AMSTERDAM/BRUSSELS/PARIS — At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, convention and exhibition centers around the world were used as healthcare facilities to relieve pressure on overwhelmed hospitals. As we move into the recovery phase, public health authorities are asking many of these same centers to convert into temporary vaccination sites. While this is a great opportunity for convention centers to help their local communities, it also involves significant planning and training to address new challenges in everything from logistics to security.
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That’s why the International Association of Convention Centers (AIPC), the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), and the World Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) recently released an updated version of their “Good Practice Guide: Convention and Exhibition Centers as Temporary Vaccination Hubs.” The guide is based on input from AIPC, ICCA, and UFI member venues collected in February and March of this year, and supported by feedback from the associations’ Joint Safety and Security Working Group. The new guide complements previous guides that addressed the requirements for reopening professional events, COVID-19 for convention centers, and the use of centers as temporary emergency facilities.
What’s in the guide
The guide covers initial considerations such as the main ways in which convention centres are used as vaccination sites (drive-thru or indoor, or a combination of both), the main functional areas that need to be set up, and the time required for set-up. It also provides guidance on how centres in countries that do not have a detailed facility plan in place can develop their own, including key principles of emerging good practice in layout and design. In addition, the guide outlines the basic principles needed to develop a separate safety plan, as well as how to manage staffing needs and related concerns, such as vaccinating facility staff, and some likely challenges that may arise.
“As vaccination strategies roll out around the world, event venues are once again playing a vital role in economic recovery by transforming themselves into vaccination hubs,” said AIPC President Aloysius Arlando. “This collaborative project, drawing on the knowledge and insights of industry experts from around the world, serves as an important reference for event venues to safely establish and operate a vaccination hub in their own spaces. It also strongly demonstrates the business events industry’s commitment to supporting the safe return of face-to-face events.”
“Our industry’s support for the vaccination effort also benefits our entire industry ecosystem: the rapid and efficient rollout of vaccinations around the world will accelerate the return of face-to-face events. We are helping to protect lives and livelihoods for society, for our customers and for everyone in our sector,” confirms Anbu Varathan, President of UFI.
The full report is available for download here. UFI also recently hosted a UFI Connects session on the guide, which is available on-demand here.
Contact Aloysius Arlando at aloysius.arlando@singex.com; Anbu Varathan at info.ufi.org.