Exhibit Works produces cutting-edge exhibits for
Los Angeles Auto Show

Ford, Porsche and eight other major automakers look to Exhibit Works to produce attention-grabbing experiences for auto shows

DETROIT, Mi. — Livonia-based Exhibit Works, one of the world’s largest privately-held exhibit design companies with more than 25 years of experience, is working with 10 auto manufacturers, including Ford, Porsche, Lincoln-Mercury, Mazda, Subaru, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Kia and Bentley, at two of the biggest auto shows in the U.S., the 2006 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) and the Los Angeles Auto Show.

At the NAIAS, Exhibit Works is the fabricator of the new cutting-edge exhibit for Ford Motor Company that features all eight Ford brands and spans 2.5 acres. The crowning glory of the double decker Ford display will be a large oval-shaped LED wall covering approximately 210-feet-by-90-feet and containing 1,500 LED screens.  A staggering total of 2,400 screens will be used across the eight brands.

To construct the massive Ford exhibit, that at 453 ft. x 236 ft. is larger than a football field, more than 200 truckloads of materials were delivered to Cobo Center in Detroit. Exhibit Works will use more than 140 tons of steel, 100 tons of aluminum, 5,000-square-feet of glass and about 72,000 man-hours. Additionally, LED screens had to be shipped from across the United States in order to accommodate the quantity needed for the exhibit.

"Auto makers are moving away from architecturally inspired designs to more experiential designs allowing show goers to get a better understanding of the personality of the brand,” said Michael Thoresen, vice president for Exhibit Works.  “Most of those who attend will be in the market to purchase a new vehicle within the next year, making auto shows a critical marketing tool to connect with potential buyers.”

On the west coast, Exhibit Works is designing, fabricating and installing the new Porsche Experience, created exclusively for the Los Angeles Auto Show.  The Porsche Experience engulfs show goers in the “DNA of Porsche” and highlights the automakers rich history, racing performance and technical engineering.  Exhibit Works created a completely immersive environment that will sit, not inside the crowded main exhibit hall, but in a 20,000-square-foot closed space adjacent to the main auto show area.

Inside the Porsche Experience are three main areas:  the Heritage Room, the Main Product Room and the New Product Room.  The Heritage Room documents the automaker’s racing history from a vintage Porsche 356, the first Porsche, displayed in the center of the room to images of Porsches rocketing down the tracks of races around the world.  To signify the evolution of Porsche, Exhibit Works created a wall featuring a 30-foot long translucent image of a Porsche race from the 1940s or 50s.  Visitors looking at the image can see through to the Main Product Room where the complete 2006 Porsche lineup is located.

In the Main Product Room, Exhibit Works wanted to highlight the distinctive origin of Porsche – born on the racetrack and not in a showroom.  Exhibit Works designed a 100-foot long, three-dimensional racetrack that runs along the wall and comes complete with racing sounds and lighting effects.  The track displays Porsche’s four products — the Carrera GT, 911, Boxster and Cayman.
 
The finale to the Porsche Experience is the New Product Room, which is dedicated to the new Cayman S and offers an urban chic atmosphere, complete with techno club music and an ultra hip lounge area for the public.  On display will be the Cayman S positioned atop a structural steel platform with an architectural vignette in the background.  A Porsche Boxster 550, from which the Cayman was developed, will also be exhibited.

The North American International Auto Show is among the most prestigious auto shows in the world, and is one of the largest media events in North America. The show will take place at the Cobo Center in Detroit, Mich., January 14-22, 2006.

More than 1,000 of the newest automobiles will be on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show, with over 30 making their World or North American debut. The show takes place January 6-15, 2006 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Exhibit Works, with operations in Detroit, Los Angeles, Chicago and Shanghai, has been developing national and international auto show programs for the last 25 years. With specialization in the transportation industry, Exhibit Works has been at the forefront of exhibit marketing trends like double-deck displays, elements of experience marketing and global auto show branding. The company has seen its revenues grow from $10 to $150 million as the importance of auto show marketing has expanded.

IAEM warns against fairguide marketing scam;
Staff members designated CEM

DALLAS, Texas — The International Association for Exhibition Management has learned of a company operating out of Austria, Fairguide.com/Construct Data Verlag (Fairguide), that has been preying upon exhibitors in Europe and is making its way to the U.S. market.

According to the Association of Exhibition Organisers (AEO), Fairguide targets companies and exhibitors using legitimate exhibition guides, but has no connection with exhibition organizers or any of their events. The company claims to be offering online services and uses a form, which resembles an organizer's free catalog listing service, inviting exhibitors to sign and return the form for an entry in an online directory.

Exhibitors who sign and return the form are then contracted into a three-year, non-retractable agreement, which could cost the exhibitor a significant amount of money, with no apparent benefits.

IAEM has posted an exhibitor warning on its web site with full details about Fairguide, including sample forms being used by the company and ways to avoid falling victim to its ploy. In addition, IAEM President Steven Hacker has addressed the Austrian Ambassador to the U.S. regarding the matter.

To read a full copy of IAEM's letter to Ambassador McCaw concerning the Fairguide scheme and further information on how to avoid it, visit www.iaem.org or contact IAEM at +1 (972) 458-8002.

In other IAEM news, staff members Julie Anderson, Director of Show Development, and Jeremy Cox, Convention Manager, received their Certified in Exhibition Management (CEM) designation. They joined 110 other 2005 CEM graduates from China, Europe, Mexico and the United States officially recognized at the Opening General Session of Expo! Expo! IAEM's Annual Meeting & Exhibition held 29 November through 1 December in Atlanta, Ga.
 
The Certified in Exhibition Management (CEM) designation was created in 1975 to provide a professional designation for individuals in the exhibition industry. The designation raises professional standards and is recognized throughout the industry as the premier mark of professional achievement.
 
In the United States, participants must complete a nine-part program within three years to earn the CEM designation. The program is composed of seven mandatory courses and two courses chosen from seven available electives. 
 
Advanced-level courses are also available for CEMs to continue their professional education and obtain re-certification. CEM programs licensed by IAEM in other nations have course requirements that are custom tailored to reflect the conditions and procedures of the exhibition industry in each nation or region.
 
For more information about the CEM program, visit www.iaem.org/cem.

Since 1928, the International Association for Exhibition Management (IAEM), continues to provide quality and value to its members through leadership, service, education, and strong relationships. IAEM is the largest association of the exhibition industry in the world, with a membership of both show organizers and exhibition suppliers. Organizers of more than 20,000 exhibitions and events around the world are members of IAEM. IAEM also supports IAEM Services, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary that partners with industry suppliers and service providers to offer high quality, low cost exhibition products and services to the industry. For more information, visit www.iaem.org.

PITTSBURGH — Robert Imperata, executive vice president, Greater Pittsburgh Convention and Visitors Bureau, has been elected Vice Chair of the PaSAE Board of Directors. Imperata is the first officer elected to the organization west of Harrisburg.

“I’m honored to be, once again, elected to the board of PaSAE. As a long-standing member of the organization, I understand the importance of its mission and initiatives,” said Imperata. “It will be a pleasure contributing as a creative member of the team that works to facilitate the programming and networking opportunities offered by PaSAE.”

PaSAE is the only statewide association solely dedicated to advancing and representing the community of association and non-profit business. The organization counts numerous Pennsylvania associations among its membership. These state associations constitute an important meetings and conventions market for Pittsburgh. 

SmithBucklin CIO honored as
Premier 100 IT Leader by Computerworld

CHICAGO — SmithBucklin, the world's largest association management firm, recently announced that IDG’s Computerworld, the “Voice of IT Management,” has recognized John Fisher, Chief Information Officer as one of the business world’s Premier 100 IT Leaders.

The award honors executives who show exemplary technology leadership in resolving pressing business problems. Honorees, including Fisher, will be honored at a special black-tie ceremony at Computerworld's Premier 100 IT Leaders Conference, March 5-7, 2006 at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort in Palm Desert, Calif.

Fisher was selected from nearly 500 nominees who were measured against Computerworld's IT Leadership Index, a set of characteristics that describes executives who guide the effective use of IT in their organizations, and evaluated by Computerworld editors and a panel of outside judges.

"This year's Premier 100 IT Leaders represent a myriad of organizations from universities to Fortune 100 companies," said Don Tennant, editor in chief, Computerworld. "However, each honoree from this year's class has demonstrated how technology can be used effectively, and often times creatively, to positively impact the organization for the long term."

Fisher joined SmithBucklin in 1996. As CIO, he directs the company's information technology resources and technology investments. He has led a number of initiatives, such as the creation of partnerships across internal business and service units that support the development of new technical architecture and standard processes.
Fisher, who has more than 25 years of experience applying technology solutions to critical business problems, is a member of the Society for Information Management, the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) and the Executives Club of Chicago. In 2002, the Windy City Chapter of AITP named Fisher "CIO of the Year."

"John is instrumental to our technology successes at SmithBucklin," said Henry S. Givray, President and CEO of SmithBucklin. "We are immensely proud of him and value his contributions to not only our company and clients, but to the greater technology community."

The complete class of Computerworld's Premier 100 IT Leaders for 2006 can be found in the December 12, 2005 issue of Computerworld and online at www.computerworld.com.

SmithBucklin is a professional services company, providing flexible, tailored full-service management and function/project-specific services to more than 185 trade associations, professional societies, technology user groups and government institutes/agencies. SmithBucklin's mission is to drive growth and build sustained competitiveness for client organizations. Founded in 1949, the company employs 585 professionals specializing in all phases of association activity including executive management, member and chapter administration, convention and trade show management, marketing and branding, Web services, education and programs, government relations and financial management. SmithBucklin manages more than $200 million in annual client budgets from offices in Chicago, Washington, DC, St. Louis and Durham, NC. For more information, visit www.smithbucklin.com.

Strong New England trade show and event business
leads to the addition of an industry veteran

SOUTHBOROUGH, Mass., — Corporate Events I&D, New England’s premiere labor management and event services company, is pleased to announce the appointment of Bob McGlincy as General Manager. According to Corporate Events I&D President Robert Dobinski, “the addition of McGlincy will position us to respond to the increasing demands of corporations exhibiting in New England. Trends in the industry point to a robust growth in the convention and trade show industry”, he added. This is especially true in Boston since the opening of the new Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC).”

Referring to McGlincy, Dobinski said, “it was his experience that first caught our eye. That experience coupled with his honesty, attention to detail, and rapport with workers will allow us to continue to execute bigger and more complicated exhibit projects and expand into large corporate and special events,” he added.

Most recently a Partner with A Plus Exhibit Services and Management, McGlincy is an industry veteran with over twenty-five years of tradeshow experience. He commenced his career as a stagehand in Atlanta, Ga. movie sets, and installing exhibits nationwide for a myriad of Fortune 500 companies.

He served as the Atlanta City Manager and then as a Regional Operations Manager for nth Degree. Recruited by Giltspur ExpoServices as their National Operations Manager, he progressed to Vice President of Operations for Exhibitgroup/Gilspur. In addition to tradeshow and event solutions around the country for Adidas, APC, Boston Scientific, CEDIA, DuPont, John Hancock, Intergraph, Kraft, Sara Lee, TeraRecon, Wilson, and others, McGlincy has been responsible for projects including permanent installations for Bank of America, Chase, Nike, HEB Stores, Miami Children’s Museum, Citizens Bank Park, and Clean Rooms.

McGlincy has been a featured speaker at the Exhibitor Appointed Contractors Association Annual Conference, Trade Show Exhibitors Association, and The Exhibitor Network. Sample presentations have included: “Trade Shows Past and Future;” “Making Dollars: How Better Customer Service Improves Employment Opportunities;” “Trade Show Trends;” “Booth Building Basics;” and “Customer Loyalty: Your Company’s Most Important Product!” He frequently speaks at industry training sessions nationwide, and has participated in union training sessions in Washington, Orlando, and Boston. He is a graduate of Cornell University, and is an Executive MBA candidate at the Katz School of Business. McGlincy enjoys carpentry, restoring Victorian homes, and American history; he has been active in neighborhood politics and community affairs in Atlanta and Pittsburgh. He resides in central Massachusetts with his wife, two children, and assorted four legged friends.

Corporate Events I&D has been providing professional set-up and dismantle services throughout northeast since 1987. Its location, central to New England and upper state New York, allows the company to easily and rapidly react to last minute on-site requirements such as graphics, emergency repairs and labor, as well as furniture and other rentals.

Longwood Gardens hits the road — Big Time

COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. — It’s not everyday a 1000-acre, 100-year-old icon hits the road, but that’s exactly what Philadelphia’s famed Longwood Gardens is doing as it celebrates a century of innovation, ingenuity and horticultural excellence.

For the first time in its history, Longwood Gardens is delving into trade show promotions and outreach, as it makes its trade show debut at the Pennsylvania Farm Show opening in Harrisburg, PA on Jan. 7.

But how do you transform “The Garden of a Lifetime, a Century in the Making” to the trade show environment?

That was the challenge facing Nimlok Philadelphia, an exhibit design firm.  Nimlok Philadelphia designers literally had to think outside the booth, as Longwood Gardens decided they did not want a booth at all, but a building. Through a collaborative design effort between Longwood Gardens’ Tres Fromme and the design team at Nimlok Philadelphia, they created a building that abstracted the Orangery, a part of the iconic Conservatory, and the heart of floral displays at Longwood Gardens.

“Creating a whole building is totally out of the norm for the exhibiting industry,” said Ed Oxenham of Nimlok Philadelphia.  “To attract the most attention, we recreated the arched windows, the unique raised ceiling, and the columns, all in a 20-foot-by-40-foot exhibit.”

“We typically build garden spaces and enormous seasonal displays. This was unique because we have never designed a space for a trade show,” said Longwood Gardens Planning and Design Leader, Tres Fromme. “We worked closely with Nimlok Philadelphia to transform the very distinctive Longwood look into a tradeshow environment. The resulting walk-through space is very open  and decidedly atypical, yet distinctly Longwood.  It is a space to experience, much as Longwood Gardens is a space to be experienced.”

Nimlok Philadelphia made the Longwood Gardens exhibit so unique that patrons do not walk up to a booth at all. It is a 20 ft. by 40 ft. building shell that visitors actually walk through, experiencing the unique raised ceiling, stately columns, and arched windows of the famed Conservatory.

Inside and outside the exhibit, visitors can interact with Longwood staff while experiencing “Windows on Longwood,” a slide show of ever changing photos projected on the arched windows, that include breathtaking images of the gardens, fountains, seasonal  displays, and performing arts events that Longwood Gardens has become well known for over the last century.

“Nimlok Philadelphia created an exhibit allowing us to truly showcase the full diversity and breadth of what Longwood offers every season, every day of the year. You can see the gardens, enjoy a concert, linger by the fountains, Longwood is a full day or even two day experience,” Fromme said.

The Pennsylvania Farm Show is the perfect place for Longwood Gardens to make its trade show debut, as founder Pierre Samuel du Pont was a gentleman farmer who founded and then ran Longwood Farms in the 1920’s.  Du Pont purchased the property to save a historic arboretum of trees in 1906, and then began creating a garden unlike any other. He viewed Longwood Gardens as his gift to the world and today, Longwood Gardens draws more than 1,000,000 yearly visitors.

By highlighting its many learning opportunities, including college internships, The Professional Gardner Training Program, and a graduate program with the University of Delaware, Longwood hopes to attract more students.

“Part of our mission is to develop the next generation of gardeners and horticulturists,” added Fromme. “The Farm Show and Longwood Gardens audiences overlap. Both are interested in appealing to young people who would be most interested in visiting the Gardens and attending our educational programs.”

“We see the entire world as our audience, and Mr. du Pont wanted us to share Longwood with the world.  We have a responsibility to promote horticulture as an art and a science.  Promotions are an important part of our mission, as leaders in horticulture and they must be completely in line with the standards of excellence and integrity of Longwood Gardens,” Fromme said.

According to Nimlok Philadelphia managing partner Karen Cohen, “This initiative was a win all around. Our team found a way to bring the beautiful botanicals of Longwood Gardens to a trade show in the middle of winter.  And Longwood Gardens has discovered a new way to market its rich traditions.”

The Pennsylvania Farm show will take place from January 7-14 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show complex in Harrisburg, Pa. Visit Longwood Gardens at Booth #5263

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