Our ‘Tech’ conference began with a double act: an overview from comms boss Tim Metcalfe and project and innovation partner Simon Whitley, explaining how we’d be looking at the technologies shaping the working environment today – and tomorrow. Tim began by looking backwards, showing vintage slides of the PTE of yore: architects, some still with us today, surrounded by files and folders, a drawing trolley by every desk (with sheets of A1s pegged to them) and even ‘while you were out’ tickets, which staff were given if they missed a phone call while out on site.

Simon focused on ‘tech today and tomorrow’ launched his intro with an opening statement - drafted by AI text processor Chat GPT in ‘the style of a Yorkshireman’ - which told us to expect ‘a bloody good conference’. His overview trailed his later talk on data, and how this vital raw material – fed through AI models, discussed by Rory Olcayto in his later Pecha Kucha - is transforming working practice. ‘AI is helping computers to arriving at a wider range of potential solutions to problems from raw data input,’ he explained, lending a pioneering tone to the days programme.

A BIM surgery led by architect Laura Binaburo with architectural assistant Javier Martin and technician Byron Peard had a simple remit: growing a friendly, knowledgeable in-house BIM community that welcomes all-comers. What followed was an old-fashioned Q+A mixed with a show and tell. So we learned about the monthly BIM committee meeting (and how it can help design teams) and how all logged queries are used to inform future planning. We learned how to ‘keep BIM models healthy’; and how, for the workflow-focused project architect, ‘BIM gathers data to produce accommodation schedules and massing – to generate information for stage reports.’ And we learned about model sizes – and the pros and cons of splitting large-scale projects into multiple models at inception. There was a focus too, on COBie (Construction-Operations Building Information Exchange) and how it can help capture and record important project data at the point of origin, a service PTE, offers clients - one of very few architects to do so.

Tim began with a close-in look at our social media profile – ad strategy: which platforms we use – and what for, with a special focus on our refreshed Instagram feed which has been recently revised to focus explicitly on PTE’s design culture.

Partner Roger Holdsworth looked at handy office 365 apps, like Microsoft’s Power Apps, a suite of tools, that allows you to build custom apps for your own business needs.

Writer and critic Rory Olcayto provided a guide to the ‘uncanny, vast and confusing world of AI’ covering a wide range of topics linked to the emerging tech, from ‘aligning’ AI models to human values to the ‘corporate landgrab’ some tech companies are making when ‘training’ their AI models with data culled from user-generated content online that the creator is not being remunerated for.

Peter Watkins and Simon teamed up to explore data and workflows: how, if cleverly pooled and easily accessed, it can be used to avoid repetition in project procurement and management, and also, inspired by David McCandless’s 2009 book Information is Beautiful, how it can be presented to ensure consumption, apprehension and consistency.

IT Manager Phil Smith’s introduction to cyber security was a treat: a clear, hyperbole-free take on online crime with real insight on ‘call centre’ phone hacking operations, and the surprising demography of many of the criminals involved: often well educated, and rarely from low-income or impoverished households. And while cybercrime is overwhelmingly the preserve of males, female hackers are on the rise. And as for that Hollywood scenario where the lone hacker says, ‘I’m in..’ – it doesn’t really happen. Hackers target people – not computers. In any given system, it seems, humans are usually the weakest link.

Byron wrapped the session with a talk on the more glamorous office tech ready to use: from a VuCity and VR headsets to 3D printers and Firefly, Adobe’s family of creative generative AI models.