Brussels / Paris, 15
April 2020 - Exhibition venues and convention centres around the world are
currently increasingly being converted into temporary hospitals and health
centres in the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. A new guide,
produced jointly by AIPC, the International Association of Convention Centres
and UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition industry, assists members of
both global associations in dealing with these and similar requests.
The Guide will be distributed to all AIPC and UFI members to
support them in what for many is a new experience with limited precedent. It
follows on from the “Good Practices Guide to COVID-19 for Convention and
Exhibition Centres” guidebook that was produced and distributed in early March
of this year.
“This is the second guide to facility management under
pandemic conditions to be produced by AIPC and UFI within a few weeks, but one
that is of crucial importance to our many members who are being called upon to
engage in this way”, says AIPC President Aloysius Arlando. “As a result
of the professionalism, generosity and expertise of AIPC and UFI members –
particularly those who are members of our Safety and Security Task Force – it
incorporates some of the very latest front-line insights that have been and
will continue to be gained in the midst of the crisis itself”.
“Many of our colleagues around the world are having to
repurpose their venues to serve key roles in dealing with the fallout from
COVID-19, and many others will inevitably follow” said UFI President Mary
Larkin. “However, the experience of conversion to emergency use – and the
re-commissioning once the crisis has passed – is currently limited. This guide
will help all member venues prepare for and perform in an exceptional role that
they were not specifically designed for but are increasingly being asked or
forced to play as temporary emergency facilities”.
The guide has been created as a collaborative project
between the two organisations to promote efficiency and consistency amongst
different types of member venues. It provides both specific guidance and a
framework within which centres can organise their activities in order to put to
full use the relevant, practical information and experiences that are
accumulating based on the actions of many centres worldwide.
“The reasons for having to become a temporary emergency
facility vary, ranging from pandemics to natural disasters. The same goes for
the purpose of any particular conversion – so this guidance has been collected,
assembled and presented with multiple possibilities in mind,” said Arlando. “As
challenging as such conversions may be, they will inevitably result in enhanced
overall capabilities over the long term, and strengthen centre capabilities for
the future”, added Larkin.
About UFI – The Global Association of the Exhibition
Industry
UFI is the global trade association of the world’s tradeshow
organisers and exhibition centre operators, as well as the major national and
international exhibition associations, and selected partners of the exhibition
industry. UFI’s main goal is to represent, promote and support the business
interests of its members and the exhibition industry. UFI directly represents
more than 50,000 exhibition industry employees globally, and also works closely
with its 60 national and regional association members. More than 800 member
organisations in 89 countries around the world are presently signed up as
members. Around 1,000 international trade fairs proudly bear the UFI approved
label, a quality guarantee for visitors and exhibitors alike. UFI members
continue to provide the international business community with a unique
marketing media aimed at developing outstanding face-to-face business
opportunities. For more information, please contact: UFI Headquarters, Email:
media@ufi.org Tel: +33 (0)1 46 39 75 00
About AIPC –The International Association of Convention
Centres
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