Virtual events to reduce the environmental footprint

In 2018, the 2 670 fairs organized in continental Europe attracted more than 735 500 exhibitors and 75.4 million visitors. However, holding a trade show has a considerable impact on the environment: travel, overnight stays, meals, transport of equipment, lighting of stands, etc., consume a lot of energy and resources, and are responsible for a large volume of greenhouse gas emissions.

Italian researchers (Toniolo et al. 2017) used life cycle analysis to calculate the carbon footprint associated with the organization of an industrial event. Transportation, stay and accommodation of 120 exhibitors in an 11 600 m2 hall can generate more than 1 974 tons of CO2 equivalent per day. The stand set-up, lighting and heating of exhibition areas alone represent 75.5 tons of CO2 equivalent.

Organizing virtual events could significantly reduce CO2 emissions. Thanks to an Internet connection, new information and communication technologies allow exhibitors and their visitors to meet in a virtual exhibition space. In addition, running professional events online has an environmental impact more than 30 times lower than that of a physical event. This is shown by a study carried out in 2018 (Belkhir and Elmeligi) on the carbon footprint of electronic devices (computer, smartphone and digital tablet) in computer centers and networks: a virtual exhibition bringing together 120 exhibitors and 11 734 visitors would generate around 58.67 tons of CO2 equivalent per day.

For BOBST, the Covid-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to accelerate the development of alternatives to the organization of physical events. As part of its vision for the packaging industry, BOBST has launched innovative communication tools to interact more effectively with customers and prospects while reducing its environmental footprint. The opening of benchmark websites and the virtualization of the customer experience via live streaming demonstrations allow BOBST to present its products, solutions and services all over the world with fewer constraints of movement.

Bobst Mex SA, Switzerland