Month: February 2020

BIM For Good, Bad and Ugly?

Posted on by Sophie_Admin

We’ve been working with Space Group to deliver a three-day event, kicking off with an education day for 200 local students, a celebratory awards evening sandwiched between two days of conference for 400 international delegates. Safe to say events provide so many positive outputs, collaboration, knowledge sharing and inspiration, but large-scale conferences have, and continue to cause a negative impact on the environment.

BIM Show Live, has been no different, but we’re committed to turning the ugly truth, and bad practice into good for all. It started with the theme set out back in 2019, the conference wanted to focus on ‘BIM for Good’, and the goodness should show through every inch of the event.

First stop our suppliers, we’ve worked with a handful of trusty suppliers who all make the magic that is BIM Show Live. Our sustainably sourced lanyards provided by a UK company have agreed to carbon offset their transport from China following our ‘ask to suppliers’ to offer a sustainable solution for the demands of our order. We’re using a sustainable badge solution we sourced for the 2019 conference, (here at BHE HQ sustainability has been a concern for quite some time). Meetings with PR and social teams are conducted remotely over Zoom. The award trophies have transformed from high shine metal to sustainable wood – they’ll still have that heavy aspirational look and feel! Perhaps the most controversial element to mess with is catering. We’ve chosen to cater the full event as vegetarian or vegan food and use locally sourced ingredients only. A bold move perhaps, but we’re confident in our caterer’s quality, and we’re sure the audience won’t miss the meat with the tasty treats on offer. Consideration has been made at every step, even the vegan sausage rolls (spoiler alert), are in recyclable packaging.

In the biggest shake up, we’re printing less, delegates will not be handed a printed programme. Delegates will peruse the schedule of the day on the event app, can message other delegates and set up alerts for sessions they don’t want to miss (i.e. all of them). Speakers have been sourced being mindful of travel requirements, and we’re lucky to have such talent coming from the region speaking; our day one keynote Nic Palmarini is located walking distance from the venue.  The delegate communications will encourage our delegates to bring their re-usable cups and bottles for their caffeine and hydration hits.

So why are we asking delegates how they are travelling to the event? We want to benchmark the carbon footprint of BIM Show Live 2020 as the first year in a new sustainability drive, so we’re not ignorant to the fact that our delegates travel from across the globe and we have to include this in our plans. BIM Show Live 2.0, aka BIM Show Live 2021 will be leaner, greener, and more as we work towards a better future. We’re ditching the bad and the ugly and we’re going good, one step at a time, as much as we can. Join us.

 

What I learned from a week placement at BeaconHouse Events

Posted on by Sophie_Admin

Work experience has the potential to be dull. Usually, the excitement of the real world of work is quickly diminished by the seemingly endless photocopying and tea-making experience most end up with. But luckily for me, my work experience week at BeaconHouse was far from that.

From the second I stepped into the office that Monday morning I felt welcomed. Instead of the tightly strung, high-pressure atmosphere I expected, I was greeting by a team of friendly yet hardworking individuals. The approachable staff meant I wasn’t hesitant to ask for help or guidance in my set tasks, allowing me to take much more enjoyment in what I was doing. Once I was settled, I was given the chance to listen in on a conference call about an upcoming event. It gave me a unique insight into the process of organising an event and the steps taken to create the perfect finished product. Now I’m even more appreciative when I’m scoffing down nibbles at a function!

The rest of the day included learning about how employees manage their workloads on a day-to-day basis and the software applications they use. Additionally, I was given the task of researching venue options for a future event. Being able to collaborate and assist on real life projects gave me a realistic, hands-on experience that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The next day I was given the chance to spectate a meeting on establishing company ideals, characteristics and values. This helped me to learn the importance of attitude and mindset in both a work and school environment and the skills needed to thrive and flourish in those environments. Needless to say, it fascinated me much more than the Pythagorean theorem in school.

One evening, I was even asked to attend a company event where I assisted with checking employees in using the ticketing software, among other jobs. This was very new to me, but that meant it was a new possibility for learning and growth. The event was interesting to spectate; I certainly learnt a lot onsite!

During my time at BeaconHouse I have partaken in and contributed to many different projects, helping me explore both the industry and the ways in which I tackle tasks. I’ll admit, I was nervous coming in and unsure of what to expect but I have been warmly welcomed and encouraged to work to the best of my ability; the week was everything I hoped it would be.

Overall, my time at BeaconHouse Events has shown me the resilience, responsibility and trust needed in order to thrive in a working environment. It was a very enjoyable yet realistic insight into the industry and I have definitely gained in confidence. Thank you to the whole Beacon House Team for a great week!