When it comes to industry trade shows, there are those that merely stimulate the senses, and then there are those that spark profound intellectual conversation and catalyse transformative change. Futurebuild 2024 unequivocally falls into the latter category. As attendees departed with sore feet and hoarse voices, they left having had enlightening conversations and gaining paradigm-shifting insights.

Quantitative metrics paint a clear picture of a vibrant event: nearly 18,000 visitors, 400 exhibitors, 500 speakers, and 135 sessions — a testament to the event’s robust engagement and expansive reach. However, if we look beyond the numbers, what qualitative shifts in dialogue and perspective emerged from this year’s show?

Miriam Drahmane, CEO of BCM Agency, a construction marketing agency, offers her perspective: “Marketing in construction and the important role it plays in navigating the sector’s myriad challenges — from supply chain disruptions to sustainability imperatives — is now far more widely understood. Construction companies of all shapes and sizes recognise the power of strategic communication in driving meaningful engagement and propelling the industry forward. Marketing’s role is cutting through the noise, driving timely and relevant communication with targeted prospects”. Drahmane concludes: ““People seemed much more switched-on and informed this year about both the challenges and what they need to do to overcome them and that put exhibitors like us in a much stronger position to have productive conversations.”

Futurebuild brought together everything that’s good about construction, because you had the big guys and the startups, the traditional firms and the innovators and disruptors, all in one place. Sustainability was also even more in evidence than in previous years, as the 2030 net zero targets gather momentum, but also as building owners and managers realise that sustainability factors like energy efficiency can greatly lower running costs. Sustainability is no longer just a buzzword or merely a regulatory obligation, but is at last being seen as a strategic imperative intertwined with economic viability and operational resilience.

Looking ahead, BCM Agency and numerous exhibitors have reaffirmed their commitment to Futurebuild 2025. Drahmane speculates: “Futurebuild next year is set to be an even better show full of more innovation and collaboration in the race to meet upcoming targets. Talking to exhibitors this year, you get a real sense of the industry’s resilience, adaptability, and unwavering commitment to collective progress and these are exactly the clients we look to work with”.