CIBSE has come a long way from the days when a member living more than 50 miles from London was known as a ‘country’ member. For many years we have had overseas regions, though they have come and gone as the world has changed. Today, CIBSE is a truly international institution, and some of our most successful regions are those furthest from London.

Yet in many ways, until relatively recently we have remained a London-based body. Perhaps this reflects the fact that over a quarter of our members live within the four Home Counties regions. And there will always be CIBSE initiatives that have a ‘local’ focus, such as the current ‘100 days of Carbon Clean-up campaign and the Low-Carbon Consultants’ Register, which are funded by the Carbon Trust specifically for work in England and Wales.

But modern communications make it ever easier for many aspects of our work to be truly international. The CIBSE Board now has a member based in Hong Kong whose work will be made easier by the installation of video conferencing equipment in the Building Services Engineering Centre.

We are trying to ensure that as much of our promotional and technical literature as possible is relevant worldwide. Whilst some of our publications continue to support legislation in the UK, the underlying engineering principles are applicable globally to all members. And as president,I have a specific remit to develop our international activities.

At another level, we now have formal representation on the ASHRAE Research Administration Committee, and are taking a more active role in Europe through REHVA. We have always been involved with these two bodies – we hold an annual liaison meeting and regular joint conferences with ASHRAE – but there is a realisation that in an ever smaller world it is crucial that we do not duplicate effort and squander our limited resources.

It is perhaps ironic that, at the very time we wish to be more international, we are realising that air travel is not something to be encouraged because of its very high carbon emissions. One challenge therefore will be to find ways of working internationally without flying too often – which will bring our website, email and video conferencing facilities much more to the fore.

As CIBSE seeks to emphasise its international membership, it is important to appreciate that our members are often world leaders in their fields, whether through their work on international standards committees or in designing world class buildings the world over. Wherever our members are based, they are highly respected and in demand. CIBSE guidance is often used as the basis for national recommendations in other countries: for example, our work on air-conditioning inspections forms the basis of the draft European Standard. The UK has also led the way in the registration of professional engineers. So, we should not be modest.

A challenge for the new chief executive, Stephen Matthews, will be to marry this increasingly international mode of operation and outlook with the best of being a British professional institution. I am looking forward to working alongside him during my term as president to help achieve this aim.

Source

Building Sustainable Design

Postscript

David Hughes, CIBSE president