The Darwin Convention Centre is celebrating its first four years of successful operation with a remarkable record of achievement, establishing the Centre and Darwin among the leading convention destinations in the world.
Over 283,000 visitors…777 events…489,000 hours of employment provided…an estimated
$172 million in economic benefit generated for Darwin…and an impressive collection of industry awards.
This summary of outstanding performance is a clear endorsement of the appointment by the NT Government of AEG Ogden, the largest venue management company in the Asia Pacific region, as managers of the Darwin Convention Centre.
From a standing start with a hole in the ground – admittedly in one of the most breathtaking locations in the world – the Darwin Convention Centre team has taken the Centre to a position of worldwide recognition and industry leadership in a fiercely competitive market.
In four years, the Darwin Convention Centre has clearly demonstrated its performance credentials and in doing so has proved to be at least the equal of the top convention centres in Australia, some which have been operating for twenty years.
This year, Darwin Convention Centre successfully completed a rigorous external audit to be awarded Gold Certification by the AIPC (International Association of Congress Centres) the highest achievement in its Quality Standards Program, joining a select group of only 18 AIPC convention facilities to have achieved this certification to date. The Centre is also ISO 9001- accredited for quality management systems from Lloyds Register Quality Assurance Ltd.
The Centre also added to its impressive list of performance-based awards the prestigious Brolga Northern Territory Tourism Awards for Excellence for the second successive year.
Since its very first days, the Convention Centre has committed itself to supporting Darwin’s position as one of Australia’s fastest growing economic engines.
The presence of the Convention Centre as an acknowledged leader among business events destinations not only changed the iconic and historic harbour side landscape of Darwin, but also contributed to changing the commercial profile of the city, with the Centre becoming the catalyst and major driver of the city’s high growth business events industry.
The Centre’s expanded profile in the market place has attracted continued growth in the number of Australia’s foremost business, industry and professional groups and associations holding their major conferences and events at the Darwin Convention Centre, reflecting the profile and ranking of both the City and the Centre as a leading business and meetings destination.
The most recent example of such interest was the hosting of the 2012 annual conference of the eminent Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) just last month, attracting more than 400 chairpersons, CEOs, heads of government departments and statutory bodies to the city and Conference Centre.
Malu Barrios, Darwin Convention Centre General Manager, said “The Centre’s forward bookings are strong, currently holding 191 confirmed events through to 30 June 2015. We have every confidence in our ability to continue to build on the success of our first four years. The management team at the Darwin Convention Centre is committed to innovate and seek initiatives to achieve an increasing share of the convention and events market for Darwin – and above all to align our priorities with those of the NT Government.”
