
makes them ideal havens against the effects
of outside air pollution. n
www.camfil.co.uk
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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

KITCHEN VENTILATION

BESA REVAMPS
KITCHEN
VENTILATION
GUIDANCE
BESA completely revised and updated the industry’s primary
guidance document for kitchen ventilation design last year.

The Specification for Kitchen Ventilation
Systems (DW/172), which was first published
by the Association in 1999, is generally
acknowledged to be the most authoritative
specification for the sector in the UK and in
many parts of the world.
It has sold more than 6,000 copies since
its last revision in 2005 and has now been
completely revamped and updated again in
light of new thinking, technical advancements
and innovation. The 2018 version includes
changes to relevant legislation and helps
ventilation engineers cope with the latest
cooking techniques and changes to the
design of catering equipment.
Originally titled the ‘Standard for Kitchen
Ventilation Systems’ (DW/171) when it was
introduced by what was then called the HVCA,
it was revised as a specification document and
rebadged DW/172 at its last revision 13 years ago.
The BESA Ventilation Group has now completed
a thorough review and has made a series of
amendments and clarifications. These include a
significantly expanded and modified coefficient
schedule, which provides ventilation system
designers with a fuel coefficient for a range of
gas or electric appliances. This is then multiplied
by the area of the equipment to produce the
appropriate airflow for design purposes.
The revised publication also contains a new
section on solid fuel equipment and the
lighting section has been completely updated.
Pollution
The increasing use of ‘smart’ technologies has
led to the development of a new section on
‘demand controlled’ kitchen ventilation. There
have also been several modifications made to
the guidance on pollution control to reflect
new thinking on indoor air quality and the level
of permissible toxins in breathable air.
The BESA members, who wrote the new
specification, have also produced a new
section for recirculation ventilation and have
made a number of changes to the cleaning and
maintenance schedules included in DW/172.
“This a very thorough and comprehensive
revamp,” said Peter Rogers, chairman of BESA’s
Ventilation Group technical committee.
“As well as the wealth of new information
contained in the revision, all the existing
sections have been revised and updated in
the hope and expectation that DW/172 will
continue to be widely used and respected by
all parts of the catering industry.” >>

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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

KITCHEN VENTILATION

“SFG20 already features over

500 maintenance schedules,
covering more than 60 equipment
types, and gives users the opportunity
to customise maintenance schedules,
including service times, frequency and
criticality ratings.”

This in-depth work follows the launch, earlier
this year, of the first ever independently
verified standard for the planned maintenance
of catering equipment produced by BESA in
collaboration with the Catering Equipment
Suppliers’ Association (CESA).
The two bodies developed an industry
recognised set of maintenance schedules
designed to help catering managers prolong
the operating life of their equipment, reduce
running costs and achieve compliance with
relevant legislation. These were then built into
BESA’s widely adopted planned maintenance
tool SFG20.
SFG20 already features over 500 maintenance
schedules, covering more than 60 equipment
types, and gives users the opportunity to
customise maintenance schedules, including
service times, frequency and criticality ratings.
“The design and operation of services for
commercial kitchens is a hugely important
area for building engineering companies,”
said Mr Rogers. “Our expertise is regularly
called upon to help catering specialists deliver
smoother running, safer and more efficient
kitchens – and both pieces of work carried out
by BESA and its members this year will make a
significant contribution to this vital area.” n
For more details and to order copies
of the revised DW/172 (2018) go to:
www.thebesa.com/knowledge
For more information about the SFG20
maintenance tool go to: www.sfg20.co.uk

The 105 new schedules, added specifically

for the catering equipment industry, cover all
aspects of catering equipment maintenance
with clear guidelines on levels of work to be
carried out, intervals between servicing and
operative time required. They encompass
everything from coffee machines to cold
rooms and storage, from fryers to griddle
pans, and ovens, hobs and ranges. They also
take account of services like ductwork and
grease extract cleaning filter cleaning and
replacement, and water treatment.

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UK HEATWAVES
MAY KILL
THOUSANDS
The temperatures experienced by the UK during this
summer’s heatwave will be ‘the norm’ by 2040 because
of climate change, according to a group of MPs.
This could result in up to 7,000 heat-
related deaths every year, according to
the Environmental Audit Committee. The
Met Office has also said that UK summer
temperatures could regularly reach 38.5degC
by the 2040s.
Tougher rules are needed to ensure homes
and transport networks can deal with extreme
heat, the EAC said and it called on local
councils to plant trees and increase green
spaces to provide cool air.
During the 2003 heatwave, excess deaths
in nursing homes in parts of the UK rose by
42% because high temperatures increase
the risk of death from cardiac, kidney and
respiratory diseases.
“Heatwaves threaten health, wellbeing and
productivity,” said EAC chair Mary Creagh.
“The government must stop playing pass-
the-parcel with local councils and the NHS,
and develop a strategy to protect our ageing
population from this increasing risk.”
She pointed out that heatwaves cause
premature deaths from cardiac, kidney and
respiratory disease and that homes built in the
1960s and 1970s were particularly at risk as
well as flats with limited window spaces. There
are currently no regulations in place to prevent
overheating in buildings, the committee added.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
HEATWAVES
It wants the government to stop supporting
the building of modular homes and called
for more shading elements to be applied to
new buildings.
BSRIA offers the following advice:
• Install external solar shading – technicalities,
practicalities and location allowing
• Install glazing that reduces solar gain –
possibly “green” foil that reflects high levels
of radiant heat
•Leave thermal mass exposed as part of
major internal refurbishment of concrete or
masonry buildings
• Make use of night-time free cooling, either
using a building’s existing ventilation
system, or some kind of “manual” method
(security should be taken into account if
leaving windows open at night)
• Reduce internal gains by installing energy
efficient lighting and ensuring all lights and
other electrical equipment are switched off
when not in use
• Install energy-efficient air conditioning
(although this should be seen as a last resort
and it may be a trigger for Consequential
Improvements under Building Regulations) n
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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

OFF GASSING

OFF GASSING:
WHAT IS IT AND
WHY IT MATTERS
Furniture, clothing and many other products used in
households are exposed to noxious chemicals during their
manufacturing process. These chemicals can be absorbed by
various types of surfaces, especially porous materials, and
many are classified as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs.

These substances are notorious for causing
irritation and allergic reactions in humans, and
have also been associated with more severe
health conditions after prolonged exposure.
What is Off-Gassing?
Products containing VOCs release them
through a process called “off gassing” or “out
gassing”, and concentrations can increase
quickly in enclosed spaces. There are two
main factors that increase the rate at which
off-gassing occurs: New furniture, clothing and
Adrien Lafond devices contain a larger concentration of VOCs,
foobot.io since they have not had the time to release
them. As a result, off-gassing tends to be
higher in new constructions, after purchasing
furniture, or after a major renovation.
on the other hand, newer buildings are designed
to be airtight, with the goal of improving energy
efficiency. However, airtightness also creates
conditions for higher air pollutant levels,
unless spaces are properly ventilated.
How does temperature affect VOC off gassing?
At Foobot, we studied the correlation between
indoor VOC emissions and temperature.
Our monitoring results indicate that VOC
concentrations reach peak values during
the summer, when temperatures are at their
highest point in the year. The following graph
demonstrates this behavior from winter 2015
to summer 2018:

Many chemical processes are accelerated

at higher temperature, and this includes off
gassing. According to data collected from
multiple indoor locations with Foobot air
monitors, the off-gassing rate is increased
significantly during the summer, when
ambient temperatures are higher.

Off-gassing has become a more relevant
problem in newer buildings, due to a major
change in global construction practices. Older
buildings were designed to have plenty of
natural ventilation and ample window area,
which limited the accumulation of air pollutants;
Note how VOC concentrations fall below 200 ppb during
winter, reaching peak values above 300 ppb during
summer. This is very relevant information for building
owners seeking to improve their indoor air quality – for
example, if ventilation systems are controlled only based
on occupancy, they cannot respond to the extra VOC
pollution present during summer. >>

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Main sources
of out-gassing in
building interiors
Many objects commonly
found indoors emit chemicals
into the air, but some sources
are notorious for how quickly they
release them. Some examples:
• Off gassing is commonly happening
in new products like wood furniture or
couches, and carpeted floors
• Furniture made from particle board
or plywood: Wood products contain
formaldehyde, a VOC that is highly irritating
for the eyes and respiratory system, and also a
carcinogen. Particle board and plywood have
higher concentrations of the substance due to
their porous nature, which means emissions
are less drastic with solid wood products or
used furniture that has already had time to
off-gas. Note that off-gassing slows down over
time – wood products release formaldehyde
for their entire service life, but most of it
happens during the first year.
• Glue used with carpeted floor.
• Electronic devices: Many components used
in electronic devices release VOCs, especially
insulation materials with flame retardants. In this
case, the rate of release is not only influenced by
room temperature, but also by the heat produced
internally when electronic devices operate.
• Mattresses, carpets and couches: When
you purchase a new bed, carpet or couch,
the room where it will be used may require
additional ventilation for some time. These
pieces of furniture are very porous and carry
large amounts of VOCs left over from the
manufacturing process.
• Paint: Recently applied paint releases
VOCs at a very fast rate. As a result, the out-
gassing effect from paint is significant in new
constructions, and also in renovated areas that
have been repainted recently. Just like in the
case of wood products, the out gassing rate
slows down over time.
• New houses, with fresh paint and wood
flooring, hence are particularly prone to high
VOC concentrations.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
OFF GASSING
How to control pollutant accumulation due
to out-gassing
Like with most air pollutants, there are three
main ways to decrease VOC concentration:
1. Removing the source, or minimizing
emissions if removal is not possible. For
example, you can use furniture made from
hardwood instead of particle board, and
specify low-VOC paint for new constructions
and renovations.
2. Increase ventilation to overcome the
off-gassing rate. To accomplish this without
wasting energy, you can control ventilation
based on VOC measurements – running fans at
full power 24/7 is not cost-effective.
3. Filtering VOCs out of the air. This can be
accomplished artificially with air purifier
systems, your HVAC system or naturally with
plants that are capable of absorbing VOCs.
NASA published an interesting list of the
best plants to control air pollution, which we
covered in a previous article.
When emissions are controlled at the source
or removed with plants, note that there is
no energy expense. Ventilation requires
electricity, but it is a necessary building system,
so responding to air pollutants only comes
with a slight incremental cost. Finally, air
purifiers come with additional capital costs
and operating costs, so the recommendation
is using them as a last option when VOC levels
cannot be controlled with other measures.
Why modern ventilation systems are
ineffective against off-gassing
Ventilation systems typically have a rated airflow
that is determined by building regulations,
calculated based on three main factors:
• The main use of the indoor space
being analyzed.
• Total floor area.
• Expected occupancy.
However, building regulations have been slow
to address the topic of air pollutants globally. >>
BACK TO CONTENTS 169

As a result, ventilation systems are not normally
designed to respond to VOCs and other
common air pollutants. A clear example of
this are the design practices used for demand-
controlled ventilation, where the airflow of
a ventilation system is adjusted based on
occupancy. However, this design approach
ignores two very important facts:
• Occupancy is not always correlated with
air pollution. Some activities that are carried
out by few persons release large amounts of
pollutants; cleaning is a clear example, where
many indoor surfaces are exposed to chemicals
with a high content of VOCs.
• Pollutants may be released when there
are no occupants at all, and off-gassing is an
example of this.
To guarantee indoor air quality (IAQ),
ventilation systems must be capable of
direct response to pollutant concentrations.
This is only possible if ventilation controls
are supplied with air pollution data, which
can only be gathered with a reliable air
monitoring system.
Volatile organic compounds can be very
deceiving, since many of them actually
have pleasant smells. As a result, human
senses are not reliable for providing
an assessment of air pollution.
The smell of a new car is a clear
example – many people
actually enjoy the smell, but
it is caused by harmful
VOCs released from
newly-manufactured
components.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
OFF GASSING
How to speed up off gassing
When you enter a new car, it has a strong
specific smell: that is because of the higher
VOC off-gassing rate. Over time, the smell will
disappear and eventually you will breathe
clean air.
The same happens in a new flat or house, but
since you spend so much time in your home,
you may want to speed up the outgassing
process. Here are a few ways:
•Ventilate, either with your HVAC system or by
opening the windows, by using fans etc.
• Heat. As offgassing rate rises with
temperature, a heater may be useful.
• Let a new product air out before using it.
This one is not easy, especially for a couch or a
mattress. There’s no specific duration but the
longer, the better.
Conclusion
Off-gassing is a source of VOCs that can easily
go undetected, since it is not associated
with occupancy or with any indoor activity.
There is evidence that off-gassing increases
at higher temperatures, and it is more of an
issue in spaces that have been recently built
or renovated. Products such as furniture and
electronic devices are also notorious for their
higher out-gassing rates when they are new.
To control the accumulation of air pollutants,
you need a ventilation system that responds
to them, and this concept is only viable if you
have a monitoring device that can detect
pollutant concentrations in indoor air. Foobot
offers VOC detection, and its measurements
can be used to control ventilation and air
conditioning equipment. n
Read Adrien’s blog on how contractors can
help tackle the growing IAQ crisis in homes:
foobot.io/resources/hvac-pro-blog/the-
changing-role-of-hvac-contractors/
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TIME TO
GET TOUGH IN
THE KITCHEN
Kitchen extract ventilation should be re-classified as
‘Local Exhaust Ventilation’ (LEV) to protect catering staff
from growing threats to their health, according to BESA
ventilation hygiene consultant Paul Downing.
An increase in deadly carbon monoxide fumes
from solid fuel cookers, barbecues and pizza
ovens is putting commercial kitchen staff at
risk and the new fashion for placing layers of
‘volcanic rock’ on top of traditional gas grills is
creating a new source of harmful emissions,
including greatly increasing the amount of
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) detected
in the air.
Re-classifying kitchen extract systems as
LEVs would mean they were subject to more
Paul Downing stringent regulation and inspection, leading
BESA - Ventilation to more regular cleaning and maintenance
hygiene consultant to improve their ability to remove harmful
breathable fumes and organic compounds
from the air.
There are almost 13,000 deaths each year from
occupational lung disease and cancer caused
by past exposure to chemicals and dust at work,
according to the Health & Safety Executive
(HSE). The ventilation hygiene industry’s current
best practice guidance already recommends
that kitchen extract systems are regularly
checked and cleaned, but commercial kitchen
owners and operators would face greater
scrutiny and legal pressure if their systems were
re-classified to fall in line with other industrial
processes like factories, welding shops, spray
paint booths and woodworking facilities.
VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ
LEV
The HSE service and retail control guidance
sheet SR27 ‘Controlling Cooking Fumes’
recommends that kitchen extract systems
are thoroughly examined and tested at least
every 14 months by a “competent ventilation
engineer” to comply with COSHH (Control of
Substances Hazardous to Health) regulations.
“Engineering control (local exhaust ventilation)
is the recommended approach”, adds SR27,
which includes the statement that “some
substances in cooking fumes can cause
cancer”. This requirement is also stated in
the HSE’s guidance HSG54, which covers
the maintenance, examination and testing
of LEVs. And the HSE recommends that
regular cleaning is carried out in line with
best practice outlined in BESA guidance
documents TR/19 and DW172.
Currently 45,000 systems are classified as
LEVs across the UK, but BESA points out there
are more than 500,000 commercial catering
establishments – all of which should have some
form of grease extract ventilation playing a key
role in protecting workers’ health and reducing
the risk of fire. Many of these kitchens are now,
effectively, cooking with solid fuel because
they place charcoal on top of their gas-fired
cookers in order to produce the increasingly
fashionable chargrill flavour. >>
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 VENTILATION/DUCTWORK/IAQ

LEV

“Currently 45,000 systems are classified as LEVs across

the UK, but BESA points out there are more than 500,000
commercial catering establishments – all of which
should have some form of grease extract ventilation
playing a key role in protecting workers’ health and
reducing the risk of fire.”

As a result, cooks and other kitchen workers
are being exposed to potentially high levels
of carbon monoxide and other airborne
particulates harmful to health. While
industry best practice already highlights the
importance of cleaning and maintaining these
systems so they continue to work effectively,
re-classifying them as LEVs would send a
powerful message about their crucial health
and safety role as well as subjecting their
owners to much closer scrutiny and inspection.
There is no grey area with LEVs. It is the
law that these are tested every 14 months
and this could be transformational for
ventilation hygiene.
Employers have a duty of care – clearly stated
under the COSHH regulations – to any staff
exposed to cooking fumes, which could be
carcinogenic. The HSE states that there
should be five to 10 air changes per
hour in cooking areas and, as well
as testing and maintaining the
systems, properly qualified
contractors should check to
make sure the ventilation
system as a whole is
working properly and
measure the quality
of the make-up air
used to ventilate
the space.
The HSE has considerable powers to
prosecute business owners that either do
not install a suitable LEV in their place of
work or do not maintain it properly. Almost
14,000 ‘enforcement notices’ were issued
and 551 cases prosecuted by the HSE
across England and Wales in 2013/2014
for inadequate ventilation strategies.
BESA experts suggest these numbers are
just the tip of a very large iceberg.
There are thousands of commercial
cooking premises that do not have a proper
ventilation strategy and whose only means
of diluting contaminated air is simply to
open a window. Workers in these kitchens
are at just as much risk as those in premises
already subject to HSE inspection and
prosecution under LEV regulations.
It is time to get tough on those kitchens that
don’t take proper regard to staff safety. n
www.thebesa.com/training/training-
courses/ventilation-courses/

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membership
means setting
market-leading
technical
standards

www.thebesa.com

INTEGRATED
APPROACH WILL
HELP INDUSTRY REACH
EFFICIENCY HEIGHTS
The gas-fired hot water industry has made
huge strides in energy efficiency, but the best
is yet to come, according to Steve Addis*.
The UK’s total gas consumption has fallen by a
hugely impressive 20% since 2000. A range of
factors have contributed, but improvements
to heating and hot water technologies have
been significant.
Demand for gas from commercial users fell by
over 3% in 2017 and in the residential sector,
which is the largest proportion, it was down
by 4.6%, according to government figures
drawn from the National Energy Efficiency
Data (NEED) Network.
Steve Addis
Lochinvar - One of the other big positives – and surprises
Product manager – is that the UK has become a significant
exporter of gas. At many times of the year, we
are able to sell a surplus abroad. This is in spite
of an 8.4% increase in use by the chemicals
industry, which makes the reductions achieved
by other sectors even more impressive.
The last few years have seen significant
improvements in the energy performance
of commercial heating technology – driven
by a combination of end-user demand and
legislation. However, we are not resting on
our laurels because we recognise we have
already made most of the obvious and easier
to achieve changes. Engineers will now have
to go further and deeper to keep up with fast
moving energy targets and to help end users
meet other obligations, like local planning laws
and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
HEATING SOLUTIONS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Committed
Legislation will continue to drive the market
and, although we are leaving the European
Union, that does not mean the UK will
abandon the challenging targets it has
already set. Our industry is committed to
the EU’s 2030 targets of a 27% increase in
energy efficiency and 40% reduction in
greenhouse emissions.
The latest phase of the EU’s Energy-related
Products Directive (ErP) came into force in
September 2018 and is already driving even
higher standards in the UK heating industry,
including further energy efficiency targets.
Eventually, the commercial hot water
sector will be exclusively using condensing
technology, but the legislation is not entirely
prescriptive and the ErP has left the door
open for non-condensing solutions for
the time being. Condensing water heaters
provide the highest levels of efficiency, and
they also meet the NOx emission targets,
but users will still be able to use atmospheric
water heater replacements for some time to
meet ErP requirements.
In general, it is a good principle that we take
a flexible approach to the design of both
heating and hot water systems. >>
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The use of condensing technology means
that many heating and hot water products
have already reached their maximum level of
efficiency. Increasingly, we will need to adopt
a system approach with designers making
greater use of integrated and hybrid systems in
which conventional and renewable systems are
combined to hit higher energy targets.
Heat pumps have seen a surge in popularity in
homes in recent years, but most, if not all, are
installed with back up from immersion heaters
to ensure they are able to deliver hot water
in the coldest conditions and when demand
is high. This approach is not always practical
in commercial buildings where hot water
demand is much higher and because of the
need to store water at 65°C to avoid the build-
up of legionella bacteria.
In order to stay within constrained budgets,
specifiers often revert to tried and tested
methods of providing heating and hot water
by using traditional gas-fired methods.
However, they can also use heat pumps or
solar thermal in the same system with the gas-
fired systems as back up for times of highest
demand. This reduces running costs, but
also has the added benefit of extending the
operating life of the equipment.
This type of integrated or hybrid solution is
a good way to keep initial capital outlay
relatively low – when compared with
renewable-only solutions – and
means some end clients, who might
previously have considered
renewables to be beyond
their budget, can afford a
renewable element. This
may also help them
satisfy planning
requirements and
meet their CSR
obligations.
HEATING SOLUTIONS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Multi-valent
There are a range of solutions open to specifiers,
including combined heat and power (CHP), but
there is increasing interest in the use of multi-
valent systems where energy is gathered from
a number of separate sources, including solar
thermal, heat pumps, and condensing gas-fired
boilers and/or water heaters.
The performance of heat pumps continues to
improve and air source heat models (ASHPs)
were still eligible for government subsidy
under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)
scheme when this publication went to press.
It was one of the few survivors from the
government’s recent review of subsidies and
is a significant but underused benefit that can
significantly reduce the payback period on
some projects.
Until recently, it was hard to make a
commercial case for a heat pump in a straight
comparison with condensing gas-fired boilers
in UK weather conditions. On a cold winter’s
day, the carbon impact and the energy cost
were likely to favour the boiler when compared
with an electrically powered ASHP. However,
one particular technical advance is tipping
the argument in favour of heat pumps:
‘economised vapour injection’ (EVI).
Systems that use EVI have a much more
efficient refrigeration cycle because the
compression process is separated into two
stages within a single compressor. As a result,
most of the refrigerant is cooled during
compression, which reduces the electrical
energy consumed.
This is particularly beneficial at lower
evaporating temperatures, i.e when the
outdoor air temperature is around 0°C or
below. It also increases the evaporating effect
– the useful amount of heat that the refrigerant
can extract from the outside air.
In applications where the building relies on
electricity from the Grid, there is an even
greater advantage in operating a modern
ASHP at even lower temperatures, and it is
significantly more carbon efficient than using
other fossil fuels, such as oil and coal. >>
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“The latest phase of the
EU’s Energy-related Products
Directive (ErP) came into force
in September 2018 and is already
driving even higher standards in the
UK heating industry, including further
energy efficiency targets.”
Gas Absorption Heat Pumps (GAHP) also
have potential and are capable of delivering
impressive gas utilisation efficiencies (GUE)
of 140% compared with an average of 96%
for boilers. Their efficiency is also less affected
by changes in outdoor temperature. A gas
absorption system will only lose around
10% of its operating capacity when outdoor
temperature falls from 5°C to -5°C, but an
equivalent electrically powered heat pump
may lose more than 30% .
GAHPs work particularly well if they are
integrated with a condensing boiler to provide
low temperature hot water for underfloor
heating or low temperature radiators, and the
use of weather compensation control in the
heating mode will also significantly enhance
system efficiency. GAHP’s can also be used
to supply pre-heated hot water to a gas-fired
condensing water heater
They can be used as part of multi-valent
systems and, in such systems, the use of a
suitably flexible and properly sized thermal
store becomes the critical element. If the
system is sized and controlled correctly, this
will ensure the non-renewable plant only runs
when required – so minimising fossil fuel use.
Flexible
The use of a thermal store capable of accepting
multiple energy sources, in tandem with the
latest heat pump technology, allows the design
engineer to provide an extremely flexible, but
high-output solution. The thermal store acts as
a large, low-resistance header that can accept
heat from up to three sources. This smooths out
the system capacity to maximize efficiency. It
also reduces legionella risk because it does not
store domestic hot water for long periods.
HEATING SOLUTIONS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
In most cases, the store should be sized to
provide 20 litres per kW output from the heat
pump, plus an additional 10 litres per kW
output from the system boiler. This approach
is not particularly challenging in a technical
sense, but it does require proper pre-planning
and assessment of the usage patterns within
the building and, therefore, the likely best
configuration for the system.
Integrating technologies in this way requires
good control strategies and a proper
commissioning period to ensure the various
parts of the system work in correct sequence.
The system should be set up to ensure the
renewable technologies are the first to respond
to any call for heating and hot water, with gas-
fired boilers acting as back-up and firing only for
periods of particularly high demand.
However, the control strategy – and therefore
commissioning process – is vital to the long-
term success of this type of system and should
only be approached following consultation with
the building manager/end user to establish
likely patterns of occupant behaviour and the
resulting hot water and heating demand.
It also requires an integrated, joined up supply
chain to complement the technical integration
built into the system design. That is a challenge,
but one that our industry will increasingly have
to meet in order to keep improving energy
efficiency and reducing emissions.
We have come a long way since the start of this
century, but the targets keep moving and we
will need to keep innovating to hit them. n
*Steve Addis is product manager of boiler, water
heater and heat pump company Lochinvar.
www.lochinvar.ltd.uk
BACK TO CONTENTS 183
 AIR CONDITIONING
REFRIGERATION

AIR
CONDITIONING
SECTOR FACING
SAFETY FEARS
The soaring price of refrigerant gas is leading
to an outbreak of unsafe and illegal practices,
writes Head of Refcom Graeme Fox.

As widely predicted, 2018 proved to be a
momentous year for the air conditioning and
refrigeration sectors.
The next step in the phase down of global
warming refrigerant gases under the European
F Gas Regulation kicked in and shifted the
landscape dramatically. Some of the most
widely used gases rocketed in price because
the quota system meant the amount of HFC
gases allowed on to the market dropped by a
whopping 37%.
Graeme Fox As the step change approached, wholesalers
Head at Refcom set record price rises of over 600% on
refrigerants like R404A and R507A, which have
high global warming potential (GWP). Even
some lower GWP alternatives went up by more
than 300%. R410A, for example, ended up
costing three times as much and so did some
R22 service blends.
The situation is so fast moving that a number
of European industry bodies called for
the industry to stop installing equipment
that uses R404A and R507A immediately
– all of which has major technical and cost
implications for anyone operating and
attempting to service plant.
The speed with which different types of HFC
are removed from use is based on their CO2
equivalent global warming potential (GWP).
R404A has a high GWP of 3922 and will, along
with all other refrigerants with a GWP above
2500, be banned in new stationary refrigeration
equipment from 2020 – and that includes virgin
refrigerant for service and maintenance purposes.
Alternatives
There are a range of alternatives available:
While CO2 is being adopted in many new
supermarket refrigeration systems, a number
of lower GWP alternatives are also available
to retrofit existing R404A equipment. These
retrofit gases include R448A and R449A, which
both have GWPs of around 1300.
There are long-established alternative fluids
for some applications like hydrocarbons (HCs),
ammonia and CO2, but these require engineers
to deal with limitations on charge volumes,
some toxicity, flammability or higher working
pressures. There is also no commercially
available non-flammable alternative for 410A,
for example. As a result, contractors need the
right training and must also make sure they are
using the appropriate recovery equipment to
deal with flammable and toxic substances.
However, this is also happening at the same time
as many local authority clients, in particular, face
austerity cuts, which makes any conversation
about retrofitting or replacing air conditioning
equipment extremely uncomfortable. >>

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 AIR CONDITIONING
REFRIGERATION

Yet, if you are running a hospital; or a 24- There have been several serious incidents
hour/365 days a year kitchen making ‘meals where flammable gas was used to replace
on wheels’ for elderly residents, you will pay R22 in domestic air conditioners in the US
through the nose if the system breaks down, or and a number of other countries around the
worse, face the fact that there is no refrigerant world. The issue of counterfeit gas is another
available for service, maintenance and repair. alarming trend, which will continue to be a
lucrative trade for smugglers as HFCs become
‘Drop-in’ replacements can significantly more expensive.
change the performance characteristics of
equipment that can shorten their operating
life and make them subject to more frequent Switching
breakdowns – such as higher running
Ultimately, all of this means we are now
compressor discharge temperatures.
looking at a very different refrigerant market
and many manufacturers are switching
Sticking with the lowest GWP refrigerants is
to R32. Although it is an HFC, R32 has a
still an option for now and R32 is being widely
significantly lower GWP than R410A – almost
used in small ‘split’ ac systems. It is one of the
75% lower – and so will remain available for
ingredients that make up R410A, but has a
much longer as it is the higher GWP gases
GWP of just 675 – approximately one third of
that are being phased down first.
R410A – and has higher volumetric capacity,
which means system charges can be reduced
AREA, EFCTC, Asercom and the European
to further help meet tightening HFC quotas.
Partnership for Energy and the Environment
(EPEE) have produced joint guidance
A new type of refrigerant is gaining traction
recommending designers and specifiers
– Hydro Fluoro Olefins (HFOs) – which are
switch to new equipment or installers retrofit
thermally stable and have a very short
existing systems with alternative refrigerant
atmospheric life. They are included in a new
gases with lower GWP.
refrigerant classification A2L designating
‘mildly flammable’ gases and is mandatory
They are also urging the industry to redouble
for all new cars. Traditional HFCs have been
efforts to reclaim HFC gas and switch
banned in cars for several years.
to alternative substances as quickly as
possible. However, they also warn that safety
However, HFOs are not suitable as ‘drop-in’
procedures will have to be strengthened
replacements so anyone designing a system
to deal with the fact that many alternative
today that might need to use traditional HFC
gases, such as R32, are mildly flammable.
gas should consider the cost implication of that
system quickly having to be ripped out and
The third meeting of the F Gas Consultation
completely replaced.
Forum in Brussels saw all EU member states
agree to continue their aggressive phase
Air conditioning and refrigeration
down of higher GWP gases. They resisted
manufacturers continue to issue strong
lobbying by some countries to relax quotas
safety warnings about the danger of
in order to relieve the pressure on prices.
using the wrong type of refrigerant
Instead, the Forum called for all members
in their equipment. They also point
to focus on the recovery and recycling
out that refrigerants are carefully
of gas that is already on the market and,
selected as an integral part of
therefore, permitted for use for a further
the overall system design
10 years after ‘virgin’ gas is banned – and
taking into account
to encourage its markets to accelerate the
safety; longevity of the
take up of alternatives.
equipment; energy
efficiency; cost; and
They were arguing from a position of
environmental
strength because it appears that emissions
impact.
of HFCs have started to fall for the first time,
which suggests F Gas legislation is working.
However, there is growing nervousness about
the industry’s ability to work safely with
flammable alternatives like hydrocarbons,
HFOs and R32, and the higher operating
pressures of carbon dioxide. >>

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“A new type of refrigerant is
gaining traction – Hydro Fluoro
Olefins (HFOs) – which are thermally
stable and have a very short
atmospheric life. They are included
in a new refrigerant classification A2L
designating ‘mildly flammable’ gases
and is mandatory for all new cars.”
Of more immediate concern is the growing
evidence that the rising cost of gas is tempting
people to try and subvert the market. While it
is legitimate to price gas in line with demand
as certain types become scarcer, there is clearly
also some manipulation of the market going
on and this is leading to perverse behaviour.
In particular, the practice of using mildly
flammable R32 as a replacement gas in air
conditioning systems designed for R410A is
especially alarming. R32 is one of the new
A2L class refrigerants, which are not suitable
for retrofit projects at all because they
require specific safety measures. R32 has a
higher compressor discharge temperature
than R410A so it will increase wear on the
compressor and significantly shorten its
operating life.
However, that’s not even the half of it: Simply
charging an existing system with R32 breaches
the refrigerant safety standard EN378;
renders the manufacturer’s warranty invalid;
and creates operating risks that potentially
invalidate the user’s insurance policy as well.
The pressure on price is also leading to a rise
in the amount of illegal disposable cylinders
coming into the UK from countries like Turkey.
This kind of non-recyclable container has been
banned in Europe for more than a decade, but
is suddenly cropping up again on ebay.
Not only are the cylinders prohibited, there is
very little way of telling if they actually contain
the gas advertised on the label and we are
seeing worrying signs of a resurgence in the
counterfeit refrigerant market that caused
havoc eight years ago.
AIR CONDITIONING
REFRIGERATION
Back in 2011, one Chinese gas supplier was
selling what it claimed were bottles of R134a,
which turned out to be methyl chloride.
Putting the incorrect chemical into a system
can be deadly – and so it turned out.
Policing
However, anyone breaching the F Gas
regulations today faces a tougher policing
regime. The Environment Agency was recently
given the power to impose on the spot fines of
up to £200,000. In the past, many miscreants
got away with it because of the cost and
complexity of bringing legal action.
That said, there has still only ever been one
prosecution under F Gas and that was for a
self-reported breach. The industry remains
unconvinced about the government’s plans to
enforce the regulations after Brexit because it
is clear that the Environment Agency does not
have adequate resources.
Last year’s parliamentary Environmental
Audit Committee (EAC) report reflected the
sector’s worries, and highlighted the lack of
prosecutions being carried out under the rules.
However, DEFRA said the lack of prosecutions
was “not necessarily a good indicator of the
effectiveness of compliance work”.
Enforcement notices, advice, awareness
campaigns and guidance have been successful
in making people aware of their obligations,
but awareness does not guarantee the success
of the programme. There are serious breaches
going on out there, which require direct and
tough action that the EA cannot take because
it does not have the manpower. >>
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“The third meeting of the F Gas Consultation Forum in
Brussels saw all EU member states agree to continue
their aggressive phase down of higher GWP gases.”
EAC chair Mary Creagh said her committee was
disappointed the government had not shown
more urgency about how this important
environmental law would be enforced after
Brexit. She asked that DEFRA and the EA
publish plans for monitoring non-compliance.
She made particular reference to social media,
which is fermenting a hugely damaging
trade in illegal refrigerant gas and called
for a considerable tightening of customs
arrangements to target the amount of
refrigerant coming into the UK in illegal
disposable cylinders.
The EA said it monitored online marketplaces,
such as eBay and Amazon, on a daily basis
and chases up the platforms to get suspicious
activity removed, but we really need proper
sanctions with meaningful financial penalties
to deter this activity.
The government is being dangerously
complacent and the EA is burying its head
in the sand. The surface evidence may
look reassuring, but there is plenty
of underhand activity going on –
particularly online. Proper sanctions
with financial penalties applied
would encourage wider and
fuller compliance and the EA
needs to have the resources
and the political will to
take that forward.
AIR CONDITIONING
REFRIGERATION
This is becoming increasingly frustrating for
industry bodies who are trying to help. We
flag up cases whenever we, or our members,
encounter illegal activities – effectively acting
as the EA’s eyes and ears – but the lack of
follow-up action is seriously discouraging.
Obligations
Andy Brewer, chair of BESA’s Refrigeration, Air
Conditioning and Heat Pump group, welcomed
the measures that the Government has put in
place in recent months to help industry fulfil
its obligations under F Gas – particularly the
introduction of civil penalties.
However, he said the government should work
more closely with the certifying bodies “to
address the issues and make an example of
those who seek to undermine all the hard work
of the responsible majority”.
BESA’s long established refrigerant handling
registration scheme Refcom is monitoring this
situation closely on behalf of the sector and, along
with the professional body ACRIB, continues
to focus on driving up professional standards
in all aspects of refrigerant handling and use.
It has been a legal requirement since July
2009 for all businesses that install, maintain
or service stationary equipment containing or
designed to contain f gas refrigerants to obtain
an F Gas Company Certificate.
The Refcom F-Gas Register accounts for more
than 80% of company certificates covering the
UK refrigerant handling market. This makes it
a key component of the UK’s efforts to control
emissions of greenhouse gases and tackle
global warming; and it will be supporting ever
more strenuous efforts to maintain safety while
the sector transitions to new gases.
2018 was a huge year for air conditioning and
refrigeration, but 2019 does not look like being
any quieter. n
www.refcom.org.uk
BACK TO CONTENTS 191
 AIR CONDITIONING
RAC80

RAC80
PROVIDES LATEST
AC AND HEAT
PUMP GUIDANCE
BESA updated its design specification for the
application of DX air conditioning and heat pump
equipment – known as RAC80 – last year.

Created as an industry design manual RAC80 can be purchased from the BESA
for engineers, the specification includes Publications website for £45.00 (BESA
information on the latest legislation, and members), or £90.00 (non BESA members).
gives new engineers everything they need
to know in one place. Featuring the latest www.besapublications.com
additions to the refrigerant market, the
guide also includes up to date technologies
and best practice information.

The design, selection and operation of

systems can be heavily influenced by the
building itself. RAC80 explain this, along
with providing design tools that enable
contractors to appropriately size jobs and
match them intelligently to systems.

“The building services air conditioning

and heat pump sector has changed a lot
since the first RAC80 guide was published”,
explains Graeme Fox, BESA’s senior
mechanical engineer. “A lot of refrigerants
have left the market, so it was important
to update the specification with the latest
industry guidance, giving contractors
the very best information. This guide
is invaluable for new and experienced
engineers alike”. n

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membership
means a
badge of
quality

www.thebesa.com
 ENGAGE
BRAIN AND
REDRAW THE
‘FUZZY RED LINES’
Confusion in design teams about who is responsible for
what has dogged building services projects for years.
A new version of an established design framework points
towards a less dysfunctional future, writes Ewen Rose.
Last year saw the latest update of BSRIA’s
guidance document BG6 ‘A Design Framework
for Building Services’ (5th edition). The revamp
reflects changes in the way supply chains
divide up their areas of responsibility – how
the industry defines those ‘fuzzy red lines’
between the different professions.
The history of this publication can be
traced back to a presentation given by
former ASHRAE President Richard Rooley,
Ewen Rose
who famously talked about ‘fuzzy edge
Freelance journalist disease’ – the industry’s habit of creating
and communications confusion between the professions by
consultant to BESA being notoriously unclear about where
responsibility began and ended.
If you draw the fuzzy (or wiggly?) line in
discussion with the other parties, then
everyone should understand why it is where
it is and what their responsibilities are. This
is particularly timely in light of the Hackitt
Review that followed the Grenfell Tower
inquiry, which quickly exposed that people
where “not engaging brain” and focussing on
the outcomes as they were too busy working
in their silos and not looking at the big picture.
As a result, there will be greater focus on
education and supervision post-Grenfell and
this document will help to direct that effort.
196 BACK TO CONTENTS
As BSRIA chief executive Julia Evans said at the
launch of the revised publication: “This cannot
be a prescriptive guide because we want
people to use their expertise. Otherwise why
spend all those years in college?”
Diagnosis
Since the first version appeared in 1994 – two
years after Mr Rooley’s presentation and
first public diagnosis of ‘fuzzy edge disease’
– much has changed; particularly with the
arrival of digital tools, BIM and so on. This has
made design responsibility an even bigger
issue and there is increasing requirement
for an ‘honest broker’ between competing
interests. This is because the fuzzy line is
drawn in a different place in just about every
project – meaning not only is it wiggly; it is
moveable too!
This guidance has been developed from
a niche document to a framework for the
design agreement between the design
professionals and contractors. Its main task
is to avoid overlap in scope because when
things go wrong it usually can be traced to
a problem with the interface between the
design team and the contractors/installers
– adopting the BG6 framework gives you a
chance to avoid those clashes from the start.

The document also helps address problems
caused by different professions not fully
appreciating each other's roles and makes
proper collaboration more achievable. In
particular, it recommends a much more flexible
approach to Stage 4 design as set out in the
RIBA Plan of Works. The old version used to
be very linear and prescriptive about what
happened at that stage, which did not reflect
reality because there is a lot more overlapping
as the design progresses these days.
This is a framework, but it is a flexible
framework that can be adapted to include
developments, such as the Hackitt
recommendation for a joint oversight body
that will help to define responsibility. It
is a tool to be used in collaboration and
will probably be revised again once all the
Grenfell details are available.
BG 6 contains design activity proformas and
drawing / model definitions that are used
to support contract documentation and to
encourage efficient collaborative working
between building services and other designers
such as architects and structural engineers and
also along building services supply chains.
Using the guide should mean that all necessary
activities are identified and allocated and that
there are no gaps between, or duplication of,
responsibilities. BG 6, therefore, provides a
series of task lists, model descriptions and
sample drawings to let the user decide
what activities are carried out by which
project team member when and to
what level of detail.
Key areas of change include:
• Better guidance for the
reader/user
• Completely
revised stage-
by-stage tasks
descriptions as
pro-formas
SUPPLY CHAIN
BG6 REVISION
• New and more illustrations of 3D models and
drawings delivered at the different project stages
•More comprehensive listings of deliverables
now available as an online resource
• A range of worked examples showing how
the tools could be completed for different
types of project or appointment, in an
appendix and online.
There are myriad activities required to
produce the necessary level of detail and
information, as well as the output documents.
The role of BG 6 is to provide a platform
where these activities can be identified and
allow them to be allocated to individual
organisations or roles within the project team.
Technology changes have brought with
them new issues concerning the level of
information provided as outputs from design
activities. They have also highlighted the need
for clarity around existing topics such as the
resolution of ‘clashes’ throughout the design
stages and defining coordination roles and
responsibilities. These are addressed in the
new edition.
“In recent years – changes in technology have
brought with them new issues concerning the
level of information provided as outputs from
design activities,” said BSRIA’s publications
manager David Bleicher.
“They have also highlighted the need for
clarity around existing topics such as the
resolution of clashes throughout the design
stages and defining coordination roles and
responsibilities. These are addressed in the
new edition of BG6.”
He added that it was crucial for each party
to know what they are expected to do in
terms of design activities, responsibilities
and deliverables.
“Using this approach also ensures that
all necessary activities are identified and
allocated and that there are no gaps
between, or duplication of, responsibilities,”
said Mr Bleicher. n
BG 6/2018 can be purchased in pdf and hard
copy from www.bsria.co.uk. BSRIA members
can download the pdf for free.
BACK TO CONTENTS 197
 THE
POWER
OF PEOPLE
A growing focus on technology does not change the
fact that people remain the biggest asset to employers in
the building controls industry, says Jon Belfield, President
of the Building Controls Industry Association (BCIA).

The rise of technology and innovation Curiosity

continues to provide plenty of surprises, but
most importantly it creates opportunities for
our industry as we continue to embrace system
integration, data analysis and move ever closer
to the world of IT and smart buildings.
However, it was also a happy coincidence
that the start of my presidency fell within the
official Year of Engineering of which the BCIA is a
partner. Engineering is a wonderful career and
we have a shared opportunity to raise awareness
of the important role of engineering within
Jon Belfield smart and innovative buildings. Not only will this
BCIA - President launch many fulfilling careers, it will ultimately
help to bridge the skills gap that our sector faces.
For the building controls industry, this is all
about quantity and not quality. We have very
capable and effective engineers already, but
we need more of them; hence the need for
raising awareness and creating a pathway
complete with training.
Professional development is key for individuals
to thrive and feel motivated. It is thanks to
skilled engineers who are creative, innovative,
methodical and able to problem solve under
pressure, that so many commercial buildings
are sustainable and cost-effective. Creating an
engineering culture of always seeking to make
systems as effective and energy efficient as
possible is a truly collective opportunity.
Technical curiosity has never been more
important because of continuous advances
and changes in technology. Being open
to new concepts keeps our sector right at
the centre of delivering successful, energy
efficient buildings. This means offering
continuous training to our engineers and
creating a culture of learning. Recognition of
ability is also important both for engineers
and for those employing their services.
As such, the launch of the new Building
Controls Integrator ECS card was an
important milestone as it has enabled
engineers to prove they have the skills listed
in accordance with their card and be able to
demonstrate their achievements to clients
and employers. This gives validation to
engineers either just starting out or for those
with many years of experience under their
belt. The next step is the revision of the ECS
Building Controls Engineer ‘Gold Card’ – a
major objective for 2019.
From my own experience as someone
who works for a systems integrator,
I am particularly conscious of the shared
responsibility for the training of all
engineers in order that the entire supply
chain can be successful.

198 BACK TO CONTENTS


There needs to be a clear understanding
throughout the supply chain of the need to
share this growing demand for training. The BCIA
has been successful in facilitating the pathways
for training and for creating these partnerships
between manufacturers and system integrators.
This is where collaboration is key to future
engineering and commercial success.
For me personally, I am lucky to still get to be an
engineer once or twice a week and always enjoy
the opportunity to hear about new ideas and
innovation. If there is an opportunity to solve
a problem, well that takes it to another level! I
recall a prize winning young engineer writing
that “a problem well solved is a thing of beauty”.
Although the physics and thermodynamics
remain unchanged, evolving technology provides
continuing opportunities for development in
the dynamic world of building controls.
So, for those of us currently working in an
engineering capacity, we all have the chance
to spread the word and inspire others to
consider engineering as a fulfilling career and
a chance to make a real difference. Share your
own unique passion of engineering to change
or launch careers... don’t underestimate the
experience you have; all experience is valuable
and can certainly go a long way towards
becoming a role model for those just starting
out. We all have something in us to inspire and
change lives for the better.
I genuinely believe that the skilled and talented
people already in our sector will play a great
part in training and inspiring new talent. Some
of the best people we learn from are each other
and we cannot afford to leave it to someone else
because that someone else is us.
Dynamic
I have mentioned the changing
and dynamic building controls
sector and that being able to
adapt and manage change
is key. This is particularly
pertinent when it
comes to successfully
reviewing strategies
for our businesses.
CONTROL SYSTEMS
KNOWLEDGE
One way to tackle this is to try and look
through the eyes of young people and use your
valuable experience try and visualise the world
they will be engineering in five years from now.
There’s no denying that the younger generation
are often more in tune with the modern way
of thinking, whether that’s being savvy on
social media or more familiar and confident
with the latest technology. So, with experience
still a vital component, let’s look at this world
with open minds, energetic perspective and
explore where we can really make a difference.
When it comes to our own behaviour and the
way in which we engage with new talent in
the workplace, perhaps we need to first of all
look at what we can do for young engineers
and not think about what they can do for us.
This might be seen as a risky strategy but by
investing in them and by changing attitudes,
we can help young recruits and shape them
into knowledgeable engineers by their mid 20s
to ensure a strong future over the long term.
The economics of this approach will play out
over a longer period with loyalty and retention
combined with a culture of learning and
adding value all being realistic outcomes.
Despite all of the advances in technology, it has in
no way diluted the need for well-presented and
skilled, competent people to take the building
controls industry to the next level. People
remain the most important asset we have.
With people at the heart of our industry, I firmly
believe we should celebrate engineering and
the achievements of those in the building
controls sector. Let us celebrate successes,
because there are a lot of them and in doing
so we can raise the profile of both the industry
and the many talented people we have who
see excellence as standard and are achieving
great things everyday.
My vision is for us all to blend together and to
be free with our knowledge; no matter whether
we work for a big or small company or where
we sit in the supply chain. By sharing ideas and
working together, we can attract and motivate
the best problem solvers into the fascinating
world of engineering to create the most
effective and energy efficient environment
possible in all our buildings.
This will, in turn, ensure a strong and sustainable
future for the building controls industry. n
www.bcia.co.uk
BACK TO CONTENTS 199
 BESA CONTACTS
CONTENTS

BESA CONTACTS
Contact details for all the Association’s UK locations,
its affiliates and for members of the Building Services
Engineering Employment Agency Alliance.

202
BESA CONTACTS
204
BESA CONTACTS
206
BESA CONTACTS
OFFICES AFFILIATES AGENCY ALLIANCE
Contact details for all of We welcome a wide range of Affiliates, Building Services Engineering
BESA’s UK locations from suppliers, manufacturers and Employment Agency Alliance
business services providers - Administered by BESA

201
 BESA
OFFICES
Head Office:
Building Engineering Services Association,
Rotherwick House, 3 Thomas More Street,
London E1W 1YZ
Tel: 0800 917 8419
Email: membership@thebesa.com

Membership Services Office

Building Engineering Services Association
Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge, Penrith CA10 2BX
Tel: 01768 860 465
Email: membership@thebesa.com

BESA Scotland & Northern Ireland

The Walled Garden, Bush Estate,
Midlothian EH26 0SD
Tel: 0131 445 5900 (Scotland)
Tel: 02887 448 598 (Northern Ireland)
Email: membership@thebesa.com

BESA Cymru / Wales

Building Engineering Services Association,
Rotherwick House, 3 Thomas More Street,
London E1W 1YZ
Tel: 0800 917 8419
Email: membership@thebesa.com

202 BACK TO CONTENTS

 BESA CONTACTS
OFFICES

BESA Regions BESA Group Companies

We have dedicated Regional Managers covering
all corners of the UK who work on behalf of our
members to help them through the process of
becoming a member, ensure they maximise
the benefits of membership, facilitate training
requirements and signposting members to other
relevant group services.
To find out who your regional manager is simply
email membership@thebesa.com
BESA Publications
Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
Penrith, Cumbria CA10 2BX
Tel: 01768 860405
Email: publications.info@thebesa.com
BESA Training
Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2BX
Tel: 01628 607800
Email: training@thebesa.com

BESCA
BESA Regions and Countries Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2BX
BESA Scotland & Northern Ireland
Tel: 0800 652 5533
BESA Cymru/Wales Email: info@besca.org.uk
BESA East Midlands
BESA Eastern Counties Engineering Services SKILLcard Ltd
BESA Hertfordshire Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
BESA Kent Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2BX
Tel: 01768 860406
BESA London Email: skillcard.info@thebesa.com
BESA North East
BESA North West Refcom
BESA South & West Midlands Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
BESA South East Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2BX
Tel: 01768 860409
BESA South West
Email: refcom.info@thebesa.com
BESA Surrey & Sussex
BESA Wessex & Channel Islands SFG20
BESA Yorkshire Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2BX
Tel: 01768 860 459
Email: sfg20.info@thebesa.com

Welplan Ltd
Old Mansion House, Eamont Bridge,
Penrith, Cumbria CA10 2BX
Tel: 0800 1958080
Email: contact@welplan.co.uk

BACK TO CONTENTS 203

 BESA
AFFILIATES
BESA Affiliates have the unrivalled opportunity
to put their name, products and services in
front of over 1,200 members operating across
the building engineering services sector.
Helping to raise a company’s
profile within the industry,
the BESA Affiliate Scheme
offers exclusive discounts on a
range of marketing activities
targeted at BESA members,
including access to specialist
events and a host of other
networking opportunities.
The BESA Affiliate Scheme is
tiered, designed to support the
varying needs and interests
of our Affiliates. The Bronze
Affiliate level is the baseline
of the BESA Scheme, with
the Silver, Gold and Platinum
levels progressively adding
more benefits and higher
percentages of discount, giving
opportunities for regional or
national brand exposure.
For more details, please visit:
www.thebesa.com/affiliates
204 BACK TO CONTENTS
Techtronic Industries (UK) Ltd Altecnic Ltd
- Milwaukee Altecnic who are part of the Caleffi Group are
Milwaukee® Tool is an industry-leading quality manufacturers of a wide range of plumbing
manufacturer of heavy-duty power tools, accessories & heating products, vessels, heat network
and hand tools for professional users worldwide equipment, solar, biomass & geothermal
Ground Floor, Unit 3 Globeside Business Park, Mustang Drive, Stafford, Staffordshire ST16 1GW
Fieldhouse Lane, Marlow, Bucks SL7 1HZ Contact: Helen Cooper
Contact: Ian Wakelin Tel: 01785 218200
Tel: 01628 894400 Email: laura.castro@altecnic.co.uk
Email: ian.wakelin@tti-emea.com Web: www.altecnic.co.uk
Web: uk.milwaukeetool.eu Affiliate Level: Bronze
Affiliate Level: Platinum
Building and Industrial
Flamco Ltd Services Pipework Academy
Flamco manufacture high quality expansion, BISPA is the Building & Industrial Services Pipework
pressure & storage vessels, safety valves & gauges, Academy based at the School of Civil and Building
deaeration & dirt separation equipment, valves & Engineering at Loughborough University
fittings as well as a full range of bracketry solutions Sir Fank Gibb Building, School of Architecture,
Washway Lane, St Helens WA10 6PB Building And Civil Engineering,
Contact: Lindsay Brown Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU
Tel: 01744 744 744 Contact: Mark Owens
Email: info@flamco.co.uk Tel: 01536 404 123
Web: www.flamcogroup.com/ex-en Email: info@bispa.com
Affiliate Level: Gold Web: www.bispa.org
Affiliate Level: Bronze
simPRO Software Ltd
simPRO Job Management helps you organise CONGRID
and automate your processes and maximise An easy-to-use, cloud based service software
your profitability company providing documentation management
James Hall, Parsons Green, St Ives PE27 4AA systems designed for subcontractors, main
Contact: Natasha Maycock contractors & developers
Tel: 0845 004 3978 Kaisaniemenkatu 4, 00100, Helsinki, Finland 00100
Email: natasha.maycock@simpro.co Contact: Timo Makkonen
Web: www.simpro.co Tel: (+358) 50 464 1193
Affiliate Level: Gold Email: olli@congrid.fi
Web: www.congrid.com
Tata Steel Affiliate Level: Bronze
Leading manufacturer of multi-certified Inline
and Inline Plus hot-finished pressure tubes to Hamworthy Heating Ltd
meet the specific needs of industrial end-users Design/manufacture innovative heating equipment
PO Box 101, Weldon Road, Corby, Wessex House, New Fields Business Park,
Northants NN17 5UA Stinsford Road, Poole, Dorset BH17 0NF
Contact: Chris Owen Contact: Keith Thompson
Tel: 01536 404 561 Tel: 01202 662 500
Email: technicalmarketing@tatasteeleurope.com Email: sales@hamworthy-heating.com
Web: www.tatasteelconstruction.com Web: www.hamworthy-heating.com
Affiliate Level: Gold Affiliate Level: Bronze
 BESA CONTACTS
AFFILIATES

Rockwool UK Ltd Compliance Air & Water Ltd Gripple Ltd Pegler Yorkshire Group Ltd
Worldwide maufacturer of insulation materials Consultants within the industry Suppliers of suspension and fastening systems Manufacturer of fittings and valves
and solutions for the construction and building Freehold House, 7 Freehold Road, The Old West Gun Works, Saville Street East, St Catherines Avenue, Doncaster DN4 8DF
services sector Birstall, Leicester LE4 4AL Sheffield S4 7UQ Contact: Phil Jackson
14 Floor, Chiswick Tower, 389 Chiswick High Road, Contact: Paul Downing Contact: Jo Barker Tel: 01302 560560
London W4 4AL Tel: 0116 2672232 Tel: 0114 2752255 Email: phill.jackson@pegleryorkshire.co.uk
Contact: Paul Barrett Email: pdowning@complianceairandwater.com Email: k.haldenby@gripple.com Web: www.pegleryorkshire.co.uk
Tel: 01656 862 621 Web: www.complianceairandwater.com Web: www.gripple.com Affiliate Level: Standard
Email: paul.barrett@rockwool.com Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard
Web: www.rockwool.co.uk Plasma Clean Ltd
Affiliate Level: Bronze Daikin Airconditioning UK Ltd Industrial Engineering Providing air filtration & odour control
Manufacturers/distributors of high quality, Plastics Ltd solutions for commercial kitchens, food
AEME high efficiency A/C & ventilation systems for Producers of high quality plastic products processing facilities, washrooms and
National specialists in ductwork cleaning training all kinds of applications for the hvacr industry other areas where clean air matters
2 Flightway Business Park, Dunkeswell, The Heights, Brooklands, Weybridge, Surey KT13 0NY Passfield Mill Business Park, Mill Lane, Broadstone Knowledge Mill, Broadstone Road,
Honiton, Devon EX14 4RD Contact: Graham Wright Passfield, Liphook, Hampshire GU30 7QU Stockport, Cheshire SK5 7DL
Contact: Peter Reid Tel: 0845 6419100 Contact: Phil Wilde - IE Plastics Contact: David Glover
Tel: 01404 890 888 Email: wrightg@daikin.co.uk Tel: 01428 751200 Tel: 0161 443 4125
Email: training@aeme.co.uk Web: www.daikin.co.uk Email: sales@ieplastics.co.uk Email: david.glover@plasma-clean.com
Web: www.aeme.co.uk Affiliate Level: Standard Web: www.iep-ltd.co.uk Web: www.plasma-clean.com
Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard
Danfoss Ltd
Allcool London Ltd Refrigeration, air conditioning and Institute of Healthcare Rinnai UK Ltd
Manufacturers of air conditioning coils heating supply company Engineering and Estate Manufacturers/distributors of gas appliances
Unit 4 Rippleside Commercial Estate, Capswood Business Park, Oxford Road, Management 9 Christleton Court, Manor Park,
Ripple Road, Barking, Essex IG11 0RJ Denham UB9 4LH Trade association for companies/personnel Runcorn, Cheshire WA7 1ST
Contact: Shirley Mason Contact: Paul Szyszczak who operate in the health industry Contact: Chris Goggin
Tel: 020 8593 5333 Tel: 0870 608 0008 2 Abingdon House, Cumberland Business Centre, Tel: 01928 531879
Email: sales@allcool.co.uk Email: paul.szyszczak@danfoss.com Portsmouth, Hants PO5 1DS Email: chrisgoggin@rinnaiuk.com
Web: www.allcool.co.uk Web: www.danfoss.co.uk Contact: Chris Parker Web: www.rinnai.com
Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard Tel: 02392 823186 Affiliate Level: Standard
Email: chris.parker@iheem.org.uk
Amtech Group Ltd EES Estimating & Web: www.iheem.org.uk S & P UK Ventilation
Mfgs of software for the building services industry Engineering Services Ltd Affiliate Level: Standard Systems Ltd
Bank House, 171 Midsummer Boulevard, Multi-disciplined Estimating company that provides Manufacturer of industrial & residential fans
Milton Keynes MK9 1EB tendering solutions for nationwide contractors Joblogic Ltd and ventilation equipment
Contact: Chris Slinn Unit 20 South Suffolk Buisiness Centre, The job management software of choice S & P House, Wentworth Road, Ransomes Europark,
Tel: 01908 608833 Alexandra Road, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2ZX for hundreds of service management Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 9SW
Email: christopher.slinn@amtech.co.uk Contact: John O'Connor companies across the UK Contact: Alasdair Howe
Web: www.amtech.co.uk Tel: 01787 881702 117 Zellig, Gibb Street, Birmingham B9 4AA Tel: 0845 4700074
Affiliate Level: Standard Email: j.oconnor@ees-eng.co.uk Contact: Richard Pryce Email: ahowie@solerpalau.com
Web: www.ees-eng.co.uk Tel: 0800 326 5561 Web: www.solerandpalau.co.uk
B & D Enterprises Affiliate Level: Standard Email: sales@joblogic.com Affiliate Level: Standard
Data centre consultant on air conditioning Web: www.joblogic.com
6 Fairfield Drive, Dorking, Surrey RH4 1JH Electro-Graph Affiliate Level: Standard Ventam Systems Ltd
Contact: Bernard Moore Manufacturers of advertising signs/ Manufacturers of gas safety interlocking/
Tel: 01306 883190 identification products Kingspan Industrial Ltd gas proving systems
Email: Bmooredk6@gmail.com 177 Lower High Street, Stourbridge, Manufacturers of insulated materials Unit D4, Seedbed Bus's Centre, Vanguard Way,
Affiliate Level: Standard West Midlands DY8 1TG Pembridge, Leominster, Herefordshire HR6 9LA Shoeburyness SS3 9QY
Contact: Martin Southall Contact: Justin Davies Contact: Laurence Burke
Bangor Steel Fabrications Ltd Tel: 01384 378436 Tel: 01544 388601 Tel: 01702 382307
A supply manufacturer of both rectangular Email: martin.southall@dsi.pipex.com Email: justin.davies@kingspan.com Email: sales@ventamsystems.co.uk
duct work with bespoke fittings and spiral duct Web: www.eguk.com Web: www.kingspaninsulation.com Web: www.ventamsystems.co.uk
work with associated fittings including bends, Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard
attenuators, flexible duct work and grilles
Unit 42, A Balloo Avenue, Balloo Industrial Estate, Gas Contract Services Ltd Lindab Ltd Walraven Ltd
Bangor BT19 7QT Consultancy and inspection service Spiral ductwork manufacturers Mfgs of BIS fixing & fittings for htg, sanitary
Contact: Leiza De Sousa to our industry sector 10 Woodall Road, Redburn Industrial Estate, equipment, airducts, electric cables etc
Tel: 0289 147 3436 Suite 2 Taunton House, Waterside Court, Enfield, Middlesex EN3 4LE Thorpe Way,, Banbury, Oxon OX16 4UU
Email: leizad@bsfltd.co.uk Neptune Way, Rochester, Kent ME2 4NZ Contact: Margi Kent Contact: Sally Williams
Web: www.bsfltd.co.uk Contact: Geoff Golding Tel: 07801 926265 Tel: 01295 753400
Affiliate Level: Standard Tel: 01634 295515 Email: margi.kent@lindab.co.uk Email: phillip.handley@walraven.com
Email: geoff.golding@gas-contract-services.co.uk Web: www.lindab.co.uk Web: www.walraven.com
BES Ltd Web: www.gas-contract-services.co.uk Affiliate Level: Standard Affiliate Level: Standard
Mail order suppliers of gas and plumbing Affiliate Level: Standard
fixtures and fitting Nottingham City Council Wilo (UK) Ltd
Unit 3, Junction Six Industrial Park, Electric Avenue, Grada UK Ltd Local authority in Nattingham Suppliers of building service pumps
Witton, Birmingham B6 7JA Manufacturer/supplier of ventilation equipment Loxley House, Station Street, Nottingham NG2 3NG Centrum 100,, Burton Upon Trent,
Contact: John Quigley Unit C3 (4) Centre Court, Moss I E, St Helens Road, Contact: Trevor Bone Staffordshire DE14 2WJ
Tel: 0121 3226400 Leigh, Lancashire WN7 3PT Tel: 0115 876 3039 Contact: Gary Manus
Email: jquigley@bes.ltd.uk Contact: Angie Owen Email: trevor.bone@nottinghamcity.gov.uk Tel: 01283 523000
Web: www.bes.co.uk Tel: 01942 676259 Web: www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk Email: gary.manus@wilo.co.uk
Affiliate Level: Standard Email: ian@grada.co.uk Affiliate Level: Standard Web: www.wilo.co.uk
Web: www.grada.co.uk Affiliate Level: Standard
Affiliate Level: Standard

BACK TO CONTENTS 205

 AGENCY
ALLIANCE
Building Services Engineering
Employment Agency Alliance
- Administered by BESA

The Building Services

Engineering Employment
Agency Alliance was founded in
2008 in order to promote best
practice in recruitment to the
industry. It was created by the
Association and a select group
administered by BESA
of specialist agencies in order to
give confidence to contractors
and service providers that
stringent recruitment
practices are in place to ensure
that suitably qualified and
competent personnel are
supplied to the industry.

In order to become an approved

Agency Alliance member, an
agency must adhere to the
Alliance’s Key Commitments and
there is a rigorous independent
initial audit process followed by
an annual review of compliance.
The Alliance is an elite group of
specialist agencies supplying
and exceeding the expectations
of building services engineering
contractors.

www.agencyalliance.org.uk

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1st Step Solutions Ltd
West Hill House, West Hill,
Dartford, Kent DA1 2EU
Contact: Matthew Jones
Tel: 0844 576 3800
Email: matthew.jones@1ststepsolutions.co.uk
Web: www.1ststepsolutions.co.uk
Branches: Chelmsford, Dartford, Nottingham
BMSL Group Ltd
1 Crown Court, Cheapside,
London EC2V 6LR
Contact: Tony Shipley
Tel: 020 7826 4400
Email: tony.shipley@bmsgroupltd.co.uk
Web: www.bmsgroupltd.co.uk
Branches: Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol,
Eastbourne, Fareham, Hartlepool, Leicester,
Lincolnshire, Livingstone, London,
Manchester, Middlesbrough
CSS Recruitment & Training Ltd
CSS House, 10-12 Manor Street,
Braintree, Essex CM7 3HP
Contact: Linda Miller
Tel: 01376 330700
Email: linda@csspeople.co.uk
Web: www.csspeople.co.uk
Branches: Essex, Kings Lynn, London,
Manchester, Thetford
Diamond Construction &
Engineering Recruitment Ltd
Elm Court, Southend Road,
Wickford, Essex SS11 8DU
Contact: Paul Hoffman
Tel: 01268 570570
Email: paul@dcer.co.uk
Web: www.dcer.co.uk
Branches: Wickford (Essex)
BESA CONTACTS
AGENCY ALLIANCE
Meridian Business Support Ltd Rullion Build Ltd
Trident Business Park, Styal Road, Aldermary House, 2nd Floor,
Wythenshawe, Manchester M22 5XB 10/15 Queen Street, London EC4N 1TX
Contact: Matt Geary Contact: James Brazier
Tel: 0161 929 3860 Tel: 0161 772 7220
Email: mgeary@meridianbs.co.uk Email: james.brazier@rullion.co.uk
Web: www.meridianbs.co.uk Web: www.rullionbuild.co.uk
Branches: Nationwide Branches: Altrincham, Birmingham,
Brighton, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leeds,
On-Site Group Ltd London, Manchester, Newcastle
Delme 2, Delme Place, Cams Hall Estate,
Fareham, Hampshire PO16 8UX Vital Human Resources Ltd
Contact: Darren Burnett Office 39, Grovewood Business Centre,
Tel: 0845 070 3883 Wren Court, Strathclyde Business Park,
Email: darren.burnett@theonsitegroup.co.uk Bellshill, Lanarkshire ML4 3NQ
Web: www.theonsitegroup.co.uk Contact: Craig Sutcliffe
Branches: Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds, Tel: 020 3617 5960
London, Portsmouth, Sutton Email: craig.sutcliffe@vital.uk.com
Web: www.vital-resources.com
Optima Site Solutions Ltd Branches: Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff,
Unit 5, Kingsway Business Park, Glasgow, London, Manchester, Newcastle
Oldfield Road, Hampton TW12 2HD
Contact: Antony Weir
Tel: 020 8783 9222
Email: antonyweir@optimasitesolutions.com
Web: www.optimasitesolutions.com
Branches: Hampton, London City, Watford
Phoenix Resourcing Services Ltd
1 Alie Street, Suite 309-310,
London E1 8DE
Contact: Mark Evans
Tel: 020 7553 5660
Email: mbe@prsjobs.com
Web: www.prsjobs.com
Branches: London and regional offices,
with national coverage
Pier Consulting Ltd
2nd Floor, 9 Devonshire Square,
London EC2M 4YF
Contact: Paul Ingram
Tel: 01446 688 866
Email: pingram@pierconsulting.co.uk
Web: www.pierconsulting.co.uk
Branches: South Wales
BACK TO CONTENTS 207
208
 BESA MEMBERS
CONTENTS

BESA MEMBERS
- GEOGRAPHICALLY
If you are trying to find full details of an association member in
a particular area, this section gives a region-by-region directory.
Please note: The information contained in the list of members was correct as of 15th October 2018.

210
BESA MEMBERS
214
BESA MEMBERS
218
BESA MEMBERS
228
BESA MEMBERS
EAST MIDLANDS EASTERN COUNTIES LONDON NORTH EAST

232
BESA MEMBERS
238
BESA MEMBERS
242
BESA MEMBERS
248
BESA MEMBERS
NORTH WEST NORTHERN IRELAND SCOTLAND SOUTH EAST

258
BESA MEMBERS
264
BESA MEMBERS
268
BESA MEMBERS
272
BESA MEMBERS
SOUTH WEST & WALES WEST MIDLANDS YORKSHIRE
WEST OF ENGLAND

209
 BESA MEMBERS

EAST
MIDLANDS

BESA provides a free online search service

(www.thebesa.com/find-a-besa-member)
designed to make it easy and quick to
find BESA member(s) that you require to
deliver heating, ventilating, ductwork,
facilities management, refrigeration,
air conditioning, commissioning and
maintenance services. The service allows
users to search for a BESA member by
radius (distance from the project site)
and by region: most BESA members are
willing to work outside their geographic
location and will welcome your enquiry.
A Ambivent Group
A T Services Ltd
Unit P, The Linwood Centre, Linwood Road,
Leicester, Leicestershire LE2 6QJ
Tel: 01162 835999
Email: enquiries@atservices.uk.com
Web: www.atservices.uk.com
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1996
In-House: GHMS
Specialist Group: HAPS
1 Moulton Court, Anglia Way, Moulton Park,
Northampton NN3 6JA
Atmosphere Air Conditioning
The Old Chapel, Chapel Street, Titchmarsh,
Northamptonshire NN14 3DA
Tel: 01604 645788 Tel: 01832 734308
Email: steve.dudson@ambivent.co.uk Email: stephen@atmosphereaircon.com
Web: www.ambivent.co.uk Web: www.atmosphereaircon.com
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1992 Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1999
In-House: ABCGIJLMOSZ In-House: ABCIO
Contracted Out: DEFKPQRTUVWXY Specialist Group: RACHP
Specialist Group: SFG

Air Ability Ltd

Apleona HSG Ltd
Nene House, Drayton Way, Drayton Fields Estate,
Daventry, Northamptonshire NN11 8EA
B
44 Westley Grange, West Avenue, Tel: 01327 311303
Wigston, Leicestershire LE18 2FB Email: cary.donaldson@bilfinger.com
Tel: 01162 884333 Web: www.uk-hsg.apleona.com
Email: accounts@airability.co.uk Year Joined: 2007
Web: www.airability.co.uk In-House: ABGMOSUZ
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2011 Contracted Out: TVWY
In-House: ABS Specialist Group: SFG

1 Up to £25k 2 Up to £50k Air Conditioning & Chiller Co Ltd APPM Contracts Ltd Batecool Refrigeration Ltd
3 Up to £100k 4 Up to £250k 26 Paddock Close, High Oakham, Mansfield, 305 Ashby Road, Coalville, Leicestershire LE67 3LH 22 Hillside, Findern, Derby
5 Up to £500k 6 Up to £1m
Nottinghamshire NG18 5AS Tel: 01530 612000 Derbyshire DE65 6AZ
7 Up to £10m 8 £10m and above Email: wendy.naylor@appmfs.co.uk Tel: 0800 358 0537
Tel: 01623 658580
Email: g.marshall@airconditioning-chiller.co.uk Web: www.appmfacilitiesservices.co.uk Email: info@batecool.co.uk
WORK TYPES: Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2004 Website: www.batecool.co.uk
A Air conditioning Web: www.airconditioning-chiller.co.uk
B Refrigeration F gas Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2006 In-House: AGHJLMOSZ
C Ductwork - Sheet metal In-House: AFIS Contracted Out: BFIKOPQTVWXY Established in 1998 Batecool Ltd has
D Ductwork - Plastics Specialist Group: RACHP Specialist Group: SFG developed a good reputation in all
E Local exhaust & kitchen ventilation aspects of the heating, ventilation
& maintenance
F Indoor air quality Aircover Arcade (UK) Ltd and air conditioning industry (HVAC).
G Commercial heating & plumbing Chestnut House, Alconbury Hill, Alconbury, Arcade House, Kym Road, Bicton Industrial Estate, Batecool endeavours to offer an honest
H Domestic heating, plumbing, Weston, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28 4JG Kimbolton, Cambridgeshire PE28 0LW and competitive solution to modern
service & maintenance Tel: 01480 890011 Tel: 01480 861111 heating and cooling applications. Our
I Design & build Email: samwilliams@arcade-uk.ltd.uk main activities are involved with small to
J Pipework / hot tapping/pipe Freezing Email: enquiries@aircover.co.uk
K Offsite prefabrication Web: www.aircover.co.uk Web: www.arcade-uk.ltd.uk large applications, within the domestic,
L Underfloor heating Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2005 Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2005 commercial and industrial sectors.
M C/I gas fitting In-House: CDEFQST In-House: ABEGIJKMOPQSVX
N Ability to sub-contract Contracted Out: CUZ Batecool are happy to offer a service
O Renewables (Wind, Solar, Biomass, CHP, H/P etc) Contracted Out: AGKMWYZ
P Industrial process pipework Specialist Group: SFG, VHB involving advice, design, installation,
Q Offsite prefabricated pipework Arthur Pollard Ltd service and repairs of most HVAC
R Thermal/sound insulation
S Facilities services
Ambivent Facilities 38 Churchill Way, Fleckney, Leicester LE8 8UD systems. Our most popular services
T Ductwork cleaning & vent hygiene Management Ltd Tel: 01162 403728 include...
1 Moulton Court, Anglia Way, Moulton Park, Email: davepollard@arthurpollard.co.uk
U Automatic control system
V Commissioning/performance testing Northamptonshire NN3 6JA Web: www.arthurpollard.co.uk • Refrigeration • Air Conditioning
W Water treatment Tel: 01604 645788 Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1984 • Ventilation • Kitchen Ventilation
X Lloyds class 1 welding Email: steve.dudson@ambivent.co.uk In-House: GIJKMOPQ • Commercial Plumbing and Heating
Y Fire protection engineering Contracted Out: ABCDEFLOSTUVWXYZ • Heating Systems • HVAC Control
Z Electrical contracting Web: www.ambivent.co.uk/services-provided/
maintenance Systems • Renewable Energy Systems
Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2010 • Solar Heating Systems • Complete
In-House: ABCEGILMOS HVAC Packages
HAPS Heating & Plumbing Services Group
RACHP Refrigeration, Air Conditioning Contracted Out: DFKPQTUVWXYZ
& Heat Pump Group Specialist Group: SFG
SFG Service & Facilities Group
VHB Ventilation Hygiene Branch
VG Ventilation Group

210 BACK TO MEMBERS

 BESA MEMBERS
EAST MIDLANDS

Batecool Refrigeration Ltd Combined Energy Solutions Ltd Environmental & Mechanical
22 Hillside, Findern, Derby, Derbyshire DE65 6AZ Hamilton House, Kestral Road, Mansfield, Services Ltd
Tel: 0800 3580537 Nottinghamshire NG18 5FT iCon Environmental Innovation Centre,
Email: info@batecool.co.uk Tel: 01623 422766 Unit 11, Eastern Way, Daventry,
Web: www.batecool.co.uk Email: julian.chantrey@combinedenergy.co.uk Northamptonshire NN11 0QB
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2000 Web: www.combinedenergysolutions.com Tel: 01327 844848
In-House: ABCDEGIJMOSTU Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1966 DCUK FM Email: duncan@environmental-mechanical-services.co.uk
Contracted Out: HLOPQWXYZ In-House: ABGIMOSUYZ 1 Woodfield Road, Welwyn Garden City Web: www.aquacert.co.uk
Specialist Group: RACHP Contracted Out: FTW Hertfordshire AL7 1JQ Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2001
Specialist Group: SFG Tel: 0870 112 9196 In-House: W
Blandfords LLP Fax: 0870 112 9197 Specialist Group: SFG
1B & 1C Robinson Way, Telford Way, Combined Energy Solutions Ltd Email: info@dcukfm.com
Kettering, Northamptonshire NN16 8PT Bembridge House, Bembridge Drive, Kingsthorpe, Website: www.dcukfm.com
Tel: 01536 483699
Email: chris@blandfords.net
Web: www.blandfords.net
Northampton, Northamptonshire NN2 6LZ
Tel: 01604 720072
Email: dec.moore@combinedenergy.co.uk
DCUKFM are leading experts in;
• Ductwork Cleaning
F
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2001 Web: www.combinedenergysolutions.com • Kitchen Extract Cleaning FWP UK Ltd
In-House: ABILSUZ Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1962 • Fire Damper Testing Willow Holt Farm, Fosse Road, East Stoke,
Contracted Out: FVXY In-House: ABIOSUYZ • Social Housing ventilation Nottinghamshire NG23 5QH
Specialist Group: RACHP Contracted Out: FGMTW • System Risk Assessments Tel: 01159 655042
Specialist Group: SFG • Building Refurbishment Email: saffron@fwp-air-conditioning.co.uk
Briggs & Forrester • Asbestos Removal Web: www.fwp-air-conditioning.co.uk
Engineering Services Ltd Complete Cooling Services Ltd • Maintenance Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2009
Bembridge House, Bembridge Drive, Kingsthorpe, Unit D1, The Ropewalk Industrial Centre, • Training In-House: AEISV
Northampton, Northamptonshire NN2 6LZ The Ropewalk, Ilkeston, Derbyshire DE7 5HX Specialist Group: RACHP
Tel: 01604 720072 Tel: 01159 440679 • BESA Approved
Email: paul.burton@briggs.uk.com Email: graham@cool4u.co.uk

Web: www.briggsandforrester.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1961
In-House: GIJMOZ
Contracted Out: ABCDEFKLPQRSTUVWXY
Briggs & Forrester
(Special Projects) Ltd
Bembridge House, Bembridge Drive, Kingsthorpe,
Northampton, Northamptonshire NN2 6LZ
Tel: 01604 720072
Email: trevor.brunt@briggs.uk.com
Web: www.briggsandforrester.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1991
In-House: GHMOQZ
Contracted Out: AILOUVW
Briggs & Forrester Living Ltd
Bembridge House, Bembridge Drive, Kingsthorpe,
Northampton, Northamptonshire NN2 6LZ
Tel: 01604 720072
Email: duncan.benedetti@briggs.uk.com
Web: www.briggsandforrester.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1985
In-House: DEGHIMOV
Contracted Out: ABCO
G
• LPCB Approved
Web: www.cool4u.co.uk • Nationwide – various regional offices
Year Joined: 2015
In-House: ABI Health and Safety is the foundation
Specialist Group: RACHP for all our work activities. We have GAC Environmental Ltd
received the RoSPA Award for Chancel House, East Street, Bingham,
Cripwell Building Services 14 consecutive years and the Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG13 8DS
119a Derby Street, Burton On Trent, British Safety Council International Tel: 01949 837531
Staffordshire DE14 2LE Safety Award for 7 successive years, Email: jan.denham@gac-environmental.com
Tel: 01283 564269 which evidence our commitment to Web: www.gac-environmental.com
Email: i.casswell@cripwellcbs.co.uk exceptional H&S standards. Year Joined: 2015
Web: www.cripwellcbs.co.uk In-House: ABGI
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2006
In-House: ABFGHMOQSUYZ Griffiths Air Conditioning
Contracted Out: CDEIKLPRTVWX & Electrical Contractors
Specialist Group: VG Derry Building Services Ltd 111 High Street, Burton Latimer, Kettering,
The Old Hospital, London Road, Newark, Northamptonshire NN15 5RL
Crown Deepclean Ltd Nottinghamshire NG24 1JP Tel: 01536 420666
2 Goodwood Avenue, Arnold, Nottingham, Tel: 01636 614300 Email: brian@griffithsaircon.co.uk
Nottinghamshire NG5 7BB Email: brian.hughes@derry-bs.co.uk Web: www.griffithsaircon.co.uk
Tel: 01159 204069 Web: www.derry-bs.com Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2013
Email: info@crowndeepclean.co.uk Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1981 In-House: AHLOSZ
Web: www.crowndeepclean.co.uk In-House: GIMOZ Contracted Out: O
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2010 Contracted Out: ABCDEFOQUVY Specialist Group: RACHP
In-House: T
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB

E H
C D East Kirkby Engineering Co Ltd
Avocet House, Bittern Way, Riverside Industrial Estate,
Heatcare Ltd
The Broadway Industrial Estate, The Broadway,
Clean Air Group DAE Mechanical Services Ltd Boston, Lincolnshire PE21 7NX Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 2RL
Technology House, 5 Newton Close, Drayton Fields, 21-39 Basford Road, Nottingham, Tel: 01205 366833 Tel: 01623 428276
Daventry, Northamptonshire NN11 8RR Nottinghamshire NG6 0JG Email: simon@ekeng.co.uk Email: garry@heatcare.com
Tel: 01327 301383 Tel: 01159 704552 Web: www.ekeng.co.uk Web: www.heatcare.com
Email: marie.wren@cleanair.co.uk Email: deden@daeltd.co.uk Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2001 Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2001
Web: www.cleanair.co.uk Web: www.daeltd.co.uk In-House: GHIJKMOPQV In-House: CDEGHIJKMOQUWXYZ
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2002 Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1978 Contracted Out: ABCDEFLORSTUVWXYZ Contracted Out: ABEFHLOPRSTV
In-House: ABCGMS In-House: GHMOPQS
Contracted Out: O Contracted Out: ABCDEILOTUVWXYZ Elite Cooling Solutions Ltd
Specialist Group: RACHP Specialist Group: SFG 54 Langham Road, Raunds,
Northamptonshire NN9 6LD
Tel: 0844 4145494
Email: info@elitecoolingsolutions.com
Web: www.elitecoolingsolutions.com
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2009
In-House: ABO
Specialist Group: RACHP

BACK TO MEMBERS 211

 BESA MEMBERS
EAST MIDLANDS

I MRS
13 Pate Road, Leicester Road Industrial Estate,
Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire LE13 0RG
Mellor Bromley Air Conditioning
Services Ltd
Marshall House, West Street, Glenfield LE3 8DT
Premier Facilities Maintenance Ltd
Unit 9, Enterprise Court, Harcourt Close,
Manners Industrial Estate, Ilkeston,
Imtech Engineering Tel: 01664 480111 Tel: 01162 766636 Derbyshire DE7 8EW
Services Central Ltd Email: bob.wolfenden@mrs.gb.net Email: ashley.whitehead@mellorbromley.co.uk Tel: 01159 303026
Hooton Street, Carlton Road, Nottingham, Web: www.mrs.gb.net Web: www.mellorbromley.co.uk Email: mike.wagstaff@premier-fm.co.uk
Nottinghamshire NG3 5GL Contract Size: 1 Year Joined: 2003 Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1965 Web: www.premier-fm.co.uk
Tel: 01159 505100 In-House: ABCEOZ In-House: GIJKLMRVW Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2009
Email: damian.harrison@imtech.co.uk Contracted Out: ABCDEFLNOPQSTUVWXYZ In-House: GJMSVZ
Web: www.imtech.co.uk Specialist Group: HAPS Contracted Out: FIKLPQTUVWXY
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 2003 Specialist Group: SFG
In-House: S Metalduct (Nottingham) Ltd
Unit C12, Hartley Workspace, Haydn Road,
Imtech Inviron Ltd
Facilities Management and Service, Pride Park View,
1 Victoria Way, Pride Park, Derby DE24 8AN
Sherwood, Nottingham NG5 1DG
Tel: 01159 623482
Email: david.ingram@metalduct.co.uk
Q
Tel: 01332 206551 Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1995 Quantaqua Ltd
Email: sean.finnegan@imtechinviron.co.uk
M.R.S. In-House: CE Unit 9, Cattermole Holdings, Market Place,
13 Pate Road, Leicester Rd. Ind. Est. Contracted Out: D Codnor, Derbyshire DE5 9QA
Web: www.inviron.co.uk
Melton Mobray, Leicestershire LE13 0RG Specialist Group: VG Tel: 01332 834693
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1983
Tel: 01664 480111 Email: craig@quantaqua.co.uk
Interduct UK Ltd Fax: 01664 410403 Midland Counties Heating Services Ltd Web: www.quantaqua.co.uk
Email: bob.wolfenden@mrs.gb.net Unit 27, Rees House, Parker Industrial Estate, Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2007
Unit 8, Top Station Road, Brackley,
Website: www.mrsairconditioning.co.uk Mansfield Road, Derby, Derbyshire DE21 4SZ In-House: EFT
Northamptonshire NN13 7UG
Tel: 01280 703322 Tel: 01332 381264 Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
We are a customer focused business
Email: le-ann@interduct.com Email: paul.cockerham@midland-counties.co.uk
(established 1977) providing Air
Web: www.interduct.com Web: www.midland-counties.co.uk

R
conditioning & Electrical services to a
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2000 Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2010
wide range of commercial/industrial
In-House: CET In-House: ELMOUZ
customers throughout the East Midlands.
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB Contracted Out: I
We design, supply & install air
Refrigeration & Heat Pump
Services Ltd
O
conditioning systems, heat pumps

J & chillers for comfort cooling or

process applications.
Unit 7a, Canalside Industrial Park, Kinoulton Road,
Cropwell Bishop, Nottinghamshire NG12 3BE
Tel: 01159 899985
JCW Energy Services Ltd We also offer package installation
ON365 Ltd Email: brian@rhp-services.co.uk
(Trading as Electrum FM) including electrical & civil works.
Unit 10, Weldon Road, Loughborough, Web: www.rhp-services.co.uk
Thurnham House Clarkes Road, Leicestershire LE11 5RN Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 1993
Wigston, Leicester LE18 2BG Tel: 01509 261100 In-House: ABO
A large proportion of our work is
Tel: 01179 522571 Email: david.brooks@on365.co.uk Specialist Group: RACHP
repeat business with satisfied
Email: john.burgoyne@jcwes.com Web: www.on365.co.uk
existing customers.
Web: www.jcwes.com Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2008
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2014
In-House: ABGHIJLMOSUVYZ
Contracted Out: CDEFKOPQRTVWX
In-House: ABCDGIMOSUVZ
Contracted Out: GJKOQRVWY S
Specialist Group: RACHP Sparks Mechanical Services Ltd
Matro Ltd P 15 Bennerley Court, Blenheim Industrial Estate,
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG6 8UT

L Unit 9, Byron Business Centre, Duke Street,

Hucknall, Nottinghamshire NG15 7HP
Tel: 01158 598151
L M Building Services Ltd Email: office@matromaintenance.co.uk
100 Mansfield Street, Sherwood, Nottingham, Web: www.matromaintenance.co.uk
Nottinghamshire NG5 4BH Contract Size: 1 Year Joined: 2008
Tel: 01159 622339 In-House: AGJLMPW
Email: louie@lmbuildingservicesltd.co.uk Specialist Group: SFG
Web: www.lmbuildingservicesltd.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2009 McCarthy Environmental Ltd
In-House: GJKMPQ Unit 9b, Cygnet Court, Swan Valley Way,
Contracted Out: CDEIOV Northampton, Northamptonshire NN4 9BS
Tel: 01604 635333
Email: mick@mccarthy-environmental.co.uk
P.J. Services Ltd
Unit 22, Eventus, Sunderland Road,
Tel: 01159 101011
Email: iain.scott@sparksms.co.uk
Web: www.sparksms.co.uk
Northfields Industrial Estate, Market Deeping, Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1969
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE6 8FD In-House: ABGIMPQSZ
Tel: 01778 382722 Contracted Out: FLOUW
Email: info@pjsltd.com
Web: www.pjsltd.com Surevent (UK) Ltd
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2000 76 Rushton Road, Rothwell, Nr Kettering,
In-House: DEGJLMOPQSVW Northamptonshire NN14 6QH
Contracted Out: ABCEHITUXYZ Tel: 0800 3457529
Email: clare@sureventuk.com
Parsons Contracting (Chesterfield) Ltd Web: www.surevent.info
Brimington Road, Chesterfield, Derbyshire S41 7UL Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2005

M Web: www.mccarthy-environmental.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2007
In-House: CDEFISUV
Tel: 01246 276536
Email: wayne.levers@parsonscontracting.co.uk
Web: www.parsonscontracting.co.uk
In-House: CDEFGHSTW
Contracted Out: M
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
M J Robinson Ltd Specialist Group: VG Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2010
Cedar Street, Mansfield, Mansfield, In-House: GHIJLMSV Swiftclean Building Services
Nottinghamshire NG18 2RZ MCL Energy Ltd Contracted Out: ACDEFTUWYZ 3 Scraptoft Business Centre, Main Street,
Tel: 01623 620174 Metcalfe House, Park View, Langwith, Scraptoft LE7 9TD
Email: admin@mjrobinsonltd.co.uk Nottinghamshire NG20 9DE Tel: 01702 531221
Web: www.building-services-contractors.co.uk Tel: 01623 741940 Email: g.nicholls@swiftclean.co.uk
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2000 Email: jason@mclenergy.co.uk Web: www.swiftclean.co.uk
In-House: GHIMO Web: www.mclenergy.co.uk Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1996
Contracted Out: ABCDELRSTUVWYZ Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1988 In-House: TW
In-House: GIMPQSV Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Contracted Out: AT
Specialist Group: SFG

212 BACK TO MEMBERS

 BESA MEMBERS
EAST MIDLANDS

T
T Clarke Contracting Ltd
Fengate, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE1 5XB
Tel: 01733 342624
Email: nathan.jenkins@tclarke.co.uk
Web: www.tclarke.co.uk
Year Joined: 2017
In-House: GIJKMPQX
Contracted Out: ABCDEFLORTUVWYZ

T Clarke Contracting Ltd

Windsor Court, Ascot Drive, Derby,
Derbyshire DE24 8GZ
Tel: 01332 332177
Email: steve.ceiley@tclarke.co.uk
Web: www.tclarke.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2005
In-House: ABCDEGHIKLMOQSVWZ
Contracted Out: FPRTUXY

Trace Energy Systems (Leicester)

Unit M2, Harrison Road, Airfield Business Park,
Market Harborough, Leicestershire LE16 7UL
Tel: 01858 438940
Email: nick@trace.uk.com
Web: www.trace.uk.com
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1989
In-House: ABGIO
Contracted Out: CMTUZ
Specialist Group: RACHP

U
Uni-Clean Maintenance Services
5 Priest Court, Springfield Business Park,
Grantham, Lincolnshire NG31 7FZ
Tel: 01476 514614
Email: ken@uni-cleanservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2007
In-House: EST
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB

W
William Bailey Ltd
Merlin Court, Ripley Road, Ambergate,
Derbyshire DE56 2EP
Tel: 01773 853703
Email: stuart.bailey@williambailey.co.uk
Web: www.williambailey.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1989
In-House: EGHIJKMOPQSVWX
Contracted Out: ABCDEFLRTUVYZ

WM Building Services (Leicester) Ltd

657 Melton Road, Thurmaston, Leicester,
Leicestershire LE4 8EB
Tel: 01163 112477
Email: grahamcherry@wmbuildingservices.com
Web: www.wmbuildingservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2003
In-House: ACEGIMOSZ
Contracted Out: DFKLOPQTUVWXY
Specialist Group: HAPS

BACK TO MEMBERS 213

 BESA MEMBERS

EASTERN
COUNTIES

BESA provides a free online search service

(www.thebesa.com/find-a-besa-member)
designed to make it easy and quick to
find BESA member(s) that you require to
deliver heating, ventilating, ductwork,
facilities management, refrigeration,
air conditioning, commissioning and
maintenance services. The service allows
users to search for a BESA member by
radius (distance from the project site)
and by region: most BESA members are
willing to work outside their geographic
location and will welcome your enquiry.
0-9
21st Century Contracts Ltd
Suite S, Whitegates Business Centre,
Alexander Lane, Shenfield, Essex CM15 8QF
Tel: 0208 5978008
Email: martin.maloney@21stcenturycontracts.co.uk
Web: www.21stcenturycontracts.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2011
In-House: DEGHMOSXZ
Contracted Out: ABCFIKLPQTUWY
Specialist Group: HAPS
Allied Mechanical Services Ltd
Goodwin Business Park, Willie Snaith Road,
Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 7SQ
Tel: 01638 661062
Email: info@alliedservices.co.uk
Web: www.alliedservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1984
In-House: CGIJKMOPQSWX
Contracted Out: ABDEFLOTUVYZ
Specialist Group: SFG
Ames Air Conditioning Ltd
4 Basey Road, Rackheath Industrial Estate,
Norwich, Norfolk NR13 6PZ
Tel: 01603 722122
B
B & F Mechanical Services Ltd
Unit 77a, Claydon Business Park, Gipping Road,
Great Blakenham, Ipswich, Suffolk IP6 0NL
Tel: 01473 785115
Email: bfmechanic@aol.com
Web: www.bfmechanical.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1996
In-House: GJKMPQX
Contracted Out: ABCDEFILORSTUVWYZ
Bower Fuller
6 Bermuda Road, Ransomes Europark,

A
Email: shaun@amesac.co.uk Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 9RU
Web: www.amesac.co.uk Tel: 01473 272277
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2014 Email: smatthews@bowerfuller.co.uk
Absolute Mechanical Ltd In-House: ACDEGHIO Web: www.bowerfuller.co.uk
Pear Tree Farm, The Street, Weybread, Contracted Out: T Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1968
Diss, Norfolk IP21 5TH Specialist Group: RACHP In-House: GHJMOSVZ
Tel: 01379 586316 Contracted Out: ABCDEFIKLOPQRTUWXY
1 Up to £25k 2 Up to £50k Email: absolutejohn@hotmail.co.uk Anglia Boiler Maintenance Ltd
3 Up to £100k 4 Up to £250k Web: www.absolutemechanical.co.uk 70a High Street, Caister-on-Sea, Briggs & Forrester
5 Up to £500k 6 Up to £1m Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2010 Great Yarmouth, Norfolk NR30 5EH Engineering Services Ltd
7 Up to £10m 8 £10m and above Tel: 01493 721373 Unit A, South Cambridge Business Park,
In-House: GHIJKLPQSV
Contracted Out: EMTUZ Email: tracey@anglia-boiler.co.uk Babraham Road, Sawston, Cambridge,
WORK TYPES: Web: www.anglia-boiler.co.uk Cambridgeshire CB22 3JH
A Air conditioning Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 1987
B Refrigeration F gas Aircare In-House: GHM
Tel: 01223 830009
C Ductwork - Sheet metal 79 Crescent Road, Heybridge, Maldon, Essex CM9 4SN Email: will.newman@briggs.uk.com
D Ductwork - Plastics Tel: 0560 3411826 Specialist Group: SFG Web: www.briggsandforrester.co.uk
E Local exhaust & kitchen ventilation Email: aircarelimited@hotmail.co.uk Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1961
& maintenance
Web: www.aircarelimited.co.uk Aquatronic Group Management PLC In-House: GIJMOZ
F Indoor air quality AGM House, London Road, Copford,
G Commercial heating & plumbing Year Joined: 2009 Contracted Out: ABCDEFKLOPQRSTUVWXY
H Domestic heating, plumbing, In-House: ILOS Colchester, Essex CO6 1GT
service & maintenance Specialist Group: RACHP Tel: 01206 215151 Bright Hygiene Management
I Design & build Email: mat@agm-plc.co.uk (London) Ltd
J Pipework / hot tapping/pipe Freezing Web: www.acornps.co.uk
K Offsite prefabrication Airway Air Conditioning Ltd Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 1986
Omega House, 7 Sarbir Industrial Park,
L Underfloor heating Unit 8, Stirling Way, Papworth Business Park, Cambridge Road, Harlow, Essex CM20 2EU
M C/I gas fitting Papworth Everard CB23 3GY In-House: GIQS Tel: 01279 444821
N Ability to sub-contract Tel: 01480 831010 Specialist Group: SFG Email: joseph@brighthygiene.co.uk
O Renewables (Wind, Solar, Biomass, CHP, H/P etc) Email: luke@airwayac.co.uk Web: www.brighthygiene.co.uk
P Industrial process pipework
Web: www.airwayac.co.uk Arcus Solutions Ltd Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2012
Q Offsite prefabricated pipework Enterprise House, 168-172 Upminster Road,
R Thermal/sound insulation Year Joined: 2017 In-House: ET
S Facilities services In-House: ABS Upminster, Essex RM14 2RB Specialist Group: SFG, VHB, VG
T Ductwork cleaning & vent hygiene Tel: 01708 462944
U Automatic control system
AJR ECO Ltd Email: gregory.shingles@arcus-solutions.co.uk

C
V Commissioning/performance testing Web: www.arcus.holdings
W Water treatment Unit 1, Brookside Centre, Sumpters Way,
Southend On Sea, Essex SS2 5RR Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 2012
X Lloyds class 1 welding
Y Fire protection engineering Tel: 01702 619698 In-House: ABEGHJMOSTUVWYZ
Z Electrical contracting Email: terry@ajr-ltd.co.uk Contracted Out: O Cambridge Maintenance Services Ltd
Web: www.ajr-ltd.co.uk Specialist Group: RACHP SI One, Parsons Green, St Ives, Cambridgeshire PE27 4AA
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2006 Tel: 01480 493800
HAPS Heating & Plumbing Services Group In-House: ABGHJKLMOQ Email: chris.k@cambridgemaintenance.co.uk
RACHP Refrigeration, Air Conditioning Web: www.cambridgemaintenance.co.uk
& Heat Pump Group Contracted Out: IOVW
SFG Service & Facilities Group Specialist Group: HAPS Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1995
VHB Ventilation Hygiene Branch In-House: ABG
VG Ventilation Group Specialist Group: SFG

214 BACK TO MEMBERS

 BESA MEMBERS
EASTERN COUNTIES

Capri Mechanical Services Ltd
53-55 Cutlers Road, South Woodham Ferrers,
Chelmsford, Essex CM3 5XJ
Tel: 01245 321144
Email: john.uwins@caprimechanical.co.uk
Web: www.caprimechanical.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1976
In-House: ABCEGIMQUVZ
Contracted Out: DLSVWXY
Specialist Group: VG
Cooper & Brome (Contracts) Ltd Delta T Mechanical & Electrical Ltd
Units 3 & 4, 85 London Road, Marks Tey, Unit 6, West Station Industrial Estate,
Colchester, Essex CO6 1EB Spital Road, Maldon, Essex CM9 6TR
Tel: 01206 212582 Tel: 01621 850843
Email: simon@cooperandbrome.co.uk Email: simon@deltatservices.co.uk
Web: www.cooperandbrome.co.uk Web: www.deltatservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1984 Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2003
In-House: GHJMO In-House: ABEFHISTUVYZ
Contracted Out: ABCDEFILOPQRSTUVWYZ Contracted Out: CDGJKLMOPQWX
Specialist Group: HAPS Specialist Group: RACHP

Cater Clean 24 Seven Cooper & Brome DMG Delta Ltd

Unit 2, Hall Farm, Little Walden, Essex CB10 1XA (Plumbing & Heating) Ltd Sion Park, Stansted Road, Birchanger,
Tel: 0870 3003232 43 Colne Road, Brightlingsea, DANIMAK Limited Bishop Stortford, Essex CM23 5PU
Email: steve@24sevengroup.co.uk Colchester, Essex CO7 0DU CSM House, Chequers Lane Tel: 01279 810100
Web: www.deepclean24seven.co.uk Tel: 01206 303832 Dagenham, Essex RM9 6PR Email: rupert.mackay@dmgdelta.co.uk
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2012 Email: jennycooper@cooperandbromepandh.co.uk Tel: 0208 596 9040 Web: www.dmgdelta.co.uk
In-House: T Web: www.cooperandbrome.co.uk Fax: 0208 896 9045 Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2004
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1988 Email: info@danimak.com In-House: ABFGHIJLMNOSUVWZ
In-House: GHLM Website: www.danimak.com Contracted Out: CDEKPQRTXY
Ceetech Ltd Contracted Out: ACU Specialist Group: SFG
Acorn Business Centre, Paper Mill Lane, Specialist Group: HAPS
Mechanical and Electrical Engineers
Bramford, Ipswich, Suffolk IP8 4BZ

E
specialising in the commercial,
Tel: 01473 830095 CPS Building Services Ltd leisure and retail sectors.
Email: kerry.briggs@ceetech.co.uk Tyburn House, Station Road, Oakington,
Web: www.ceetech.co.uk Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB24 3AH
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2013 Tel: 01223 232054 Eastern Fabrications
In-House: GHIMOUYZ Email: james@cambridgepipedservices.co.uk Building Services Ltd
Contracted Out: ABCDELPQSTWX Web: www.cpsbuildingservices.co.uk 4 Horsecroft Place, The Pinnacles,
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2009 Harlow, Essex CM19 5BT
Ceilite Airconditioning In-House: BEGHMOSUVZ Tel: 01279 454609
Unit 1, The Alcorns, Cambridge Road, Contracted Out: CDEFIJKLOPQTWXY Email: roy.cox@efabs.co.uk
Stansted, Essex CM24 8DF Specialist Group: SFG Web: www.efabs.co.uk
Tel: 01279 815503 Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1999
Email: darren.down@ceilite.com Curaim UK Ltd In-House: ACDEJKOQSTV
Web: www.ceilite.com 26 Hornsby Square, Southfields Business Park, Contracted Out: LW
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2004 Basildon, Essex SS15 6SD
In-House: ABGIMOV Tel: 01268 410427 Edmund Services Ltd
Contracted Out: O Email: lea@curaim.co.uk 12/13 Saxon House, Warley Street,
Specialist Group: RACHP Web: www.curaim.co.uk Upminster, Essex RM14 3PJ
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1987 Tel: 01708 222221
Chadwell Construction Ltd In-House: ABGHJLMOSV Email: eddie@edmundservices.com
Tralin House, Chesham Close, Romford, Essex RM7 7PJ Contracted Out: CEFIRTUVWYZ Web: www.edmund-services.co.uk
Tel: 01708 767100 Specialist Group: RACHP, SFG Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1993
Email: nick@chadwell.co.uk In-House: ABGMOUZ
Web: www.chadwell.co.uk DCUK FM Contracted Out: CDEFHIJLOPQRSTVWXY
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2009
In-House: ABCDEGHIMVYZ
Contracted Out: H
D 1 Woodfield Road, Welwyn Garden City
Hertfordshire AL7 1JQ
Specialist Group: SFG

Elite Services (Environmental) Ltd

Tel: 0870 112 9196
D & K Facilities Maintenance Ltd Fax: 0870 112 9197
4 Main Drive, Dunton Park, Lower Dunton Road,
Constant Cooling Ltd 32 Hornsby Square, Southfields Industrial Estate,
Email: info@dcukfm.com
Brentwood, Essex CM13 3SX
Catherine House, London Road, Sawston, Laindon, Essex SS15 6SD Tel: 01268 542030
Website: www.dcukfm.com
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB22 3XE Tel: 01268 545737 Email: lee@eliteservices.co.uk
Tel: 01223 834711 Email: glenn@dandkfacilities.co.uk Web: www.eliteservices.co.uk
Email: peter@constantcooling.com Web: www.dandkfacilities.co.uk DCUKFM are leading experts in; Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2007
Web: www.constantcooling.com Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2007 • Ductwork Cleaning In-House: ABGMOS
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2009 In-House: MOV • Kitchen Extract Cleaning Contracted Out: CEITUVWYZ
In-House: ABHOS Contracted Out: V • Fire Damper Testing Specialist Group: SFG
Specialist Group: RACHP Specialist Group: SFG • Social Housing ventilation
• System Risk Assessments ENGIE FM Ltd
Cool Heat Services Ltd Danimak Ltd • Building Refurbishment Ipswich Branch, Unit 19, Sterling Complex,
167 Hulbridge Road, South Woodham Ferrers, CSM House, Chequers Lane, Dagenham, Essex RM9 6PR • Asbestos Removal Farthing Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 5AP
Chelmsford, Essex CM3 5LN Tel: 0208 5969040 • Maintenance Tel: 01473 470006
Tel: 01245 321615 Email: dan@danimak.com • Training Email: david.jackson@engie.com
Email: john@coolheat.co.uk Web: www.danimak.com Web: www.engie.co.uk
Web: www.coolheat.co.uk Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2006 • BESA Approved Year Joined: 2007
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 1981 In-House: ABGIMOS • LPCB Approved In-House: ABS
In-House: ABFGHIOSUV Contracted Out: CDEFHJKLPQRTUVWXYZ • Nationwide – various regional offices Specialist Group: RACHP, SFG
Contracted Out: C Specialist Group: SFG
Specialist Group: RACHP Health and Safety is the foundation Eyre Building Services Group Ltd
for all our work activities. We have Eastern House, Eastern Court, Ernest Gage Avenue,
received the RoSPA Award for New Costessey, Norwich, Norfolk NR5 0JU
14 consecutive years and the Tel: 01603 731100
British Safety Council International Email: accounts@eyregroup.co.uk
Safety Award for 7 successive years, Web: www.eyre-electrical-mechanical.co.uk
which evidence our commitment to Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1998
exceptional H&S standards. In-House: ABFGHIJMOPRSZ
Contracted Out: CDEKLQTUVWY
Specialist Group: RACHP

BACK TO MEMBERS 215

 BESA MEMBERS
EASTERN COUNTIES
F Guardian Water Treatment Ltd
Fisher Refrigeration
37 High Street, Landbeach, Cambridge,
Cambridgeshire CB25 9FR
Tel: 01223 861103
Email: trevor@fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
Web: www.fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1987
In-House: ABIOZ
Specialist Group: RACHP
Fisher Refrigeration Ltd
37 High Street, Landbeach, Cambridge
Cambridgeshire CB25 9FR
Tel: 01223 861103
Fax: 01223 440686
Email: trevor@fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
Website: www.fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
We are a small second generation
family firm. We supply, install, repair,
maintain all sorts of refrigeration and
air conditioning equipment (24/7).
We specialize in low temperature -80/
-140’C cabinets and prototype work.
As well as standard cold and freezer
rooms, fridges, freezers, ice machines,
air conditioning units, basically
anything that gets cold (and some
that heat).
We have been serving Cambridgeshire
and the surrounding areas for
nearly 40 years, and have experienced
and fully trained engineers with
current F-Gas certs.
We look after a wide range of
customers varying from domestics,
shops, restaurants, laboratories,
construction sites and industrial
equipment. Any enquiry welcomed.
Fisher Refrigeration Ltd
37 High Street, Landbeach, Cambridge,
Cambridgeshire CB25 9FR
Tel: 01223 861103
Email: trevor@fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
Web: www.fisherrefrigeration.co.uk
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 1987
In-House: ABOZ
Specialist Group: RACHP
G
Gowing & Hunt Ltd
Unit 4, Greenham Park, Common Road,
Witchford, Cambridgeshire CB6 2HF
Tel: 01353 666669
Email: mary@gowingandhunt.co.uk
Web: www.gowingandhunt.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1999
In-House: DEGHIJKLMOPQSVWXZ
Contracted Out: ABCEFTUY
216 BACK TO MEMBERS
Units 9 & 10, The Capricorn Centre,
Cranes Farm, Basildon, Essex SS14 3JJ
Tel: 01268 287477
Email: steveh@gwtltd.com
Web: www.gwtltd.com
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2011
In-House: CDEFTW
Contracted Out: V
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
H
H2O Nationwide Ltd
Repton Court Enterprise Park, Repton Close,
Basildon, Essex SS13 1LN
Tel: 01268 282700
Email: steve@h2onationwide.co.uk
Web: www.h2onationwide.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2000
In-House: TW
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Hawkes Refrigeration Engineers
2 - 6 Gibcracks, Basildon, Essex SS14 1PE
Tel: 01268 556663
Email: barry@refrigeration-uk.com
Web: www.refrigeration-uk.com
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2000
In-House: ABEGHIOPRSTVZ
Contracted Out: CDGHMW
Specialist Group: RACHP
Henry Martin & Sons Ltd
Unit 18, Brunel Units, Brunel Road,
Gorse Lane Industrial Estate, Clacton On Sea,
Essex CO15 4LU
Tel: 01255 428730
Email: martin@henrymartinandsons.co.uk
Web: www.henrymartinandsons.co.uk
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1999
In-House: GHIJMOPQSV
Contracted Out: ABCDEFKLORTUWXYZ
Specialist Group: HAPS
Hygiene Contracts Ltd
5 Harvey Close, Burnt Mills Ind Estate,
Basildon, Essex SS13 1EY
Tel: 01268 726332
Email: casey.owen@hygienecontracts.com
Web: www.hygienecontracts.com
Year Joined: 2017
In-House: AEGST
I
Imtech Inviron Ltd
(Facilities Management & Service)
Nash House, 17 Portman Road,
Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 2BP
Tel: 01473 346300
Email: doug.hoskins@imtechinviron.co.uk
Web: www.inviron.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1983
Specialist Group: SFG
Independent Air Quality
Consultancy Services Ltd
11 Mersey Road, Witham, Essex CM8 1LL
Tel: 01376 538472
Email: alan@iaqservices.co.uk
Web: www.iaqservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2013
In-House: FT
Contracted Out: EWY
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Ingot Canopy & Fan Services Ltd
76 Claydon Business Park, Gipping Road,
Great Blakenham, Ipswich, Suffolk IP6 0NL
L
Tel: 01473 833480 L A Maintenance Ltd
Email: sales@ingotservices.co.uk Folkes Farm, Folkes Lane, Upminster, Essex RM14 1TH
Web: www.ingotservices.co.uk Tel: 01277 205046
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2013 Email: lam@lamaintenance-ltd.co.uk
In-House: FST Web: www.lamaintenance-ltd.co.uk
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1992
In-House: ABEFGHIJLMOSUVWZ
Integral UK Ltd Contracted Out: CKQRTXY
Suite 4, Rosemary House, Lanwades Business Park,
Specialist Group: SFG
Kentford, Newmarket CB8 7PN
Tel: 01638 554420 Lorne Stewart PLC
Email: martin.hurn@integral.co.uk No 12 De Grey Square, De Grey Road,
Web: www.integral.co.uk Colchester, Essex CO4 5YQ
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 2005 Tel: 01206 751177
In-House: ABGHIMOSVXYZ
Email: simon.churchill@lornestewart.co.uk
Contracted Out: CDEFJKLOPQRTUVW
Web: www.lornestewart.com
Specialist Group: SFG
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1988
In-House: BGHIMOYZ
J
Contracted Out: AEKLOUVW
Specialist Group: SFG
JCW Energy Services Ltd
Unit 7, Saxon Business Centre, Saxon Way,
Melbourn, Cambridgeshire SG8 6DN
Tel: 01763 264300
M
M Rogerson Ltd
Email: richard.weller@jcwes.com
Web: www.jcwes.com Unit 2, The Dock, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB7 4GS
Tel: 01353 662339
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2014
In-House: ABGHIJLMOSUYZ Email: markevans@mrogerson.co.uk
Web: www.mrogerson.co.uk
Contracted Out: CDEFKOPQRTVWX
Specialist Group: RACHP Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2012
In-House: GHIJMOPSV
Jordan Environmental Ltd Contracted Out: ABCDEKLOQRTUWXYZ
Specialist Group: HAPS
Unit 6, Woodside Business Park, Thetford Road,
Ingham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP31 1NR
Madson Air Conditioning Ltd
Tel: 01284 728848
10 Edward Park, Grange Way, Colchester,
Email: info@jordanenviro.co.uk
Essex CO2 8FZ
Web: www.jordanenviro.co.uk
Tel: 01206 866000
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1999
In-House: FW Email: damon@madson.co.uk
Specialist Group: SFG Web: www.madson.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2001
Jupiter Facilities Management Ltd In-House: ABCDEGIORSUV
3 Repton Court, Basildon, Essex SS13 1LN Contracted Out: GLMOTWZ
Tel: 01268 288988 Specialist Group: RACHP
Email: phil.dorrell@jupiterfm.com
Web: www.jupiterfm.com MC Electrical Services (London) Ltd
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2003 Suite 1, 3 Wollaston Way, Burnt Mills Industrial Estate,
In-House: ABGHMOSZ Basildon, Essex SS13 1DJ
Contracted Out: CDFITUVWY Tel: 0845 3881142
Email: hayley@mcelectricalservicesltd.co.uk
K
Web: www.mcelectricalservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2015
In-House: ABEFIOVWZ
Contracted Out: CJKLPQRSTUXY
Kershaw Mechanical Services Ltd Specialist Group: RACHP
Edward Leonard House, Pembroke Avenue,
Denny End Road, Waterbeach, Cambridge,
Cambridgeshire CB25 9QR
Munro Building Services Ltd
Murdoch House, Unit 1, 30 Garlic Row,
Tel: 01223 715800
Cambridge CB5 8HW
Email: gary.smith@kershaw-grp.co.uk
Tel: 01223 702100
Web: www.kershaw-grp.co.uk
Email: davidclark@munroservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1955
Web: www.munrobuildingservices.co.uk
In-House: ABCEGHIJKMQSV
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1974
Contracted Out: DFLOPRTUWXYZ
In-House: GJKMOSZ
Specialist Group: VG
Contracted Out: ABCDEFILOTUVWXY
KGB Commercial Heating
Diamond House, Vulcan Road North,
Munro Building Services Ltd
Unit 11, Kingsdale Business Centre,
Norwich, Norfolk NR6 6AQ
Regina Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1PE
Tel: 0845 2300696
Tel: 01245 392610
Email: kevinkgbcomheat@btconnect.com
Email: waynesallows@munroservices.co.uk
Web: www.kgbcommercialheating.com
Web: www.munrobuildingservices.co.uk
Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2007
Year Joined: 1992
In-House: GMUWZ
In-House: GJKMOSZ
Contracted Out: EI
Specialist Group: SFG Contracted Out: ABCDEFILOTUVWXY
 BESA MEMBERS
EASTERN COUNTIES

N Pro-Duct Clean Ltd

The Gattinetts, Hadleigh Road,
East Bergholt, Essex CO7 6QT
Scott Heating & Ventilation Ltd
Unit 5, Brookside Industrial Estate, Sawtry,
Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28 5SB
T
NCPI Solutions Tel: 0870 6092080 Tel: 01487 831735 T Clarke Contracting Ltd
5 Station Road, Shepreth, Cambridgeshire SG8 6PZ Email: nigel@pro-ductclean.com Email: adrian@scottventilation.co.uk Bicton Industrial Park, Kym Road, Kimbolton,
Tel: 01763 261778 Web: www.pro-ductclean.com Web: www.scottventilation.co.uk Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28 0LW
Email: martin@ncpisolutions.co.uk Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2008 Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1988 Tel: 01480 861544
Web: www.ncpisolutions.co.uk In-House: E In-House: CDEI Email: sam.greene@tclarke.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2007 Specialist Group: SFG, VHB Contracted Out: ABGMPQRSTUVZ Web: www.tclarke-east.co.uk
In-House: ABGSZ Specialist Group: VG Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1996
Contracted Out: CEMWY In-House: GHIJKMPQSUZ
Norfolk Heating Ltd
Prestige House, Avian Way, Salhouse Road,
R SES Mechanical Services Ltd
Telford Way, Severalls Lane Industrial Est,
Colchester, Essex CO4 9QP
Contracted Out: ABCDEFLORTVWXY

TWO Services Ltd

Norwich, Norfolk NR7 9AR Rainbow International
Tel: 01603 429426 (Great Dunmow)
Email: janie.sewell@aol.co.uk Rainbow House, Flitch Industrial Estate,
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1966 Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 1XJ
In-House: GHILMO Tel: 01371 859859
Contracted Out: ABCDEFJKOPQSTUVWXYZ Email: jez@rainbow.me.uk
Specialist Group: HAPS Web: www.rainbow-int.co.uk
Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2010
In-House: ST
P Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Tel: 01206 845333
Email: sales@sesmechanical.co.uk
Web: www.sesmechanical.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1981
In-House: ABGHIJKLMOPQS
Contracted Out: CDEORTUVWZ
Specialist Group: RACHP
Silenster Building Services Ltd
2 Hovefields Lodge, Burnt Mills,
Basildon, Essex SS13 1EB
Tel: 01268 727603
Email: barry@two-services.com
Web: www.two-services.com
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2006
In-House: ST
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB

Rogan Heating Services Ltd

The Old Stables, Hockwold Lodge, Cowles Drove,
Hockwold, Thetford, Norfolk IP26 4JQ
Tel: 01842 829876 U
P.I.P. Building Services Ltd Unit 4, Meadow Business Park, Reach Road, Email: keith.ladell@silenster.co.uk
Fenton House, Fenton Way, Southfields Business Park, Burwell, Cambridge CB25 0GH Web: www.silenster.co.uk United Facilities Management Ltd
Basildon, Essex SS15 6TD Tel: 01638 743500 Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 1984 Suite 4, The Sanctuary, Steeple View Farm,
Tel: 01268 541651 Email: roganhs@globalnet.co.uk In-House: SZ Dunton Road, Steeple View, Laindon, Essex SS15 4DB
Email: dawn.stirling@pip.uk.com Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1989 Specialist Group: SFG Tel: 0333 3230730
Web: www.pip.uk.com In-House: GMQS Email: stephen@unitedfm.com
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2011 Specialist Group: SFG Soltec UK Ltd Web: www.unitedfm.com
In-House: GHJMQSUVZ Unit 3, Priory Works, Priory Avenue, Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1996
Contracted Out: ABCDEIKLTWXY Royce Group Ltd Southend On Sea, Essex SS2 6LD In-House: ABEGHIMOSZ
8 Lime Grove Estate, Falconer Road, Tel: 01702 301080 Contracted Out: CDEFJKLOPQTUVWXY
Pitkin & Ruddock Ltd Haverhill, Suffolk CB9 7XU Email: alan@soltecuk.com Specialist Group: SFG
Unit 1, Capital Estate, Whapload Road, Tel: 01440 712345 Web: www.soltecuk.com
Lowestoft, Suffolk NR32 1TY Email: alison@roycegroup.ltd.uk Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2007
Tel: 01502 563629
Email: dean.clackett@pitkin-ruddock.co.uk
Web: www.pitkin-ruddock.co.uk
Web: www.roycegroup.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2010
In-House: ABCGIMOSV
In-House: ABCDEFGHILMOPQSTUVZ
Specialist Group: RACHP W
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1975 Contracted Out: T Sotham Engineering Services Ltd Weldatube Mechanical Services Ltd
In-House: ABEO Specialist Group: RACHP Home End, Fulbourn,Cambridge CB21 5BS 74 Fryerning Lane, Ingatestone,
Contracted Out: LTUWZ Tel: 01223 881081 Chelmsford, Essex CM4 0NN
Specialist Group: RACHP RSE Building Services Ltd Email: ricky.harris@sotham.co.uk Tel: 01277 353306
30 Hornsby Square, Southfields Business Park, Web: www.sotham.co.uk Email: info@keepingcool.co.uk
Pitkin & Ruddock Ltd Laindon, Basildon, Essex SS15 6SD Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1982 Web: www.keepingcool.co.uk
Unit 6, Mercers Road, Bury St Edmunds, Tel: 01268 888468 In-House: GHILMOVZ Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2006
Suffolk IP32 7HX Email: elouise.burnett@rsebs.co.uk Contracted Out: UWY In-House: CEGIS
Tel: 01284 767579 Web: www.rsebs.co.uk Specialist Group: SFG Contracted Out: DFJKLMPQRTUVWXYZ
Email: les.mitchell@pitkin-ruddock.co.uk Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2013 Specialist Group: VG
Web: www.pitkin-ruddock.co.uk In-House: Z Sotham Engineering Services Ltd
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1975 Contracted Out: AB Ocean House, Iceni Court, Delft Way, Wonters FM Ltd
In-House: ABOV Norwich, Norfolk NR6 6BB Unit 16, Ronald Rolph Court, Wadloes Road,
Specialist Group: RACHP Rydan Mechanical Services Ltd Tel: 01603 412411 Cambridge CB5 8PX
Unit 27, Olympic Business Park, Email: mike.new@sotham.co.uk Tel: 01223 240547
Pitkin & Ruddock Ltd Basildon, Essex SS14 3EX Web: www.sotham.co.uk Email: Bob@wonters.co.uk
Unit D, Olympus Close, Whitehouse Industrial Estate, Tel: 01268 280333 Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1982 Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2010
Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 5LJ Email: vince@rydanservices.co.uk In-House: GHILMOVZ In-House: HIJLMOPQSTUXZ
Tel: 01473 740500 Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2003 Contracted Out: STUWY Contracted Out: ABCDEY
Email: damian.nunn@pitkin-ruddock.co.uk In-House: ABGHI Specialist Group: SFG Specialist Group: SFG
Web: www.pitkin-ruddock.co.uk Contracted Out: CDEFJKLMOPQRTUVWXYZ
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1975 SSE Contracting Ltd
In-House: ABIO Unit 13, Evolution Business Park, Milton Road,
Specialist Group: RACHP

Polarcool Refrigeration Ltd

S Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB24 9NG
Tel: 01635 814 916
Email: andy.binks@sse.com
Unit K1, Beckingham Business Park, S & W Process Engineering Ltd Web: www.ssecontracting.com
Tolleshunt Major, Maldon, Essex CM9 8LZ S & W House, Longhill Road, March, Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2013
Tel: 01621 868584 Cambridgeshire PE15 0BL In-House: GHIMSUZ
Email: brian@polarcool.co.uk Tel: 01354 659444 Contracted Out: ABCDEFJKLOPQRTVWXY
Web: www.polarcool.co.uk Email: sw@swprocess.co.uk Specialist Group: SFG
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2007 Web: www.swprocess.co.uk
In-House: ABORSZ Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 2005
Specialist Group: RACHP In-House: P

BACK TO MEMBERS 217

 BESA MEMBERS

LONDON

BESA provides a free online search service

(www.thebesa.com/find-a-besa-member)
A Air Conditioning Projects Ltd
Chancery Court, Lincoln Road, High Wycombe,
Buckinghamshire HP12 3RE
designed to make it easy and quick to A C Direct Ltd Tel: 01494 429329
Stable Yard, 65 Albert Road, South Woodford E18 1LE Email: matt@acprojects.co.uk
find BESA member(s) that you require to
Tel: 0208 9898989 Web: www.acprojects.co.uk
deliver heating, ventilating, ductwork,
Email: tom@acdprojects.co.uk Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2009
facilities management, refrigeration,
In-House: B
air conditioning, commissioning and Web: www.ac-direct.co.uk Advanced Building Contracted Out: ACDIOSTUVW
maintenance services. The service allows Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2009 Management Specialist Group: RACHP
users to search for a BESA member by In-House: ABIO Unit 2, Witchards Farm, Scotts Hill,
radius (distance from the project site) Southminster, Essex CM0 7BG
and by region: most BESA members are A C Preou Ltd Tel: 01621 772058
willing to work outside their geographic Hobson House, 12b Bridge Close, Email: service@advancedbml.com
location and will welcome your enquiry. Romford, Essex RM7 0AU Website: www.advancedbml.com
Tel: 01708 755055
Email: arthurpreou@preou.co.uk Advanced Building Management
Web: www.preou.co.uk Limited is the brainchild of Declan
Aircon Services
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1975 Unit C4 Regent Park,
Kiernan. Declan has many years in the
In-House: ABEGJMO Summerleys Road, Princes Risborough,
building management industry.
Contracted Out: CDELRTW Buckinghamshire HP27 9LE
Tel: 01844 348760
We specialise in Building Services and
A C R London Ltd Engineering for blue chip companies
Email: sales@aircon-services.co.uk
1 Up to £25k 2 Up to £50k 134-134a Park View Road, Welling, Kent DA16 1SJ Website: www.aircon-services.co.uk
throughout the UK.
3 Up to £100k 4 Up to £250k Tel: 0208 3315603
5 Up to £500k 6 Up to £1m Email: info@acrlondon.co.uk At Aircon Services, we’ve been helping
7 Up to £10m 8 £10m and above ACCREDITATIONS
Web: www.acrlondon.co.uk We are accredited with the our customers reduce their energy costs
WORK TYPES: Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 1994 following companies: whilst ensuring their businesses are kept
A Air conditioning In-House: ABEJOSTUVZ • BESA Heating Ventilation cool for over 30 years.
B Refrigeration F gas Contracted Out: I Contracting Association
C Ductwork - Sheet metal Specialist Group: RACHP • National Britannia Safe Contractor Fast, professional installation of air
D Ductwork - Plastics conditioning, evaporative cooling and
E Local exhaust & kitchen ventilation A G O'Malley Ltd commercial heating systems.
& maintenance We have also applied for NICEIC
F Indoor air quality 6 The Avenue, West Wickham, Kent BR4 0DY to carry out testing and installation
G Commercial heating & plumbing Tel: 0208 9169322 of electrical equipment in large All our work is performed by our highly
H Domestic heating, plumbing, Email: tony@fabfit.co.uk skilled engineers. We focus on ensuring
service & maintenance commercial buildings.
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2009 your business isn’t interrupted, keeping
I Design & build
J Pipework / hot tapping/pipe Freezing In-House: GJLMPQX a clean, quiet environment and
K Offsite prefabrication maximising longevity.
L Underfloor heating Accent Services (Air Conditioning) Ltd
M C/I gas fitting Unit 17, Shepperton Business Park, Govett Avenue, Advent Ductwork Systems Ltd Over the years we’ve developed a
N Ability to sub-contract Shepperton, Middlesex TW17 8BA 56b Hamm Moor Lane, Weybridge Business Park,
O Renewables (Wind, Solar, Biomass, CHP, H/P etc) reputation for providing an excellent
Tel: 01932 765648 Addlestone, Surrey KT15 2SF service. We will ensure you receive
P Industrial process pipework
Q Offsite prefabricated pipework Email: ian.marriott@accent.ac Tel: 01932 856249 tailored care and attention from every
R Thermal/sound insulation Web: www.accentac Email: peter@adventds.com single member of our team before, during
S Facilities services Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2010 Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2008 and after we complete any work.
T Ductwork cleaning & vent hygiene In-House: ABCEGISV
U Automatic control system In-House: ABOS
Specialist Group: RACHP Contracted Out: LOTUWYZ
V Commissioning/performance testing
W Water treatment Specialist Group: VG
X Lloyds class 1 welding ADC Environmental Services Ltd ALB Building Services Ltd
Y Fire protection engineering 53 Bankside Close, Isleworth, Middlesex TW7 7EW Aim Mechanical Services Ltd 1 Farriers Yard, 77 Fulham Palace Road,
Z Electrical contracting 2 Veridion Way, Veridion Park, Erith, Kent DA18 4AL London W6 8AH
Tel: 0208 8910228
Email: adcphilipcross@gmail.com Tel: 0208 3201060 Tel: 0208 5637403
Web: www.ventilationing.org Email: peggy.lane@aimmechanical.co.uk Email: allan@albltd.co.uk
HAPS Heating & Plumbing Services Group Web: www.aimmechanical.co.uk
RACHP Refrigeration, Air Conditioning Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2000 Web: www.albltd.co.uk
& Heat Pump Group In-House: EFTW Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 1992 Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2011
SFG Service & Facilities Group Contracted Out: ABCDEGHIMRSUVYZ In-House: ABGLMOSW In-House: ACDEHIJLRUVWZ
VHB Ventilation Hygiene Branch Specialist Group: RACHP, SFG Contracted Out: BFGKMOPQSTXY
VG Ventilation Group Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Specialist Group: SFG

218 BACK TO MEMBERS


ALB Building Services
77 Fulham Palace Road,
London W6 8AH
Tel: 0208 563 7403
Email: office@albltd.co.uk
Website: www.albltd.co.uk
We are a forward thinking customer
focused business, delivering Electrical
& Mechanical, Plumbing installations
& Maintenance to a wide range of
commercial, industrial and residential
premises throughout London.
We offer a high quality installation
through skilled tradesmen which allows
projects to be completed to the highest
standards. This ensures that the majority
of our work is through repeat business
and recommendations.
We are continuing to expand our business
throughout the UK, in a planned manner
and with the delivery of successful
projects and customer satisfaction as the
forefront of our philosophy.
All Seasons Air Conditioning
Services Ltd
Unit 5, Prospect Business Park, Langston Road,
Loughton, Essex IG10 3TR
Tel: 0208 5024540
Email: steven@allseasonscc.co.uk
Web: www.allseasonsclimatecontrol.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2015
In-House: ABISV
Contracted Out: CDEFGHJKLMOPQRTUVWXYZ
All Seasons Climate Control Ltd
Unit 2, Prospect Business Park, Langston Road,
Loughton, Essex IG10 3TR
Tel: 0208 5024540
Email: steven@allseasonscc.co.uk
Web: www.beattheheat.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2004
In-House: AB
Specialist Group: RACHP
Amey Mechanical &
Electrical Services Ltd
1 Furzeground Way, Stockley Park, Uxbridge,
Middlesex UB11 1EZ
Tel: 07713 653194
Email: ian.edmiston@amey.co.uk
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 1956
In-House: ABEGHMSUZ
Contracted Out: I
Specialist Group: SFG
Anden Environmental Services Ltd
Jubilee House, 3 The Drive, Great Warley,
Brentwood, Essex CM13 3FR
Tel: 01277 725809
Email: david@andenhvac.co.uk
Web: www.andenhvac.co.uk
Year Joined: 2015
In-House: ACGI
Specialist Group: SFG
Apleona HSG Ltd
Nene House, Drayton Fields Industrial Estate,
Daventry, Northamptonshire NN11 8EA
Tel: 02087 901000
Email: cary.donaldson@apleona.com
Web: www.rollright.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2007
In-House: ABGMOSUZ
Contracted Out: TVWY
Specialist Group: SFG
Apleona HSG Ltd
26 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1DS
Tel: 0208 7901011
Email: peter.excell@bilfinger.com
Web: www.uk-hsg.apleona.com
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2007
In-House: ABEGHMSUZ
Contracted Out: EJLPQTVWXY
Specialist Group: SFG
Arctic Aircon Ltd
Rowlandson House, 289-297 Ballards Lane,
North Finchley, London N12 8NP
Tel: 0203 384 5010
Fax: 08430 061 307
Email: info@arctic-aircon.ltd.uk
Website: www.arctic-aircon.ltd.uk
• Air Conditioning Installation
• Maintenance
• Repairs for all your heating
and cooling requirements carried
out with precision and expertise.
“We care for your comfort”
Argent FM Ltd
55 Greenwich High Road, London SE10 8JL
Tel: 0207 4031204
Email: arthurc@argentfm.com
Web: www.argentfm.com
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2002
In-House: ABGIJLMOSTUWXZ
Contracted Out: CDEFKOPQVY
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
ASPEN Air Conditioning
& Heat Pumps
Apex Way, Hailsham BN27 3WA
Head Office Tel: 01323 849 955
London Office Tel: 0207 412 8931
Email: info@aspen-ac.co.uk
Website: www.aspen-ac.co.uk
Established in 1986, Aspen has
been providing quality design and
installation of bespoke air conditioning
systems in all business sectors
successfully for over 30 years.
Aspen is a trusted partner of leading
suppliers Daikin and Mitsubishi –
recently becoming one of a select few
businesses in the UK to be made a
Diamond Quality Partner.
Our dedicated service division provides
Planned Maintenance, service and repair
services which, coupled with the offer
of 7-10 year warranties, provides our
customers with long term peace of mind.
Whether you are an end-user,
Main Contractor or M&E Contractor,
you can trust your next project
to Aspen. Please contact us for a
personalised and quality service.
Associated Pipework (SE) Ltd
Unit 35, Swan Centre, Rosemary Road,
London SW17 0AR
Tel: 0208 8797042
Email: mark@associatedpipework.com
Web: www.associatedpipework.com
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2004
In-House: GJKPQRX
B Web: www.bouygues-es.co.uk
Balfour Beatty Kilpatrick
5 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HU
Tel: 0207 2166800
Email: lee.bridges@balfourbeatty.com
Web: www.balfourbeatty.com
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2009
In-House: GIMOPQXZ
Contracted Out: ABCDELOSTUVWY
Specialist Group: SFG, VG
Bancroft Ltd
32 Harbour Exchange Square, Harbour Island,
London, Essex E14 9GE
Tel: 0208 7092500
Email: jason.dodd@bancroft.uk.com
Web: www.bancroft.uk.com
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1996
In-House: IKZ
Contracted Out: ABCEGLQWY
BACK TO MEMBERS
BESA MEMBERS
LONDON
Beacon Group Ltd
Unit 5, Kingside Business Park, Ruston Road,
Woolwich, London SE18 5BX
Tel: 0208 3098555
Email: enquiries@beacongroup.org.uk
Web: www.beacongroup.org.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2004
In-House: DG
Contracted Out: ABCJOV
Bishop Shrink Fitting Ltd
183-185 Sunningvale Avenue,
Biggin Hill, Kent TN16 3TL
Tel: 0208 6568234
Email: cyril@bishopgroupservices.com
Web: www.bishopgroupservices.com
Year Joined: 2015
In-House: J
Specialist Group: SFG
Blu Diamond Services Ltd
1st Floor, 31 River Road, Barking, Essex IG11 0DA
Tel: 0203 6321031
Email: laurence@bludiamondservices.com
Web: www.bludiamondservices.com
Year Joined: 2015
In-House: ST
Blue Flame Gas Services
276 Wickham Lane, Abbey Wood, London SE2 0XS
Tel: 0208 3117842
Email: admin@blue-flame.co.uk
Web: www.blue-flame.co.uk
Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2006
In-House: H
Specialist Group: HAPS
Boostfine Ltd
16 Falcon Business Centre, Ashton Road,
Romford, Essex RM3 8UR
Tel: 01708 386252
Email: djhourihan@boostfine.co.uk
Web: www.boostfine.co.uk
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 1990
In-House: GIMOPQ
Contracted Out: ABCDEJLOTUVWXYZ
Bouygues E&S FM UK Ltd
Becket House, 1 Lambeth Palace Road,
London, East Sussex SE1 7EU
Tel: 0207 8033520 ext 673520
Email: ian.clark2@bouygues-es.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 2006
In-House: ABGLMOSUZ
Contracted Out: CDEIOPQTVWXY
Specialist Group: SFG
Briggs & Forrester
Engineering Services Ltd
3rd Floor, 35 Chiswell Street, London EC1Y 4SE
Tel: 0203 8593859
Email: giovanni.ionta@briggs.uk.com
Web: www.briggsandforrester.co.uk
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1961
In-House: GIJMOZ
Contracted Out: ABCDEFLOPQRSTUVWXY
BSW Heating Ltd
3 Old Barn Lane, Kenley, Surrey CR8 5AT
Tel: 0208 7635300
Email: enquiries@bsw-heating.com
Web: www.bsw-heating.com
Contract Size: 8 Year Joined: 1972
In-House: GHLMOQVZ
Contracted Out: ACDIUW
Specialist Group: HAPS, SFG
219
 BESA MEMBERS
LONDON
C Complete Mechanical Solutions Ltd
C N C Heating Ltd
Unit F, Fawkham Business Park, Fawkham Road,
Longfield, Kent DA3 7BE
Tel: 01474 700111
Email: service@cncheating.co.uk
Web: www.cncheating.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2005
In-House: GH
Specialist Group: SFG
Cadogan Building Services Ltd
Cleaveland Mews, 9 Cleaveland Road,
Surbiton, Surrey KT6 4AH
Tel: 0208 3906500
Email: mail@cadoganbs.co.uk
Web: www.cadoganbs.co.uk
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2008
In-House: GIKMOQ
Contracted Out: ABCDELOPUVW
Cartel (London) Ltd
Hobbs Cross Open Farm, Hobbs Cross Road,
Theydon Garnon, Epping, Essex CM16 7NY
Tel: 01992 812522
Email: mick@cartellondon.com
Web: www.cartellondon.com
Contract Size: 2 Year Joined: 2003
In-House: E
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
Catering Hygiene Specialists Ltd
Unit 1, Midas Industrial Estate, Longbridge Way,
Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 2YT
Tel: 01895 812117
Email: john@cateringhygiene.co.uk
Web: www.cateringhygiene.co.uk
Contract Size: 3 Year Joined: 2010
In-House: ET
Specialist Group: SFG, VHB
CBRE Managed Services Ltd
95 St Johns Hill, Clapham, Clapham SW11 1SY
Tel: 0203 3842482
D
Email: ws@cegservices.co.uk Darenth Valley Building Services Ltd
Web: www.completemechanicalsolutions.co.uk Clive House, Cray Road, Crockenhill, Kent BR8 8LN
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 2015 Tel: 01322 615665 Delatim Limited
In-House: GIS Email: james@darenthvalley.co.uk Unit 33, IO Centre, Armstrong Road
Contracted Out: ABCEJVW Web: www.darenthvalley.co.uk London SE18 6RS
Contract Size: 4 Year Joined: 2009 Tel: 0208 8853 9580
Condair PLC In-House: ABGJLOS Fax: 0208 854 5150
Rustington Trading Estate, Artex Avenue, Contracted Out: CEIMOTUWYZ Email: info@delatim.co.uk
Rustington, West Sussex BN16 3LN Specialist Group: SFG Website: www.delatim.co.uk
Tel: 01903 850200
Email: tim.scott@condair.com Delatim is a customer focused
Web: www.condair.co.uk business with the capability to provide
Contract Size: 6 Year Joined: 1996 maintenance, design, installation and
In-House: IS commissioning services to clients in the
Specialist Group: SFG market for high quality building services.
Contract Energy Management Ltd We cover all aspects of building
Unit 13, Brentford Business Centre, Commerce Road, DCUK FM services (Communications, Electrical,
Brentford, Middlesex TW8 8LG 1 Woodfield Road, Welwyn Garden City Fire, Mechanical and Premises) with
Tel: 0208 5684655 Hertfordshire AL7 1JQ an established workforce of in-house
Email: rossf@cemuk.com Tel: 0870 112 9196 resource, which enables us to provide a
Web: www.cemuk.com Fax: 0870 112 9197 flexible service that is adaptive to client
Contract Size: 5 Year Joined: 2007 Email: info@dcukfm.com and project needs.
In-House: GIMSUVWZ Website: www.dcukfm.com
Contracted Out: CDERV We are experienced in complex
Specialist Group: SFG DCUKFM are leading experts in; environments such as Transport,
• Ductwork Cleaning Energy, Commercial and Public sectors.
Corinthia Hotel London • Kitchen Extract Cleaning
Whitehall Place, London SW1A 2BD • Fire Damper Testing Our business foundation is
Tel: 0207 9308181 • Social Housing ventilation reputation, and a strategy of steady
Email: ian.odendaal@corinthia.com • System Risk Assessments growth through repeat business,
Web: www.corinthia.com • Building Refurbishment with leadership focus on people,
Year Joined: 2017 • Asbestos Removal competence, service and quality.
In-House: S • Maintenance
• Training
Croft Maclaine Ltd
91-93 Church Road, Swanscombe, Kent DA10 0HE • BESA Approved
Tel: 01322 476118 • LPCB Approved
Dornan Engineering Services Ltd
Email: jm@croftmaclaine.com 114a Cromwell Road, London SW7 4ES
• Nationwide – various regional offices
Web: www.croftmaclaine.com Tel: 0207 3401030
Contract Size: 7 Year Joined: 2018 Health and Safety is the foundation