It was a week of superlatives for Hong Kong, as it played host to the massive ITU TELECOM WORLD 2006. The event, held for the first time in its 33-year history outside Geneva, was the largest ever exhibition to be held in Hong Kong, covering 70,000 square metres, or the entire floor space of the city's largest and most sophisticated exhibition centre, AsiaWorld-Expo.

The China factor - both as a growing consumer market and as a high-tech manufacturing base - played a major role in the decision to hold the event in Asia, according to the event organiser, the International Telecom Union (ITU). ITU scouted locations across the world before settling on Hong Kong and AsiaWorld-Expo.

The venue size, convenient location and level of technical and visitor support were key deciders in selecting AsiaWorld-Expo, while Hong Kong offered an international business community, first-class infrastructure and unrivalled links with the China market.

62,000 visitors - including 1,543 members of the media - converged in Hong Kong for the five-day event, benefiting from the convenient location alongside Hong Kong's International Airport and within 28 minutes of the city centre via a high-speed train link. Taking advantage of Hong Kong's unique position as a gateway city for China with global connections, the 2006 edition of ITU TELECOM WORLD saw a record of some 150 exhibiting companies from China.

For the AsiaWorld-Expo's team, the seamless running of the five-day event was the result of a year of planning and close partnership with the organiser and different parties. With the high quality hardware and world-class services in different aspects, AsiaWorld-Expo had met the demand of the organiser, exhibitors and visitors and acted as the key partner to the success of the event.

A detailed traffic management scheme with extensive marshalling facilities was essential to the success of the event. Ground floor access to column-free halls with high-floor loading allowed for easier loading and unloading of large amounts of booth and high-tech equipment. During the month-long set up period, over 2,000 trucks converged in the venue.

Temporary trusses had been installed to rig exhibitors' hanging structures weighting up to 23 tons! Along with 35 kilometres of ICT cables used to support a sophisticated technology infrastructure. The extensive broadband connections with the value-added complimentary wireless network across the venue had connected the event to cities across the world.

To ensure the greatest level of visitor comfort, AsiaWorld-Expo also offered varied food and beverage outlets with seating capacity of more than 3,000 as well as stand catering services. The venue's Expo Concierge service dealt with enquiries, ranging from direct baggage handling from the airport, to travel bookings and comprehensive business centre services.

Security issues were a top priority with a wide range of high-level business and government representatives, as well as millions of dollars worth of high tech equipment on show. Over 230 security personnel had been deployed during the event.