As frequent travellers to destinations worldwide, where we deliver technical event production for a range of corporate events, we are accustomed to producing conferences in Asia and the wider APAC region.

On this occasion we were delighted to return to Singapore to deliver a one-day conference production for our client.

Singapore is one of the most culturally enriched and forward-thinking places the world. Consequently, it is a thriving city for business and an ideal location for corporate events, such as this investors conference.

The Brief 

Our brief for the Singapore conference production was to deliver a full technical and AV package in the main conference suite, and in a separate breakout space. 

The conference was scheduled for one day and we had an additional day to rig and install all the technical equipment required. After the event, we would a matter of hours to de-rig the entire event, due to another booking at the venue the following day.

Working closely with our AV partner, who supports our conference productions in Asia and APAC region, we specified a comprehensive package for the Singapore conference production. This included:

• Room and stage lighting
• Speaker aids 
• PA system
• Sound system
• LED screens
• Translation booths, headsets and transmitters
• PowerPoint support
• Stage and set panels for breakout room
• Technical production crew

The Venue 

Our venue for the event was The Hilton Singapore Orchard. This is an extremely popular venue for international conferences, owing to its well-equipped AV set-up, and ability to accommodate large audiences. 

The client had hired two rooms within the venue:

• The Grand Ballroom, which was to be used for the main conference
• The Imperial Ballroom, which was used to split the group for breakout sessions in the afternoon.

The Grand Ballroom came equipped with a 5.5m state of the art movable LED wall. While in The Imperial Ballroom had two impressive LED walls. This level of AV equipment as standard meant enabled us to keep the AV cost down and we were able to meet the tight one day build time.

Being such a popular conference venue, bookings were back-to-back and the next conference was taking place the next day. Therefore, we needed to de-rig and load out all the equipment immediately after the conference, which we did overnight.

Singapore Site Visit

Although the venue for this conference came well-equipped with some of the essential AV equipment, it is always important to carry out a thorough site visit. When preparing a technical specification, you need to have a full picture of the layout, access and power supply. This ensures we specify the equipment and crew required to meet the client’s brief in cost effective manner.

Without a site visit, we are going into the build blind, and we risk having to source extra kit during the build day. When the event is taking place the next day, being under prepared is not an option, so we always insist on a full site visit.

One might think that as a UK production company, travelling to a site visit in Singapore may seem a costly exercise. However, to keep costs down, we recced a variety of venues in Singapore for our client’s other proposed events in the region. Where possible we always try to plan far enough in advance to ensure we can fulfil recces as part of another production within the region.

Our Review of The Hilton Singapore Orchard

Having recced The Hilton Singapore Orchard, we were delighted with the choice. It is incredibly rare to be presented with such good AV package as and great access as standard. Typically, a venue will present some issues; whether that’s power supply, space or access routes, but this was not the case with The Hilton Singapore Orchard.

The only issue we had was on the build day, when the power tripped due to a scheduled maintenance check the day before. This was quickly fixed and the conference was able to run efficiently.

How We Operate in The APAC Region 

Having worked across the APAC region for many years, we have come accustomed with the rules and regulations relating to crew, compliance, health and safety and their general working practices. These all vary greatly from the UK and Europe.

Fortunately, we have developed strong partnerships with local suppliers around the world for our international events. When working in the APAC region (Asia Pacific region, which for us at TPP, includes Australasia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia and America), we have a kit and crew supplier that we have worked with for 10+ years. 

With TPP at the helm of the conference’s technical production management, we specify the equipment and crew required, while our local supplier makes the necessary provisions. 

When it comes to crewing conferences and events in the APAC region, it is very different to UK. Britain’s AV technicians have a superior knowledge of technical production and can work faster. But, in the APAC region, the employer must meet union regulations that can be restricting in a rigging and set building environment. As a result, the crew numbers for events in Asia, America and Australia are much higher, which can pose an extortionate cost to the end client. For example, at most, you may expect 6-8 crew on an event in the UK, but for the same event in the US, it could be up to 22!

Facilitating Live Translation 

The conference welcomed over 100 delegates from Singapore, China, Korea and Japan. To accommodate the Korean and Japanese speaking guests, we provided soundproof booths for four translators, 50 headsets for the guests and radio transmitters. The interpreters provided a live translation throughout the conference.

The AV Specification for Singapore Conference Production

We’ve already mentioned how the venue offered large screens in both conference rooms, which kept the AV costs down. Therefore, our AV specification across both rooms included: 

• PA system
• Speaker system 
• A range of lighting fixtures – moving lights, LED washes, LED uplighters, profiles
• Comfort monitor for the presenters in each rooms
• Laptops, mixers and consoles

Final Thoughts 

We were delighted with how the Singapore conference production went. Having prepared in advance and selected a great venue, there was nothing we would do differently. 

If you are planning a conference and would like an expert technical production partner to support you, please contact us.