A profile of the EICC / Edinburgh International Conference Centre
Written and researched by Viv Devlin April 2007.
Business tourism is booming. While the meetings, incentive, conference and exhibition market is already a lucrative sector, the World Tourism organisation predicts a 40% share of the total tourism market by 2020.
As multinational companies and conglomerates continue to expand and diversify, it is essential that the corporate world has regular opportunity to communicate on a personal level to discuss and debate ideas and strategy for future success. |
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Choosing a destination is not just about finding the right size of conference centre to cater for your 300 or 1,250 delegates. It’s about location, facilities and creativity to put into play the best environment to engage, inspire, inform and entertain.
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While Party Politics tend to pack their bag for the Blackpool seaside, an increasing number of government, finance, retail, medical, technology, media and travel organisations and companies come to Edinburgh.
Business tourism has been an important activity for the City of Edinburgh for a number of years. The EICC opened in 1995 as a purpose-built, world class congress venue located in the heart of the Financial Exchange district, beside the Sheraton Grand Hotel and Spa.
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Designed by Sir Terry Farrell, it’s an impressive ochre stone, glass and steel, drum-shaped building (reminiscent of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre) featuring an exuberant curved entrance which leads directly into the Strathblane reception hall. |
If the exterior architecture is stunning, the interior has the wow factor for cutting edge design. The highlight is the Pentland Suite, a glamorous raked-seating auditorium for 1,200 delegates, featuring high tech audio-visual equipment, multi- screen Encore projection, interactive digi-voting facilities and interpretation booths. The Suite can be divided at the flick of a computer switch into three separate soundproofed auditoria; two of which can seat 300 and the other up to 600 delegates. The Cromdale Hall caters for a banquet of up to 850 or as Exhibition space. Throughout the vast, fully accessible, arena spanning four floors, there?s a series of flexible function suites, board and meeting rooms.
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Over the past twelve years, the EICC has hosted numerous key events which have brought people together for debate and discussion with some defining moments: The Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting attended by Nelson Mandela; at a NAPF conference Al Gore declares that global warming is “the greatest challenge to mankind”; the historic Edinburgh Declaration pledges support for international research at the 29th Antarctic Treaty meeting; Jeremy Paxman discusses the public loss of confidence in the media at the Guardian TV Festival.
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“A truly successful event must have a dynamic venue at a dynamic destination, dynamic speaker content, dynamic production and staff. It has certainly been our experience that Edinburgh and the EICC has been dynamic.” |
| Mark Harris, Institute of Travel Management Conference, 2007 |
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Robert Louis Stevenson described Edinburgh as a “profusion of eccentricities, this dream in masonry and living rock, not a scene in a theatre but a city in the world of every day reality”. Edinburgh Castle, standing defiant and indestructible above the rugged rockface, is an iconic trademark worldwide. |
The Athens of the North is a city of architectural conservation combining the cobbled wynds of the Medieval Old Town with the elegant crescents of the New Town, complemented by its image today as a prosperous, thriving and exciting European capital. The opening of the Scottish Parliament instilled a renewed thirst for enterprise and innovation: “This is about more than politics and laws”, said First Minister Donald Dewar in July 1999. “This is about who we are. The past is part of us but today there is a new voice in the land to shape Scotland. A voice for the future.”
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Edinburgh is the second largest financial services sector in UK and a centre of excellence in the fields of medicine, science, technology, architecture, the arts and designated the first UNESCO City of Literature. Global giants including Microsoft and Missoni have recently invested in property development and it’s a new European hub for Ryanair. Excellent direct air routes linking UK, Europe and US and the rail network provide easy travel. No wonder Edinburgh was recently voted best UK city to live by Channel 4’s Location, Location, Location, summed up as “Amazing architecture, fabulous scenery, beautiful walks, Michelin starred restaurants, world class events and festivals.”
  
Edinburgh is a founder member of BestCities.net, an alliance of global convention bureaux, which aims to guarantee the meetings industry the world's best service experience in member cities - Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Edinburgh, Melbourne, San Juan, Singapore and Vancouver.
Let’s take a closer look at life and work inside the EICC. Under Chief Executive Hans H Rissmann, OBE, there’s an expert team working within every specialist department from research, sales, technical production, event designers and stage managers, to the environmentally friendly Plan-it Green team, Leith’s Catering and The Corps security.
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The venue offers the most technologically advanced facilities in Europe, dedicated to creating a bespoke design service for your convention, conference, exhibition, banquet or Oscar style awards ceremony.
In recognition of its professional organisation and customer care the EICC has received numerous awards most notably from the European Foundation for Quality Management and the British Quality Foundation. |
“Organising a meeting like ours is a big undertaking and right from the start you have facilitated this and helped us at every step of the way. I felt we were part of an extended family that cared about the success of our meeting and made sure that everything went well.” |
| Professor Valerie Clerehugh, President, 2006-7 Leeds Dental Institute. |
The EICC event team will also assist you in planning your ideal programme of evening social events. Delegates should also take time out to explore on foot to appreciate the city’s hidden magic.
Browse the Old Town for fine Scottish cashmere, antiques, malt whisky and quaint old pubs and around the New Town for designer shopping, art galleries, cafes and wine bars. Visit the Castle, Palace and Royal Yacht Britannia on the Leith waterfront. |
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Climb to the top of Arthur’s Seat for breathtaking views or stroll around the tranquil Botanic Gardens. With its sophisticated and sociable lifestyle, Edinburgh, as Stevenson also once said, “is what Paris ought to be.”
As a welcoming, inspiring and beautiful European destination, why not consider Edinburgh and the EICC for a future corporate event?
www.eicc.co.uk |
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