Access All Areas May 2018 | Page 36

New event vision

A new events facility at the Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre is open for business , and its famous air show , the Farnborough International Airshow , is set to benefit .

At 20,000sqm , and able to accommodate up to 10,000 guests , this £ 30m purpose-built centre is located at the home of the Farnborough International Airshow . It is 35 minutes by train from central London and accessible from the M3 and Heathrow Airport .

Account director for Farnborough International Exhibition & Conference Centre & president of ILEA UK Carlo Zoccali told Access that the new centre is a permanent replacement for the temporary structures that featured at the air show . “ Hampshire County Council and Rushmore Borough Council were among the funders of the

project , and , were hoping to target the wider South East of England market . They can see the economic drivers for a venue this size that ’ ll be here 365 days a year outside of the airshow . This is a ten year plan , and venue suppliers GES and Sodexo provide revenue too .”

“ Being permanent means you can still scale it for the airshow , and add additional space if needs be .”

“ By 2020 we ’ ll have another 900 beds . Infrastructure wise , CrossRail will hopefully give us a Woking link to Heathrow , meaning we ’ re 25 mins off , and just 35 mins from Waterloo . People can fly in too , and lots of VIPs have their own private jets .”

“ Meanwhile , being inside a perimeter fence is good for security , and the closest you can get is 65 metres away .

“ Our data is secure too , thanks to our partnership with DB Systems .”

The suppliers

Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre ’ s suppliers list :

Sodexo Prestige Events and Venues : Caterers and service management services ; DB Systems ” Responsible for the technological servicing and site networks ; GES : Event planner and marketing company ; CBRE : Looks after the site ’ s facilities

Where to stay in Hampshire ?

The Aviator Hotel , Farnborough pays attention to the finer details . Its accents of walnut and leather , and use of granite didn ’ t go amiss , nor did its Airdrop ready televisions and space-age chic staircase . Meanwhile , its locally sourced fine dining options tick the eco boxes . For events , there are eight spaces for up to 130 people , and an outside terrace and lawn .

Hampshire event focus : International Autojumble at Beaulieu

Beaulieu events manager Judith Maddox says : “ Our biggest event , the International Autojumble , will of course be back next September ( 1-2 ).

“ In the 70th year of the Morris Minor , we ’ re welcoming back the Morris Minor Owners ’ Club with a display at

Spring Autojumble . Bringing plenty of summer fun and a Vintage Village will be the colourful Hot Rod & Custom Drive-In Day and Simply VW , for a retro-themed Father ’ s Day weekend .

“ Our Simply season of rallies achieved record numbers this year . We are building on that again for next year , so look out for a Simply season announcement soon .”