The Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland and the Global Center for Health Innovation recently has completed two significant facility upgrades geared toward improving energy efficiency and enhancing its exhibitor services.

Late last year, the facility replaced 140 metal-halide light bulbs in its truck loading dock with LED technology bulbs as well as installed a permanent pneumatic air distribution system (compressed air) in the utilidor beneath the exhibit hall floor.

Visit Seattle has unveiled a new event planner-focused video that takes a unique and artistic approach in showcasing what the Pacific Northwestern destination has to offer.

Using paper cut animation, “Seattle: A City Ready for You,” not only highlights typical events checklist items in Seattle such as walkability, convention centers, hotel supply and airlift, but also the myriad trailblazing collaborators and innovative companies clustered in the city’s bustling downtown.

Hannover Fairs USA is gearing up to debut DOMOTEX USA, a new trade show and conference for the U.S. residential floor covering industry.

Set for Feb. 28-March 2, 2019 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, the event is slated be a U.S. extension of Deutsche Messe’s global portfolio of flooring events, including DOMOTEX, launched in Hannover, Germany in 1988.

Experiential events and exhibitions production company, Hargrove, has been acquired by the parent holding company of PSAV, a global provider of audiovisual and event experiences.

No financial terms of the deal were disclosed.

The acquisition not only brings together a premium experiential events and trade show company with one of the largest event experience providers in North America and Europe, but also marks PSAV’s ownership group’s entry into the global trade show market and the acceleration of its expansion into live experiential events.

The holiday spirit extended before and after the new year to the signing of plenty of new contracts for suppliers and venues serving the trade show industry.

The Expo Group will provide event-related services to International Carwash Association as ICA seeks to boost the experience of their attendee, exhibitor and sponsor stakeholders at The Car Wash Show.

Event production company, Shepard, has made its second buy this winter with the acquisition of Northern Virginia-based Production Associates, a full-service audio-visual management, staging and consulting company that provides services to association, corporate and government events.

“We are excited to welcome Production Associates to our growing Shepard AV family,” said Stuart Danneman, executive vice president of Shepard AV. “They bring to the team a strong service-based culture, innovative technology and a thriving presence in the Virginia, Maryland and DC markets.”

Apple has published updated App Store guidelines, adding specific arrangement for exhibition and event mobile applications.

Apple uses the App Store Guidelines to work with app developers, to ensure that the programs offered through the company's App Store are in line with user experience standards.

In June, Apple announced iOS 11 and introduced changes to its App Review Guidelines. Among the changes was a section that had the event industry concerned:

UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, recently opened a regional office in Latin America.

Based in Bogota, Colombia, the new office will serve the growing number of UFI members across Latin America, and will be the base for collaborations with national and region industry associations like AFIDA, AMPROFEC, AOCA and UBRAFE.

The position of the UFI Regional Manager for Latin America will be filled by Ana Maria Arango.