<b><b>The Canadian Rockies provided a dramatic backdrop to the ninth International Housing and Home Warranty Conference held last month. As one of the world&amp;’s longest established and leading warranty providers, NHBC was at the heart of the agenda. Melissa Blamey reports</b></b><br><b>More than 150 delegates from 16 countries came to the ninth International Housing and Home Warranty Conference in Banff Springs in Canada. Sponsored by the Canadian Home Warranty Council and Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, this triennial event brought together builders, warranty providers, insurers and reinsurers to share best practice and to confront the challenges facing the industry. </b><br><b><b>learning lessons</b></b><br> Whilst delegates compared and contrasted warranty schemes and housing systems, discussed approaches to risk management and the dilemmas of new technologies, all were mindful of the impact of recent world events and the lessons that needed to be learned. <p></p><p>The tragedy of September 11th and its impact on reinsurance markets cast a long shadow, as did the legacy of the collapse of the British Columbia warranty programme and the failure last year of the HIH insurance scheme in Australia. </p><p> The central themes of the conference were focused on comparing and evaluating housing systems, analysing the impact of new technologies …