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This episode collects some of the highlights of our recent industry round table, 'Exploring Solutions for Residential Deep Retrofit', held at London’s Building Centre on 22 May 2024, and sponsored by WMS Underfloor Heating and Saint-Gobain Construction Products UK. A cross-disciplinary panel including renowned retrofit experts delivered practical insights and knowledge on enabling retrofit at scale of the UK’s 27 million existing homes, including learnings for the incoming Government.

James Parker speaks to Debbie Waddington, group head of HR at Keepmoat, to find out how the Top 20 UK housebuilder is putting the work into attracting a new generation of onsite and offsite staff in a difficult construction skills environment. She explains how selling the benefits of a career in a more ‘people-centred’ industry to new entrants is one of the factors behind the company’s enduring success in a challenging market.

In association with Bjelin, James Parker speaks to Emanuel Lidberg, head of design at Bjelin’s sister company, Välinge Innovation. In a very entertaining discussion with the timber flooring design specialist, James discovers why keeping up with fleeting trends may not be as crucial as timeless design and sustainability.

In association with VMZinc, this episode features Jonathan Lowy, operational marketing marketing manager at the company. Jon’s held several roles in 27+ years at VM, but maintains a really infectious enthusiasm for all things zinc. We explore how the material – the roof covering of choice in Paris in the mid 19th century – is now an increasingly popular specification on aesthetic and functional grounds for UK architects.

James Parker, editor of Housebuilder and Developer, speaks to Chris Carr, who has run his family SME housebuilding company in Grimsby for many years, but has recently seen his industry profile going through the roof as President of the Federation of Master Builders. He is a key figure advising and lobbying Ministers on what needs to change to ensure that SMEs are able to deliver all of the Government and industry targets for housebuilding. He’s also a master of pragmatic, creative thinking to...

In March 2024 we hosted the third Building Insights LIVE round table, which was a multi-disciplinary discussion around the impact of the Building Safety Act & the Golden Thread on future construction.We brought together architects, developers, IT experts and product suppliers at the Building Centre in London, to identify the challenges and solutions for navigating the new regime for professionals. Creating safer high-risk buildings post-Grenfell means taking greater accountability, but wi...