Well, as they say, better late than never and so it is with our May 2006 update. To be honest it was an extremely hectic month. Late April saw Periscope Management Consultants on a plane to the UK in preparation for the IFSEC Exhibition at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre (NEC). IFSEC forms part of the CMP’s May Series of Exhibitions. Whilst the series’ dates change they are always held during the month of May.

Arriving into Heathrow saw Periscope committed to a number of scheduled meetings in and around London. Once these meetings were finished, it was onto a British Airways flight into what was once part of the old Soviet Union for some more meetings. Latvia, which sits in between Estonia and Lithuania, is symptomatic of the dramatic changes this part of the world is undergoing. The rate of change is breathtaking and depending upon who you talk to it is either “fantastic” or “sad”.

Meetings over it was back into a plane into Gatwick and thence onto Dublin, Ireland. Periscope is well placed to make some observations about both countries, having visited both Ireland and the Soviet Union since the 1990’s. Ireland entered the European Union in the 1990’s and quite simply hasn’t looked back. The changes are dramatic but one has to say that Ireland probably was the last EU entrant to fully benefit from the generous funding schemes.

Dublin is now the home for a number of very enterprising technology and software companies. Valentiatech has a new software package and networking solution and this was the reason for our visit to Dublin. Once again it was onto a plane and then into Birmingham International Airport very late on a Monday evening, having been held up by firstly a fog bound Dublin airport and then by a breakdown of the computerized ticketing system.

Tuesday morning saw Periscope link up with Dr Barry Henley Chief Executive of the Birmingham University Technology Innovation Centre (TIC). The TIC is as its name implies, innovative and the forefront of process engineering, looking for ways to improve old processes or in most instances, looking for totally new solutions. It’s always refreshing to meet Dr Barry Henley and hear of the latest TIC projects.

The rest of the Exhibition was spent meeting exhibitors and discussing new products to market. IFSEC is vast and provides an excellent opportunity to catch up on the latest from around the world. The range of exhibitors’ stands never ceases to amaze me, likewise the approaches taken to catch the eye of visitors. Following are a few examples of what Exhibitors both large and small are doing at the truly top level of International Exhibitions.

If you have never been as a visitor to IFSEC, do it at least once in your lifetime. If you are serious about touting your wares overseas, it is simply an opportunity you can’t afford to miss. Roll on IFSEC 2007.

Mid range stands at IFSEC 2006 Gunnebo IFSEC 2006 Stand

Things are getting a little bit bigger TYCO’s Stand IFSEC 2006

At the bigger end of town it’s “ground plus one” PANASONIC’s Stand IFSEC 2006

PETARDS Stand IFSEC 2006

Then there are those that like to go one step further GE’s Stand IFSEC 2006

GE used overhead walkways to connect their stands

How Exhibitors did it in FIRE SOLUTIONS 2006 COOPER’s Stand in FIRE SOLUTIONS 2006

Simple yet Effective VESDA’s Stand

NOVEL WAYS OF ATTRACTING ATTENTION TO YOUR