Following the announcement by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday 14th June, the organiser of IntraLogisteX, Akabo Media, is pleased to confirm that the exhibition will take place as planned on 1st and 2nd July, at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry.
The UK government’s widely anticipated delay in lifting all restrictions ultimately has no adverse impact on the successful staging of what remains this year’s only major event for the intralogistics industry – and the first event for the sector in almost two years.
“Even based on Step 3 of the Government’s planned easing of restrictions, we have been able to put on IntraLogisteX,” commented Stephen Brooks, Managing Director of Akabo Media. “We have far less than 1,000 visitors in the hall at any one time and always have done. In terms of safety protocols, the wearing of masks is advised for all staff and visitors – and that probably would have been prudent even had all restrictions been fully lifted.
“It also seems sensible – but not mandatory – that with the simplicity of booking and conducting a test that as many of our visitors and exhibitor staff take a lateral flow test prior to attending,” continued Stephen. “My two children take one of these tests twice a week for school and my wife takes one once a week for school as well. These tests are free and can be taken at home with the results reported online.
“In terms of safety, there have been a large number of test events run over the past couple of months both in the UK and abroad – business events, music events, festivals, etc – where there have been no particular incidents of Covid infections passed around at all,” Stephen added. “Yesterday’s announcement is not affecting UEFA EURO 2020 matches in the UK, which as we can see are still going ahead at Wembley Stadium and Hampden Park. The tennis Championships at Wimbledon and I believe the British Grand Prix at Silverstone will all operate at or near-full capacity even under Step 3 conditions, attracting tens of thousands of people.
“Step 4 was more about nightclubs, bars, clubs, etc, opening up, in confined spaces – not a 6,000m2 exhibition hall with 10m-high ceilings and a few hundred people an hour. The only practical difference Step 4 would have had on the exhibition was the Exhibitors’ Party in the Casino, which we’ll now need to take guidance on.
“Given that between yesterday and the first day of the show on 1st July 2021, another 10 million vaccinations will be administered, not going to Step 4 – though a cautious response – ultimately does not impact IntraLogisteX in any way, shape or form.
“We look forward to finally welcoming 150 or so exhibitors to the show on the 1st & 2nd July and although these are strange times that we find ourselves in, we will endeavour to make the event truly worthwhile.”
Do not miss your chance to register now for the most exclusive warehousing show of the year!
Notes:
How do I get a lateral flow test? (https://maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk/)
Order coronavirus (COVID-19) rapid lateral flow tests (https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests)
