| Type | Building services engineering, Architectural engineering |
|---|---|
| Professional title | Chartered Building Services Engineer |
| Founded | 1976 |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Services | Professional accreditation room hire library contract mailings |
| Members | approximately 17,000 |
| Membership cost | £192 (free for students) |
| Website | cibse.org |
The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE; pronounced 'sibs' or 'sib-'see') is a British professional engineering body based in London, England that represents building services engineers. In the United Kingdom CIBSE is regarded as an authority on building services engineering, and has been consulted by government on matters relating to construction, engineering and sustainability. It is also licensed by the Engineering Council UK to assess candidates for inclusion on ECUK's Register of professional Engineers.
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The Chartered Institution of Building Services (CIBS) was formed by the merger of the Institution of Heating and Ventilating Engineers (founded in 1897) and the Illuminating Engineering Society (founded in 1909) in 1976, receiving a Royal Charter in the same year. The word 'Engineers' was added in 1985, and hence the Institution became CIBSE. CIBSE's first president was John Gundy.[1]
The Institute states that its objective is to ‘support the Science, Art and Practice of building services engineering, by providing our members and the public with first class information and education services and promoting the spirit of fellowship which guides our work.' [2]
As of May 2007, CIBSE claimed a membership of over 17,000, from "more than 80 countries".[3] The Institution is organised on a regional basis; with 16 regions in the United Kingdom and 3 regions overseas:
In recent years there has been an increasing focus on sustainability and green design by the UK government. CIBSE has responded to this growing trend by providing training to accredit engineers to become Low Carbon Consultants (LCC) and Energy Assessors (LCEA), the latter of which are qualified to issue Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) and Display Energy Certificates (DEC), in addition to their Professional Engineering registration.
Many training options are available through CIBSE, with the aim of providing specialised courses and seminars for those within the building services industry. Mid Career College (MCC) is a branch of CIBSE which focuses on providing Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training, to improve and enhance the skills required to be engineering professional. Included are a range of courses from fire safety and mechanical and electrical services courses, to facilities management and business skills-focused training.
CIBSE publishes several guides to building services design, which include for various recommended design criteria and standards, some of which are cited within the UK building regulations and therefore form a legislative requirement for major building services works. The main guides are:
Three societies exist within CIBSE to reflect special areas of expertise that exist within the field of building services:
Changes to the UK building Regulations Part L (Conservation of Fuel and Power) in 2006 led CIBSE to set up the Low Carbon Consultants Register to ensure that a body of competent and trained professionals was available to implement the various requirements of the regulations, specifically in undertaking the relevant calculations to demonstrate the required reduction in carbon emissions from buildings both in design and operation. Members of the Register must undertake specific training and examinations to demonstrate their competence in various aspects of the regulations.
The CIBSE scheme further offers accreditaion as a Low Carbon Energy Assessor (LCEA), again subject to specific training and examinations, who are then able to provide the Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and Display Energy Certificates (DECs), as required under the Energy Performance in Buildings Regulations (EPB Regulations). These certificates can only be provided by accredited energy assessors who are members of an approved scheme such as the Low Carbon Energy Assessors Register. Furthermore, assessors are required to update their training regularly to ensure that continued high standards of competency are met.
The LCC scheme has been expanded in recent years to include for the grade of Low Carbon Consultant: Energy Management Systems, these LCC's having being trained and tested by CIBSE to ensure they have the relevant competencies to assist organisations to implement BS EN 16001
CIBSE lists a number of special interests groups that operate within the Institution[4]:
Although CIBSE lists American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) as one of its special interest groups, it is a completely separate body that CIBSE liaises with.[5]
CIBSE has eight grades of membership, with the upper four granting designatory postnominals. In descending order of hierarchy, there are:
Below this there are four grades of membership with no designatory postnomials:
Past presidents (1990–present) include:
For the complete list, please refer to CIBSE Official Website - CIBSE Past Presidents (1898-present)