Leading housebuilder, Linden Homes, has completed a major land deal to deliver 745 much-needed homes in Thanet, Kent. The 54-acre development will provide a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes, with 25 percent of homes on site being affordable. The site will be home to a number of
PRIME Minister Boris Johnson has announced a hospital building programme, but it is just as vital to tackle a £6 billion maintenance backlog that is potentially risking the lives of patients, states a University of Huddersfield professor who chaired a national conference that dealt with the issue of healthcare infrastructure.
CHARLOTTE Booth, a chartered environmentalist with more than a decade of consultancy experience, has been appointed as associate director of sustainability and wellbeing at multi-disciplinary architecture and engineering practice, BE Design. Having grown up on an almost autonomous farm in rural Lincolnshire, Charlotte had a keen interest in protecting the
Time is running out for the UK to meet its carbon reduction targets and the way we live has to change. A big part of that will be saying goodbye to our gas and oil boilers, which the UK is looking to phase out almost completely by 2050. Indeed, in
Record breaking year to date boosted further with award of ‘Contractor of the Year’ by Yorkshire Insider. GMI Construction Group, an expanding main contractor has announced that it has been awarded ‘Contractor of the Year’ for the second year running at the prestigious Yorkshire Insider Property Industry Awards hosted on
Ridge and Partners LLP (Ridge), an award-winning, multi-discipline property and construction consultancy, has appointed a new Partner in its Expert Witness and Advisory Services (EWAS) team. Tim Haynes, who has joined the Ridge office in London, will focus on quantum and delay matters. As an expert in construction-related disputes, Tim
North East company, Seymour Civil Engineering, has recently been appointed to Yorkshire Water’s Minor Civil Framework, worth up to £290million, and is set to deliver requirements around the entire operational area of Yorkshire Water. Yorkshire Water has recently awarded £1billion of Civils Frameworks for 2020-2025, covering the full range of
With over 125 years of experience in the construction industry, Midlands contractor G F Tomlinson is looking ahead to a prosperous future with a forward pipeline of works of circa £90million in both the public and private sectors. The Derby-based construction group has been successful across all sectors, including education, commercial
Among the many decisions an exhibitor has to make, picking the best venue for the exhibition is the most difficult. Before you find a provider of exhibition products or the caterer, you first have to find the venue. You should identify a venue for your exhibition 4-6 months before the
From Allegro to oodlique, Zalando to Game, European online marketplaces are booming. European online marketplaces receive 804.4m visits per month, a figure which shows no sign of waning. These online communities are connecting, engaging and extending relationships with customers, employees and partners across all sectors and helping customers get more
Leading housebuilder, Linden Homes, has completed a major land deal to deliver 745 much-needed homes in Thanet, Kent. The 54-acre development will provide a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes, with 25 percent of homes on site being affordable. The site will be home to a number of key facilities including a new medical centre, school, retail units and a care home, which will be developed by Frontier Estates, a leading developer in the healthcare sector. The land, which is allocated in Thanet District Council’s Local Plan, was purchased with planning permission and Linden Homes embarked on construction in August 2019, with full completion expected in 2028. Darren Maddox managing director at Linden Homes South East commented: “We are delighted to announce the completion of this land purchase. Kent is a target area for our business unit and this site, in particular, fits with our commitment to provide quality homes for families and first-time buyers in attractive locations. “This new development will deliver much-needed new homes as well as a wide range of community facilities which will benefit new and existing residents, as well as the local economy. Thanet District Council has set out that they need to deliver 17,140 houses by 2031 and we’re proud to be helping them meet this target.” This is the third large land deal that the top-10 housebuilder has completed this year. In April, Linden Homes completed a deal for a site in Beverley, East Yorkshire which has a development value of around £180 million and will provide 900 new homes. The developer recently partnered Scottish-based housebuilder Miller Homes to deliver 750 new homes in Chichester. For more information on Linden Homes’ land offering, visit www.lindenhomes.co.uk/land.
PRIME Minister Boris Johnson has announced a hospital building programme, but it is just as vital to tackle a £6 billion maintenance backlog that is potentially risking the lives of patients, states a University of Huddersfield professor who chaired a national conference that dealt with the issue of healthcare infrastructure. Professor Mike Kagioglou is Dean of the School of Art, Design and Architecture at the University of Huddersfield and specialises in the importance of infrastructure and building design to healthcare. He was invited to chair the 2019 National NHS Estates Conference that took place in London and featured speakers who included Sir John Naylor, author of an influential review of NHS property and estates. At the close of the conference, Professor Kagioglou – co-editor of a book titled Improving Healthcare through Built Environment Infrastructure – provided a summary of the issues that had been raised and he highlighted the level of chronic under-investment in the NHS estate. “Since 2010, the UK’s capital expenditure on healthcare has gone below the OECD average [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development], so the need for investment in this area is huge. There is a £6 billion of backlog maintenance in the NHS estate, which means lives are potentially put at risk,” said Professor Kagioglou. “About half of the backlog is in critical areas,” he continued. “It can include operating theatre services that have not been maintained and electrical, mechanical and gas systems that have not been updated according to specific schedules. “There are some serious issues there in relation to the healthcare estate. They are resulting in operating on breakdown maintenance schedules rather than preventative ones,” said Professor Kagioglou, who added that many NHS trusts are in deficit, meaning the money is not available to catch up with the maintenance backlog. The Government has announced that it is to fund the building of new hospitals, but it is also vital to fix the backlog maintenance to ensure that the current infrastructure operates properly and safely, argues Professor Kagioglou. In addition to chairing the NHS Estates Conference, he has been invited to speak at the large-scale and long-established Healthcare Estates event taking place over October 9-10 in Manchester and organised by the Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management. Expected to attract an attendance of 4,500 attendees and more than 250 exhibitors, the programme includes seminars and keynote addresses from experts who include Professor Kagioglou. The title of his talk is ‘Total Delivery’ of Healthcare Infrastructure for Patients, Users and Communities. Professor Kagioglou will cover topics including the contribution the built environment makes to healthcare outcomes; how evidence-based design should be used in creating health infrastructure; and how new technologies such as building information modelling can be utilised. The University of Huddersfield’s Innovative Design Lab, led by Professor Patricia Tzortzopoulos who is co-editor of titled Improving Healthcare through Built Environment Infrastructure, undertakes significant research in healthcare infrastructure and medical devices.
CHARLOTTE Booth, a chartered environmentalist with more than a decade of consultancy experience, has been appointed as associate director of sustainability and wellbeing at multi-disciplinary architecture and engineering practice, BE Design. Having grown up on an almost autonomous farm in rural Lincolnshire, Charlotte had a keen interest in protecting the environment from a young age and has since led on energy and sustainability strategies for some of the UK’s largest urban regeneration projects. “From a young age, I recognised the importance of living sustainably,” said Charlotte. “On my family’s 250-hectare arable farm, we grew the energy crop miscanthus, ran our vehicles on biofuel, designed wetlands and wildflower meadows to encourage biodiversity and heated the farmhouse via a ground source heat pump, solar thermal and PV panels. You could say that a passion for sustainability and wellbeing is in my blood. “After completing my degree in Natural Sciences at Durham University – where I specialised in climate change – I went on to study for an MSc in Building Energy and Environmental Performance Modelling at the Welsh School of Architecture. “This greatly contributed to my understanding as to the impacts of development on the environment and led me to pursue a career in the construction industry. “I’ve advised affordable housing providers, local councils and private developers on the environmental impacts of their construction projects. I’ve worked closely with teams to project manage multi-million-pound masterplanning and regeneration schemes. Seeing low carbon, sustainable and biophilic-focussed designs come to fruition is incredibly rewarding. “I’m now looking forward to putting all of this experience into practice at BE Design.” In her new role, Charlotte will be collaborating closely with the team to provide sustainability management, wellbeing and biophilic design support – through accreditations including the WELL Building Standard – and energy and low carbon strategies to BE Design’s clients. Charlotte added: “We want to embed sustainability and wellbeing practices into the heart of our designs. There’s an incredible team here, who are committed to creating exceptional places to live and work in, which have minimal environmental impact and which are fit for future generations. “This passion for sustainability, along with the collaborative and holistic approach to design, is what attracted me to BE Design. “Climate change is a very real threat, one that isn’t going to go away, so we have to be incorporating sustainable practices into everything we do in terms of building design. Businesses and councils are declaring states of emergency. But now, we have to deliver practical solutions to deliver the net zero carbon aspirations of our clients.” Charlotte’s role will significantly strengthen the Nottinghamshire-based practice’s offer relating to sustainable and wellbeing and bring an elevated service to its national and international clients. Director Anna Tsartsari added: “Sustainability isn’t just a buzz word – it’s a practice, an ethos, a commitment to the future of our planet. ‘Designing sustainably for the future’ has been at the core of our business’ approach to design from day one. At BE Design, we very much subscribe to the idea of sustainable placemaking, creating spaces that people want to live and work in. That’s why we’ve also signed up to Architect’s Declare. “Charlotte will hugely benefit our clients, bringing an incredible amount of sector knowledge to their projects. She has already proven to be a fantastic addition to the team and we’re delighted to have her on board.” Find out more about BE Design at www.bedesign.co.uk or join the conversation on Twitter @B_E_Design #BESustainablePlacemaking.
Time is running out for the UK to meet its carbon reduction targets and the way we live has to change. A big part of that will be saying goodbye to our gas and oil boilers, which the UK is looking to phase out almost completely by 2050. Indeed, in March 2019 it was confirmed that from 2025 it will be illegal to install gas boilers in new build homes. It’s a tall order, especially when you consider that the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has vowed to try and keep energy bills as low as possible. The Guardian reported in 2018 that households need electric or hydrogen boilers sooner rather than later if the UK is to hit its carbon targets at the lowest cost. And while electricity supplies are rapidly switching to low-carbon sources, almost all homes today rely on fossil fuels. According to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), the public is largely unaware of the alternatives, and consumer understanding is “far from where it needs to be.” So, we need to make big, long term changes to the way we power and heat our homes, but with minimal up-front costs and lower ongoing energy bills. Building Products caught up with IOBAC’s CEO Paul Woolvine about how the built environment could do it. IOBAC delivers innovative heating and flooring technologies based around speed of install, flexibility, operational effectiveness, and sustainability. Heated flooring to the rescue (but not as you know it!) Generally, underfloor heating operates at a lower temperature when compared with standard radiators; it retains heat for a good length of time after it has been switched off; and the even distribution of heat can allow a room to heat up more quickly and stay warm. For some people, however, barriers still exist that put them off underfloor heating. It’s considered by many as an expensive luxury product with a disruptive, complex installation processes. It can also be difficult to remediate if there’s a problem. And the big one: typically, there are limited options for renewable energy inputs. So, can we harness all of the intrinsic benefits of underfloor heating within a simpler, more cost-effective and accessible solution? The good news, according to IOBAC’s CEO, Paul Woolvine, is “yes”. Paul explains: “IOBAC heated flooring was developed to overcome issues commonly associated with conventional electric mats and water-based underfloor heating systems. Our heated flooring solution doesn’t require you to dig up your floor or cause any disruption to any existing pipework or electric system.” Sounds easy, right? “It really is as easy as it sounds,” continues Paul. “The process is as follows: lay conductive copper strips, apply conductive paint, apply magnetically dielectric paint, install surface tiles, connect copper strips, and away you go. It’s far easier to install and much easier to remediate or change and is a simple painted solution – simply remove the floor tile and coating and repaint. And importantly, this underfloor heating solution can be powered by a highly efficient electric input from an AC or DC supply – like solar panels. With this technology it’s absolutely feasible to heat your home with solar power – or any other electrical input for that matter. That way people don’t need to be reliant on big energy companies.” On this solution’s sustainability credentials, Paul explained: “Well, firstly, this solution uses infrared heat. Research suggests that infrared heat has numerous health benefits, including increased blood circulation, an enhanced immune system, and reduction of joint pain and inflammation. Infrared heat is typically more budget friendly; designed with sustainable inputs the running costs are significantly less than conventional solutions and the temperature tends to be more consistent.” So, you’ve heard of heated flooring, but heated walls? Traditional radiators can range anywhere from 120mm to 480mm and typically, the thicker the better due to a lower fin density. But a thicker radiator can look bulky and unsightly, or even cause design issues. Paul explains why he believes IOBAC’s alternative offers the best of both worlds: “Our heated walling technology is a modern-day alternative to traditional radiators. It’s a micro-thin radiator which can essentially be ‘painted’ onto the wall using a special patent-pending Graphene based technology. This enables more design freedom – no more unattractive wall-hung radiators – and can be connected via an AC or DC supply. Imagine your home without bulky radiators! This technology essentially works in the same way as our heated flooring: conductive copper strips, apply conductive resin, dielectric paint, and connect copper strips. It shares further similarities with heated flooring: it’s non-disruptive, cost-effective, and enjoys all the benefits of infrared heat. “Of course, some people – especially those that are environmentally conscious – may want to switch out their traditional radiators straight away. But we don’t necessarily anticipate 20 million-plus households to rip out their existing radiators overnight. It’s why, initially, we envisage that this technology will be best suited to the new-build market. It’s also why we’ve developed a smart radiator cover for retrofit applications that will be available later this year.” Retrofit radiators do of course currently exist, but some can be inefficient and fairly expensive. Paul explains IOBAC’s imminent answer: “Retrofitting radiators can be costly and time-consuming – often you have to deconstruct the radiator. IOBAC’s technology enables you to effectively cover the existing radiator with a highly efficient Graphene based heating system, which is really simple to do yourself. This is again utilising our super conductive graphene technology and, as with our heated flooring and heated wall technology, it can be designed to be more efficient than traditional solutions. This will be available to buy over the counter later this year. Watch this space!” Straightforward switching Paul concludes: “We think these technologies could enable the government’s 2050 target to potentially become a reality by the mid-2020s. But, crucially, it needs to be straightforward for people to switch to more sustainable solutions and energy sources. As The Guardian says, most people, unfortunately, are unaware of the alternatives. More
Record breaking year to date boosted further with award of ‘Contractor of the Year’ by Yorkshire Insider. GMI Construction Group, an expanding main contractor has announced that it has been awarded ‘Contractor of the Year’ for the second year running at the prestigious Yorkshire Insider Property Industry Awards hosted on 19th September 2019. On receiving this award GMI are now the only company to have held the title in both Yorkshire and the North West, after being crowned Construction Business of the Year at the Insider North West Property Industry Awards in May. Some 850 representatives from businesses that are shaping the built environment in Yorkshire attended the event, showcasing the best of the property industry and most notable achievements. In receiving this award GMI were highlighted for their ability across a wide range of commercial sectors operating from their offices in Leeds. The company was noted for its standout performance in the delivery of a broad range of often highly complicated projects consistently delivered on time and on budget. This accolade, follows an already bumper 2019 for GMI in which it has also picked up a host of additional awards including: GMI retaining their accreditation and status as an ‘Investor in People’ Became a ‘Considerate Constructors Partner’ Achieving the highest possible RoSPA accreditation, RoSPA Gold for the ninth consecutive year. Best high-volume new housing development’ at the Local Authority Building Control (LABC) North and East Yorkshire Building Excellence Awards in June. GMI will now go on to represent Yorkshire at the LABC National Building Excellence Awards to be held in London in November. Recognised as Insider North West Property Awards ‘Construction Business of the Year’ for 2019. Accredited to ISO 45001 Speaking about this further accolade and the performance of GMI so far during 2019, Group Managing Director Andy Bruce said: “GMI continues to go from strength to strength and we are honoured to receive yet another high profile, valued award amongst such great company here in Yorkshire. This year we have expanded rapidly in each of three core regional markets in which we operate and been awarded contracts in each of specialist sectors we know best: logistics & industrial, commercial, residential and manufacturing space. This has given a GMI a strong platform from which to continue to grow and we look forward to a further strong push towards the end of the year.” GMI are experiencing their best year on record so far during 2019 in terms of growth and projects under management, with over £50M of contracts already awarded at sites throughout the Midlands, the North and Manchester. Some of the high profile projects in question include a new 126,279 sq. ft manufacturing centre being constructed for Henry Boot Developments at the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, the completion of a brand new 137-bed luxury hotel for the Dakota Group in Manchester together with the construction of a new £20M 430,000 sq. ft speculative warehouse for long standing customer Evans Group at Fradley Park. To read more about these projects and for the latest news and views visit the GMI website : https://gmiconstructiongroup.co.uk/
Ridge and Partners LLP (Ridge), an award-winning, multi-discipline property and construction consultancy, has appointed a new Partner in its Expert Witness and Advisory Services (EWAS) team. Tim Haynes, who has joined the Ridge office in London, will focus on quantum and delay matters. As an expert in construction-related disputes, Tim will bolster the team’s wealth of experience in providing expert advice and evidence in litigation, adjudication, and arbitration, as well as adding to the expertise in claim preparation and defence. Tim has more than 30 years of experience, particularly in the analysis and resolution of commercial and contractual problems on major building, infrastructure, rail and petrochemical contracts in the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Lucy Osborne, who leads the EWAS team at Ridge, said: “Tim is a very important hire for us who will help to strengthen our established EWAS team. Our growing team continues to operate globally, and prides itself not only in providing outstanding experts, but also in having a continuing involvement in live projects.” Tim Haynes added: “This is a fantastic opportunity to join a highly-regarded team within the property and construction industry and I’m delighted to be working closely with Lucy to continue to build upon the fantastic work already undertaken. As a specialist in commercial and contractual audits on major projects, with experience across both private and public sectors of the construction industry, I hope to add strength and breadth to the multidisciplinary services Ridge provides.” Ridge now employs over 625 people in 11 offices across the UK and offers a unique range of property consultancy services. Since 2018, the business has grown by over 40 consultants, with plans to recruit more in 2019. About Ridge and Partners LLP (Ridge) Ridge offers a unique range of property consultancy, planning, project and cost management, architecture, surveying, design, engineering, health and safety and expert witness services. Founded in Oxford in 1946, Ridge now employs more than 625 people in 11 offices across the UK, including Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Oxford, Reading and Winchester. The business operates internationally and has successfully delivered projects in over 75 countries worldwide. A dynamic, forward thinking business, Ridge takes an innovative approach to delivering buildings, infrastructure and engineering and property and construction solutions for its clients.
North East company, Seymour Civil Engineering, has recently been appointed to Yorkshire Water’s Minor Civil Framework, worth up to £290million, and is set to deliver requirements around the entire operational area of Yorkshire Water. Yorkshire Water has recently awarded £1billion of Civils Frameworks for 2020-2025, covering the full range of civil engineering requirements across its clean and wastewater assets with a total of 18 partners after a 12-month procurement process. Seymour is the only company to be appointed within both Yorkshire Water’s Minor Civils Lot 1 and 2 and will be carrying out civil engineering works to existing assets on operational treatment and distribution facilities. This will also include refurbishment and repairs to clean potable water and wastewater structures including reservoirs respectively. Karl Brennan, Pre Construction Director at Seymour Civil Engineering, said: “This is a key milestone for the business to achieve this strategic growth in Yorkshire and it provides a platform for further growth and development. “The work will commence later this year or early 2020 and will last over an eight-year period with a review after five years. “This will result in creation of jobs and many opportunities to deliver social value as well as reinforcing our position as a multi discipline specialist civil contractor in the region.” The journey began in 2017 with a strategic objective to grow the business, as Seymour’s skillsets suit the water industry. This therefore made sense to look at Yorkshire Water as their ‘neighbouring water authority.’ Seymour were aware of the AMP 6 cycle coming to an end and that Yorkshire Water would soon be publicising notices for AMP7 frameworks. They attended the AMP 7 supplier events and were impressed by the actions Yorkshire Waters procurement team were taking, to engage with suppliers, stating that they wanted to achieve a ‘collaborative and family feel.’ Mark Baker, Head of Programme Delivery at Yorkshire Water, commented: “We are excited to see the conclusion of this process and welcome our partners to support our ambitions and challenges into AMP7. “They will assist in the formation of a truly collaborative, innovative and efficient delivery vehicle to help meet our Enterprise delivery model aspirations. “The alignment of our objectives and a Programme First approach is a new direction for Yorkshire Water and we are confident that our partners can support this ambition.” Karl Brennan continued: “As Seymour has grown from a family business, this appealed to us and the decision was soon made to declare an interest in the Minor Civils framework. “The framework was a three-stage process and we competed against some of the UK’s main contractors before securing our position. It took a lot of resource, input and effort from our team to get to this position and we are proud of our achievement. “We are now in the process of implementing our proposal to go and deliver the work and build our relationship with Yorkshire Water.”
With over 125 years of experience in the construction industry, Midlands contractor G F Tomlinson is looking ahead to a prosperous future with a forward pipeline of works of circa £90million in both the public and private sectors. The Derby-based construction group has been successful across all sectors, including education, commercial and residential. The family business – which was named as a top 10 contractor in the East Midlands by a recent construction industry survey* – has re-modelled the company to take into account the recent changes in the economy. This strategy has been beneficial as the business looks towards 2020 with a greater emphasis on the more buoyant markets of residential, facilities management and the logistics sector. Construction Frameworks also still play a significant part in G F Tomlinson’s business with a consistent client base and focus. In order to ensure it has the skill base and resources it needs to build on this strategy, G F Tomlinson continues to provide technical apprenticeships to many young people looking for a career in the construction sector, something they have done consistently for the last 40 years. Following in the footsteps of his recently retired father, Barry Sewards, group chairman and managing director, Andy Sewards said: “Having been established for over 125 years, we have a tremendous breadth of experience throughout the industry, with forward-thinking values to back this up. “We are now at a point in time where we are re-modelling the business to look ahead to the future, embracing new ideas to capitalise more on the buoyant sectors in the marketplace. This approach will ensure the company is well placed, providing greater opportunities for continued success for many years to come”.
Among the many decisions an exhibitor has to make, picking the best venue for the exhibition is the most difficult. Before you find a provider of exhibition products or the caterer, you first have to find the venue. You should identify a venue for your exhibition 4-6 months before the exhibition and sign an agreement with the venue provider to that effect. The following will provide you with tips in choosing the venue for your next exhibition. 1. Location If you intend to hold a local exhibition, choose a location that is close to your target attendees. For instance, if your exhibition is targeting students, pick a location with a high concentration of students. If the attendees are from out of town, a venue close to an airport and a hotel for accommodation would be ideal. You can provide the potential attendees with a mobile event app that will give directions to the venue. 2. Capacity You might find a venue at a great location but it may not hold the number of attendees you hope to have. Find a venue that is not too small or too big; this is because a very large space gives a feeling of emptiness while one that’s too small seems overcrowded. Also, consider movement of people during the exhibition; do they have to move from one stand to another or everything is in one spot? 3. Parking Your venue must have ample parking facilities if you want more people to attend. A person should not struggle to find a parking spot as they might decide to leave if they cannot park their cars at a considerable distance from the venue. Reserving and paying for parking space is one way of ensuring your attendees are sorted. Another way would be to organize for shared transport. This can be done by having a common pick up point where you will pick the attendees and drop them at the venue then take them back afterwards. For instance, you can organize for parents to drop their kids at school where you will pick them then take them back after the event. 4. Amenities and Services One thing you should consider while choosing the venue is the availability of catering for your event. Is there a kitchen at the venue? If not, does the venue provider have a partnership with food providers? If there is such an arrangement, make sure to sample the food before the event. If you are not satisfied with your services, ask if you can bring in a caterer of your choice. Does the venue provide amenities such as chairs, tables, or linen? If they are available and are to your preference, it will save you money as you won’t have to hire from outside. Some venues provide audio-visual equipment which is a plus for you if they do, but if they don’t, you’ll have to bring your own. Other venues also have clean up and set-up crews who keep the venue clean and help in setting up your displays. If there are none and the venue is great, you can find a team to do this at a small fee. 5. Accessibility Your venue should be accessible by everyone especially those with special needs. Since you do not know who will turn up for your exhibition, ensure that your venue can be accessed by people with special needs, such as, a person using a wheelchair. 6. Flexibility of Event Date If your choice of venue is a popular place among event planners, you can have different date options. If you choose to fill up a date that is open for the venue provider, you may earn yourself a discount in pricing. 6. Insurance An exhibition is attended by people from different backgrounds. Having this in mind, you should be open to the idea that accidents may strike during the course of the exhibition. Most venue providers require exhibitors to have insurance for the event. This is to exonerate them from any liability in case an accident occurs during the exhibition period. You should have this ready when going out to look for a venue for your exhibition. 9. Acoustics Poor acoustics disrupt communication during an event. The event may be too loud or too low making you strain to hear what the other person is saying. A room with a low ceiling will elevate the sound once it is packed while a room that is too large will produce echoes. Consider these factors when choosing your venue. In conclusion, since you cannot hop from one venue to the next, you can contact a convention bureau for assistance. Provide them with a list of your venue needs and they will in turn provide you with several venues which you can check out.
From Allegro to oodlique, Zalando to Game, European online marketplaces are booming. European online marketplaces receive 804.4m visits per month, a figure which shows no sign of waning. These online communities are connecting, engaging and extending relationships with customers, employees and partners across all sectors and helping customers get more value from their products and services. Included in the top 50 European marketplaces is the UK which sees 90m visits per month to its 10 biggest online marketplaces. Success stories Some of the world’s largest online marketplaces have some interesting success stories to tell. eBay was founded in Pierre Omidyar’s San Jose living room back in September 1995 and from the start was meant to be a marketplace for the sale of goods and services for individuals. Today eBay has become an online person-to-person trading community and has both streamlined and globalized person-to-person trading, which traditionally used to be conducted at car boot sales, collectables shows and flea markets. Mumsnet was created by Justine Roberts back in 2000 after a disastrous family holiday. Originally conceived as a website where parents could simply swap family holiday and other advice, it has since grown into an online phenomenon, championing high profile campaigns which challenge both businesses and government over attitudes to children and parenting. Mumsnet is now the UK’s busiest social network for parents, generating almost 7m visits and 50m page views every month. Etsy was set up in 2005 as an online platform for craftsmen to sell their handmade and vintage goods. Today Etsy has created an online community of craftsmen featuring over 60m items and attracting 7.4m sellers and over 39.4m buyers. Builders Bay is another great example of an online marketplace which has brought together a unique online community. Buildersbay.co.uk was born out of the desire to solve the problem of dangerously excessive construction waste by enabling nationwide suppliers to sell surplus products to builders, renovators and DIY enthusiasts. The UK is a nation of DIY enthusiasts who spend £1.5bn annually on building products, yet 13% is never used and enters the country’s waste system. Builders Bay also solves the problem in the DIY retail market of unsold and surplus end of line stock either clogging up prime retail space or having to be stored, all costing the retailer money. Products bought on buildersbay.co.uk cost a fraction of the usual price. For example, some brand-new appliances are up to 45% cheaper than anywhere else on the internet. The site features over 16,000 products offering customers savings of £8m. Connecting people What all of these communities, and the hundreds of others like them, are doing is connecting likeminded people. For customers, online communities are a great way of getting more value from products and services and for businesses, online communities can help improve the way they enhance their products and services and help to better develop them. According to Forrester Research’s 2015 Customer Lifecycle Journey report, we are now living in the age of the customer. A time when customers, not brands, control the business agenda and technology and social media have given more power and influence to customers. More than ever, customers want to have a voice and influence business decisions which is why to remain viable, companies need to build stronger customer relationships, and online communities allow businesses to do this.