Retrofit Meets is an in person series of panel events bringing together experts in the built environment. These are held in the seminar suites of the Building Centre. Organised thematically, panellists will discuss their latest research and completed or on going projects, some of which are displayed in the Retrofit 24 exhibition. These discussions will present the aims, challenges and outcomes of each project. The event format will also allow for dialogue between the panellists offering our attendees new insights into retrofit. We encourage audience participation during the Q&A portion of the evening and look forward to meeting you there.
Chaired by Dr Laura Morgan Forster of Innovate UK, this session is about using data to inform successful retrofit strategy. Data can be used to better understand the buildings we have and provide more robust predictions of those buildings post-retrofit. The session will cover both how to collect building information and how data can be meaningfully interpreted.
Showcasing companies that have received support from Innovate UK, Laura will be joined by Aneysha Minocha of Quantaco AI, and Matthew Paton of BE-ST . Plus we will have Balasz Csuvar Of DG Cities and Jonathan Abbott of Keegans. The panellists and their companies gather data on people, finance, the environment and much more. They advise clients such as property developers, real estate owners, investors, councils and housing associations on how to use data with a view to completing successful retrofit projects.
In this session the panellists offer detail on how they collect useful data, how they apply it and what changes we need to see in the construction industry, particularly if we want more successful retrofit projects and to achieve Net Zero by 2050.
- Dr Laura Morgan Forster (Innovation Lead: Net Zero Heat- Innovate UK)
- Jonathan Abbott (Director of Retrofit & Environmental Management- Keegans)
- Balazs Csuvar (Director of Innovation & Net Zero- DG Cities)
- Aneysha Minocha (Founder & CEO- Quantaco AI)
- Matthew Paton (Associate Impact Manger; Digital- BE-ST)
Laura is Innovation Lead on the Net Zero Heat Programme at Innovate UK. Team objectives are to end the use of gas for space and water heating in all buildings, whilst growing UK business. Currently, Laura is working with product manufacturers of innovative heat decarbonisation technology to increase their place in the government-backed retrofit market, as well as demand elsewhere. She also supports grant-funded projects that are developing data-driven decision-making tools for heat and power reduction across building portfolios.
Jon is a Director, a Senior Building Surveyor and a TrustMark registered PAS 2035 qualified Retrofit Coordinator and Assessor. Jon leads a team of 25 retrofit professionals for Keegans that has managed and delivered retrofit services to over 3700 homes across the UK. He has a background in building surveying and was one of the first people to get qualified in the country as a retrofit coordinator.
Balazs is an urban consultant, with 10 years of international experience in developing smart city strategies, planning connected and autonomous mobility, and in local government capacity building. DG Cities works with both local authorities and the private sector, and he is currently working on analysis of council housing assets in Greenwich and developing holistic decarbonisation strategies.
Aneysha is the CEO and Founder of Quantaco a digital software platform accelerating Net zero investment decisions for commercial property portfolios. She is a senior leader with over 24 years of experience in energy efficiency, data analytics, low carbon and renewable technologies within the built environment. She is also on the Tech and Innovation Steering Committee at the British Property Federation and on the Advisory Board for Peer Carbon. She is a member of the McKinsey Global Net Zero Built Environment Council and a Committee Member of The Society of Friends of Milton’s Cottage.
Matthew works with new and emerging technologies in the Built Environment, including Automation, AI & Robotics, Data Capture and Visualisation. He specialises in digitally driven projects but has almost 20 years of wide-ranging Built Environment experience. Matthew has spent the last 7 years at Built Environment - Smarter Transformation promoting the benefits and demonstrating the potentials of collaborative R&D to both industry and government. He is well versed in the advantages and challenges that come with systemic change and advancement in the industry.
