A research, testing and certification organisation, owned by a charity, that helps make buildings safer, greener and better, based at the BRE Science Park near Watford.
BRE, the Building Research Establishment, is a science-led organisation that studies and tests buildings, materials and construction methods so that the places people live and work are safer, healthier and better for the environment. It is best known for BREEAM, a method for measuring the environmental performance of buildings, which it launched in 1990. It also does certification and testing through BRE Global, and offers training through the BRE Academy. Its activity covers fire safety, energy, materials, resilience and standards for the built environment.
BRE has a long history. The government set up the Building Research Station in 1921 to improve housing, especially for soldiers returning from the First World War. In 1925 it moved to Bucknalls in Hertfordshire, now the BRE Science Park. Related research bodies, including the Forest Products Research Laboratory and the Fire Research Station, merged with it to form the Building Research Establishment in 1972. BRE was privatised after a 1997 announcement. It is owned by a charity, the BRE Trust, which supports built environment research for the public benefit.
In its own words, BRE's purpose is a world in which everyone, in every building, everywhere can thrive. It also says it invests the profit it makes back into the business and its people, products and services. Its stated profit-for-purpose approach is unusual among testing and consulting companies, and it comes directly from its charitable ownership.
BRE's main site is the BRE Science Park, in the Watford area of Hertfordshire. Its history page also mentions sites at Princes Risborough, Elstree and Borehamwood, the Environmental Building in Watford where the Fire Research Station moved in 1994, and a Glasgow office dating back to 1949. Beyond the UK it opened BRE China in 2015 and an Irish office in 2018. We did not find a current staff number or culture material in the pages read, so we cannot describe working life there beyond what its purpose suggests.
Scientists and engineers are central: people who test how materials burn, how buildings use energy, how walls cope with weather and how ventilation affects health. Alongside them are assessors who certify buildings and products, consultants, trainers at the BRE Academy, data and software specialists, and business, finance, marketing and human resources teams. If you enjoy chemistry, physics, engineering or sustainability, and like the idea of testing things to find out what really works, BRE shows how research turns into standards that affect the buildings around you. The BRE website lists current roles.
Website: bregroup.com
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