As the official installer partner for both IFSEC International and FIREX International, SSAIB are saddened to hear that this year’s showpiece security and fire events have been postponed due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic.
After the initial May dates fell foul of the coronavirus lockdown, the shows had been rearranged for September 8-10. However, show organisers Informa have taken the difficult decision to postpone IFSEC and FIREX 2020 indefinitely and begin their focus on next year’s editions – as they hope to make a return to the ExCel in London on May 18-20, 2021.
A full statement from Chris Edwards, group exhibition director at Informa, can be viewed below.
I am very sorry to have to tell you that we have made the difficult decision to postpone IFSEC and FIREX International, along with all of the other co-located events that were due to run at London ExCeL on September 8-10, 2020. The events will now run May 18-20, 2021, still at London ExCeL.
We know how important our events are as a forum where our communities come together to learn, network and meet suppliers. We have a proud track record of hosting the largest gatherings of any event in our industry in the UK - and often beyond - and no one is more disappointed in this decision than us, but after much deliberation we are sure that this is absolutely the right thing to do in the circumstances.
Our focus over the last three months has been on ensuring that we can provide a safe and secure environment for our visitors, exhibitors and staff and whilst we felt confident of achieving this, we also have a duty to our customers to provide an event that matches the standards they expect of us. Additionally, as you know, these events have strong international participation and this would be severely compromised given the current restrictions.
After carefully considering the options, and following discussions with exhibitors and event partners, it became clear that postponement is the most sensible option. Whilst we are convinced we could make the event safe, the travel restrictions - combined with your feedback - give us confidence that this is the right decision.
We welcomed many thousands of industry colleagues during our Digital Week in May and we continue to develop our online platforms to offer additional ways of connecting with the wider industry. We will continue to work with our customers to help them connect with audiences online, using both our existing platforms and several new initiatives due to launch later this year.
As each of our communities look to rebuild and recover in 2021, our team will also be working hard to ensure we return next year with an event that brings people back together for the reunion everyone will be crying out for. Details on how our events will continue to evolve and develop for next year will be forthcoming over the summer.
Exhibitor bookings will transfer automatically to 2021 and we will be in contact with each and every customer and event partner to discuss this in person. Rest assured that prices will be frozen from 2020 and we will be reaching out to everyone by phone but if we can’t reach any individual for a few days, then by email.
Please bear with us as we work through this process over the next few days.
Thank you for your continued support,
Chris Edwards
Group Exhibition Director