VEE 2011

A look back at all that transpired at the second-annual Virtual Elevator Event (VEE), held June 1.

On June 1, ELEVATOR WORLD held its second-annual Virtual Elevator Event (VEE), complete with exhibits, networking opportunities and conference presentations given by 11 of the industry’s leading professionals. The web-based expo was held on demand until September 8 and attended by more than 1,500 people, an increase from the 2010 event (EW, April 2010).

The event was held live between 6:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. CDT. Using ON24 (a virtual event solutions provider) platform and organized by EW, the virtual expo provided attendees with the same opportunities one can get at a traditional face-to-face trade show.

How It Works

The Main Hall is the entrance to the event, where attendees received a formal greeting from EW Vice President and Chief Operating Officer T.Bruce MacKinnon. The Main Hall included a list of industry sponsor logos and the toolbar allowing users to navigate the exhibit and other areas. The Theater Hall included PowerPoint presentations, question-and-answer (Q&A) sessions and livechats with the presenters. The Exhibit Hall offered both an exhibitor list at the top of the page and the ability to pan left and right to see the different exhibitors, allowing guests to enter the booths with a simple click.

All VEE sponsors received a booth with several options to showcase their products and services. Included among the sponsor features were video and PowerPoint presentations and the display of various types of documents. Attendees were able to participate in live communication, in addition to attending live chats with sponsor representatives.

The Networking Lounge accommodated group and scheduled chats, various message boards and a network of attendees’ contacts. The Resource Center contained numerous industry-related materials, which included brochures, videos, white papers, etc. The documents were available to all attendees for downloading. Many of the resources proved to be very useful for attendees.

Kimberly Shaffer of Atlantic Elevator Consulting commented on the Resource Center:

“I ‘met’ some good people, and I got some timely information that I used on a project shortly after. My virtual briefcase has plenty of information I need to go back to. I took full advantage of the available resources; it was great to have them so convenient.”

Booths and Sponsors

VEE’s booth participants and sponsors included Sematic Group; MP; Prisma; Underwriters Laboratories; NAESA International; Draka; Alimak Hek; Brugg Lifting; the Elevator Escalator Safety Foundation; Fermator; Lift Solutions, Inc.; Imperial Electric; Motion Control Engineering; Montanari Giulio & C.; the International Association of Elevator Consultants; and 2N Telecommunications.

Each booth was easily accessible and navigable, giving attendees the opportunity to listen to a brief introduction and, when live, network with booth representatives from the comfort of their own computers. Some exhibitors gave video demonstrations of company products, supplied documents such as catalogs and brochures and provided technical information.

Just like most trade shows, there were giveaways at this year’s event. EW provided cash and prizes valued at more than US$15,000, including Apple and Visa gift cards, a five-year print subscription to EW, a VEE 2012 booth or presentation opportunity, a full-page company advertisement in the EW SOURCE© and educational packages, among various other items. In July, EW sent an e-mail survey to those who attended VEE, asking them to answer questions about their virtual experience. Survey participants were entered into a drawing to receive a US$50 Visa gift card.

Attending trade shows is important to industry members, as the events provide networking and an introduction to new products and services. In today’s global market, virtual trade shows are establishing several advantages in the vertical-transportation industry. VEE attendees were able to benefit from a full-fledged global trade show, at their convenience and as often as they wanted to while the event was on demand without the hassle and expense of traveling.

VEE 2012 will be held on June 13, 2012, and will stay on demand for 90 days. For more information, visit website: www.elevatorworld.com/vee.

Conference Agenda

• TAK Mathews of TAK Consulting and Indian editor of EW India, provided insights into the Indian elevator market. His presentation included an industry analysis and market figures.
• Giuseppe De Francesco of Sematic presented a paper on linear operations for commercial and residential applications versus harmonic operators.
• Phil Andrews and Dr. Stefan Kaczmarczyk of the University of Northampton presented a Continuing-Education (CE) paper on lift rope dynamics followed by a live Q&A session.
• Enrico Maggioni of Sematic presented a paper pertaining to EN 81-80 and door solutions for modernizations.
• Manuel Ventura Sala of MP gave a presentation on energy efficiency and environmental impact of lifts followed by a Q&A session.
• David Cooper of Consulting Engineers LECS (U.K.) presented a CE paper entitled “Falls over or From the Sides of Escalators.”
• Julian Shull of Underwriters Laboratories gave a presentation on performance-based codes with an emphasis on the Accredited Elevator/Escalator Certification Organization certification process followed by a Q&A session.
• James R. Runyan of NAESA International presented the CE paper “A17.1 2004-2005s Firefighters’ Emergency Operations.”
• Kevin Heling of Brugg Lifting presented a CE paper on hoist-rope life and system performance.
• John Koshak of Elevator Safety Solutions, Inc. presented a CE paper on maintenance control programs and machine-room-less elevator inspections.

Survey Responses

Following the event, EW conducted a survey pertaining to the experiences of VEE participants. Among the responses were:

• More than 90% stated they would attend another virtual event in the future.
• Nearly 68% said they are considering or currently doing business with the exhibitors at VEE.
• More than half of last year’s attendees said VEE 2011 was better than VEE 2010.
• Almost 80% said the quality of the presentations was good or excellent.
• 88% of those who downloaded the available resources said the documents were good or excellent.
• 84% said they went back at least once while the event was on demand.
• 54% of VEE 2011 attendees were first-time participants.

VEE Stats:

• How attendees participated:
• Average viewer show duration: 151.2 min.
• One-to-one chats: 502
• E-mails exchanged: 277
• V-cards exchanged: 445
• Documents viewed: 2,509
• Webcasts viewed: 850
• Location and booth chats entered: 3,192
• Scheduled chats entered: 259