Sandpit 2
Selecting partners that can really deliver for the AIMC4 Marketplace
The 50 suppliers selected from the first sandpit event gathered at BRE in May 2010 for Sandpit 2. The objective of the two-day event was to select the final AIMC4 marketplace of partners to help the AIM C4 homes become a reality.
Suppliers were first split into their respective sector categories, each giving a five-minute presentation and answering specific questions from peers and technical experts from all of the consortium members.
This helped to establish whether each product had been sufficiently tested to support performance claims, what stage of development it was in and its ability to be delivered at the required volumes. The experts assessed each product against a matrix of questions to identify the strongest contenders fairly and transparently.
Suppliers then had to solve key performance and process problems from their respective sectors before being split into potential design/construction teams.
Teams were challenged to improve the specification of an example mid-terrace house in order to achieve a 44% CO2 reduction using their own products in conjunction with other members of the team. A SAP expert was on hand to do live modelling, with a facilitator helping to create cross sectional sketches, assessments of cost and innovation risk. .
The challenge culminated in a 30-minute presentation Q&A session before both the AIMC4 panel and their industry peers.
Suppliers judged to have been successful were those who demonstrated the highest performance products and a high degree of commitment to achieve the accelerated innovation required by AIMC4.
