The 2023 International Exhibition Logistics Association (IELA) Congress & Partnering Event attracted 231 delegates to the annual gathering, showcasing the strength of event professionals worldwide.
The association’s 38th Congress, hosted in Malta, 28 June-1 July, was held under the theme of ‘Opening doors to a new future’ and was followed by the10th edition of the IELA Partnering Event, 1-2 July.
This second event is the only IELA event open to non-members and is designed as an introduction to the association.
In addition to delegates from 109 IELA Member companies from 42 countries attending the IELA Congress, the 2023 IELA Partnering Event welcomed 82 non-member experts from 23 countries.
The Congress saw five new IELA members welcomed into the association and three Board Members were elected for a two-year term:
Dirk Urra, from Kuehne + Nagel KG-KN Expo & Event Logistics, Germany, was the new member elected, while Sudhir Dhavan, from R.E. Rogers India and Bas Wiendels, from Valverde B.V, Netherlands, were re-elected.
The three will form the 2023-34 Board of Management together with the following members who remain for one more year:
- Sandi Trotter (IELA 2022-24 chairperson), TWI Group Inc. Canada
- Orphee Moschopoulos Beinoglou Junior, Greece
- Alexandra Erdmann, Swiss Expo Logistics Ltd, Switzerland
- Lucien Lawson, Clamageran Foirexpo, France
- Daniel Mithran, Jim Project & Expo Logistics (M), Malaysia
- Jasmin Yang, Eurotran Expo Service Co, Ltd, Taiwan.
There was also an IELA Awards Night Gala at the Bacchus restaurant in Mdina.
A full list of winners is available direct from IELA.
During the 2023 IELA Congress, the association’s five Working Groups presented their efforts over the last year and defined their 2023-2024 action plans.
The top priorities of the Standards & Customs WG were to update about content within the ‘Private Zone’ and explore methods to enhance communication among members. They also collected feedback on the IELA Payment System
The Education & Training WG welcomed new chairperson Ute Wiezorrek and presented the IELA Academy. The WG also started preparing the 2024 IELA Operations Summit which will take place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in January 2024.
The Industry Relations WG welcomed Kim Valdes as new chairperson and Garcia Newell as vice chairperson. They are targetting developing relations with national associations and organising the second Associations Day at the beginning of December 2023 focused on sustainability and NZCE.
The Membership WG welcomed a new vice chairperson, Christian Kalkbrenner, and presented the Mediation Programme.
It was the first in-person meeting of the IELA Sustainability WG created last year and they presented the new IELA SMART Sustainability Award.
