Nestled in the heart of Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Elementz Live has carved a niche for itself in the world of live events. They pride themselves on being professional and detail-oriented, and are masters of live event production and technical installation.
But, with great power comes great responsibility, which is also the case for Elementz Live. What happens when a world-class event has to be executed meticulously? What happens when perfectionists like Elementz Live have to deal with sky-high demand and last-minute requests? This is what working on the COP28 conference looks like.
The challenge: Orchestrating chaos in a high-stakes environment
The COP28 is one of the most important UN Climate Change conferences, and in 2023, it was held in Dubai. The monumental event was attended by more than 85,000 participants, including over 150 heads of state and government. The conference marked an important milestone in climate change combat, as it signaled the conclusion of the first ‘global stocktake’ under the Paris Agreement.
However, when it comes to producing an event of such magnitude, few think about the challenges of making it happen in the first place. Behind the scenes, the chaos is real. This was also the case for Elementz Live, as they were in charge of supporting a series of turn-key and dry-hire deliveries for the exhibitors: from orchestrating equipment (such as trussing, stage and audio systems) all the way to communicating with their team & customers in a timely manner.
We had to be on our toes when it came to our own stock levels. With the scale of the COP conference putting local stocks under extreme pressure, there were lots of last-minute requests, anything from software updates to complete LED wall displays.
But the challenge also comes from deep societal roots. As Renato confirmed, in the UAE, the biggest local challenge is time. Local clients tend to have very ‘last-minute behaviors’, often making urgent requests even on the day of the production, which put a lot of pressure on Elementz Live.
Using the right tool to make sure nothing falls through the cracks
You can’t just help organize one of the most important events of the year without a proper production structure set in place. Handling all processes, from winning the bid, and planning all resources, to communicating schedules to your crew cannot be done on such short notice without a team in place, or without the right planning tool.
This is where Rentman jumped in and helped them have a bird’s eye view of their production processes. As Renato confirmed, with so many last-minute changes, it would have been difficult to ‘stick to the original quote’ without having a general overview that Rentman offers; or saying it out bluntly, ensuring the production is profitable. It doesn’t matter how prestigious the event is, if there is a large discrepancy between your actual costs and the original quote, you’ll lose money.
To keep up with the high-stakes environment of the COP event, Elementz Live used Rentman to:
- Understand the needs of the customers and quote them based on reliable information;
- Plan and allocate resources efficiently, always knowing if they have enough equipment for the job;
- Communicate with crew members to ensure equipment goes to the right place, last-minute tasks are covered, and clients are satisfied with the delivery;
- Track logistical movements, as their warehouse crew is trained to use Rentman when packing & scanning items;
- Update project details with last-minute changes, plan new shipments, extend project timelines and automatically get new estimated costs;
- Monitor production performance and see whether the event was profitable or not.
At the COP28 event, Rentman helped us measure the effectiveness and profitability per item and resource, meaning that we’ll know if our investments are working, and can help us make better purchases next time based on reliable data.
The bottom line
Elementz Live’s story is proof that no event is unmanageable without the help of an efficient planning tool like Rentman, no matter how large or small it is. The COP28 was a successful event, where various heads of states managed to align on a working plan to combat climate change.
Rentman further helped them to have a better understanding of their project costs, which assured Renato that their production will turn out to be profitable.
Thanks, Renato, for your interesting insights! We’re sure that the COP28 couldn’t have been this successful without your contribution.
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