International Conference Production4 Events, 4 Countries |
Location:
Madrid, Chicago, Melbourne and Seoul
Event:
Roche International lidERA Conference
Service:
Conference Production
At TPP, we are no strangers to international conference production and on this occasion, we travelled to Spain, Australia, USA, and South Korea to help the team at Roche deliver a series of conferences.
The Client
Roche is one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, advancing breakthrough diagnostics and medicines to treat human diseases.
TPP has supported Roche conferences for many years. We have travelled the world with the company, ensuring their delivery of studies and medical advancements to healthcare professionals is expertly produced.
You may question why the company goes to such great lengths to meet their audience in-person. Well, we’ve seen first-hand the importance of Roche’s face-to-face meetings. When the information being shared is intricate in nature, and requires the utmost respect, the way it is interpreted by the audience cannot be compromised. Therefore in-person conferences really are the best option.
During lockdown, Roche did initiate solely virtual conferences, but found it was not conducive to their needs; the audiences were not as engage or compelled to participate. Nor did they have the opportunity for open discussions during breaks with Roche representatives.
The return to the conference room could not have come sooner for Roche. Hence, this year we have travelled to four continents to support the team with international conference production.

The Brief: International Conference Production for a Hybrid Audience
While the audience was mostly in-person, the events would also need to be filmed for Roche’s records and streaming to a virtual audience who were unable to travel.
The Challenges:
Four International Venues
Each of the four venues presented different challenges in terms of floor space, ceiling height, access, network connectivity and power. Therefore, the set style and equipment differed from one venue to another.
Before we could specify the set and technical equipment, we had to carry out a site visit in each of the chosen venues.
During the site visits, a TPP representative met with the venue and liaised with local suppliers, ensuring the kit, crew, access, and schedule could be met.
Access Restraints
Site visits are crucial to the planning process, it’s never enough to merely use hotel site plans. We can’t stress this enough to our clients, and in Madrid this became evident.
Although the conference room in Madrid could accommodate a 14ft high set, the lift to the conference room could only fit 8ft panels. This meant cutting the set panels in half in the UK and then joining them together on-site in Madrid. Had TPP not done a site visit, this scenario would have been a disaster during the build.
Crew and Kit
For the conferences outside of Europe, due to localised unions, we had to use local crew. This is something we have come accustomed to and therefore have great connections worldwide.
For the European conferences however, we always aim to use our own crew and kit, as we consider our equipment and people to be the finest technical production experts in the world.
Maintaining the Brand Identity
With each venue using different kit and set styles, it was challenging to maintain the brand identity across all four events.
However, for aesthetic consistency, we used the same branding on the set, purple LED washes, and large screens to provide an uncompromised view of the information being shared. We also provided a coffee table and chairs for the panel.




The Delivery: Expert Technical Production
Conferences require expert technical production. One glitch in the presentation, filming or lighting and the audience’s focus can be hard to recover. Not to mention how off putting it can be for the speaker.
At TPP, we pride ourselves on delivering high quality and seamless technical production. That entails proper planning in advance, providing excellent kit that we can rely on, allowing for rehearsals, employing reliable, conscientious crew, and being attentive throughout the conference.
For the Roche international conference production, we supplied the following technical services:
- Lighting design, rigging, installation and operation
- Set and stage design and build
- Speaker comfort monitors displaying the time and presentation to the speaker during the event
- AV solutions, including PA systems for speakers and large screens
- Hot head cameras to record the event for streaming and editing at a later date
- PowerPoint management, video stitching and show laptops

The Results
The international conference production for all of the events went as planned, giving Roche the professional platform they required in all four cities.
The team at TPP look forward to supporting Roche again in the not too distant future.
Need Technical Support and Conference Production?
If you need support planning your conference production, speak to the team at The Production People.
By involving us in your event team early in the planning process, you can take full advantage of our expertise, saving you time and resources.
We’ll work with you to:
- Assess the venue
- Design a look for your conference
- Draw up a comprehensive kit list
- Crew your event with the right people
- Design and build the set and stage
- Install and manage the technical equipment
- Engage both a live and virtual audience
- Record and stream your event
- Ensure everything goes according to plan on the day!
To find out more, contact our team today.