UKHA 2003/4 (long)

["Graham Howe" <graham@xxxxxxx>]

Well I am finally starting to recover after the weekend :-) I am
absolutely=
delighted with the response we had on the days and the reaction afterwards=
on this list. Thank you all for you kind words (both in public and private=
ly) and an even bigger thank you for all the suggestions to improve things
=
for next year.

Mark and I have already discussed several things that we would like to
chan=
ge and there have been lots of great suggestions here too. However, there
i=
s one thing we will not change (at least not for next year) and that is
our=
control over the event. I am sure that if we worked hard we could get sign=
ificant sponsorship, but I don't want this to be the 'Automation-R-Us Ltd
U=
KHA Conference' quite yet. We as a community have done really well to get
t=
o this point and I think we are capable of taking it a little further
ourse=
lves before involving the 'professionals'.

Here is my list of what I would like to achieve for next year, more things
=
will no doubt be added over time:

1. The venue and dates will be booked and published 6 months before the
eve=
nt. Where possible discounts and deals will be worked out for bedrooms,
ref=
reshments and other facilities.
2. Bookings will be encouraged as soon as the details are published. Those
=
booking early will receive discounted rates as will 2-day bookings over
1-d=
ay bookings. Those doing presentations and demos will have to book early
an=
d to state their requirements in terms of equipment.
3. An initial agenda will be published as soon as the early booking period
=
has ended. At this point all demonstrations and presentations will have
bee=
n identified for the event and will be published. Running order will not
be=
available, though there may be an indication of presentations that are onl=
y available for a single day, where possible everything will be repeated
on=
both days.
4. Key organisation team will have access to the venue from the preceding
a=
fternoon and will install infrastructure (wired and wireless network,
power=
points, tables and chairs, projectors and screens). There will be a single=
network connecting all rooms so that those doing presentations in the main=
rooms can connect to servers or other equipment in other rooms if necessar=
y.
5. Presenters and demonstrators will be encouraged to setup and test the
da=
y before the event. For those actively demonstrating any equipment this
wil=
l be a requirement, but basic PowerPoint type presentations and static
disp=
lays will not be subject to the same rules.
6. The venue will have two big rooms with permanent presentation
facilities=
setup. The presentation setup will include power and network connections t=
o the projector point so that laptops can be connected up easily.
Projector=
s and required cables will be supplied by the organisers as will laptops
wi=
th presentation software.
7. All presentations will be submitted in advance of the event and loaded
o=
n these laptops (with harmonised templates) so that presenters will not
hav=
e to bring their own equipment. A CD of all the presentations will be
avail=
able at the event for attendees to take a copy and will be sold for a
small=
contribution after the event for those who can't attend.
8. Small rooms will be used (or possibly a third large room) for static
dis=
plays and these will be located as close to the main rooms as possible.
Tab=
les, chairs, power and network will be allocated and shown on a floor plan
=
for each room.
9. If there are to be any audio, video or other equipment shootouts then
th=
ey will have to be setup and tested the day before the event. Due to the
co=
mplex nature of these particular types of demo, they will have to be
tested=
, scripted and rehearsed so that they fit in their nominated slot.
Equipmen=
t required for such demos must be dedicated to them, in general it will
not=
be acceptable to borrow equipment from other stands or presentations.
10. Saturday will start at 10:30 and finish at 18:00, Sunday will start at
=
09:30 and finish at 17:00. All presentations will be 30 minutes long (some
=
exceptions may be allowed) and will kick-off on the hour. With 2 rooms
this=
means a maximum of 7 presentations in each of the 2 rooms. However, it see=
ms sensible to plan a break in the middle for people to grab some lunch or
=
check out the stands, so I would suggest we limit the number of
presentatio=
ns to 12 per day. We could start earlier, end later, pack presentations
clo=
ser together, but it would not be fair for those travelling long distances
=
and would give us no contingency.
11. There will be an official social event on the Saturday night which
alth=
ough not covered in the price of the ticket, will take advantage of a
group=
discount. Attendees will need to state whether they will attend the evenin=
g event when they book and may not be able to attend if they book too late.
12. Some of the organisational duties will be assigned to specific
individu=
als (volunteers/conscripts to be confirmed) such as collecting bookings,
pr=
oducing names tags and other delegate materials, accepting money on the
doo=
r and treasurer. Other organisational items like determining the agenda,
ro=
om layout, running order and so on are likely to be by committee.
13. All information relating to the event will be available on a dedicated
=
web site including discussion forum, latest agenda information, delegate
pa=
cks, presentation templates and floor plans.
14. Those booking early will be entitled to partial refunds if they have
to=
cancel, the refund will taper off the closer the cancellation is to the ev=
ent to reflect the way venue cancellation clauses tend to work. In the
very=
unlikely event that the whole thing is cancelled, all money will be return=
ed after actual incurred costs have been subtracted.
15. At the very latest, the full agenda and running order for both days
wil=
l be available 2 weeks before the event though a target should be a month
b=
efore.
16. Either the venue or the organisers will provide some sort of PA for
pre=
sentations.
17. I would expect the cost of the event to be very similar next year, it
s=
eemed a reasonable amount to pay for such an event and very few of the
impr=
ovements suggested actually require additional funds. The actual price
will=
be determined after gathering quotes from the venue and getting some indic=
ation of the number of attendees.

Right, I think that's enough for now, but please feel free to send me any
o=
ther suggestions and I'll add them to the list. I will be contacting the
ho=
tel in Hatfield in the near future to discuss the possibility of returning
=
next year as I think it was a good venue and with a little more planning
co=
uld be perfect for at least one more event. Following the success of this
e=
vent I would expect them to offer good deals on rooms, evening meal,
refres=
hments etc.

For those of you that are interested, I am still in the process of working
=
out all the figures from this year's event, but after paying for rooms,
pri=
zes and a few minor admin costs, it looks like we will have over =A3700
pro=
fit. This will of course now go forward to next year to ensure further
succ=
ess. As soon as I have the final figures I'll post them here.

Regards

Graham Howe