News
Book your place to the BIFM Annual Conference
02-02-10 9:52 BIFM
Now in its 17th year, the highly anticipated British Institute of Facilities Management Annual Conference returns to London on 13th – 14th April 2010, this time at the Thames-side Riverbank Park Plaza Hotel.
Taking the fast changing world of facilities management as their event theme, the opening sessions will consider how well the industry has emerged from testing economic times and how facilities managers are dealing with ever-extending responsibilities for providing, maintaining and developing a range of services, from strategic issues such as property strategy, space management and communications infrastructure to operational issues such as cleaning, energy use and security.
BIFM CEO Ian Fielder comments, "Learning how to adapt and rise to the challenges presented by these social economic, strategic and operational shifts is a priority for the coming months and as such, demonstrating how to deal with change will form the bedrock of the 2010 BIFM Conference programme."
The increasing importance of achieving sustainability within the built environment remains high on the agenda.
"There is much that FM professionals can be doing to effect a reduction in carbon emissions," says Ian Fielder, "from simple measures like changing light bulbs to replacing old, inefficient refrigeration equipment with low energy equivalents. Whereas green awareness and activity levels are up, there is still a long way to go and during the 2010 conference will be looking at what progress the industry has made since last year’s event, where climate change topped the priority agenda."
Keynote speakers will be offering their predictions on how the economic downturn will impact FM going into a new decade, providing practical advice for employers and practitioners on how to adapt and grow, by embracing new technologies and developing their skill set to drive the sector forward.
The commercial opportunities afforded by the forthcoming Olympic Games will also be explained to delegates by senior procurement managers and officials. Says Ian Fielder, "The Olympics presents the FM industry with as many chances to shine as it does logistical challenges and potential pitfalls. While tremendously exciting for businesses of all sizes and specialisms, this session will no doubt demonstrate that there is lots we need to achieve to get our ‘house’ in order before the world descends in 2012."
The conference is open to both BIFM members and non-members and packages are available for one or two days. To book your place visit www.bifmconference.com. For enquiries email BIFMconference@apex.co.uk or telephone 08701 632804.
