Insight: Issue 140 | Wed 14 June

What’s that big yellow thing in the sky?

Ah, Bliss. That suns a-shining, the sangrias are a-pouring, and the Glasto countdown is on. Sounds like the perfect opportunity for a little live event newsery does it not?

This week we’ve got: SEC Appoints Colin Hartley as Director of Operations; With 255 conferences won through to 2027, confidence grows in Glasgow’s meetings market; Kai Hattendorf on the progress of the Net Zero Carbon Events Roadmap; Event Intelligence experiences outstanding growth for 2023; and Coldplay Tour Emissions Reduced by 47%.

SEC Appoints Colin Hartley as Director of Operations

Say hello to Colin Hartley – the new Director of Operations at SEC!

A true veteran in the events biz (and considered one of the most seasoned pros in the country) Hartley took on his new role at Glasgow’s Scottish Event Campus this month. With major events including the Glasgow 2018 European Championships, the 2015 FIG World Gymnastics Championships, and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games under his belt, it’s fair to say Hartley is up to the job.

As D.O.O, he will be responsible for overseeing the operations of SEC’s exhibitions, conferences, and live entertainment shows – the likes of which include gigs by Iron Maiden, Elton John, Shania Twain, and Deacon Blue. Additionally, Hartley will be at the forefront of the SEC’s mission to achieve net-zero status by 2030.

Hartley comments: “I’ve been fortunate to work across some of the world’s biggest and most exciting events and I’m delighted to be bringing that experience to the home of Glasgow’s best events – right here at the SEC. Glasgow and indeed Scotland, has the capacity to rival even some of the world’s biggest cities when it comes to facilities and accessibility and I’m looking forward to helping the SEC solidify its prominence on the global events stage.”

With 255 conferences won through to 2027, confidence grows in Glasgow’s meetings market

Following a triumphant year hosting international conferences in 2022, Glasgow’s success is set to continue throughout 2023, as the city gears up to welcome back almost 13,000 delegates as part of a series of returning conferences. The city’s post-pandemic recovery has been strong, and was recently ranked first in Scotland and second in the UK for international meetings in ’22, beating the likes of Geneva, Munich, Hamburg, and Manchester to name a few.

From June to October this year, the city will host four prestigious European conferences – a testament to G-town’s booming conference market.

As the SEC welcomes back the European Society of Human Genetics, Jerome Del Picchia, ESHG executive officer explains why Glasgow is the prime location: “The city has obviously arrived in the circle of those venues that understand the economic value and the importance of international conferences and do their best to provide the level of support an international organiser is looking for.”

Kai Hattendorf on the progress of the Net Zero Carbon Events Roadmap

In an interview with Exhibition News, UFI managing director and CEO Kai Hattendorf talks the Net Zero Carbon Events Roadmap and how we’re doing, 6 months on.

In a drive to cut down carbon emissions by 50% by 2030, and hit net zero by 2050, the pledge has seen upwards of 500 signatories and supporters beginning to report their footprint and reduce their impact – a feat which the UFI head honcho deems “pretty damn impressive”.

Let’s take a gander at a few key quotes from the one-to-one.

Remind us how the Net Zero Carbon Events initiative came about?

“It all started in the whole lead up to COP26, in Glasgow in 2021, when the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) reached out, because they were puzzled that there was no initiative in the events industry to actually make sure they could deliver on the Paris Climate Accord targets. So that’s when the whole initiative came into being.”

What are the difficulties on providing guidance for such a wide and varied global industry?

“It’s surprisingly simple, because it’s all based on science. It’s important to understand that all the work streams are aligning the actions identified, like, replace your energy source with an energy efficient or carbon neutral energy source, as an example.”

How far have things developed since the launch of the roadmap six months ago and are you pleased with the progress?

“We’re entering the first reporting cycle for the signatories of the net zero carbon events initiative. IMEX was one of the earliest ones. We are going to see more and more signatories reporting their progress and if all 500 manage to do that by the end of the year, then you have 500 businesses showcasing their journey. That’s two years after starting from scratch. That’s pretty damn impressive.”

Event Intelligence experiences outstanding growth for 2023

Its good news for GES EMEA – their Event Intelligence endeavours have seen unbelievable growth this year, meeting the demand for advanced insights from event marketers and exhibitors.

The company’s handy batch of products allow customers to leverage data and performance measures to maximise the sales and marketing potential of their events. The tech tracks behaviours before, during, and after events, giving real-time info to exhibitors and organisers – data that helps them adapt strategies to boost audience engagement.

The proof? GES’s data management tools have been used at events in 18 countries, including ICE London, Arab Health, Spring Fair, and Vitafoods Europe – and within a month, they tracked over 500,000 registrations, processing 650,000 attendees in just 10 days, equating to 1.3 registrations per second.

Woah.

Coldplay Tour Emissions Reduced by 47%

Viva la vida! The Coldplay boys cut their tour emissions by a whopping 47% percent!

Last week, Chris Martin et al announced that on their sustainability focused ‘Music of the Spheres’ tour – a sprawling, world spanning trek that began in South America last March before moving to the United States and UK last summer – they reduced their carbon emissions by nearly half compared to their previous ‘A Headful of Dreams’ 2016/2017 tour.

The band commented: “This is a good start – and something that our incredible crew should be very proud of – but clearly there’s still room for improvement.

“Now that we’re into the second year of the tour, we’ve started to run the entire show (audio, lights, lasers etc) from an electric battery system that allows us to use 100% renewable energy as efficiently as possible. We have been using electric vehicles and alternative fuels wherever we can, as well as reducing waste and plastic usage to a minimum.”

Top job guys!

That about does it for this week folk.

Enjoy soaking in those rays and we’ll see you all next week for more.