1. Groundbreaking innovation
With more products than any other show, including more than 100 exclusive product launches, ground-breaking products will be on display throughout UK Construction Week. Just follow the Innovation Trail for the opportunity to talk to manufacturers about the solutions their cutting-edge products can offer, including a trailblazing solution for flat roof systems, quiet, reliable, zero emissions power, interactive 3D visualisations, and much, much more.
Discover the Innovation Trail exhibitors here.
2. Nine shows under one roof
The UK’s largest event for the built environment is free to attend and consists of nine shows: Timber Expo, Build Show, Civils Expo, Plant & Machinery Live, Energy 2018, Building Tech Live, Surface & Materials Show, HVAC 2018 and Grand Designs Live (open trade on October10-11).
Uniting more than 650 exhibitors with an audience of over 30,000 trade visitors, nowhere else in the UK will have access to such a vast array of construction products and services in one place, providing innovation and technological advantages for projects of all sizes.
See the full exhibitor line-up.
3. The UK’s biggest offsite showcase
Top of the agenda at this year’s show is modular construction, the high-quality, efficient and cost-effective solution to the current national housing crisis.
Our dedicated Offsite Theatre, supported by the Modular & Portable Building Association (MBPA) and Structural Timber Association (STA), brings together some of the key players and new faces in this burgeoning sector to discuss the wide array of projects and techniques currently being championed around the UK. Covering airports, bathroom pods, social housing, shipping containers, passivhaus techniques, 3D printed property, skyscrapers and schools – is there really anything we can’t build offsite?
View the Offsite Theatre programme here.
4. Seminars
The UK Construction Week seminar programme provides high-level discussion around the important issues facing the building industry today. Topics include the digital future of construction, diversity, Brexit, the national housing crisis and new delivery models. There will be a heavy focus on the lessons learned in the past year, such as fire safety post-Grenfell, the Carillion collapse and how the industry is moving as a whole.
Our speaker line-up includes former Trump Tower engineer, Barbara A Res; chair of Heathrow Skills Taskforce, Lord David Blunkett; RIBA president, Ben Derbyshire; the National Infrastructure Commission’s Bridget Rosewell, and many more.
See the full seminar programme.
5. Stay informed: free CPD programme
UK Construction Week is running a fully-accredited CPD programme, providing free education for all visitors who want to stay on top of their game. This year, there’s an even wider range of content, with topics that include fire prevention, sustainability, building materials, business services, infrastructure, building regulations, health and safety, and more.
Spaces are limited, pre-book seats on registration.
6. Materials that matter
Experience the building materials of the future at the Surface & Materials Show. MaterialDistrict – a leading match-making platform in the field of innovative materials – has selected 100 international materials that show the important role of future materials in the built environment.
Materials on display will include lightweight composites, recycled plastic, engineered wood, natural materials like cork textile and bamboo façades, and new resources that we used to call ‘waste’. The expo will also showcase acoustic solutions, smart interactive sunscreen materials and healthy bio based material sources.
7. Workshops & conferences
IEMA’s free-to-attend Sustainable Construction Conference will take place at UK Construction Week on Wednesday October 10, while BRE Academy host a series of CPD workshops throughout the show on a first-come, first-served basis.
With the theme ‘Building for the Future’, the BMF will also hold their first ever Young Merchants Conference on Thursday October 11, while the newly rebranded Construction Excellence Midlands bring together the regional construction industry and its supply chain to explore the challenges and opportunities across the Midlands sector on Tuesday October 9.
To find out more and book your places, visit the What’s On page.
8. UKCW role models: inspiring the future of construction
Launched in March 2018, UK Construction Week established its Role Models campaign to inspire those wanting to come into the construction industry and raise awareness of the breadth of roles available. The Role Models Award provides an opportunity to celebrate all the players in the industry, and applaud the role model’s brilliant individual strategies for making the industry stronger and better. This year’s deserving winner will be announced on October 10 on the UKCW Stage.
Meet the Class of 2018 here.
9. Prestigious awards
The Construction Enquirer Awards are dedicated to recognising and rewarding the industry’s best companies to work for and do business with. Hosting the awards night is renowned architect and broadcaster George Clarke, with one-liner comic, Gary Delaney, performing a laugh-a-minute set. Join us on Tuesday October 9 at the Hilton Metropole for this unmissable celebration of the industry’s finest.
In addition, the Voltimum Smart Solutions Awards champion the installers, manufacturers and wholesalers leading the charge in the building technology market. Broadcaster and journalist Steph McGovern will be hosting the ceremony on October 10 at the Building Tech Live Hub.
Book your Construction Enquirer Awards tickets here.
10. When it’s time to unwind
The UK Construction Week Beer Festival, sponsored by Velux, is back with a few new additions for 2018. Along with the usual selection of cold beers, street food and live music, the Beer Festival will also play host to our very first Rockaoke night and a brand new Gin and Fizz bar. Furthermore, FIX Radio will be based at the heart of the Beer Festival, where they will be broadcasting live for the duration of the show. So swing by, wind down and have some fun.
11. The tiny house of the future
It’s fair to say the Tiny House concept has been making big waves this year. Our future homes will almost certainly require a smaller footprint, with populations living in smaller buildings and sharing communal spaces to meet demand for space and affordability.
Following his success on Channel 4’s Amazing Spaces, Timber Expo has challenged Carwyn Lloyd Jones to build a timber frame Tiny House at this year’s event.
A carpenter by trade, Carwyn teaches courses on building with natural materials at the Centre for Alternative Technology, and will be running free-to-attend workshops live at the show.
Join Carwyn at Timber Expo, Hall 9. Places available on a first come, first served basis. No booking required.
12. Make: it Brum
Back in August, secondary school students from across Birmingham joined Make:it-Brum – a community engagement collaboration between Intervention Architecture and Arup – for a series of seminars on architecture, engineering, construction, digital innovations and drawing. The goal: to create a pavilion concept that will be designed and built for UK Construction Week.
The Make:it Brum team are now developing the concept to turn it into reality. Follow their progress on Twitter @MakeitBrum and see it for yourself at the entrance to Hall 9.
