Update from CABE President

I hope you all enjoyed your summer break and return to the workplace refreshed and rested. It is appropriate that this month’s journal focuses on wellbeing, covering topics such as mental health, stress, working outside and heatwaves in cities.

It was wonderful to attend our Built Environment Wales conference at Cardiff University at the end of June; I enjoyed meeting up face to face with our Welsh colleagues for what was a great event. Thank you to all our presenters, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and, most importantly, our Welsh members for their attendance and participation, with lots of interesting questions and feedback.

The CABE team is pleased to welcome Dr Hywel Davies, who has joined as our new Head of Technical Insight. Davies has a long and illustrious career in the building services industry spanning 40 years, and brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and commitment to his new role with CABE. He has spoken extensively about the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) and its far-reaching effects on culture and process. He says: “What worries me is that people think that the BSA is a response to Grenfell and a fire in a block of flats. It isn’t – it’s a wholesale reform of the Building Regulations regime for all buildings, from a studio shed to The Shard.”

This month will also see the publication of the findings of the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry (expected on 4 September). The Grenfell Tower fire, in which 72 lives were lost, understandably shattered confidence in the building industry, its regulators and the product sector. Subsequent investigations into other buildings have demonstrated widespread and systemic failures that have affected hundreds of thousands more people. Although much has happened to mitigate risk since, we as an industry still have a long way to go before we deserve the confidence and trust of the people who live and work in the buildings we create and manage. A summary of the Inquiry Report and its recommendations must be mandatory reading for all building engineers. I would urge everyone to reflect further on their own role in ensuring we create safe, sustainable and inclusive buildings now and in the future.

The CABE Building Inspector Competence Assessment Scheme reinforces CABE’s commitment to high standards and provides a recognised pathway to registration for all building control professionals. With July’s deadline now passed, I would like to take this opportunity to express my thanks on behalf of all CABE members and building professionals to the entire team at CABE, including our membership team, professional interview panellists and observers, and the Membership and Professional Standards Committee for their dedication and commitment.

Finally, I’m really looking forward to our final Built Environment Series event in Ireland, taking place on 24 September at the Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone. This promises to be a wonderful event once again with a great line-up of speakers and presenters, plus the latest updates on legislation and building regulations relative to the Republic of Ireland. You have until 17 September to book tickets at builtenvironmentseries.com

Richard Flynn PCABE CEng CEnv C.Build E FCABE CABE President

Image credit | Sam Kerr