Learnings and Observations from the Installer Show

As someone who's been to his fair share of exhibitions over the years, I always find them to be a bit of a lottery. Some are reasonable, and others, well, you know.

Last week I spent two of the three days at the NEC talking with industry leaders at the Installer Show. I should have attended all three.

Much has been said about the state of the construction industry in this country for sometime but I have to state that I've come away with reignited vigor and energy.

To a person, everyone that I spoke with held a positive outlook for their products and markets. Although I appreciate this may be a more medium term view, it was nonetheless refreshing to witness.

Exhibitions are always a perfect opportunity to watch seminars; learning about the latest trends and debates. In honesty, I didn't have time to crowbar in the three I'd earmarked. There were too many conversations to be had.

In distilling my many takeaways from conversations held, these stand out:

• "The building product industry is behind the curve when it comes to innovation." Balls. Having served the industry for 20 years, I don't think I've every witnessed the urgency and priorities manufacturers are placing on the evolution of their product ranges. Not just new entries but adaptations to existing, core products. IoT is rife, and manufacturers are coming around to the fact that customer experience, and proactively managing maintenance issues require investment in these areas. And the data such technology captures is invaluable for future progress. Okay, we may be a few years behind other industries but the appetite and intention are evident.
• Partnerships. Numerous manufacturers at the show spoke to me about how they're teaming up with other companies to provide better solutions. It's evident that this is leading to them building strategic alliances, where creativity, combined R&D activity (at a reduced cost), diversification of markets, and cross-brand promotion are being harnessed.
• Traditional products still very much have a place. There was plenty of said innovation being showcased. However, even from long established brand leaders who're evolving, both residential and commercial buildings still require traditional products, even if they supplement them. In fact, in certain larger scale projects, it's unlikely they'll ever be replaced.
• Tacking skills shortages. You wouldn't expect a headhunter not to focus on this subject in some shape or form! For years, I've listened to thought leaders and heavy weights from within the industry discussing how we bridge the gap between an aging workforce and attracting fresh talent. It's almost become cliched! However, based on several conversations, especially with authorities and institutions at the show, it's clear to me that strategies are breaking through. Not least, I enjoyed an inspiring 35 minutes with the British Institute of KBB Installers, Damian Walters. His story is fascinating. Having managed MFI's national subcontracted installer network back in the day - you can imagine how vast that was - he witnessed how troublesome gaining and retaining good installers was. This led to him building the BIKBBI as a not for profit institute to educate and retrain people into the industry. Taking the stigma out of parents views on the industry has been central to the organisations approach.

I love the technology involved within plumbing, heating, together with the wider HVAC and KBB industries. Attending was a no brainer. Another thing that's a certainty is my attendance to the event next year (but possibly for the full three days).