Changes to come
If there’s one thing every business in this industry shares at the moment, it is the sense that the most important thing is finding the work to keep going. Did any of us expect the market to be this tough for this long? There are shafts of light here and there, but we know very few for whom the recovery is a reality; for most, it’s more a hope and an expectation.
So, inevitably, we’re all focused on the present and the immediate future, only occasionally glancing towards the longer term. For members, one of the benefits of their involvement in the BWF is when they step back from the day-to-day and take a longer look towards the horizon and understand what is coming towards us.
It should be no surprise that at the end of the first year of a new Government there are many new initiatives in train. Similarly, it shouldn’t be a surprise that, in the third year of a major downturn, industry is looking hard at how it works to find how it can improve production efficiency and business profitability. Many members are aware of the individual initiatives (particularly if they read BWF News Update and Join In regularly but it’s only when they start to see them all brought together that they realise the scale of the potential change over the next few years. Some of these changes are summarised below.
Building Regulations and CE Marking
We’ve just gone through the latest round of changes to the Building Regulations, and we know that we have to expect another in 2013.
Over recent months, we’ve helped many BWF members obtain U-values for windows. There is also a requirement in the Building Regulations Approved Document L, which came into force on 1 October 2010, for the U-value of a replacement door to be 1.8 W/m2K, and we have now extended our U-value calculator service to cover doorsets (door including frames).
We now also know that the EU’s Construction Products Regulation will make CE marking mandatory from 2013. BWF is working together with members to ensure that all are prepared for changes to come.
BWF Members’ Day Workshop A: ‘Towards 2013: Preparing for technical and regulatory changes’, will help you to understand the new challenges facing your business and the ways in which the BWF can help you over the next two years.
To attend the technical workshops and book a place at this year’s Members’ Day on 19th May, click here.
Employment, Training and Health & Safety
The Government is embarking on a substantial reshaping of the regulations around employment law and health and safety. Training provision and qualifications are changing under the influence of industry organisations to meet the real needs of business rather than an academic concept. By 2016 at the latest, all employers, of whatever size, will have to enrol their employees in a pension scheme and contribute towards it.
There’s a great deal of information to take away from Members’ Day this year, and its never been more poignant to ensure your ready for change. Why don’t you see what is on the horizon and what BWF is doing to prepare it’s members by booking your place for 19th May. To book a place at this year’s BWF Members’ Day on 19th May, click here. Demands on businesses
Meanwhile, there are changes to the business environment happening almost organically, whether it’s the growing demand from customers for the reassurance offered by certifications, innovations is technology or adapting to the growing use of the internet and social networking media as the main source of information and advice before buying.
Why not see how the BWF can help you meet these challenges. Visit the BWF website at michael.lee@bwf.org.uk