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Dear Public Assembly Facility Management
Friends,
Hopefully by now, you’ve noticed the expanded
version of the International News section of Facility Manager. During early
discussions with our European members, they indicated that Facility Manager
would be better received if it had more news pertinent to international
members and venues. European vice president Peter Gruber and IAAM membership
services manager Carl Martin have been instrumental in providing current
news from Europe.
I am very pleased to officially recognize the
future international news that IAAM will receive from the Venue Management
Association (VMA) on a regular basis. Rod Pilbeam, VMA president, and John
Benett, executive director, have committed their resources to providing
Facility Manager with current news and articles from Australia and New
Zealand.
Through increased international business opportunities, improved airline
travel, communication technology and the expanded use of the Internet, the
world has become a smaller place. By sharing the experiences of our
international members worldwide, IAAM is providing information and education
about facility management around the globe. In addition to being exposed to
different ways of solving problems, I’m sure you’ll find that we share
similar issues in regards to facility management.
Please join me in expressing your appreciation to our
international members for sharing their knowledge and experiences in
facility management.
Sincerely,
Larry B. Perkins, CFE
IAAM president
Together the IAAM, IAAM Europe and VMA
Australasia are proud to present the new and expanded International News
section in Facility Manager. We are excited to be a part of this globally
unified approach to facility management, offering with it unending
opportunities for growth, networking and development. This move further
solidifies the existing mutually beneficial relationship between our
associations.
It is anticipated that this commitment to a global
communication will encourage increased information flow throughout our
memberships. We envision flourishing cross-continent relationships as we
gather resources, information and experiences from and share them with each
other.
In this constantly evolving and changing industry, it
is of great value for us all to learn and grow from each other. Take this
opportunity to get a firsthand look at what the industry is tackling in
North America, Europe, Australia, Asia and New Zealand. We have already
included articles in this section the previous two issues on many important
topics, such as scalping. Scalpers, or touts as our friends in Europe would
say, are regarded as the scourges of the entertainment and sports
industries. The advent of e-Bay has increased the incidence and media
coverage of this issue, and it is a challenge for which the industry is
continuing to seek a workable resolution. Every issue promises to include
late-breaking news as well as articles that impact us in all parts of the
world.
Enjoy your global experience. We look forward to
bringing you more in future editions. It is a great thing for us all to hear
about news across our networks and to bring you new initiatives, education,
facility information and current issues for review. We encourage all members
to make a contribution, large or small, to Facility Manager.
Sincerely,
Rod Pilbeam, VMA president
Thank you for giving me, on behalf of IAAM Europe, the opportunity to say
how good it is to see Facility Manager expanding to allow those of us from
the Old World, as well as those from the New World of the Pacific Rim, a
chance to put forward our penny’s worth ... Or should I say euro cent’s
worth?
Having been involved with IAAM for some years now, it
has been a privilege to be involved in the birth and growing pains of IAAM
Europe and Facility Manager allows all of the membership of IAAM worldwide
to share in our joys and sorrows and lets us know you are all out there for
us. I look forward to seeing you all in Salt Lake City, along with several
of my IAAM Europe colleagues.
Sincerely,
Peter Gruber, vice president
IAAM Europe
At this time of writing this article I am sitting high above the pitch at
the
City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England, enjoying watching the
steel
guys construct the stage structure for this weekend’s George Michael
concert,
someone else is doing the hard work for a change …
Manchester City FC is now the tenant of this stadium,
which was built for the
Athletics portion of the Commonwealth Games which were held in 2002. After
the
success of the Games, the City then did a deal with the football club and
the
facility was converted into a football stadium. Although it was built before
2002 there was a great awareness of the need for sustainability and the
“green
factor,” and throughout the stadium there are many energy- and money-saving
facilities.
However, the best thing about working in the facility is the attitude of the
staff. They insist they are here to help and to ensure the event works.
Naturally the groundsman and his staff are getting a little concerned about
the turf, a mixture of natural and plastic grass (don’t ask me, I don’t do
grass ...) but the communication between the promoters/production/ venue is
second to none. It is not everywhere this happens though.
However, it happened again a couple of weeks ago. Larry Perkins, IAAM
president for 2006-07, had to make a sudden visit to London and called me to
see if a visit to the new Wembley Stadium could be arranged. Unfortunately
it
was a Saturday and the day after England’s first football international game
in the Stadium and no one was able to be there to show us around.
However I was able to arrange a visit to the new O2 building, formerly the
ill-fated Dome, which has been given a completely new lease of life by AEG.
A
couple of the staff had a marketing visit, by conference delegates from the
USA, arranged early on the Saturday morning and they allowed us to piggy
back
the tour. Not only that, after the initial tour was over they took Larry and
myself back into the building to see the parts the others were not
interested
in, although it was Saturday and their day off they wanted us to see
everything we could. The attitude of the staff was exemplary. It was so
refreshing to see.
This building is amazing, not only does it have a 20,000-capacity Arena
under
the roof, there are umpteen high class restaurants, another 2,000 capacity
hall, shops, cinemas, the whole nine yards. By the time you read this, the
venue will have opened and hosted three nights of the Stones, 21 nights of
Prince, amongst other things.
IAAM CEO Dexter King and myself were able to see the Wembley Stadium the
next
week when we attended an industry conference. It is very impressive and the
facilities and the seating bowl area reflect the time, effort and money put
into the building. There will be further articles about these two buildings
in
the near future, particularly O2 because this is a very new concept for
Europe.
Whilst I seem to have been writing an advertisement for English buildings,
my
main point is that the thing that has struck me has been the attitude of the
staff at the buildings.
As someone who has worked in the arena business for a long time I have
become
concerned that an attitude of ‘don’t care about the client, just get his
money’ was becoming more and more prevalent The people I met particularly in
Manchester and at the O2, but also in Wembley, were nearly all young and
they
seemed to care and to want to communicate this.
It was so refreshing and I thank them all for restoring my faith in this
business. It seems you can still care for the client whilst still running a
profitable business.
At this time when we are all together for the Annual Conference & Trade
Conference it is something we all need to consider. Have a good one!
(FM)
Carl A H Martin is director, European Services,
IAAM Europe. He may be contacted at
cahm98@aol.com.
With much of the world watching the emerging economic power of China, there
are two things often overlooked. The first is that India is undergoing an
equally dramatic economic evolution. The second is that this growth will
have big implications for the meetings and exhibitions sectors that we all
operate in.
There is no doubt that China and India will be dominant economic powers by
the middle of this century, but in many key respects they are quite
different from one another. This is reflected in the position each has in
the areas of conventions and exhibitions, where the scorecard is continually
changing. In fact, the strengths of India are very often the weaknesses of
China, and the strengths of China are the weaknesses of India.
India’s population of 1.1 billion is expected to overtake China’s 1.3
billion before 2030, while the population in China is actually set to drop
in the first half of the century with the gender imbalance caused by the
“one child” policy, combined with the male preference syndrome that was in
effect for many years.
In the area of infrastructure, the situation is reversed. China is blessed
with many different facilities that were built throughout the country by
central government infrastructure funding over the past five to seven years.
As an example, according to ICCA, there are 120 worldclass convention
centres expected to be operating by 2040. In addition, the 2008 Beijing
Olympics and the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai will leave a venue legacy that
will even further enhance China’s position in the meetings industry.
While India is emerging with a series of new exhibition and conference
centres planned for New Delhi, Kerala, Mumbai and Bangalore, it still has a
long way to go before it catches up with the situation in China. In many
respects the development of the meetings and exhibitions industry has been
slow in India due to the democratic safety valves that are in place to guide
change. While it may take longer to effect change in India, that will likely
pay off handsomely in the future.
More crucial differences are found in social structure and governance. China
is slowly evolving out of widespread poverty to a new position with a
growing middle
 class and a more democratic political system. However, it
still has a long way to go in many respects. A good example is the copying
and patent problems related to trade shows and products; this has become a
serious problem that needs to be resolved before it can expect to interact
effectively with the rest of the world. In India, on the other hand,
existing regulatory systems are better suited to prevent these kinds of
issues, and this gives them a distinct advantage in their interface with
other economies.
This is to a large extent a product of differences in government. India
already enjoys a democratic system with a Federal Republic and Parliamentary
system similar to England. As a result, their system and institutions are
both more familiar and more predictable in terms of how they operate than
those of China, which are still highly centralized and control oriented.
Language is another key difference. Due to better educational programs and
many more overseas graduates, more Indians speak English than do Chinese,
giving them a distinct advantage in the international marketplace,
particularly in the rapidly emerging informational sciences and service
industries. It also augers well in the meetings business, where the ability
to communicate with planners and delegates in what has emerged as the
international language of business confers a big advantage.
As any of us who have struggled to make what are often complex arrangements
for a major event in an environment where language is an issue knows, this
can be the difference between selecting and rejecting a destination. At the
same time, outsourcing will continue to develop in India, and this will also
support development in the meetings sector. Your next online event
registration or telephone hotel registration may be conducted in a small but
high-tech office in Bangalore with your contact speaking with an American or
British accent. India’s developing industries are in far more profitable
sectors and its stock markets are considerably better run and more
transparent than those in China.
It’s an accepted fact that the success of meetings and exhibitions tracks
the economy — and with both these economies on a roll, these sectors are
bound to expand as well. What is already clear is that this growth will take
very different directions in these two countries due to differences in
culture, business practices and where each stands in terms of factors
ranging from public infrastructure to government and business practices.
In the meetings area, as in any other sector, the greatest rewards will go
to those who recognize the opportunities — and who understand and respond to
the differences that will continue to exist as these giants of the future
evolve. fm
Warren Buckley is chief executive officer of Suntec Singapore.
In revealing the design concept for Australia’s newest icon, the Melbourne
Convention and Exhibition Centre says its new convention centre will emulate
its city namesake. The new centre is part of an A$1 billion development. It
will revitalise the last crucial section of the Yarra River’s edge, linking
South Bank to Docklands.
As well as housing what will be Australia’s largest combined convention and
exhibition facility, the project includes a Hilton hotel, a lifestyle retail
precinct and 60,000 m2 of shopping. It opens for business in 2009.
Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Centre chief executive Leigh Harry says
the convention centre will be an important architectural landmark for
Melbourne, and will emulate what the city stands for. “Not only will it be
visually striking, but it will leave those who enter the space feeling like
they have experienced Melbourne, from its maritime history, to its art and
culture and sporting ethos,” Harry says.
Plenary Group’s architects on the convention centre project say they’ve done
this in a variety of ways using wall motifs and Australian timber, and by
making the plenary hall feel like a real theatre experience. And it doesn’t
end there. Even the majority of the food and wine served at conferences is
sourced from local specialised food producers and vineyards.
Another key feature of the design is the flexibility of the plenary hall. It
will transform from full plenary, to grand theatre, to intimate theatres, to
small conference, to cabaret, or to flat floor banquet. “Put simply, the
range of options for event organisers is unparalleled,” Harry says. “The
design is also particularly unique. It was designed as the ‘spirit’ of the
building and will appear to glow to those looking
“Once inside any of its smaller configurations, you would never know it
could possibly accommodate 5,000 people. Every theatre is an experience in
itself and every service has been considered from the side walls to the
ceiling.”
Its fan shape design means all delegates will have an unobstructed view, no
matter what the convention mode, something no other centre in the world can
do. Harry says the area around the plenary hall has also been carefully
designed. “It’s an open, uncluttered space and oozes simplicity. When
standing inside, you can see all aspects of the building, the stairs and
meeting areas. There is no back side to the building, it will be equally
attractive regardless which side of the building you are on. It’s an
uncomplicated, stunning building.”
Setting a Global Standard
The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is also designed to achieve
the first six green star environmental rating in the world for a convention
centre. Harry says it means detailed planning in all aspects of the
construction. “Many of the building materials are even sourced from
renewable sustainable industries,” he says.
The end result will create a whole new experience for delegates attending
conferences. “Delegates will literally breathe easier,” Harry says. “Cool
air will be released at a lower level of the building, not second hand air
which is traditionally pumped through the ceiling of large buildings.”
Environmental experts say this results in far more attentive delegates.
Natural light and lighting controls on installed lighting will cut down
energy usage, and the centre will have solar panels, which will deliver all
public amenity hot water requirements.
Expansion Looms at The Arts Centre in Melbourne
 The Victorian (State) government (Australia) is contributing $5M for
planning and design for the Southbank Cultural Precinct Redevelopment
project. The Arts Centre is at the heart of an exciting planning project,
announced recently in the Victorian Government budget.
The concept includes a new public plaza that will link the Arts Centre’s two
buildings and provide a space for public events and performances. It will
also enable planning for a significant improvement in Arts Centre
facilities, including improved and integrated entrances to the Theatres and
Hamer Hall; and a greater flexibility to meet the needs of both performers
and audiences.
Other features are a pedestrian promenade connecting Sturt Street (at the
rear of the Centre) to St Kilda Road, potential development of the vacant
former YMCA site and integration of the National Gallery of Victoria’s
gardens into the newly developed space.
The $5M government commitment will enable planning that updates and
modernises the 25-year-old Arts Centre to become a desirable and highly
accessible attraction.
The Arts Centre has established an experienced team of facility development
and technical specialists under the leadership of Executive, Colin Excell;
to manage the further development of the Arts Centre as part of the
Southbank Cultural Precinct Redevelopment project. Colin has been
responsible for the operation and development of the Arts Centre’s
facilities for more than 18 years. The other members of the Redevelopment
team are David Campbell, who will lead the venues and services technical
development, and Tobi Pedersen, who will lead the development of all aspects
of the facilities and site. — John Arthur |
A black-water recycling plant will recycle waste water to supply toilets,
cooling towers and irrigate landscapes, reducing water consumption by 50
percent comparative to what would normally be used in a building of this
size.
Nik Karalis from the joint venture architects on the project, Woods Bagot
and NH Architecture, says the centre will not only have leading
environmental features, but it’ll be a “feel-good” space. “As well as doing
the right thing by the environment, the use of colour and architectural
design will also leave delegates who experience it with a real sense of
joy,” Karalis says. “Gone are the blackbox convention centres of the past —
this one has real personality.”
Harry says this builds on what the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention
Centre is already doing in its current day-to-day operations. “As a team we
are dedicated to ensuring our business is conducted in an environmentally
friendly way,” he says. “This covers everything from the way we recycle
and/or dispose of waste to how we educate our clients to ensure they too are
thinking about the environment in the way they run their meetings, events or
conferences."
David Craven, executive director of the Green Building Council Australia,
whose organization is behind the green star rating system, says a six-star
rating represents world leadership. “The green star rating system has been
through a comprehensive development process and covers a broad range of
environmental impacts,” he says. “Achieving world leader status is not
easily achieved; it requires a real commitment to innovation.” fm
Kirstie Bedford is communications manager at the Melbourne Exhibition and
Convention Centre.
The IAAM 2007 Annual Conference and Trade Show schedule includes a session
for “Small Markets & Venues,” held at 8:30 a.m., Saturday, July 21, with a
focus on venue networks. This may not be the hottest topic of the day in
North America but it’s one that has been simmering for quite some time — and
it may be ready to boil over.
The North American market continues to be extremely competitive. Small
markets and venues, as well as secondary venues in major markets, find it
increasingly difficult to keep pace and compete with corporate
consolidations, the rising cost of operations and what we perceive to be
unreasonable artists’ fees.
For Canadian venues, the challenge is exacerbated by geography, the cost and
relative inconvenience of border crossings, plus — until very recently — a
punitive currency exchange rate that a few short years ago exceeded 40
percent.
Networking is hardly a new concept for venue managers. Through associations
like IAAM, managers routinely connect with their peers to share advice and
counsel on any number of topics, or to collaborate on best practices for the
industry. But at the end of the day, we still must compete with many of
those same peers for business that fulfills our community needs and mandate.
For some managers, venue networks present a viable option to the status
quo–an opportunity to access and acquire more business than they might
expect to attract on their own.
Considering Network Opportunities
Venue networks can take on different forms and structure. Membership is
typically comprised of similar-sized buildings in various markets having a
variety of attributes and challenges. They may be created to service a
particular geographical area that is being under served. The network may
welcome only those buildings that are permitted to take risk as promoters.
But in virtually all cases the primary objective is fundamentally the same:
to bring more business to its member venues.
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“More” is, of course, the key operative word in this objective. The commonly
held belief is that there is strength in numbers. A collective of more
buildings is likely to accomplish more than a string of buildings acting
individually.
Through efficiencies and economy of scale, there can be more buying power
(both for performing talent and creative resources), more options, more
opportunities, and ultimately, better value for money, translating into more
profits.
Before you consider joining such a venture, there are
some basic questions
you need to address.
• Do you need a key resource to help fill an empty
event calendar, or are
you merely
looking to selectively fill in the gaps?
• Would this be your primary marketing tool, or will it
simply supplement
other efforts within a broader
strategy?
• Is this a priority or a “nice to have?”
• Are you a rental facility or a buyer of talent, or both?
• What resources are you prepared to commit:
personnel, financial,
intellectual? |
Having answers to these basic questions will help you prepare to seek out or
otherwise consider networking opportunities. They will help clarify your
need, the outcomes you wish to achieve and the investment you’re prepared to
make to achieve those results.
Whether you’re starving for events or merely looking to supplement your
current schedule, there isn’t a one-size-fits all networking solution. In
fact, after carefully considering the preceding questions, you may determine
that a venue network won’t answer your needs or that your venue isn’t a good
fit with the mandate or culture of a particular networking organization. If
you decide to advance your efforts, there are two key considerations you
need to address with each opportunity: leadership and participation.
Leadership
It is critical that you assess the qualifications of the leadership of the
organization or group. Regardless of whether the group leadership is
volunteer or paid, you need to determine its depth of knowledge and
experience, its ability to reach industry contacts, and perhaps even its
motivation.
Will they be as committed to the cause as you need them to be? Is this their
primary function or just a sideline? Are they serving a broader corporate
agenda, or are they in it for personal profit? Are they there to help you or
to use you? Do they have the resources to truly support the initiative?
You absolutely must know the answer to most, if not all, of these questions
before you take the plunge. Soliciting members and creating the framework
for such an organization is the easy part.
Making it work — and making it work well — is an entirely different
challenge. Given the investment that will be required of you, you need to
have confidence in the people managing that investment.
Participation
Your investment in a venue network doesn’t begin and end with simply signing
up or with the payment of membership fees and/or commissions, if any. Your
investment and the value derived from that investment will be a direct
reflection of your active participation in the affairs of the network.
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Simply put: You’ll get out of it what you put into it. In most cases, it’s
the willingness of its members to make and sustain the intellectual
investment that will ultimately lead to the success of the network.
The “Small Markets & Venues” session will serve those who may be considering
such an initiative, as well as those who are already engaged. In both cases,
it will help you better understand what’s required to make your investment
worthwhile. Hope to see you there. fm
Richard Haycock, CFE, is general manager of Lansdowne Park in Ottawa,
Ontario, Canada.
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