Congress Center Leipzig: Flexible rooms and powerful equipment for major conventions
Over 5,000 convention delegates and 130 exhibitors within a space exceeding the size of two large football fields: the 28th International Congress of German Ophthalmic Surgeons (DOC) posed a number of major challenges to the Congress Center Leipzig (CCL). However, thanks to powerful equipment and a flexible and fully adjustable hall, the event was highly successful.
Year upon year, in June, the Programme Committee of the DOC invites numerous ophthalmic surgeons, both from hospitals and practices, to a continuous professional training convention. The event has now become Europe’s biggest convention for ophthalmic surgeons. Traditionally, the meeting takes place in Nuremberg, but every five years the organisation uses a different venue.
This year MCN Medizinische Congressorganisation Nürnberg AG, the leading PCO, opted for the Congress Center Leipzig (CCL) for the 28th International Congress of German Ophthalmic Surgeons and for the joint meeting of the DOC and ISRS/AAO, from 11 to 13 June 2015. “One reason was no doubt that, on two other occasions, we’d already been successful in hosting the Annual Meeting of Eye Doctors of the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG),” says Ronald Kötteritzsch, Marketing & Sales Director at CCL.
Requirements on space and equipment
The invitations which were sent to potential delegates and exhibitors by MCN were successful, bringing in numerous registrations. Over 5,500 doctors from 39 countries wanted to take part in the further training programme, and the event also attracted 130 exhibitors from industry. This meant that a lot of space was needed: “The academic programme alone – with its symposia, seminars, posters and courses – was quite substantial, so that the DOC convention had to have 24 lecture halls and a net space of 3,800 square metres,” says Nadja Schwarz, CEO of MCN AG.
In addition to space, there were further requirements, such as the live video transmission of innovative operation techniques from all over the world, practical training in wet labs and a wide-ranging professional development programme for ophthalmic assistants. The accompanying exhibition featured some 130 companies with their innovative products, ranging from artificial lenses, through laser equipment and software to complete doctors’ practices.
Challenges were mastered
These challenges on space and equipment were solved successfully by the CCL in Hall 2 and the Messehaus. “The hall with its 10,000 square metres was big enough to add another three conference rooms to the industry exhibition – each for 400 delegates,” says Kötteritzsch. The spatial layout with conference rooms and an exhibition under one roof also added some important positive stimuli to the exhibition. Moreover, Kötteritzsch feels that transmission engineering went according to plan: “We certainly mastered the technical requirements as well.”
Nadja Schwarz is very pleased with the results of collaboration. She emphasises that the requirements on space and equipment “were met perfectly by CCL” at this extremely demanding convention. She points out that cooperation had previously worked well on other occasions. The Wi-Fi network – free of charge for delegates – was available at a high bandwidth, which she sees as a further bonus point. Schwarz particularly praises the good level of care that was taken by CCL staff who really “filled the idea of customers focus and customer service with life. This good customer care was perceived equally positively by the delegates and the exhibitors, as they gave top ratings and assessments to CCL, thus confirming the success.”
