CIBSE’s 100 days of Carbon Clean Up Campaign 2007 is set to generate even more energy and enthusiasm than last year with the UK’s largest integrated energy company, E.ON, signing up as sponsor of the initiative.

A report into microgeneration in Wales by SummitSkills, the Sector Skills Council for the building services engineering sector, has revealed a lack of skilled workers and warns the country may be left behind in the race to gain a share in the renewable energy market, unless steps are taken now.

Two of the biggest names in the ventilation industry have come together with the signing of an exclusive joint venture agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, Fläkt Woods is now the sole UK distributor for the ebm-papst range of short cased and plate mounted axial fans.

With the Government currently considering a draft climate change bill to curb carbon dioxide emissions it appears global warming is finally being taken seriously. This is no surprise to the building services industry. The most intensive use of energy in a building usually results from heating or cooling spaces.

With some industry insiders pointing out that the construction industry spends twice as much on litigation as it does on training, it is clear we need to improve our attitude to training provision in this country.

The new JS1 Worksafe – Guide to Site Safety published by HVCA Publications, the publishing division of the Heating and Ventilating Contractors’ Association, is expected to further improve health and safety on sites by giving operatives comprehensive advice and information that will be essential preventative tools in the building services industry and specialist engineering sector.

Polypipe has successfully completed the acquisition of the Terrain Drainage business, the leading brand in the UK for above ground drainage in commercial applications.

Thorn Lighting in Spennymoor, County Durham is leading a project to develop organic light-emitting diode (OLED) materials and efficient device structures for large area lighting applications.

To reflect a heritage going back almost 60 years, the UK’s space and water heating market leader is changing its name back to Dimplex UK Limited. Known for several years as Glen Dimplex UK to highlight its ownership by the global Glen Dimplex Group, Dimplex’s new identity came into effect on 1 August and will not only consolidate the brand’s strong market status, but avoid confusion with its parent company.

John Miller has been elected president of the HVCA for 2007/08. Mr Miller entered the industry in 1965 - serving a technician apprenticeship with H Morfitt & Sons, Leeds, and gaining a diploma in environmental engineering from the Polytechnic of the South Bank (now London South Bank University).

Following the huge level of entries biased towards energy efficiency at last year’s Lighting Design Awards, a special green category is being introduced to recognise lighting installations that balance exceptional creativity with minimal environmental impact.

White Young Green, consultants to the built, natural and social environment, has announced the further expansion of its specialist asbestos team in the northern region.

Buro Happold’s North Europe region has recently been bolstered by the appointment of Christopher Perry to establish a design management team in Glasgow.

Recognising that boilers and water heaters are often specified simultaneously, Andrews Water Heaters, has completed its move to Erdington in Birmingham to sit alongside fellow Baxi Commercial Heating company, Potterton Commercial, in a bid to create a one-stop-shop for heating specifiers, contractors and installers.

The much anticipated Sustainability Toolkit, complete with a searchable online database of good practice guidance, has been published by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE).

BEST (Building Engineering Services Training), an HVCA group company, has appointed a new Technical & Qualifications manager, Christine Wright. Christine joins BEST with a wealth of experience within training and the building services engineering (BSE) sector and is charged with developing the BEST Assessment Centre, the national network of NVQ assessors created by training employees in BSE industries.

A variety of topics have been covered in recent months and with the extensive media coverage of the design of the Olympic logo we now touch on issues surrounding logos, design rights and copyright.

The IS Ltd has supplied a CP Electronics Rapid lighting management system to help HFC Bank improve lighting conditions and reduce carbon emissions at its head office in Winkfield, Berkshire. The system is also reducing the whole life costs of the lighting by maximising energy efficiency, reducing maintenance costs and providing integrated automatic self-testing of emergency lighting.

Kimpton will help to keep a range of rare and endangered animals happy after being awarded the heating and cooling system maintenance contracts by Chester Zoo. Kimpton takes responsibility for maintaining ideal conditions in the Zoo’s ‘Realm of the Red Ape’ enclosure, housing critically endangered orang-utans, the ‘Asian Plains’ enclosure which accommodates the Indian Rhino, and the animal health centre where sick animals go to be nurtured back to health.

Simmtronic was recently commissioned by electrical contractor Phoenix Electrical to supply its SPECS3 lighting control systems for a refurbishment project at One Exchange Square - an impressive 12 storey office building on the Broadgate Estate in the City of London. The building has recently been acquired by KanAm Grund, one of Germany’s leading fund managers for open ended real estate funds and asset manager of international real estate investments.

Schneider Electric is well known as a leading provider of energy efficient products and services and has recently implemented energy efficient measures throughout its own UK operations. At the company’s Swindon site alone, savings have been generated in excess of 100,000kWh per year – a reduction of over 20%.

Fourteen Broag Avanta 24S boilers and one Broag Quinta boiler have been installed at the University of Liverpool student accommodation. The student flats at Tudor Close were fitted with the high efficiency boilers, replacing existing older boilers, during renovations of the twenty year-old residences.

The largest Andrews Supa-Heat commercial boiler has been installed to provide heating and hot water for a super-sized private residence. At the beginning of the 20th century, Rangemore Hall near Lichfield was home to the Bass brewing family who, on hearing they were to have the honour of entertaining King Edward VII and his entourage, added a complete new wing to their country house.

Staff at the headquarters of the world famous Thames Barrier are enjoying a fully controllable indoor working environment thanks to the installation of a new City Multi heat recovery air conditioning system by MacWhirter Ltd.

The recent upgrading from a sodium light source to Venture Lighting’s Pulse Start metal halide lamps and Ventronic Dimming system, has resulted in significant improvements in the quality of lighting in RS Components main distribution headquarters in Corby, Northamptonshire.

A stunning installation of Toshiba Split air conditioning systems can be found at the newly refurbished Roman Catholic Church in Sligo, Ireland. Specialist contractors Airflow Services of Galway recently installed seven Toshiba Super Digital inverter wall-mounted units, supplied by Toshiba distributor GT Phelan, to provide heating to the beautifully panelled building.

BSEE and the BCIA have once again joined forces to bring you an awards programme designed to bring together the entire building controls industry in a celebration of the companies, innovations and people that are achieving the highest professional standards and helping to drive this dynamic industry forward.

The last few years have been a really challenging time for everyone involved in the heating industry. Along with the ever increasing array of products in the marketplace, financial pressures are forcing end-user customers to consider a number of factors when looking to replace older heating equipment. This is leading many to repair their existing appliance rather than replace it with a more energy efficient system.

Bolting renewable technologies onto poorly performing buildings is not a good recipe for improving lifecycle costing, says Paul Jakeway, Marketing and Communications Manager for Vaillant.

As the demand for pressure boosting systems has continued its incessant rise in recent years so has the engineered sophistication of the pump solutions being supplied to meet the varied requirements for these units. These include water supply, irrigation systems, water treatment systems, packaged fire sets and units that deliver for the hugely diverse area of industrial applications.

By September 2008, two diplomas will be implemented relevant to our sector: Engineering, which has been allocated more than 6,000 places for the first delivery, and Construction & Built Environment, with almost 4,000 places available. In order for the new diplomas to provide the best possible grounding in work-related learning, it is essential that employers get involved to help keep teaching relevant and supply students with good experience of the real world of work.

In today’s climate where reducing carbon emissions and energy usage, meeting amendments to the building regulations and achieving good room comfort are key considerations, it is unsurprising that alternative methods of providing cooling within non-domestic environments are being explored.

Part L of the Building Regulations places great emphasis on measuring and monitoring building energy use. At least 90% of annual energy consumption of each fuel should be assigned to various end-use categories, such as heating, cooling and lighting. For buildings with a total useful floor area of more than 1000m², automatic meter reading and data collection facilities should be present.

There is a lot in the news at the moment about products which are imported from China – and it generally isn’t good news, which makes us more than a little suspicious of any company claiming to be doing it well.

The Trox Design Bureau has developed a new range of chilled beams specifically for the health care market. The Clean Beams incorporate all the inherent advantages of standard chilled beams, together with features that make them ideal hygienic solutions. In particular they are easily maintained and cleaned without allowing room contaminants to migrate to and from the ceiling void or supply ductwork.

Dimplex has a comprehensive range of over 40 water heating products, so there’s a model suitable for every domestic or commercial installation. The range includes an electric system boiler, undersink unvented units, direct and indirect unvented water cylinders and the aquabatix electric shower range.

For years, Testo has been the first choice when it comes to high specification humidity transmitters for drying processes and critical ambient condition monitoring. With the new Testo 6621, this sensor and electronics know-how is now available in a low cost package for more general HVAC building control applications.

LION is a powerful new controller for HVAC control and energy management from CentraLine by Honeywell. Its unique ‘Click and Go’ concept dramatically reduces the time and cost of HVAC system installation and commissioning.

LION comprises a technically advanced, freely programmable control module and a set of specially designed input/output modules. All feature an innovative new way of installing, wiring and commissioning.

Ridi Lighting has launched AXIDA, a new range of architectural emergency lighting luminaries. Benefiting from Ridi’s renowned blend of great build quality, ease of installation and affordability, AXIDA is suitable for all types of commercial, education and industrial applications.

With the average gas patio heater emitting more CO2 in a year than a gas-guzzling 4x4 car, the efficient new OPH electric patio heater from Dimplex offers an economical and environmentally-friendly alternative for outdoor use.

Flexible air conditioning solutions from Panasonic’s new high efficiency FS (Flexi System) range provide a cost effective comfort boost for the workplace during the long hot days of summer. With the added bonus of easy installation and maintenance, the FS range of 2.5-5hp inverter standard systems for medium to small offices and shops can confidently be recommended to ensure a pleasant working environment for staff and visiting customers.

Mitsubishi Electric has launched a range of new controls products which make life much easier for air conditioning and electrical contractors who have previously faced the difficult issue of installing energy meters.

The Cirrus KC range of direct/indirect, suspended luminaires from Riegens Lighting Limited combines a specially developed optical system with extremely slim panels that offer decoration in addition to illumination. The Cirrus KC range has been specifically developed based on research into Circadian Rhythms, the signals that our body clocks produce to indicate when to be active and when to sleep according to available light.

Following the introduction of government legislation banning smoking in public places, Frico is set to help ease the shift for the hospitality sector and keep the chill off smokers.

LG’s answer to the need and demand for an efficient and energy-saving product to counter poor indoor air quality is the Eco V heat recovery ventilator.

Honeywell has released its latest BA295 compact backflow preventers, which ensure contaminated water cannot flow back into the public mains supply. The new valve models are specifically designed to fully meet all requirements of the UK WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme). They use the well-proven RPZ (reduced pressure zone) principle.

The new high efficiency Xcell 270 MVHR unit and the low energy Premier LV UltraDC fan have been unveiled by Xpelair. As the drive for low energy homes gathers pace, Xpelair have launched two new products designed to exceed the latest rules.

MHS Boilers has augmented its range of renewable energy products with a full range of large scale commercial biomass boilers. Perfect for district heating, commercial and local authority applications, the boilers are available from 25kW – 1MW.

Airflow has introduced Duplexvent a new range of compact, commercial unit ventilators with heat recovery. Duplexvent is designed for comfort ventilation and warm air heating of offices, schools, sports halls, small production and process areas, restaurants and many other commercial buildings.

New R-410A 4 port Multi units, designated 4MXS68F (heat pump) and 4MKS75F (cooling only), have been introduced by Daikin Europe N.V. Both models feature higher COPs and EERs, are classified as having Class ‘A’ energy efficiency ratings and are connectable with a wide range of indoor units including the new wall mounted unit (FTKS-F/FTXS-F) and the new floor standing unit (FVXS-F).

Smith’s Environmental Products has redeveloped its flagship product, the HydroFlame. The changes came mainly in response to Building Regulations, which specify that thermostats must now be situated in the same room as the appliance they control – the Hydroflame is now fitted with thermostatic control.

Wherever water, dust, and electrical lighting are combined, and especially in the presence of certain chemical vapours, dependable ‘proof’ lighting is essential. And that’s why Thorn has introduced a completely new range of general purpose water and corrosion resistant fluorescent luminaires - the AquaForce II series.

Hager has developed an incoming tail connection kit for its new consumer unit to avoid the problem of bending thick incomer cables into the consumer unit main switch. According to the company, the main incoming cable is the hardest to dress and fit. Bending the 25 or 35mm2 cable round and terminating it in the main incomer can be a problem and also places stress on the unit.

MK Electric has further strengthened its cable management portfolio with the launch of Prestige 3D skirting – a system that delivers high quality, professional installations with greater ease and speed of fixing.

A critical part of maintaining optimum steam boiler performance is blowdown but, unless it is managed efficiently, blowdown can also be a major contributor to loss of valuable heat energy and chemically treated boilerwater. The new MPA 46 from Flowserve Gestra is a straight-through rapid action intermittent blowdown valve that incorporates a number of design features to help reduce energy loss as well as offering improved reliability and ease of maintenance.

The PosiFlex elastomeric expansion joint from Crane is a means of compensating for movement in pipework that has been well-proven in a wide range of industries - power, water and waste treatment, process, pharmaceutical, marine, HVAC, petrochemical, chemical and food.

Specifying flue systems has been made far simpler with the publication of a brand new commercial product guide from Schiedel Rite-Vent. The brochure is designed specifically for M&E contractors, architects and specifiers and indeed anyone specifying commercial fuel burning appliances.

Designed for end-users keen to assess outdoor wiring device power status at-a-glance, two new sockets in MK Electric’s Masterseal range now feature translucent lids for easy viewing of on/ off neon indicators without opening their ingress-protected (IP) enclosures. The award-winning Masterseal range from MK Electric has been specifically developed for use in either outdoor or indoor environments; and where wiring devices and accessories would be at risk from penetration by dust or splashing water.

Dalkia, the leading technical facilities services and energy management company, has put together two indispensable handbooks on carbon management. Aimed at industrial sites and commercial and public buildings, the handy sized guides are being introduced as part of CarbonCare, the new sustainable energy services solution.

Crowcon has added more features to its Triple Plus+ portable gas detector, making it even more versatile than ever. Favoured by the construction and oil and gas industries because of its toughness, and with around 100,000 units in use worldwide, the Triple Plus+ is arguably the world's most popular full function multi-gas gas detector.

The Tenant Valve Assembly (TVA) from Reliance Water Controls has been greatly improved, in response to the needs of specifiers and installers. Like earlier models, it suits all multi-unit buildings, such as apartments or offices, and also the increasing number of prefabricated ones. It saves time and therefore cost and avoids complexity by combining many functions in a single unit, which is now more versatile than ever.