Accor and Panthers Group have partnered to launch a new five-star Pullman hotel at the Penrith Panthers precinct in Western Sydney, slated to open in 4Q2023.
The 153-room Pullman Sydney Penrith hotel forms part of Panthers Group’s landmark transformation of the Penrith Panthers precinct to create a new state-of-the-art business and entertainment destination, and follows Accor’s seven-year deal for the naming rights of Accor Stadium at Sydney’s Olympic Park.
A rendering of the Pullman Sydney Penrith
The hotel will service the adjoining new 1,250m2 Western Sydney Conference Centre (WSCC), which remains on track to open in 4Q2023, and will include a café as well as a restaurant and bar.
Panthers Group CEO, Brian Fletcher, said: “Pullman Sydney Penrith will be a welcome addition to Western Sydney’s tourism offering and builds upon the existing and upcoming new amenities within the Panthers precinct and the wider Penrith locale.
“This development will enhance Penrith’s reputation as a world-class event and tourism destination.”
Meanwhile, the upcoming Western Sydney International Airport – set to open in 2026 – is just a 30-minute drive away.
An iconic landmark at the heart of Bangkok’s business district, the newly-renovated Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) with its state-of-the-art architectural design is Thailand’s leading venue.
The game-changer is also at the forefront of sustainability, thanks to its environmentally-friendly design and use of the latest technological innovations.
QSNCC is also on track to receive the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver certification. The use of green construction materials by adopting recyclable products, solar cells, and energy-saving devices constitutes sustainable management.
Green construction Right from the construction stage, pollutants from the site is reduced and more than 75 per cent of construction waste is diverted from landfill.
Air quality management was carried out with air contamination from dust and chemicals in the building of the interiors being minimised too.
Low carbon footprint Access to the centre is convenient – visitors can utilise a walkway connecting QSNCC MRT station to the venue’s lower ground floor while it is in close proximity to a bus station.
The journey to QSNCC will incur low carbon footprint as the centre offers facilities such as car pool parking, electric car chargers, bicycle racks, and shower rooms to support eco-friendly delegates who opt for sustainable transportation options.
Energy efficiency QSNCC is an exceptionally energy-efficient facility where energy usage is measured in real-time and tracked to identify issues and highlight opportunities for savings.
Measurement and Verification (M&V) of energy savings is implemented to promote and maintain resource efficiency and meet environmental objectives, as well as to make a significant contribution to environmental sustainability through the use of the building automation system and smart building control metering and monitoring.
To serve as a renewable energy source in the area, the installation of solar panels on the rooftop is in the works. Induction LED lighting has also been fitted throughout the whole building to reduce energy consumption.
Different lighting scenes in the lobby and retail hall are also scheduled to maximise the use of natural light.
Unique features
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The Rice is an eight-metre rice grain sculptural artwork that hangs over the main hall
QSNCC is an exceptionally energy-efficient facility where energy usage is measured in real-time and tracked to identify issues and highlight opportunities for savings
With QSNCC adjacent to Benjakitti Park, exercise lovers can go for walks in the new green lung of Bangkok
Visitors can enjoy natural light from the inside while relaxing with scenic outside views
The centre offers electric car chargers to support eco-friendly delegates
With its heat-resistant glass façade, QSNCC is able to bring daylight and stunning park and lake views into its interior
Environmental-friendly design As QSNCC is adjacent to 450 Rai of Benjakitti Park, delegates can take a break from business activities by going for a walk in the new green lung of Bangkok.
Visual connection with Benjakitti Park is achieved through landscaping and an open-air amphitheatre also creates a quality public gathering space for visitors.
With its heat-resistant glass façade, QSNCC is able to bring daylight and stunning park and lake views into its interior.
Indeed, the new event platform goes above and beyond to establish itself as a sustainable venue.
Sustainable venue of choice
In a vote of confidence for the new facility, sustainability-related events such as the recent inaugural edition of Sustainability Expo 2022 and the ASEAN Sustainability Energy Week 2022, have chosen QSNCC as their green venue of choice.
Sanchai Noombunnam, country general manager – Thailand, Informa Markets, who is organising the Jewellery & Gem ASEAN Bangkok next year, has decided to take his event to QSNCC for its sustainability infrastructure too.
He said: “The new QSNCC is situated at the heart of Bangkok and as a city centre, easy to access for all transportation. It allows exhibitors and visitors a hassle-free commute to the venue. QSNCC is at the forefront of sustainability and is mindful of our impact on the environment and community – which align with Informa Markets’ business and show commitments.”
Discover the new experience of “The Ultimate Inspiring World-Class Event Platform for All” at QSNCC here.
For event organisers and planners keen to explore QSNCC as a venue, reach out to us here.
The Hotel Industry Transformation Map (ITM) 2025 was launched by minister of state for trade and industry and culture, community and youth, Alvin Tan, on October 25 with the aim to create a compelling, innovative, and sustainable hotel industry, supported by a strong local workforce in Singapore.
The roadmap lays out strategies to achieve real value-added growth of 5.9 per cent from 2020 to 2025, and will help future-proof the industry by creating good jobs in emerging areas such as wellness, sustainability, and technology.
The Hotel Industry Transformation Map 2025 lays out strategies to achieve real value-added growth by 2025
Developed by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) in partnership with the Food Drinks and Allied Workers Union, Singapore Hotel Association (SHA), industry players and other government agencies, the Hotel ITM 2025 was endorsed by the Future Economy Council (FEC) earlier this year.
Since the launch of the first Hotel ITM in 2016, the hotel industry has posted strong growth with average occupancy of 87 per cent and a total workforce of close to 35,000 in 2019. Over 1,400 workers across about 60 hotels benefited from Workforce Singapore (WSG)’s Career Conversion Programme for Hotel Professionals from March 2020 to August 2022.
Tapping on new consumer preferences for sustainable hospitality, digital-enabled experiences, and wellness travel, the hotel industry is well positioned to recover strongly.
Building on the success of the first ITM, strategies to support the next phase of growth and transformation include capturing demand with fresh hotel concepts, driving sustainability as a core strategy, gearing up for the next phase of innovation, and future-proofing the workforce.
“A strong and growing tourism sector needs a vibrant hotel industry. Singapore’s hotels are among the best in the world but they can continue to transform and grow so that Singapore’s tourism sector can capture the next phase of growth. The Hotel ITM 2025 charts a clear vision, and we look forward to working closely with our industry partners on this journey,” said Keith Tan, chief executive, STB.
Kwee Wei-Lin, president, SHA, shared: “Despite the pandemic’s impact on the tourism sector, our hotels have demonstrated remarkable resilience and creativity. Taking full advantage of the downtime, they have successfully piloted innovative experiences, pivoted to new business models, enhanced capabilities, and refurbished their infrastructure. We will continue to work with the government to catalyse new ideas and solutions to achieve the goals of the refreshed ITM.”
Commenting that the Hotel ITM 2025 will better position businesses to seize the emerging opportunities from global tourism trends and sustainability, Low Yen Ling, minister of state for trade and industry and culture, community and youth and FEC lifestyle cluster co-chair added: “This holistic approach will help enhance Singapore’s attraction as a compelling destination for travel, business and leisure.”
Officials at the EMTEX: Empower Thailand Exhibition unveiling
Thailand has reported a strong rebound in the exhibition industry, and is driving the industry forward with a new campaign to boost domestic tradeshows under the Thailand 4.0 agenda.
The 11 new international tradeshows were launched between May 2022 and September 2022, and the industries that the shows serve included digitalisation, intelligent automation, robotics, life sciences, healthcare, clean energy, and logistics. More than half were staged by the local offices of international organisers or in partnership with Thai organisers, and support from the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau.
Officials at the EMTEX: Empower Thailand Exhibition unveiling
Two of the 11 new shows TCEB supported in 2022 – Maintenance, Industrial Robotics and Automation (MiRA), and Manufacturing Transformation Thailand (MATRA) – were held in Pattaya, the exhibition hub for the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC). Both covered smart manufacturing and industrial automation, and served the interests of a great number of multinationals and small- and medium-sized enterprises based in the EEC.
Kenny Yong, CEO of Fireworks Trade Media Group, organiser of MATRA, said: “We have chosen the EEC for our show because it is attracting a lot of investment and our show is technology-driven for industry transformation and efficiency befitting the investors in the EEC and responding to “Thailand 4.0” industries. Thanks to TCEB’s support, we were able to launch MATRA as a new addition to our portfolio and the first show of its kind in this special economic zone.”
To further drive investment in trade shows with a Thailand 4.0 orientation, TCEB has outlined the development plan for the growth of domestic exhibitions in 2023, highlighting the collaboration of 11 public and private sector partners – such as The Board of Investment of Thailand, and Department of International Trade Promotion – under the umbrella EMTEX: Empower Thailand Exhibition project.
One key initiative of the project is a new marketing campaign SPIRE Thailand: Strengthen Power in Regional Exhibitions. This campaign is designed to help local entrepreneurs align themselves with emerging global trends, such as intelligent automation and sustainability. It is expected that the campaign will generate 7,802 million baht (US$207,084) in economic impact.
Under the campaign, financial incentives of up to one million baht per show will be provided if the domestic exhibitions are in the following five groups of industries:
• Food, agriculture, and biotechnology
• Health and medical technology
• Smart devices, robotics and automation, Internet of Things, and Artificial Intelligence
• Alternative energy, automotive, and logistics
• Creative economy, culture, tourism, and high-valued services
For non-financial support, TCEB will serve liaise between 11 partners to integrate rapport of exhibitors in seven areas – exhibitor database; on-site buyer database; local network; knowledge, training and seminar; in-depth information of industries, targeted markets and market insight; sourcing of funding/subsidies or sponsorship; and public relations.
TCEB president, Chiruit Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya, said: “This new campaign aims to help local entrepreneurs and organisers to expand their businesses in the strategic or future industries which will future-proof their enterprises and enable their role in the economic transformation of the country.
“By supporting the organisers of these shows, we are also signalling TCEB’s readiness to help lay the foundation for these shows to grow to become leading events in their respective industry verticals.”
Two MoUs were signed at the most recent ACA gathering
The founding members of the Asia Convention Alliance (ACA) recently got together at IMEX America 2022, where two fresh MoUs were signed, and the decision to hold the first ACA event was made.
ACA was established in September 2021, and has since carried out meetings which have led to the active sharing of business leads between the members to restore the region’s business events industry, as well as facilitate knowledge exchange between members through collaborative ventures.
Two MoUs were signed at the most recent ACA gathering
To further facilitate knowledge exchange, ACA members have also agreed to collaborate on an inaugural ACA event, named ACA Association Forum (ACAAF). The debut edition, dubbed #ACAAF1, is scheduled to take place in 2023 during the 62nd ICCA Congress in Bangkok.
Details on the event will be announced once finalised.
During the meeting, bilateral MoUs were also signed between Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau and Seoul Tourism Organization, as well as Seoul Tourism Organization and Taiwan External Trade Development Council. The other founding members include Thailand Convention Bureau, and Thailand Incentive and Convention Association.
Plans are also in motion for the five organisations to be co-located at future IMEX shows in Frankfurt and Las Vegas.
Event Brief
Concha Y Toro wanted to promote the Puente Alto region in Chile, home of the renowned Don Melchor wine and newly-launched Marques de Casa Concha Heritage wine, and strengthen its position among the top wine terroirs in the world.
Leveraging the F1 Singapore Grand Prix, it flew in from Chile Enrique Tirado and Marcelo Papa, winemakers of the respective labels, to meet Singapore-based and regional distributors at a series of events.
Concha Y Toro tasked Chab Events to design a creative, immersive and educational experience to wow regional trade partners, clients and media – a step up from the standard wine-tasting dinner.
Highlights
Having the winemakers fly in from Chile was a rare treat because Papa’s last visit was in 2016 for the 40th anniversary of the Marques de Casa Concha brand, while Tirado was last in Singapore in 2018.
Given Chile’s distance from Asia, the aim was to transport guests from Singapore to the Puente Alto region. They were greeted with an immersive 4D Puente Alto Experience designed by Chab Events, where they were projected into the terroir of Puente Alto.
Fragrance partner Maison 21G created unique scents and stimulated other senses with a river, animated open sky, cool Andean wind, fog and soil to touch.
The tasting and dining experience was separated into two moods, with long tables representing the expression of each wine with different decor, colours, inspiration and ambience, right down to furniture to fully immerse guests into the character of each wine.
Challenges
Summing up the challenges, Alexis Lhoyer, chief business officer of Chab Events, said: “Beyond conceptualising the immersive 4D experience to reflect a unique region of Chile, we created special content to impact all senses through a nine-metre-long tunnel of carpentry and LED screens.”
The industrial warehouse was turned into an elegant, classy venue befitting high-end wines.
“Our catering partner created a makeshift kitchen at the back of the warehouse, with sous vide cooking capabilities to deliver two plated lunch and dinner servings per day. We also ensured there was sufficient glassware throughout the two days,” said Lhoyer.
The hosts also had to maintain an even balance while showing off the two distinctive wines so that they did not overshadow each other.
“The event was a unique challenge: how to transport more than 200 guests from hot Singapore to the terroir of Puente Alto, 16,000km away at the foothills of the Andes mountains?” said Guy Nussey, regional director APAC & Middle East, Viña Concha Y Toro.
“Working with Chab, we successfully created an innovative, memorable experience for clients and trade partners from Singapore, and also international media and distributors across APAC and the Middle East.”
Event D.O. Puente Alto – The 100 Points Terroir by Concha Y Toro Organiser Chab Events Venue Angra, Tanjong Pagar Distripark Dates September 26 and 27, 2022 Attendance 200 across two days
Gevme has designed an integrative and multipurpose event website builder
Singapore-headquartered virtual events and events technology provider Gevme has launched a new integrative and multipurpose event website builder.
Be it an in-person conference or virtual summit, the event website builder can configure a set of pages that works for every type of experience and use case. This includes public pages for registration and general content, along with private pages for on-demand content, live streams, breakout rooms, gamification and more.
Gevme has designed an integrative and multipurpose event website builder
For the event professional, the all-in-one website allows data and content to be centrally stored and managed from just one place. When it is time for an event, the content can be easily published and distributed to various different platforms using Gevme widgets.
Its integrative feature also means that a host of different systems and applications such as Eventbrite, Webflow and other 5000 applications can be accessed through one centralised website.
The event website builder also features built-in SEO capabilities to help designers create a website that is both engaging and effective. They can also find a selection of over 50 professionally-designed templates and widgets to enhance the look and feel of the website for any type of event.
“Each event is unique, each event has its own specific goals. We’re not just launching a generic website builder, the world doesn’t need yet another website builder. What we’re launching is 50 out-of-the-box event experiences. Whether you’re looking for a beautiful, professional website or a funky townhall in a 3D world, we’ve got you covered. That’s what makes it exciting,” said Veemal Gungadin, CEO of GEVME.
The International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney), managed by ASM Global, has launched its Interactive Venue Map to assist event organisers to plan and promote their events at the venue.
The new venue map tool includes interactive 3D floorplans of every level and space across the venue, alongside 360/VR and standard images, capacity and room information. The new tool utilises the latest Microsoft web-based technology and can be used with or without Wi-Fi capability (offline) once downloaded.
A sample of how the tool will look like
Additionally, the tool incorporates visitor information and facility services supporting event organisers to plan and promote their ICC Sydney events whilst enhancing the attendee on-site experience.
ICC Sydney CEO and ASM global group director – convention centres (APAC), Geoff Donaghy, said the tool demonstrates the venue’s commitment to constantly innovate and put the experience of the client and delegate first.
“Clients and delegates now have the opportunity to explore the advantages of our world-class venue at the simple click of a button, making the collaboration process of event planning more streamlined and efficient than ever before.
“In addition to this, the new tool builds on the team’s recent efforts to refresh the website taking its functionality to a whole new level,” Donaghy said.
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has appointed Megan Epler Wood as its special advisor on sustainable tourism development for destinations, business, and civil society.
Wood’s knowledge and expertise will be invaluable to driving progress towards a more resilient and sustainable Asia-Pacific travel ecosystem. She has dedicated over 30 years towards the creation of professional guidelines, tools, policies, and educational resources focusing on sustainable tourism development. In 1990, she founded the first sustainable tourism NGO, The International Ecotourism Society.
She is currently the managing director of the Sustainable Tourism Asset Management Program (STAMP) at Cornell University’s Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise and the SC Johnson College of Business, a role she has held since 2017.
FHA-HoReCa opened its tradeshow doors on October 25, taking up five halls at the Singapore Expo.
The four-day event is presented in five segments – hospitality technology; food service & hospitality equipment; hospitality style; bakery, pastry & gelato; and speciality coffee & tea. In total, it features more than 800 exhibitors from over 30 countries and regions, and is expected to draw some 25,000 local and international trade visitors.
This year, the show’s new Hospitality 4.0 component features Hospitality Start-Up Village, Hotel Innovation Challenge Asia and a conference programme with more than 50 international speakers that will discuss the future of hospitality.
The newly-opened Ritz-Carlton, Bangkok anchors the One Bangkok development with cosmopolitan elegance. Featuring the city's largest ballroom and a spectacular new penthouse suite, it delivers exceptional hardware and deeply authentic, soulful service for business and leisure travellers alike
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She is currently the managing director of the Sustainable Tourism Asset Management Program (STAMP) at Cornell University’s Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise and the SC Johnson College of Business, a role she has held since 2017.
