Conference room prepared by duvall and ready for the meeting

Smooth sailing with duvall’s conference support behind and in front of the scenes

Date: 24 - 25 March 2024
Location: Bruges

Photography: Belgian Federal Parliament.

For the EU’s informal meeting of Fisheries Ministers, duvall took on the full responsibility of supplying not just the conference equipment, but furniture and pipe and drape solutions, too. By relying on duvall’s strong technical and project management expertise, meeting organisers were free to focus on the meeting programme and the participants. The result was plain sailing from technology to project management and staging.

A hands-on focus on EU fisheries and aquaculture

On March 24 and 25, Flemish Fisheries Minister Hilde Crevits invited her European colleagues to explore the future of the EU fisheries and aquaculture sector. The informal meeting was held at the BMCC in Bruges. The goal of the conference was to engage member states in a dialogue to discuss the unique challenges and potential solutions for enhancing and preserving the diverse EU fisheries sector, while aligning with EU-wide objectives. With a site visit to Zeebrugge, including a shrimp peeling session, participants were fully immersed in the conference topics.

Like a fish in conference waters

To manage the ebb and flow of a successful conference, duvall was once again selected as a key partner. What’s more, duvall was charged with more than just conference technology. To streamline operations, conference organisers asked duvall to work on staging as well. From furniture to pipe and drape.

Managing the conference event both frontstage and backstage requires robust project management skills. Not just technical and planning skills, but management, too. duvall worked with furniture rental supplier Alvero and Huzaar event management. From coming up with the right solutions over communications with all parties to providing technical on-site support: duvall got the job done.

An integrated solution from a to z

The informal meeting of Fisheries Ministers required planning, technology, and know-how. From fully SCIC/ISO-compliant interpreter booths including all equipment and staging to conference room microphones and more than 100 infrared receivers. Over a dozen displays were available, too.

The press room also featured interpreter booths and infrared receivers. Here too, duvall coordinated the furniture (lounge chairs and tables), pipe and drape, lecterns, and even carpeting. The result is a successful key moment for the press and participants as they take centre stage in an official setting, without any technical hiccups.

Equipment List

  • Conference room: Interpreter Booths (ISO Compliant)
    6 fully equipped interpreter booths for 3 people (5 languages) on a custom-built support (conference room), facilitating smooth multilingual communication.
  • Press room: Interpreter Booths (ISO Compliant)
    4 fully equipped interpreter booths for 3 people (5 languages) for the press room, facilitating smooth multilingual communication.
  • Televic Lingua Interpreter Console
    Served as the control hub for interpreters, managing the flow of languages effortlessly.
  • 170 infrared receivers (conference room and press room)
    Each unit facilitated the distribution of interpreted languages.

Furniture List

  • 3 lounge chairs and 3 tables
     
  • A press stage
     
  • 3 lecterns
     
  • Carpeting
     
  • Pipe and drape solutions (conference room and press room) 

Smooth sailing with a reliable partner

The EU’s informal meeting of Fisheries Ministers saw duvall take on additional responsibilities well beyond the technical part of a conference. It’s a clear sign of trust on the organiser’s part. duvall rose to the challenge and took care of staging, pipe and drape, and furniture coordination as well. And the technology? Of course duvall ran a tight ship. The result: no issues, a great meeting experience, and happy participants.

Thank you note from Hilde Crevits

Thank-you note for duvall from Hilde Crevits

Dear Wannes,

We look back on a very successful meeting of European fisheries ministers. As the hostess, I received many compliments on the professional support.

Through this message, I would like to convey these compliments to you and your team.

Organising this type of meeting requires a lot of preparation and professionalism, especially given our ambition to showcase the best of Flanders both in terms of content and organisation. Thanks to your professionalism and excellent cooperation, we have succeeded in this challenge!

As the author of The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, said: “If you want to build a boat, don’t get your men and women together to give them orders, to explain every detail, to tell them where to find everything. Rather give your men and women a taste for the endless sea.”

I want to thank you and your team wholeheartedly for giving us and the European fisheries ministers the taste for that endless sea!

Kind regards,

Hilde Crevits
Vice Minister-President of the Flemish Government
and Flemish Minister of Welfare, Public Health and Family

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