Institute of Trade Fair Management
The Institute of Trade Fair Management and Distribution Research at the University of Cologne carries out both basic and applied research into trade fair management. It is driving the implementation of scientific results in practical application.
History and purpose of the Institute
The Institute of Trade Fair Management and Distribution Research was established in cooperation with the University of Cologne on the occasion of Koelnmesse’s 75th jubilee in the summer of 1999. It is attached to the Economics and Social Sciences Department and chaired by Professor Werner Delfmann and Professor Karen Gedenk. Koelnmesse GmbH plays a major role in supporting the Institute financially via the foundation Koelnmesse Stiftung, which was also established in 1999.
Students there, e.g. in the profile group Trade Fair Management, receive a comprehensive insight into the trade fair business as a profession by means of lectures, exercises, and practical research projects.
As an interface between theory and practice, the Institute carries out basic and applied research into trade fair management and drives the implementation of scientific results in practice. In November 2004, it carried out the first European benchmark study of trade fair companies, which it presented at the Congress of UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, in Bangkok.
The Institute has been organizing the International Summer University for Trade Fair Management (ISU) in cooperation with UFI annually since August 2006. This compact seminar, which is aimed at trade fair industry executives, concentrates on further training on trade-fair-specific topics and, in particular, the exchange of ideas with colleagues and experts from around the world.
