ICC Birmingham technical and production teams delivered the
first fully-hybrid Conservative Party Conference in 2022, with more than 300
events in the venue streamed to audiences online.
As part of the event programme, 456 sessions were hosted
in-venue alongside key sessions with ministers and MPs, as well as broadcast
requirements.
“In terms of the technical capability, this has been our
busiest conference to date. We brought in extra fibre optic cables to support
the huge streaming provision required for the event, which runs over four days.
We are managing multiple events which require streaming and broadcast
abilities, as well as cable support to the media hub,” head of technical production,
Ben Prior said.
“It’s interesting to see how times have changed, with
traditional print-based media requiring video and audio solutions to service
their online presence as well as streaming capabilities.
The ICC invested in infrastructure upgrades to allow
Internet Protocol and Network Device Interface video, which make HD video
creation and sharing accessible internally and externally to the venue.
The technician training programme now in place at the ICC
Birmingham has a focus on hosting hybrid and virtual events.
“A key element for our technical and production teams is to
link in with external contractors and production agencies as part of our
conventions,” NEC Group conventions general manager, Allan Boyle said.
The ICC Birmingham has hosted several live-streamed events
this year, including the inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships and
Commonwealth Esports Forum and Jisc, a UK higher, further education and skills
sectors’ not-for-profit organisation for digital services and solutions. The
ICC also hosted the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Parliamentary Assembly, which was streamed out globally in six different
languages.
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
