The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre was opened on May 4, 1988 by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. The Centre’s Convention Centre Parkside expansion was opened on October 20 1999, by then New South Wales Premier, the Hon. Bob Carr.
Construction cost
Built at a total cost of $287 million, a further $57 million was spent on the Centre’s expansion in 1999. The Centre has an ongoing refurbishment program investing $50 million over 5 years; the project continues to refresh the look of the Centre and increase its flexibility and suitability as a multi-purpose venue.
Architecture
Convention centre bayside
Builder: NSW Government
Architect: John Andrews
Convention Centre Bayside is designed in the form of two interlocking semi-circles. The space includes:
• Bayside Lounge
• Bayside Boardroom and Business Lounge
• Bayside Auditorium
• Bayside Grand Hall
• 17 meeting rooms
• Operations offices
• Service zone
• Bayside Information Desk
Convention centre parkside
Contract Managers: Department of Public Works, NSW
Architect: Anchor Mortlock & Woolley
Featuring convention facilities and 2,200 square metres of exhibition space, Convention Centre Parkside consolidates a central core of exhibition and convention space facilities. It includes:
• Exhibition Hall 6 – 2,200 square metres of space
• Parkside Auditorium
• Parkside Ballroom
• 10 meeting rooms
• Operations offices
• Service zone
Exhibition centre
Builder: NSW Government
Architect: Phillip Cox
The architect’s design represents the masts and rigging of the tall sailing ships that once crowded Darling Harbour.
The series of twenty, 38-metre tall masts and steel lines, which extend down to hold the roof, cover an exhibition space of 2.5 hectares which is equivalent to five football fields.
The Exhibition Centre’s five halls are 5,000 square metres each, and can interconnect to form a total of 25,000 square metres of column-free space.
The space includes:
• Central Exhibitor Services Desk
• 5 Exhibition Halls – each Hall has 5,000 square metres of space
• Cafés in the Halls
• Exhibitor Lounges
• Hospitality suites
Access
The Centre can be accessed on foot, by monorail, taxi, coach, ferry, water taxi, car and light rail. The Centre is a 10-15 minute walk from Sydney’s Town Hall and Central railway stations. An Airport Express Bus Service departs every thirty minutes from the Coach Bay outside the Novotel Darling Harbour Hotel.
Car parking spaces
The Exhibition Centre maximum 900,
including 2 spaces for hybrid cars.
Darling Harbour approximately 7,900
The Exhibition Centre car park is located below the Exhibition Centre with direct access to the Darling Harbour precinct.
Environmental initiatives
Since 2004 the Centre has been at the leading edge of venue and exhibition waste management. With its partner, SITA Environmental Solutions, the Centre has completely rebuilt its waste collection and removal system to take advantage of emerging best practice waste separation and recovery technologies. This includes:
• Custom-designed compactors with odour suppression units
• A flexible compactor assignment system customisable to events
• Glass crushers
• Colour-coded separation/collection points
• Clear pictorial signage
• New procedures, training and education materials
• Extensive monitoring and reporting systems
The result has been a massive increase in the amount of waste diverted from landfill, preservation of virgin resources, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and the support of ‘cradle to cradle’ rather than ‘cradle to grave’ product life cycles.
Every year the Centre continues to increase its volume of recycling, from only 24% in 2004/2005 to 60% in 2009/2010. From humble beginnings when only cardboard and paper were recycled, the Centre has developed a extensive resource recovery system with 12 separate waste streams including glass, untreated timber, incandescent and fluorescent light globes, metals, recyclable plastics, food, oil and liquid waste, paint, batteries, printer toners/cartridges and chemicals.
Winning the Events Industry Association of Australasia’s (EEAA) Best Green Initiative Award for the third consecutive year reinforced the Centre’s leadership in this area.
Certifications and accreditations
In July 2009, the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre became one of the first venues in the world to earn the prestigious Green Globe Silver Certification, an achievement that recognises its environmental leadership in the business events sector. The international certification follows a rigorous audit of the Centre's environmental programs, assessing the Centre's overall sustainability policy as well as its compliance measures and performance.
In January 2011, the Centre was one of the first venues in Australia to receive Silver Certification 2011 by EarthCheck, one of the world's largest environmental management programs used by sustainable travel and tourism operators.
The Centre also holds three leading international certifications relating to standards for environmental management, occupational health and safety, and food safety, reflecting the Centre's focus on implementing consistently high standards across its operations.
Artwork
When the Centre opened, several distinguished Australian artists were commissioned to create artworks that responded in some way to Sydney, its foreshores and harbour.
The result is a magnificent collection that includes outstanding expressionist imagery by acclaimed artists such as John Olsen, Charles Blackman, Lloyd Rees, Tim Storrier, John Firth-Smith, Ken Done and Sandra Leveson, with the most notable piece of work being Brett Whiteley’s “Sydney Harbour to the spirit of Bill W”.
The pieces sit beside stunning works by renowned Aboriginal artists, such as Ronnie Tjampitjinpa, Charlie Tjapangati and Long Jack Phillipus Tjakamarra.
Association memberships
The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre holds memberships with a number of industry associations. This enables the Centre to contribute to the national and international events industry.
These memberships include:
• Meetings and Events Australia (MEA)
• Exhibitions and Events Association of Australasia (EEAA)
• International Special Events Society (ISES)
• Venue Management Association (VMA)
• International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA)
• The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI)
• International Association of Congress Centres (AIPC)
• Tourism Australia Associations Program
• Darling Harbour Business Association (DHBA)
• Business Events Council of Australia (BECA)
Centre-supported charities
The Centre supports a number of charity organisations through sponsorship arrangements. The main charity the Centre supports is the Variety Children’s Charity, by holding the annual children’s Christmas party in the Exhibition Halls.
Contribution to community
The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre works with local food rescue service OzHarvest to ensure that any excess pre-packaged food from the venue does not go to waste. OzHarvest is a not-for-profit organisation that collects food and delivers it free of charge to 118 charities that provide meals for men, women and children in need throughout Sydney.
Awards and recognition
The Centre aims to excel in all areas of operation. To measure our success in providing premium products, services and as a place of employment, the Centre regularly enters event industry awards. Over the past years, we have been very successful in gaining recognition for our achievements in the following areas:
- Winner 2010 Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) National and State Awards, Meeting Venue – 500 delegates or more
- Winner 2010 Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) National and State Awards, Banquet and Catering
- Winner 2010 Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) National and State Awards, In-house AV Services
- Winner 2010 Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) National and State Awards, Corporate Social Responsibility
- Winner 2010 Australian Security Industry Association Limited (ASIAL) Awards, Australia’s best in-house Security team
- Winner 2010 Australian Event Awards, SPICE Magazine Australia’s Best Venue
- Winner 2010 World Travel Awards Australasia's Leading Meetings and Conference Centre
- Winner 2010 Exhibition and Events Association of Australasia Awards (EEAA), Best Green Initiative
- Winner 2010 Exhibition and Events Association of Australasia Awards (EEAA), Best Venue Team – Exhibitions
- Winner 2009 Exhibition and Event Association of Australia (EEAA) Trevor Riddell President’s Award
- Winner 2009 Exhibition and Events Association of Australia (EEAA) Best Sustainability Initiative Award
- Finalist 2009 Exhibition and Events Association of Australia (EEAA) Best Venue Team
- Finalist 2009 EIBTM Sustainable Initiative of the Year
- Finalist 2009 NSW Workplace Work Safety Awards
- Gold Fonterra Restaurant of Champions competition part of the 2009 Fine Food Fair Culinary Challenge
- Winner 2007 and 2008 Meetings and Events Industry Award (NSW): Meeting Venue – more than 500 delegates
- Winner 2008 Meetings and Events Industry Award (NSW): Operations Person of the Year
- Winner 2008 Meetings and Events Industry Award (NSW): Corporate Social Responsibility - Category C (over 30 full-time employees)
- Winner 2008 Exhibition and Events Association of Australia’s inaugural Best Green Initiative Award
- Winner 2007 NSW Nestlé Golden Chefs Hat Award
- Winner 2007 and 2008 Kraft Philadelphia Kitchen Restaurant Challenge
- Silver 2008 Kraft Philadelphia Front of House Challenge
- Silver 2008 Global Corporate Challenge – Most Active Company
- Winner 2008 Sydney Local Community Partnership – Outstanding Employer