AUSTRALASIA – Citywide convention bureau, Business Events Sydney (BESydney), will take on broader responsibility and manage booking enquiries for the Sydney International Convention, Exhibition and Entertainment Precinct (SICEEP) and Glebe Island Expo until operators of the new facilities are appointed.
As EW recently reported, Glebe Island Expo is the interim facility that will house Sydney’s major public exhibitions and tradeshows during the development of the 20-hectare Darling Harbour site that will be home to SICEEP.
Infrastructure NSW, which is delivering SICEEP for the NSW Government, will recommend the proponent in December 2012 and the operator for the interim facility is scheduled to be announced in March 2013.
“BESydney’s team has extensive knowledge of the events market and the expertise to oversee both the enquiry and booking process for both Glebe Island Expo and SICEEP,” said Infrastructure NSW project director, Tim Parker. “Our aim is to make the enquiry and booking processes as streamlined and user-friendly as possible.
“BESydney is already bidding on events for 2017 and beyond that will take place in the new facilities.”
The CEO of BESydney, Lyn Lewis-Smith, added: “Glebe Island Expo is part of the Sydney-wide interim solution that will enable Sydney to remain a vibrant hub for business events while SICEEP is constructed.
“We already have a dedicated Event Delivery department that assists clients with sourcing venue options for their events. BESydney has been working closely over the past months to re-home the conferences and congresses it secured for Sydney that will be affected by the SICEEP development. This team will be expanded and will have dedicated staff to take on the responsibilities of the Glebe Island Expo and SICEEP.”
Exhibitions that will be affected by the SICEEP development will have first right of refusal for bookings for the interim facility. It is anticipated there will also be scope for additional events to be secured for Glebe Island Expo.
BESydney’s Event Delivery team will manage the bookings.
Glebe Island Expo was announced by minister for planning and infrastructure, Brad Hazzard and minister for tourism, major events, hospitality and racing, George Souris. Infrastructure NSW will soon issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) to companies interested in designing, building, operating and then removing the interim facility.
Detailed designs have yet to be developed, yet expectations are that Glebe Island Expo will provide a pavilion-style exhibition space of 15,000sqm in an air-conditioned, fully-serviced interim facility, as well as an adjacent flat space of 10,000sqm for exhibitors to temporarily expand the space for larger public exhibitions and tradeshows.
Any exhibition-related news? Email exhibitionworld@mashmedia.net
