Pictured, a group photo from last year’s ISU
“Cutting-Edge Services – Tipping the Scale for Exhibition Success” is the topic of this year’s International Summer University for the global trade fair industry in Cologne, Germany, from 31 May – 2 June 2017.
The conceptual sponsor is the Institute of Trade Fair Management of the University of Cologne, co-organized with Koelnmesse and UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry. The event is supported by AUMA, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry. The three-day seminar is taking place at the Koelnmesse Exhibition Centre.
Numerous representatives from the trade fair, congress and event industry have already registered for this year’s International Summer University. The organizers already have registrations from Singapore, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden and Switzerland. But the German trade fair cities are represented as well, among them Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Hannover, Leipzig, Cologne, Hamburg, Essen, Dortmund, Stuttgart, Friedrichshafen and Karlsruhe. The International Summer University, which first took place in 2006, is coming to Cologne for the ninth time and offers academics, industry experts and international trade fair managers a platform to exchange strategic and operational knowledge. There are numerous opportunities to make valuable industry contacts.
Industry professionals and university professors will provide first-class ideas and discussions in workshops and presentations on the current service trends in the trade fair industry.
On the first day, attendees will be introduced to the topic by presentations and a workshop under the theme “Design Thinking to Develop New Services”. The opening presentation will be given this year by Dr. Andreas Gruchow, UFI president and member of the Managing Board of Deutsche Messe AG Hannover.
On the second day, attendees can learn about best practice examples from the trade fair industry. Philip Bobély, managing director of MMC Studios Köln GmbH, for instance, will be giving a talk on the topic “It’s Show Time! From Trade Fair to Trade Show”, and the company Ungerboeck will be presenting a white paper on RAI Amsterdam as a successful case study in the field of services. What’s more, there will be a panel discussion on the topic “Diversity of Service Requirements – Let’s face the Challenges”. Hosted by Dr Stefan Eckert, head of service and member of the management of Koelnmesse GmbH, the trade fair managers at Electronic Arts and Ducati Deutschland will be discussing the trends, requirements and challenges in the service sector with an international trade fair architect and an association representative.
To get an insight into how other industries tackle services, representatives from Capricorn Nürburgring GmbH, Cologne/Bonn Airport and United Parcel Services will be presenting their ranges of services to attendees on the third day, and showing them how they can rise to the challenges in their industry. In addition to presentations, workshops and discussions, an attractive supporting program will once again encourage the exchanging of experiences and nurturing of contacts among the international attendees this year.
“The International Summer University is a unique opportunity for exhibition managers to learn and exchange experiences with their international peers around topics of highest strategic relevance each year. It has built a reputation on its own, as we see year by year,” emphasizes UFI Managing Director/CEO Kai Hattendorf.
Attendance will be topped off by a certificate from the Institute of Trade Fair Management of the University of Cologne. There are still spaces available for the International Summer University.
For more info, visit http://www.ufi.org/education/international-summer-university/.
