The University of Reading's Meteorology Department is leading a major new project to help understand how London's existing and new buildings directly affect, and need to adapt to, climate change.

The Natural History Museum, London Fire Brigade, BBC Wales and Bolton Wanderers Football Club have all pledged 100 hours of staff time to commit to energy saving activities as part of CIBSE's annual carbon reduction initiative.

Grundfos has announced plans to invest almost £80m Euros in establishing a new pump manufacturing factory in Serbia.  The 15 hectares of land has already been purchased in Indjija, 42 kilometres north of Belgrade, close to all main access routes.  Building work is about to commence and the new factory is expected to initially create 300 to 500 jobs.

Logic Certification has appointed Steve Mulvany as Scheme Director. Steve joins the company with a wealth of relevant experience, most recently as part of the Corgi team charged with developing and maintaining ACS.

As a busy householder, which of these two options for doing the weekly shop do you find most convenient?

Meeting the needs of the environment - are we doing enough? The short answer to this has to be no.

BEAMA has published its Climate Change White Paper which sets out the opportunities to reduce carbon emissions and energy costs in energy networks, buildings and for end-use equipment. The White Paper pinpoints what BEAMA believes industry, Government and stakeholders can do to address some of the headline issues currently preventing many of these carbon savings being made.

Faber Maunsell has announced two key business development appointments for its expanding northern offices.

The PLDA is backing the 2009 Lighting Design Awards in a unique agreement to reward and celebrate excellence in the lighting industry. The Professional Lighting Designers' Association represents a large number of the UK's lighting design talent and will give its support to the event, the world's largest and most prestigious architectural lighting competition.

Walter Meier (Climate UK) has announced a 26% increase in the sales of applied air conditioning systems in the last year - reinforcing the wisdom of the company's recent strategic decision to focus on applied air conditioning and humidification products. In line with this move, the company will no longer supply single split system air conditioners except where they form an integral part of an engineered solution.

LonMark International (LMI) is gathering nominations for the Annual Best of the Year Awards 2009.  These awards recognise projects, products, individuals, and programs that are leading the industry in innovation and accomplishment. Nominations from around the world are flooding in for the following categories - Multi-Vendor Project of the Year, LonMark Products of the Year, Initiative of the Year and Industry Visionary of the Year. The awards ceremony and presentation will be held in conjunction with LonMark International's annual general meeting at AHR Expo in Chicago, USA, on 27 January 2009.

The Government's decision to delay the deadline for some buildings to have energy performance certificates (EPCs) will not tackle the long delays developers and landlords face having reports prepared.

Growing demand for mini-CHP (combined heat and power) systems has prompted Baxi-SenerTec UK to further increase its technical support team.

Marks & Spencer's Silverburn store in Glasgow, which opened its doors in October 2007 as M&S' first brand-new ‘green' store, has achieved the highest BREEAM Retail Fit Out rating to date in the UK.

ADCAS has pledged its full support for a brand new course for the trainees who will form the next generation of management for the UK ductwork industry.

AMTECH Group has announced that the recent exclusive endorsement by CIBSE of the company's NES Specification Expert marks the beginning of a long term relationship that will bring major benefits to the industry and take significant cost out of the construction process.

Vaillant Group has announced two key new appointments.  Roy Lynch, who has been with Vaillant Ltd for 18 years, has become Commercial Director for the Heatline brand in the UK, while Tony Hildrow steps up to replace him in the role of Southern Sales Director for Vaillant Ltd.

The current economic slowdown is hugely impacting on the construction industry which appears to be one of the sectors currently worst hit. To ensure continuity of their business' many companies in the sector are considering downsizing.

BSEE and the BCIA have once again joined forces to bring you The 2009 Building Controls Industry Awards, 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.

John Denham, Secretary for Innovation, University and Skills, has rekindled the debate on the value of apprenticeships versus university degrees by stating in an interview with the FT that some young people who go to university would be better off on an Advanced Apprenticeship. His comment came following research by Kent University that indicated one in three UK graduates is in non-graduate work and Higher Education Statistics Agency findings that the average unemployment rates for full-time first degree graduates in 2006-7 was 6%, higher than Britain's overall employment rate for the same period.

The largest entertainment venue in Europe is really rocking, thanks to the involvement of Zucchini in this major project to re-design its electrical power systems.

Electrak has helped blend the latest technology with Bristol's traditional waterside heritage at the city's prestigious Temple Back development.

Lighting at BVT Surface Fleet's shipbuilding facilities at HMNB Portsmouth has been greatly improved by the installation of long-life, energy efficient Brilliance fittings from Chalmor. Energy and maintenance savings achieved are expected to provide a payback of a little over a year.

With 21 halls totalling 200,000 square metres (two million square feet), the NEC in Birmingham is the biggest exhibition centre in Britain and seventh largest in Europe. The flexible, flat-floored, interconnected halls offer endless possibilities for all types of exhibitions and events.

Andromeda has commenced work at the O² Dublin, North Wall Quay, a state of the art Live Nation entertainment venue which is due to open in December.

Chubb Fire is playing its part in making Liverpool home to the world's largest cruise liners following the multi-million pound redevelopment and extension of the city's historic Princes Dock.

Royal Philips Electronics' revolutionary new LED lighting system has been selected by UK supermarket giant, Sainsbury's, to light the interior of its freezer cabinets across 350 stores. In all, some 15,000 pieces of Philips Affinium LED freezer lighting modules with Philips Luxeon LEDs have been installed resulting in a staggering energy saving of 75% per freezer. Moreover, the improvement in the lit effect has increased by in excess of 150%.

A challenge for all building services industries working with historic buildings is to bring them technically up-to-date while protecting the fabric and the building's visual impact.  In protecting the building it is important to keep drilling and other invasive fixings to a minimum, while visually new plant and equipment must be discreetly installed in order to preserve its architectural history.  This was the challenge when PA Collacott & Company was awarded the building controls contract for Charterhouse covering the refurbishment of the existing building management system (BMS), which also included a new language block.

Imagine walking into a dark office where the heating is set at a default level, but the minute you walk in it senses your presence and the lighting and heating switches to a pre-set level which match the needs of the individual in the room.

With increasing demands for higher energy efficiency, lower cost of ownership and better quality lighting, it's becoming increasingly important to look at all the options when selecting light sources. Very often, these will be options that have only recently become available, thanks to new technologies.

Data-communications systems have become an accepted and integral part of a growing majority of modern multi-service electrical installations. Nevertheless, the demand for increased bandwidth and greater network speeds is putting additional pressure on installers and contractors. This not only includes the need to contain and protect a combination of mains power together with sensitive, high-tech wiring and cabling in mission-critical structured networks, but also to future-proof these increasingly complex systems against ever-higher customer requirements.

We hear a lot about the amount of energy which lighting uses and even more about the ways in which we can work towards reducing that energy, but how do we effectively reduce the quantity of energy we use without reducing the quality of the lighting which we provide?

As we all know the cable management market in the UK is a massive industry, with millions spent each year in product development, system installation, renovation and even replacement. Therefore, it would seem extremely remiss if one significant installation aspect was frequently neglected.

Wieland Electric has released a new gesis electronic catalogue which includes the entire gesis product range for building automation. Components and systems for decentralised room automation, based on KNX, LON, and EnOcean wireless technologies, are all included in this user friendly, 80 page guide.

GM Techtronics has introduced their latest generation Dial2Open model WT009 to control and operate equipment functions such as access control, whilst also monitoring the status of other key equipment or systems, such as heating and refrigeration - by remote control.

Dimplex now gives total choice over multi outlet water heating solutions, as the new FB series of vented flatback cistern water storage heaters is suitable for applications where an unvented system is not practical.

Dimplex is ‘going up in the world' as the number one choice for low carbon heating and hot water with the addition of integrated roof kits to its solar thermal hot water system.

The Quattro Range of decorative amenity lights from Ansell Lighting provides four distinctive and stylish designs in the form of the Tardo, Piano, Canto and Andante.

The Orbe low bay luminaire is just one of the new product innovations from industry leading UK manufacturer Orbik Electronics. Designed to provide contemporary style with an energy efficient mains or emergency luminaire, it offers a choice of 4 x 55W or 80W TC-L compact fluorescent lamps. With a lamp life expectancy in excess of 20,000 the Orbe offers high efficiency lighting and offers the user the ability to significantly reduce their energy usage.

The new AM88 fan convector from Dunham Bush uses a fresh air spigot to ensure pre-heated fresh air is introduced to the space at the appropriate volumes, irrespective of weather conditions. The same facility is also available for use with Avant-garde fan convectors, optimised for use with condensing boilers, and the recently launched LST range of low surface temperature fan convectors.

The ultimate in pump system packaging has been launched by Armstrong. The new Pumpbox is a fully integrated, self-contained HVAC pumping solution, manufactured off-site, and housed in a compact thermally and acoustically insulated weatherproof enclosure.

Seaward Electronic has updated and expanded its easy to use software package for the fast  and accurate recording of electrical installation test and inspection data.

Vaillant continues to reduce the UK's dependence on fossil fuels with the introduction of its geoTHERM ground source heat pump range, which includes the geoTHERM and the geoTHERM exclusive. Using latent energy stored in the ground, Vaillant's heat pump range can generate hot water for space heating and domestic hot water use, while making a significant contribution towards the reduction of environmental pollution.

Vaillant has replaced its ecoMAX commercial boilers with a new ecoTEC range of high efficiency commercial system boilers.  The new models - the ecoTEC 46 and ecoTEC 65 - are high efficiency, SEDBUK ‘A' rated boilers, which produce a heating output of up to 65 kW.  Both models feature a fully modulating class 5 low NOx burner and fan.

To provide economical and environmentally friendly solutions for difficult heating applications, Focus SB has just introduced to the UK market the BURDA range of commercial quality radiant heaters. These are ideal for heating infrequently used areas or buildings that are either too difficult or too expensive to heat using conventional heating systems.

The latest range of wall mounted gas fired boilers from Stokvis Energy Systems is designed for small commercial and public sector applications.

BSS Industrial has extended its successful BOSS RIOpanel radiator range by launching the BOSS RIO AEGIS LST, a new model specifically designed for use in care homes, education and health facilities.

Danlers Limited manufactures a comprehensive range of passive infra-red occupancy switches for automatic lighting control. The products are easy to install, using the existing wiring in a building.

With the TB-Fix, Baumer's product segment process instrumentation offers a clamp-on bimetal thermometer suitable for temperature measurements of liquids and gases in insulated pipes with maximum 2 inches diameter. The thermometer is especially suitable for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning. It is able to measure a temperature range from -20°C to up to 160°C.

Dimplex now offers an even wider choice in heat pumps than ever before, with the addition of new ground source and air source models to the UK's widest range, offering high outputs, high temperatures, small footprints and suitability for hot water supply.

Schneider Electric has launched its new compact HMI with a 3.9 inch touchscreen in recognition of the need for simple installation, integration and programming of ever more complicated machines, yet at low cost.

The options available with Eaton's COPA range of clip-on plate accessories is now much larger with the addition of four metal plates in popular finishes - stainless steel, highly polished, satin bronze and polished brass.   The finishes, already popular with Eaton's AURA flush metal plate and SPECTRA grid switch ranges, will further enhance the appeal of the COPA range, which uses a clip-on cover plate to conceal the fixing screws.

Royal Philips Electronics has introduced UrbanScene, a range of complete lighting solutions - luminaires (with integrated brackets) and mast - for illumination applications and street lighting. Its modern, integrated family design and energy-saving features (high-efficiency lamps, electronic gear) enable an innovative and sustainable approach to urban lighting.

Royal Philips Electronics has introduced the OptiFlood MVP504 asymmetric floodlight for general area lighting as well as security and industrial area lighting. Designed for low lamp wattages and mounting heights, the Philips OptiFlood MVP504 floodlight is a smaller version of the OptiFlood MVP506 luminaire.

ELGA Process Water has announced two new models in their market-leading maxiRO range of reverse osmosis units. The new models, the maxiRO 14-4000 and maxiRO 14-5000 deliver 4m³/h and 5m³/h respectively and extend the maxiRO range into large commercial and industrial systems.

CIAT Ozonair's first heat recovery unit - the Ecociat - has the potential to reduce domestic hot water bills by up to 70%.  The unit captures and recycles heat contained in air brought in and drawn out by natural ventilation systems.  Instead of being vented outdoors, this energy is used by Ecociat to heat domestic hot water.

Atmos Heating Systems, the low carbon heating specialist, has unveiled its SolarCombi system which can cut fuel costs and CO₂ emissions by 50% compared to conventional gas heating systems.

Smith's Environmental Products, the leading supplier of domestic and light commercial fan convectors in the UK, is extending its Ecovector range of energy efficient fan convectors with the launch of two new models: the HL (high level) and the VE (vertical).  Aimed at the domestic, social housing and light commercial markets, these models will boast all the features of the existing Ecovector, while simultaneously replacing Smith's existing Sterling, Sentry and Sentinel models.

Eness Lighting Systems has developed a revolutionary new range of LED light fittings which not only deliver high quality white light to enhance the performance of security systems but also offer running cost savings of up to 70%, a maintenance free life span of 15 years and superior performance benefits.

Ferroli has launched a high quality new range of Air Source Heat Pumps to the UK HVAC market.

Noral's Norwegian Design Council Award for Design Excellence-winning O.Disk luminaire is proving popular with architects and developers of piazzas, marinas and recreational facilities in both the public and private sectors, where lighting is seen to be making a major contribution towards the venue's around-the-clock aesthetics and consumer appeal.   

Ridi Lighting is set to shake up the commercial lighting world with the launch of its comprehensive lighting control package, Control³.  Designed to offer maximum energy and cost efficiency, the new Ridi system easily ensures total compliance with Part L building regulations, as well as absolute end-user convenience.

MK Electric has added a touch of glitz and glamour to its comprehensive range of wiring devices with the launch of a new dedicated Design Service. The service offers the opportunity to put the accent very much on style and creativity when it comes to switches, sockets and other wiring accessories.

The new Videx Eclipse hands free audio and video monitors are noteworthy for their slim and compact design, allowing installation in areas where space is limited. Hands free duplex technology delivers excellent audio quality and highly efficient background noise cancellation.  

Scorpion Power Systems has launched powertherm, an innovative and cost effective range of Combined Heat & Power(CHP) systems that reduce energy costs and increase power reliability and quality.  Unique to the European market, powertherm's engine technology gives 85.5% package efficiency with thermal recovery, enabling the units to provide an outstanding energy output compared to fuel consumption as well as shrink a company's carbon footprint. 

Detectagas has launched a simple new way of testing carbon monoxide detectors which it believes addresses a major flaw in this equipment's reliability and could literally save thousands of people who may be at risk from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

A new volume flow controller type VFC has been developed by the Trox Group which is a clever energy saving device and also has the benefit of being cost effective.