The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE; pronounced 'sibs' or 'sib-'see') is a British professional association based in London that represents building services engineers. It is a full member of the Construction Industry Council, and is consulted by government on matters relating to construction, engineering and sustainability. It is also licensed by the Engineering Council to assess candidates for inclusion on its Register of Professional Engineers.
The Chartered Institution of Building Services (CIBS) was formed by the 1976 merger of the Institution of Heating and Ventilating Engineers (founded in 1897) and the Illuminating Engineering Society (founded in 1909), receiving a Royal Charter in the same year. The word 'Engineers' was added in 1985, and hence the Institution became CIBSE.
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."
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:
- Guide A: Environmental Design
- Guide B: Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration
- Guide C: Reference Data
- Guide D: Transportation systems in Buildings
- Guide E: Fire Safety Engineering
- Guide F: Energy Efficiency in Buildings
- Guide G: Public Health Engineering
- Guide H: Building Control Systems
- Guide J: Weather, Solar and Illuminance Data
- Guide K: Electricity in Buildings
- Guide L: Sustainability
- Guide M: Maintenance Engineering and Management
Three societies exist within CIBSE to reflect special areas of expertise that exist within the field of building services:
- Society of Facade Engineering (SFE) was set up in 2003 as a Society of CIBSE but with the support of the IStructE and RIBA. Its aim is to advance knowledge of and practice in facade engineering.
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.
CIBSE lists a number of special interests groups that operate within the Institution:
- ASHRAE
- Building Simulation
- Combined Heat and Power (CHP)
- Daylight
- Electrical Services
- Energy Performance
- Facilities Management
- Healthcare
- Heritage
- Homes for the future
- Industry, Education and Training
- Information Technology (IT) and Controls
- Intelligent Buildings
- Lifts
- Natural Ventilation
- Project Management
- School Design
- Young Engineers Network (YEN)
CIBSE has eight grades of membership, with the upper four granting designatory postnominals. In descending order of hierarchy, there are:
- Fellow (FCIBSE)
- Member (MCIBSE)
- Associate (ACIBSE)
- Licentiate (LCIBSE)
