Australia is indeed big - big enough for three different time zones, different climate zones and a great warmth and friendliness with which you will be welcomed here. No matter if you are welcomed in the Darwin Convention Centre in the north or in the Melbourne and Olympic Park in the south - the next two stops on my trip around the world.
After some searching in the hot tropical Darwin (approx. 800,000 inhabitants) I arrived at the new Darwin Convention Centre, which opened in 2008. Located in the beautiful setting of the harbour it takes some work to locate it due to sparse signposting in the city centre. The largest event centre in the city – but still rather small compared to other centres that I visited. With a capacity for up to 1,500 people in the auditorium and up to 4,200 people in row seating in the exhibition hall. 60 percent of business is related to conferences, but all kinds of events are possible. “We even had a Rodeo Show here once” says Malu Barrios, the General Manager. Since it began operations more than 320 events were realised here, including major conferences from organizers from the U.S., but the main business is in Australia itself. It is a straightforward, but still very modern exhibition centre that is slowly becoming more established in the Asian region and worldwide. As Malu Barrios led me through the various events rooms, she said: “You can still smell that it is new”, and she is full of confidence for a successful future together with her 28-strong team and the many part-time employees from the areas engineering, cleaning, security and catering.
A scent of modernization can also be found in the Olympic Park Melbourne. The huge site with the two arenas Hisense Arena and Rod Laver Arena, the West-pac Centre, the Olympic Park Stadium, the AAMI Stadium Park, a conference centre and numerous tennis courts is being replaced and renovated in 3 stages as part of a 10-year plan. The venue is particularly well known for the Australian Open tennis tour-nament. This main event generates about a third of the annual turnover. The renovation is primarily aimed at meeting the future requirements of the Australian Open's needs and is being financed from funds from the Victorian Government and the operator the Melbourne Olympic Park Trust (MOPT). In addition to sporting events, the location is primarily used as a concert venue. Many international stars have played here - Pink broke a record in 2009 with 17 concerts at the Rod Laver Arena as part of her tour.
As in other locations sustainability is also an issue at the MOPT, but at the moment there are only individual measures are carried out and there are no standards or certifications. In Australia there is a lack of demand, Daniel Andrews, project manager at MOPT explains. Daniel leads me through the catacombs of the arenas and up onto the roofs on a tour of the Rod Laver Arena (15,000 seats) and the Hisense Arena (10,000 seats) - to enjoy the view of Melbourne - and of course to provide insight into the operation of the arenas.
With over three million inhabitants Melbourne plays in a different league than Darwin, but each destination has its own unique charm.
See you soon,
Marko Roscher
www.mopt.vic.gov.au
www.darwinconvention.com.au
