Manchester Conference Ambassadors Newsletter 5 Autumn/Winter 2009
Looking ahead As one of the UK's most dynamic cities, Manchester is a hot-bed of business, cultural and sporting activity. As such, Manchester is a world class conference destination capable of accommodating events of all shapes and sizes.
Earlier this year Manchester was named the third-best conference destination in the world by the readers of Conference & Incentive Travel - Europe magazine. The city was praised for the continued investment in its conference infrastructure and was joined in the top five by London (1st), Barcelona (2nd), Las Vegas (4th) and Berlin/Dubai (joint 5th). Unsurprisingly 2010 is expected to be as busy as ever with a multitude of conferences taking place across the city. These include:
• British Wind Energy Association - Health & Safety Conference, January
• Society for Endocrinology Meeting, March • Association of Teachers & Lecturers Annual Conference, March
• Soccerex European Forum, March • British Pain Society Annual Scientific Meeting, April • Congress of the European Association of Plastic Surgeons, May • British Renal Society / Renal Association Conference, May • Annual Scientific meeting of British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, May
• Annual Meeting of the British Association of
• • • •
Dermatology & the Annual Meeting of the British Dermatological Nursing Group, July Neurofly - European Drosphila Neurobiology Conference, September Labour Party Annual Conference, September Museums Association Annual Conference & Exhibition, October Annual Symposium of the British Oncology Pharmacy Association, October
Visit Manchester is supporting many of these events by providing such services as venue finding, accommodation booking, guidance on civic funding and more.
Ambassadors bowled over at LCCC Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC) hosted a group of Ambassadors for an exclusive lunch in September. Guests learnt about The Point, an exciting new ÂŁ12 million development of the conference facilities at LCCC. The Point will be an elevated glass-fronted suite with a stunning aspect and balcony overlooking the famous Old Trafford pitch. Inside, there will be no pillars to spoil the view. Due for completion by July 2010, it will be one of the largest purpose-built facilities in the country, able to accommodate a conference or formal dinner for 1,000 people. The room itself will be sub-divisible into three sections and easily adapted for smaller events. In addition, a Mezzanine Bar area overlooks the main suite, with another separate VIP bar. The design of the suite also incorporates some of the latest eco-friendly features such as solar panels and rainwater harvesting. Coupled with existing conference facilities, free car parking and the 68-bedroomed Old Trafford Lodge, The Point is an exciting addition to Manchester's conference offer. Further details are available at thepointatlccc.co.uk
Hosting a conference in Manchester? Need images for your conference website? Maps and leaflets for delegate bags? If so, why not get in touch to find out now we can help. In addition visit http://shop.visitmanchester.com where you can find a range of Manchester products which make ideal gifts for conference speakers and VIPs. Contact the team on 0871 663 0081 | conferenceambassadors@visitmanchester.com
Client case study Visit Manchester is currently supporting Dr Apostolos Antonacopoulos, director of the Pattern Recognition and Image Analysis (PRImA) laboratory at the University of Salford, in the organisation of his Document Engineering Conference (DocEng) in 2010. Document engineering is the computer science discipline that investigates principles, tools and processes to improve our ability to create, manage and maintain documents in any form and in all media. Run by the internationally leading Association for Computing Machinery, this conference has previously been held in various cities overseas. Expected to attract approximately 100 delegates for four days in September 2010, Chancellors Conference Centre will act as the main conference venue and Manchester Town Hall will host the gala dinner. Dr Antonacopoulos commented: "Visit Manchester has provided exceptional help and advice in all aspects of conference planning. Through their unmatched local knowledge and vast experience we were able to create a great conference programme and select an excellent venue which we would have not known about otherwise."
Meet green Manchester is committed to being a sustainable tourism destination and to reducing the impact of conferences and events on the environment. This includes supporting the accreditation of the city's conference venues by the nationally recognised Green Tourism Business Scheme. As a result of this Manchester Conference Ambassadors can work alongside you and Visit Manchester's members to ensure that your event delivers maximum impact to your delegates and minimum impact to the environment. A guide to greening your event has been produced by Manchester City Council which provides useful hints and tips on how to make your conference more environmentally friendly. If you would like to receive a copy of this document please e-mail: barbara.hunter@visitmanchester.com To find out more about Manchester as a sustainable city visit visitmanchester.com/green
You can now follow us on Twitter @McrAmbassadors - for the latest Manchester Conference Ambassador news and views. Also join us our dedicated LinkedIn group at: http://tinyurl.com/mcrambassador
Another success for a Manchester Conference Ambassador In 2013 Manchester will play host to the International Congress on Ethological & Anthropological Sciences. The congress will attract up to 4,000 delegates to the city for seven days, with an economic benefit in the region of ÂŁ12.5 million. The congress, held every five years, provides a world forum for the discussion and dissemination of research in all areas of anthropological research. Previous congresses have been held in cities including Florence, Mexico City, Vancouver and Tokyo since its inception in 1934. The congress bid was lead by Professor John Gledhill, of the Department of Social Anthropology at the University of Manchester, working alongside Manchester Conference Ambassadors. The majority of the congress will be held on site at the University of Manchester. However due to its large scale nature other venues across the city will be utilised.
Professor Gledhill said: 'To become host of an IUAES world congress, it's necessary to make an outline written bid, and then give two presentations with Q & A at the next congress. The first to the Executive Committee and the second to the Permanent Council, which makes the selection on a one member country one vote basis.
“Thanks to the support we received from Visit Manchester's team, which included on-site support at the Kunming congress. As well as highly professional printed and presentation material, the city was an instant sell as a cosmopolitan and exciting destination. Permanent Council members were equally impressed by the efficient organisational infrastructure on offer, a vital consideration in a big event like this to which people will be coming from literally all over the world.�
In the heart of Manchester Often dubbed the 'heart and soul' of Manchester, Piccadilly attracts approximately 24 million visitors every year. From old Victorian warehouses from the Industrial Revolution to today's brand new business and residential developments, Piccadilly is a welcoming, contemporary and vibrant quarter of the city. Through its superb transport connections, Piccadilly Station connects Manchester with the rest of the country and, via frequent train links to Manchester Airport, the rest of the world. To promote the area the Piccadilly Partnership works with local businesses of all kinds to establish long-lasting relationships and to increase its profile. This includes raising the awareness of the range of exciting and unique cultural events held in Piccadilly throughout the year. Recently the Platform 4 Festival celebrated its second year with a weekend of music, dance and theatre from some of the UK's most prestigious companies. See piccadillymanchester.com or email info@piccadillymanchester.com for more information.
THINKlab Designed for innovation and collaboration During November a Manchester Conference Ambassadors drop-in session was held at THINKlab at Salford University, the futuristic virtual environment centre - one of the most advanced in the world and unique in Europe. The venue brings together people from every sector to share ideas on how digital technologies can be utilised to solve current and future challenges of industry,
commerce and the community, using the expertise of the best researchers in ICT. THINKLab is available to all researchers at Salford and to external organisations for hosting workshops and conferences, project development, and experimenting with new technologies. Further information can be found on THINKLab's website thinklab.salford.ac.uk
What’s new? Two new venues in the city for small meetings are reopening after undergoing considerable transformation. People's History Museum Manchester is rightly excited about the reopening of the museum, in early 2010, given that the city is noted for its achievements in political reform. The redevelopments have seen the museum double in size with its galleries portraying 200 years of political campaigning. Exhibits include artefacts from the infamous Peterloo Massacre, making it a uniquely Manchester venue for conferences and events. More information can be found at phm.org.uk
Band on the Wall This not-for-profit venue is run by registered charity Inner City Music. It presents the best music from around the world. Past artists include Joy Division, John Martyn, Courtney Pine and The Buzzcocks. The venue reopened in September with performances by Mica Paris and Julian Joseph and is now taking bookings for conferences up to 150 delegates. Find out more at bandonthewall.org
www.manchesterconferences.com/conferenceambassadors T. 0871 663 0081 E. conferenceambassadors@visitmanchester.com Visit Manchester is the Tourist Board for Greater Manchester and is a division of Marketing Manchester, the agency charged with promoting Manchester on a national and international stage.