Howard Luft, CEO of Selco Builders Warehouse and David Craddock, Founder of the VerdeGO Group (formerly Elite NuGEN) will take part in a much-anticipated Industry Forum debate.

The Builders' Merchants Federation has confirmed that Howard Luft and David Craddock will take part in a much-anticipated Industry Forum debate at this year’s All-Industry Conference, taking place in Istanbul in June.

The Industry Forum is one of the most popular sessions at the BMF’s biennial Conference, bringing together influential leaders from diverse industry sectors to debate key business issues of the day. The scene is set with initial presentations by four industry experts before the debate is opened to the floor.

The first two panellists operate in very different areas.

Howard Luft is currently Chief Executive Officer of Selco Builders Warehouse part of the Grafton Group, a leading business in our sector with 75 branches and the aspiration to be a truly national player. 

Before joining Selco, Luft was Managing Director of Travis Perkins’ insulation and dry lining distribution business, CCF for six years.

Prior to this he was Managing Director of Buck & Hickman, and also worked extensively in the paint industry as Managing Director of Crown Paints and Commercial Director of Dulux Trade.

Craddock, Founder of the VerdeGO Group (formerly Elite NuGEN), has been involved in property development over 35 years and has extensive experience in Advanced Closed Timber Panel offsite manufacturing systems both in the UK and Europe.

He helped to found EBS Elk, which became part of the largest producer of offsite manufactured buildings in Europe, importing over 1000 units. 

With EBS Elk he was a founder member of the Passiv Haus Trust, sits on several housing industry panels including the Future Homes Hub, and is a member of the CLC subgroup on housing.

Craddock set up his own manufacturing company producing timber frame buildings in 2019, winning two Best Sustainable Development Awards in 2021, and a Silver Award for the Best Small Housebuilder. His company VerdeGO Timber Frames is now geared to produce 600 homes a year. 

John Newcomb, BMF CEO, said: “I look forward to hearing from Howard and David as part of this year’s Industry Debate. With our Conference theme of “Creating Connections” we will be exploring how our industry can thrive by working collaboratively.

"I’m delighted to announce that this year’s Conference is now fully-booked.”

The sold-out BMF All Industry Conference takes place in Istanbul from 15-17 June 2023. Further details are available on the Conference website www.bmfconference.co.uk