International business
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of technology related to smart cities through a
network with three poles, established between
Asia, Europe and America South. Those present
included experts from Japan, India, Israel,
South Korea, the United States, Spain and other
countries.
The celebration of the first Japanese edition
in Kyoto forms part of Fira de Barcelona’s
strategy to hold local and regional versions of
the Smart City Expo World Congress around the
world. In 2013, the Colombian city of Bogota
hosted the first celebration of the Smart City
Expo outside the Fira de Barcelona venues.
The conference programme at the Smart
City Expo in Kyoto revolved around two main
themes: the urban and social changes that
cities are undergoing due to new policies and
technologies; and technological and industrial
contributions to help meet the challenges
regarding environment and mobility in cities.
Smart City Expo Puebla
The Smart City Expo World Congress
designated the Mexican city of Puebla to host
the Latin American edition in 2016. The event
will take place at the Exhibition Centre in Puebla,
and the central theme will be social equity.
With Smart City Expo Puebla, then, Mexico
joins Japan, Canada and Colombia as countries
that have hosted continental editions this
leading international summit on smart cities.
Montreal hosted the event in March 2015, the
year that we published this report, whilst the
second edition took place in Kyoto in May.
The agreement was signed in November
2014 by Tony Galí, mayor of Puebla, and
Agustín Cordón, CEO of Fira de Barcelona. Galí
expressed his hope that "Puebla can become a
smart model for other cities in Latin America",
whilst Cordón stressed the strategic nature of
Puebla and Mexico as "a bridge between the
North American and Hispanic markets and puts
us in a privileged position for bringing together
and promoting urban projects in Latin America”.
Puebla, the fourth largest city in Mexico,
is a World Heritage site and its old town is
the biggest on the continent, with more
than 2,600 buildings listed by UNESCO.
Three million people live and work in the city’s
metropolitan area.
Construmat at Ficons
Construmat, a show organised by Fira de
Barcelona, was present with its own pavilion at
Ficons, the International Construction Materials,
Equipment and Services Trade Fair, which took
place in Pernambuco from September 16 to 20
and is considered one of the most important
events in the construction industry in north and
northeast Brazil, one of the markets with the
most growth potential.
In what was a magnificent opportunity
for Catalan and Spanish companies in the
sector, the fair was attended by a large number
construction manufacturers and suppliers.
Consulting services
In 2014, Fira de Barcelona continued to
cooperate with the Forum Santé International,
the main health show in Quebec and one of
the most important in Canada. The Forum took
place on October 7 and 8 at the Congress
Palace in Montreal. Fira de Barcelona provided
consulting services related to the development
and implementation of services for registration,
accreditation, business match, the creation of
online content and so on.
Organised by the Quebec University
Hospital Centre (CHUQ), the Forum brought
together experts and professionals with a view
to discussing and putting forward strategic
proposals related to challenges concerning
health. Innovation, management, telehealth care
and personalised assistance were the main
subjects discussed at the meeting.
Moreover, Fira de Barcelona continued to
provide consulting services to the Congress
Palace in Montreal with a view to developing its
portfolio of products and services for exhibitors
and visitors, marketing policy and relations with
suppliers.
In 2014, Fira de Barcelona also signed a
trade agreement with the Espacio Riesco trade
fair and congress centre in Santiago de Chile for
the development of national and international
shows and congresses with growth potential
in the medium and long term and to share
experiences and resources.
Over the course of the year, moreover, new
cooperation projects were studied with other
organisers and venues in other countries, some
of which have already been announced (Qatar,
Havana, Ulan Bator and so on), all of which
helps to reinforce the internationalisation of Fira
de Barcelona.
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