HVCA members are being encouraged to take advantage of the Safety Schemes in Procurement (SSIP) Forum, which has been established - with the endorsement of the government and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) - by four of the UK's leading operators of approved contractor schemes.

Widespread non-compliance with legislation designed to address the twin challenges of sustainability and carbon reduction is already jeopardising the nation's ability to meet its long-term environmental targets, according to HVCA president Graham Manly.

The Building Services Engineering Employment Agency Alliance is providing a valuable forum for the review of key workforce issues - and an effective platform for the initiation of positive action - jointly by contractors and their principal manpower providers.

The building services engineering sector has a great deal to gain from the increasing global commitment to carbon reduction and energy conservation, according to HVCA president Graham Manly.

Graham Manly has been elected president of the HVCA for 2009/10.

The HVCA has launched a heating helpline to promote energy efficiency in the home and raise the profile of members active in the residential marketplace.

Chairman Jim O'Neil has confirmed that M&E Sustainability - the joint venture between the HVCA and the Electrical Contractors' Association (ECA) - will continue its sponsorship of the Centre for Efficient and Renewable Energy in Buildings (CEREB), which is currently under construction at London South Bank University.

President Gareth Vaughan outlined to industry colleagues worldwide the principal challenges currently being faced by HVCA members and the UK building services engineering sector.

Research carried out by the HVCA among its members suggests that calls for the public sector to improve its payment regime to suppliers are falling on deaf ears.

The traditional procurement practices employed by the construction industry act as a barrier to the delivery of sustainable buildings, according to a report launched in the House of Lords.

Representation of the building services engineering sector north of the border has received a shot in the arm with the granting of a seat on the Scottish Construction Forum (SCF) to the Scottish Confederation of Associations of Specialist Engineering Contractors (CASEC).

I could not let it pass....

I have been working on air conditioning systems for 20 years but am a relative newbie in the air source heat pump market. ...

"I’m really concerned how the media influences short term thinking and how people are so easily swayed, especially on the issues of climate change", blogs Mike Malina, director of Energy Solutions Associates ...