Faith in the future

BMO Centre at Stampede Park, Calgary, Canada

Scheduled to open in 2024, the BMO Centre will add almost 93,000sqm of event space to Calgary Stampede.

Featuring three floors of tradeshow and convention space, including new exhibition halls, two ballrooms and a central hub, plus exterior retail spaces, cafes and a pavilion, the BMO Centre will debut as the largest convention centre in western Canada.

The new venue has been designed with collaboration and connection in mind with ample and adaptable meeting rooms, all wired for instant connectivity, flexible breakout areas and outdoor spaces in balance with the local surroundings. But this design process came with a difference.

“Fortunately, at no point during the pandemic has any construction activity stopped. Due to procurement timelines and the schedule we are on, nothing was necessarily sped up, but we did not lose any time,” explains BMO Centre general manager, Greg Newton.

“What was impacted was how we thought about design as we were right in the middle of designing the venue. Designing through this period led to likely the first convention centre designed almost entirely virtually. The world we have been living in during Covid-19 certainly had us analyse materials and layouts to best be able to deal with biohazards from Covid right down to the common cold.”

Beyond the bandwidth, the BMO Centre has also taken into consideration the growing need for hybrid meeting options.

“We certainly appreciate that hybrid formats of meetings are likely here to stay in some format, and we still continue to evaluate what that means for augmenting face to face events,” Newton adds.

“We also have learned that the need to meet face to face is even more important than ever and we as a species have a desire to gather. I think we have spent just as much time on designing a building to facilitate serendipitous connections that can lead to emotional experiences as we have for one that will be able to support the technical requirements of hybrid events for those that are unable to attend powerful face to face events in person.

“We are also working with our technology partners on what virtual and hybrid studios could or should look like into the future. Broadcasting events will be a powerful tool for the future of the events industry, but we do not yet have all the answers. We hope to have a better idea as we continue our development.”

Oklahoma City Convention Center, United States

The central American state of Oklahoma is fast establishing itself as an international meetings destination thanks to the mid-March opening of the Oklahoma City Convention Center.

The $288m centre features almost 19,000sqm of exhibition space, a 3,000sqm ballroom and 4,100sqm of additional meeting space.

Oklahoma’s new venue was completed in less than three years and is part of the ASM Global group, which manages more than 3,000 conference centres, stadia and venues across the world including the Moscow Convention Centre and P&J Live in Aberdeen, Scotland.

“The overall construction schedule had minimal delays due to Covid-19. Internal material supply chains, and helping employees gain a comfort level for working in the Convention Center was a challenge initially. However, the general contractor, Flintco, was able to manage the project effectively to avoid any extension of the schedule,” Oklahoma City Convention Center general manager Al Rojas explains.

Adding to the city’s overall convention package, the new 17-storey, 605-room Omni Oklahoma City Hotel opened in January between the convention centre and the Chesapeake Energy Arena, home to the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder.

Opening in the middle of a global pandemic means the official ribbon cutting and public tours will have to wait a while longer, but its opening does mark the end of a campaign from Chamber president and CEO Roy Williams who had been calling for a new convention centre for nearly two decades.

Rojas has called the venue “a game-changer for the destination that will attract new customers from the meetings industry.

“We’re already seeing great interest and convention bookings from meeting planners who are excited that OKC provides the full attendee experience their groups expect.”

IICC New Delhi, India

Expected to open in phases beginning in October 2021 and finishing in 2024, the India International Convention and Expo Centre in Dwarka, New Delhi, will be the largest venue of its kind in India.

The gigantic project is being driven by the Government of India as part of its Smart City Project. The aim is to create a world-class venue and establish IICC as a global hub.

The complex will offer 300,000sqm of convention and exhibition space, five exhibition halls, a multi-purpose convention centre, with the ability to host up to 26,000 delegates and an onsite 3,500-room hotel.

“India has been prospering at a tremendous pace over the last decade and has now become a market of significant importance which has captured the world’s attention,” explains IICC advisor, Chang Yuel Lim.

“Predications that India will soon rank third in the global economy in terms of size are well known. As a result, investors from around the world are rushing into India in order to be well-positioned for the next generation. With the goal of resolving their needs and wants, it is our obligation to make IICC the most business-friendly convention and exhibition centre in India.”

IICC is also using its well-connected location to attract planners. Located close to the IGI airport, with an average of six million flights per year, the convention centre will look to be a hub for international events.

"India is now known as a strategic destination, called ‘Next China’ to those global corporations of high reputation which eventually brought their subsidiaries to major cities in India," adds Phil Chung, CEO of KINEXIN Convention Management - operator of IICC.

"Since the population of India is now looking at over 1.3 billion with an increase of affluent middle-income families, IICC will seize enormous potential business opportunities that will come from the needs and desires of local and global corporations and clients. IICC will be ready to offer the best conditions and unsparing supports with an unrivalled standard of facilities for global events and meetings to promote mutual growth."

The IICC will also boast a metro station inside the venue and nearby transport links to anywhere in India.

MEETT Exhibition and Convention Centre, Toulouse, France

Characterised by its sleek, horizontal and compact style, the new MEETT Exhibition and Convention Centre in Toulouse, proves that less is more with just three expo buildings with public spaces woven in between.

Officially opened at the end of 2020, MEETT Toulouse is now the third-largest parc des expositions in France, outside of Paris, and was designed to fit in with its surroundings to ensure it was not an eyesore.

The complex is formed of three parallel buildings comprised of 700-metre-long, 40,000sqm exhibition halls set to the north and a convention centre and event hall to the south. There’s also the 25,000sqm outdoor exhibition space.

It is equipped with an additional two mezzanines and is designed around two stages that can accommodate corporate events of up to 10,000 delegates with 3400-seats plenary style.

This entirely modular venue can simultaneously host a plenary session, as well as events in a variety of formats: cocktail reception, gala dinner and exhibition, for example.

Designed and built to meet the highest efficiency standards, MEETT is strongly committed to sustainability. The complex is HQE certified, a scheme that looks to limit the environmental impact of buildings in both the short and long term, as well as boasting the LEED NC label.

This focus on reducing the environmental impact of the site extends to all areas of the project: cutting light pollution, alternative transport solutions, water economy, waste management and recycling materials.

Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre, New Zealand

Christchurch’s $475m conference centre was slated to open in 2020 but the Covid-19 pandemic caused a delay.

But now, with finishing touches in place, Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre general manager Ross Steel, said the venue is due to open this October and there’s already an impressive schedule of domestic and Australasian events in the diary.

When it’s completed, Te Pae will be New Zealand’s only purpose-built convention centre, with space for around 115,000 delegates across multiple spaces that can be used simultaneously, including a 3,600sqm exhibition hall, 1,400-seat auditorium and 24 meeting rooms.

The venue has been designed to continually integrate meeting technology as it becomes available. But in the first instance, Te Pae offers live-streaming capabilities to extend the reach of a conference regardless of geographical location.

“Our people and emphasis on manaakitanga (care and hospitality) is what will set us apart, but we are also fortunate to be able to operate in what will surely be one of New Zealand’s most beautiful buildings,” explains Steele.

“There has been so much thought and care put into the centre’s design, and into the cultural narrative which supports that. We’re really excited to share the stories which inform both narratives with our clients and guests and present an authentic showcase of Ōtautahi Christchurch and our wider region.”

The venue's Hybrid Events Guide 2021 breaks down exactly how planners can utilise the digital offering through virtual exhibitions, webinars, live-streaming, remote presenting and video conferencing. But the planner doesn’t need to be an expert on this as Te Pae boasts an in-house audio-visual production team.

“There will always be an opportunity to have digital content in events and we expect this to continue in the future now that the world has had a taste of virtual working,” Steele adds.

“This increased opportunity will inform new convention centre design and fit-out in the future. Because we are a new centre, we are fortunate to feature all of the right equipment to digitally support any event.”

Despite the pandemic throwing sustainability agendas into disarray with the need for personal protection equipment, Te Pae will open its door with a stringent sustainability policy. Initiatives include an ambitious push to become a single-plastic-free venue, sourcing 60 per cent of food from within Canterbury, New Zealand and all food waste either being donated to the Christchurch City Mission or converted to compost in the onsite GAIA dehydrator.