Greenbuild Expo 2012

Greenbuild Expo 2012, the largest sustainable refurbishment and building event in the North of England, returns to Manchester Central on 9 and 10 May with a whole host of exhibitors, speakers and a Green Deal debate arena.

This year, names such as Plumb Center, Scottish Passivhaus Centre and Mitsubishi will exhibit alongside organisations such as the National Federation of Roofing Contractors and the UK Green Building Council.

The new Government initiative the Green Deal intends to reduce carbon emissions cost effectively by revolutionising the energy efficiency of British properties, both commercial and residential. This will impact on industry and the Green Deal debates will focus on; how it will work, skills shortage, funding and what it entails for domestic and commercial properties.

The event, which is aimed at professionals, such as architects, installers, builders merchants, commercial landlords, house builders, planners and energy managers among others, will also have a hands-on training area with demonstrations.

This year, Association of Greater Manchester Authorities lead for environment, transport and planning, Charlie Parker will open the event with a speech.

There will also be several electric vehicles at Manchester Central, courtesy of Manchester Electric Car Company, which will be helping speakers and guests get to the venue.
Ignition 12 will return. Producing heat to warm homes, offices and factories uses about 40 per cent of the energy we consume in the UK. However, unlike electricity production, there has been no sustained attempt to reduce this or shift to renewable sources.

With the long awaited introduction of the Renewable Heat Incentive in 2012, and the rising cost of oil and concerns over supply, this is about to all change and Ignition12 will focus on a heat source that has great potential in the UK – woodfuel.

Greenbuild Expo 2012 also has a packed seminar programme with themes around sustainable cities, fabric first and renewable energies all delivered by experts.

Lucy Young, conference organiser of Greenbuild Expo 2012, said: "We not only hope to encourage a larger audience but also bring more high profile industry speakers and more industry-leading exhibitors to the 2012 event. Championing sustainable refurbishment and building solutions is what Greenbuild is about whether that's in the volume domestic market or wider construction sectors including hotel and leisure, retail and offices. 2012's event will look at all of these sectors and bring clarity to areas like Green Deal, potentially the largest refurbishment opportunity the UK, and certainly the most challenging!"

To find out more about Greenbuild Expo 2012 visit www.greenbuildexpo.co.uk