This month we get to know better Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center
What was your motivation to join ICCA?
Joining ICCA became an important step for the Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center on the way of its international promotion and development. Being the largest international association of the exhibition industry, ICCA offers ample opportunities for its members, including participation in the events, research projects and educational programs of the association, access to numerous publications, articles and scientific papers available on the ICCA Portal, global networking and promotion via advertising and PR tools, the opportunity to search for experts and speakers, as well as access to an extensive database of international meetings. Today, Kazan Expo IEC sets ambitious goals aimed at increasing the status of the exhibition complex at an international level, strengthening the position of the Republic of Tatarstan as one of the leading centers of congress and exhibition activities in Russia, and demonstrating the potential of the city of Kazan for the global exhibition community. We are convinced that active participation in the ICCA Association activities, using all its resources and capabilities will contribute to the achievement of these goals.
Tell us your story. How did Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center get started?
Kazan Expo IEC was built in 2018 for hosting the 45th WorldSkills Competition in 2019, which was held in Russia for the first time and became the largest event of this kind: 1,354 young professionals from 63 countries and regions competed for medals in 56 skills. On the days of the event, the complex was visited by 272,345 people. Thus, Kazan Expo IEC from the very beginning demonstrated itself as a venue capable of hosting events of any scale and level of complexity.
The experience of the world's leading congress and exhibition centers of the same type was studied and implemented during the construction of Kazan Expo IEC. The most demanding requirements were set for the building planning and design to meet international standards and the needs of the WorldSkills Kazan 2019 Organizing Committee.
Since 2018, Kazan Expo IEC has already hosted many significant events in a variety of subjects: medical congresses, investment and business conferences, forums and exhibitions in the fields of education, ecology, safety, industry, energy, information technology, construction, architecture, urban planning and design. Today Kazan Expo IEC is a world-class complex, a modern platform for international and interregional communications and knowledge sharing.
In September 2019, Kazan Expo IEC became a venue for the competition of IT specialists, programmers and designers "Digital Breakthrough – 2019". The hackathon, which was held as part of the event, became the largest hackaton in the world and entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the number of participants: 3,000 programmers worked here simultaneously for 48 hours in a non-stop format.
What sets Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center apart?
Kazan Expo IEC is one of the largest exhibition complexes in Russia. Its total exhibition area is 143,361 m2. The total land area is 54 hectares. It is distinguished by a favorable geographical position in the center of an economically developed and investment-attractive region of Russia, as well as a well-thought-out external infrastructure that ensures the exhibition complex is well accessible for participants and guests of events. The center is only a five-minute walk from the Kazan International Airport, the Aeroexpress Terminal, and the KRAVT KAZAN AIRPORT hotel, which is planned to open in November 2021.
One of the key features of Kazan Expo IEC lies in the ability to change the configuration of its rooms and halls depending on the number of guests and the event format. The infrastructure of the complex and its technical equipment make it possible to hold events of any format, from business meetings to specialized exhibitions, concerts, welcome receptions, congresses, conferences and even sports events. Outdoor areas are also actively used in the summer season.
Kazan Expo IEC offers a free guarded parking area for 3,000 cars, 3 exhibition pavilions, 2 food courts with a capacity of up to 700 people at a time, 2 restaurants with a capacity of 200 seats each, a briefing room for 80 seats, and 40 conference rooms with a capacity of 30 to 1,100 people.
Ilgam Shakirov Concert Hall, the largest concert hall in the Volga Federal District, is the pride of Kazan Expo IEC. Due to its multifunctionality and the up-to-date technical equipment, the concert hall becomes the key site for most events held at the exhibition center. it is suitable for holding not only concerts, plenary sessions and banquets, but also sports events. The maximum capacity of the hall is 3,000 seats theater style, and up to 1,100 seats banquet style. The hall has professional sound and lighting equipment, a large proscenium (24*17 m) and a LED cascade screen with a 4K resolution, consisting of seven modules.
Kazan Expo IEC is currently working on creating a single technological ecosystem based on modernity and convenience for all participants and visitors of the complex. The center uses Wi-Fi 6, the newest generation Wi-Fi standard adopted in 2020 and a variety of innovative solutions and state-of-the-art technologies, such as: interactive navigation stands, Digital Signage system, a mobile application, up-to-date security solutions and COVID safety practices.
Kazan Expo IEC meets all the requirements for a comfortable stay. There are dedicated parking spaces, elevators and ramps, tactile pictograms and Braille plates specifically designed to provide comfort and support for people with limited mobility. The navigation in the complex is made in four languages: Russian, Tatar, English and Chinese.
What is your favourite success story from your organisation?
In 2020, Kazan Expo IEC became a laureate for EFEA Awards (an annual international independent award for meeting organizers), in the category “Venue of the Year”. Kazan Expo IEC regularly takes part in various regional, national and international competitions and awards, including those on sustainable development and innovations.
In July 2020, Kazan Expo IEC became a location for the 5th Annual TMTV Tatar Music Award Ceremony. Initially, it was planned to hold the event in a traditional offline format. However, due to the pandemic, a decision was made to stop selling tickets and hold the large-scale festival of modern Tatar pop music in a new format – online. All the preparations were completed in the shortest time possible, which made it possible for a huge number of Tatar music lovers to enjoy the main musical event of the year from anywhere in the world. As a result, more than 2 million viewers were able to see the music show. This event was of great importance in terms of the consolidation of Tatar diasporas across the world and became the starting point in the development of hybrid events at Kazan Expo IEC.
From July 1 to July 3, 2021, a unique event took place in Kazan Expo IEC – the International Agricultural Exhibition ”AgroVolga 2021”. It combined a large-scale exposition in the exhibition pavilion, an exhibition of agricultural machinery in the parking area, experimental demonstration sections on livestock and crop production in the adjacent fields, and a large conference that was held in the meeting rooms of Kazan Expo IEC. ”AgroVolga 2021” was a hybrid event, all the sessions could be watched in real time on the exhibition website. In terms of scale, the International Agro-Industrial Exhibition "AgroVolga 2021" can be compared to the largest agricultural exhibitions in the world. It gathered 379 organizations from 35 regions of the Russian Federation and was visited by 11,217 specialists and leaders of the agro-industrial industry from 64 regions of Russia and 4 countries of the world (Italy, Egypt, Turkey, Kazakhstan).