From ventilation systems to digital controls, medical gases to energy infrastructure, engineers are the unsung enablers of safe, sustainable and efficient healthcare delivery. At a time of rapid transformation across the NHS estate – with pressures mounting on compliance, net zero, and modernisation – the role of engineers has never been more vital. That’s why Healthcare Estates 2025 – the annual flagship event of the Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management – is an unmissable fixture in the engineering calendar.
Taking place on 21–22 October 2025 at Manchester Central, the event is the UK’s largest gathering of healthcare estates and facilities professionals. This year’s Conference theme, Prevention is Better Than Cure, directly reflects the engineering mindset – emphasising data-led planning, proactive design, and future-proofed systems as essential tools for avoiding costly failures and ensuring operational resilience.
For engineers, the value of attending Healthcare Estates lies in its combination of technical depth, peer-to-peer exchange, and real-world problem solving. Across the five tracks of premium Conference content and the six free-to-attend theatres in the Exhibition Hall, the programme is packed with sessions tailored to the challenges engineers face every day – spanning ventilation validation, electrical compliance, smart hospital systems, and condition-based maintenance.
This year’s Medical Engineering & Healthcare Engineering Conference track (exclusively available to Conference Delegates) features a range of practical case studies and platform-led discussions, including a focus on cost-effective approaches to managing antibiotic-resistant bacteria from drains, deep learning applications for medical gas systems, and the evolving role of the Authorising Engineer in medical device management.
Meanwhile, the free-to-attend Engineering for Resilience and Performance & Compliance theatres offer open-access seminars covering everything from critical power continuity and AHU refurbishment to climate adaptation and fan power compliance. Sessions will explore practical strategies for ensuring system reliability, minimising disruption during complex upgrades, and building climate-resilient infrastructure – all grounded in current regulations and real-world case studies. Whether you’re focused on HTM 06-01, decarbonisation, or futureproofing core systems, these theatres offer the technical depth and peer-led expertise to inform your next project.
The event also presents a golden opportunity to get hands-on with cutting-edge technologies. Over 250 exhibitors will be showcasing solutions, including specialists in HVAC, digital controls, water safety, and energy systems – ideal for engineers seeking robust, spec-compliant products for active or upcoming schemes. Whether you’re looking to explore battery storage options, rethink critical systems redundancy, or simply benchmark your existing approach, the Exhibition floor delivers critical information for current and future projects.
But Healthcare Estates is more than just content – it’s community. With over 3,500 attendees from across the NHS and industry, it’s a place to reconnect with peers, discover new partners, and stay plugged into the wider direction of travel. Engineers in particular will benefit from the organised networking at the end of each day, designed to foster dialogue and build new relationships.
Whether you’re working in capital development, compliance, technical assurance or sustainability, Healthcare Estates 2025 is the place to challenge your thinking, exchange ideas, and explore practical solutions to the sector’s most pressing engineering challenges.
Visit www.healthcare-estates.com to view the full programme and secure your place.