News

BMBI Round Table Debate 2024

The eighth annual BMBI Round Table Debate was held recently at the headquarters of the Builders Merchant Federation (BMF) in Coventry. Key industry experts took part in discussions on important issues affecting the construction industry right now.

Topics covered during the 2024 debate included whether building 1.5 million homes in 5 years is a feasible target, if and how we can attract more people into the construction industry and what should be done to keep Britain’s housing stock habitable as the climate changes.

Speakers included the BMF and BMBI Experts from companies including Brett Martin, Heidelberg Materials, Keystone Lintels, Wienerberger, Polypipe Building Products and Owlett-Jaton.

The debate was chaired by Tim Wood, editor of Builders Merchant News (BMN) and was recorded. As well as coverage in the BMN magazine, transcripts and videos of the 2024 discussions will soon be available online at BMBI.co.uk.

Below is a full list of the topics covered:

  • Topic 1 – The capacity to build
  • Topic 2 – Building for Tomorrow’s Climate
  • Topic 3 – The money to invest in growth
  • Topic 4 – Technology and digitalisation
  • Topic 5 – The Hillsborough Law
  • Topic 6 – Can construction change its culture?

Set up and run by MRA Research, the BMBI – a brand of the Builders Merchants Federation – is a monthly index of builders’ merchant sales, and the most reliable, up-to-date measure of Repair, Maintenance, and Improvement (RMI) activity in the UK.

The index is based on actual sales from GfK’s Builders’ Merchant Point of Sale Tracking Data, which captures value sales out to builders from generalist builders’ merchants, accounting for 92% of total sales from builders’ merchants throughout Great Britain. An in-depth review, which includes commentary by sector experts, is provided each quarter.

Head over to BMBI.co.uk to watch the videos of the debate.