Playing in the Champions League.

Industry awards set benchmarks, foster a discussion about quality and motivate people. Winning our first FAMAB AWARD on 23 November was a great experience for us: we can count ourselves as an international player! Yes, awards make sense and are fun. And there are good reasons for that.

Industry prizes allow us to do two things: measure ourselves against competitors and showcase ourselves. We can compare ourselves to competitors in the market and showcase our services for our customers and their projects. This is why we participate in national and now also international competitions. Because these competitions show us where we stand. And they prove to our customers how well we perform. At the same time, an exchange with industry experts and colleagues is important: we gather inspiration and cultivate an ideas network.

National comparison: being among the best.

The XAVER Award is like a national league for us. It aims to be a “seal of quality” for “outstanding live projects”, such as the Expo-Event. Live Communication Association Switzerland. For us, competing for the XAVER Award is a must, as it shows our qualities and our market value to others in the industry and to a broad audience. Winning a XAVER Award can be noted on our track record vis-à-vis our customers. But, despite our pride at having won numerous XAVERs: our work focuses on our customers – and not on our ambitions.

European comparison: expanding horizons.

By participating in the FAMAB AWARD we participated in an international jury this year for the first time. “Playing in the Champions League” was the concept. The FAMAB AWARD is an interdisciplinary event organised by the German communication association FAMAB Kommunikationsverband e.V. (formerly Verband Direkte Wirtschaftskommunikation e.V.). This is where international benchmarks are determined. A Swiss agency is up against agencies and project budgets which are both usually considerably larger. A Swiss agency that succeeds, knows: we are first-rate in terms of creativity and performance. We were therefore delighted to win the bronze FAMAB AWARD for the “ABB Gotthard” project.

Read more about the FAMAB award ceremony.

International customers: a global perspective.

In addition to expanding our horizons, dealing with international competition is also an obligation in respect of our globally active clients. Customers such as the European Space Agency, ABB, Barry Callebaut, Microsoft or the Mindfire Foundation task us with projects of international dimensions. We operate in a globalised world of communication, even though we position ourselves first and foremost as a national service provider. So, after winning our first international AWARD we have gained a taste for more. And the winner is… standing ovation and its clients!

© Bilder FAMAB Award: Peter Jammernegg, Ben Grna

Instead of giving gifts to our customers we will support the “Every centime counts. Unaccompanied refugee children” project at Christmas 2017. Because injustice and need are not related to people’s origin or fate but are a question of solidarity and humanity.

Over 30 million worldwide.

The world of tomorrow belongs to the children of today. Some of us have become parents in the last few years and experience on a daily basis what it means to grow up in safe and protected surroundings. But not all children can enjoy such a luxury: the UNHCR refugee organisation estimates that over half of the 65 million refugees worldwide are children. Our donation in 2017 is our contribution to alleviating their suffering. We see our contribution to “Every centime counts. Unaccompanied refugee children” as an investment in the future.

CHF 11,000 for more confidence.

Founded in 2005, standing ovation has grown steadily in recent years. And with it our responsibility to society and the environment increases too. We are convinced that our success is only possible because we participate in the prosperity of a peaceful community and a stable society.

By contributing CHF 1,000 for each year of the company’s existence we would like to help those who are exposed to the turbulences in our world, often without protection or support. For once we don’t just want to arouse emotions but to demonstrate our compassion. It’s not just we who should be able to look ahead with confidence to the future but future generations should too.

© Picture Header: Timon Studler Chennai, India

Richtlinien Förderprojekt

When a globally ultra successful Swiss company celebrates an anniversary, this calls for professional events of the highest international calibre. 2016 was very much an ABB year for standing ovation. We designed, organised and orchestrated an entire spectrum of events for the world-renowned conglomerate, from the “Gottardo” locomotive christening and the Gotthard Base Tunnel opening ceremony to the “125th anniversary gala”.

History of innovations.

His name is YuMi and he’s the world’s first collaborative, dual arm, small parts assembly robot. Ushering in a new era of industrial process automation, he works hand in hand with humans. Developed by ABB, YuMi was rolled out in 2015. The robot marks a further milestone in the company’s 125-year innovation story.

Up until the end of the 19th century, tranquil Baden was known for its springs and thermal spas. Then the young engineers Charles E. Brown and Walter Boveri set up the firm BBC in 1891, transforming the small town on the River Limmat into a prosperous hub of mechanical and electrical engineering.

Operating out of Switzerland, the company successfully conquered markets in Europe and throughout the rest of the world.

Operating out of Switzerland, the company successfully conquered markets in Europe and throughout the rest of the world: In 1944, BBC developed the first high-speed locomotive with a direct drive system, and in the early 1970s, the world’s most efficient transformer. Almost one hundred years after BBC was founded, it merged in 1988 with Swedish company ASEA to form ABB, headquartered in Zurich. Today the Group and its subsidiaries are present in over 100 countries and have a workforce of around 135,000 employees.

125 years of innovative, epoch-making achievements out of Switzerland for the entire world. Definitely an anniversary worth celebrating. And in a manner fitting for a conglomerate of ABB’s standing. As event partner to ABB, standing ovation was privileged to work closely with the Group and assist in staging a whole series of standout events to mark this major anniversary under the motto “Serving the World from Switzerland”.

125 Years of ABB – a gala event to showcase new Group strategy.

The absolute highlight of the year’s calendar was the two-day gala event “125 Years of ABB” held on 20-21 October 2016 on the fairground in Wettingen (canton Aargau). ABB hosted some 550 guests on each of the evenings. Invitees included key stakeholders and partners from around the globe. ABB’s event specs can be summed up as follows: “To toast 125 years of achievements with pride, satisfaction and joy, to warmly thank customers for their trust, and jointly with them to focus on a successful future.”

Show/Content: Dramatic construction of the ABB journey through time.

This newly toasted transformation process also became the declared principal motif of the gala event story. For standing ovation this meant imbuing the event with a sense of new departures without disregarding the historical relevance that a 125th anniversary naturally also embodies. In other words, the organisation and orchestration of the event and all related communication measures were to be perceived through the lens of a «retrospective of the future”.

The MIAGI Youth Orchestra from South Africa offered a perfect musical rendition.

Attendees at both gala evenings were treated to a lavish line-up of artistic highlights. The MIAGI Youth Orchestra from South Africa offered a perfect musical rendition of ABB’s long journey through time. Playing various pieces composed especially for ABB, the internationally acclaimed youth orchestra met with a very enthusiastic reception. YuMi performed an impressive routine fusing art and hi-tech. Appearing with a professional dance group, the ABB robot presented a highly entertaining sample of choreographic staging that was both surprising and staggering. The varied programme was rounded off with the world premiere of ETH Zurich’s autonomous micro-helicopter FireFly (choreography design and execution by Verity Studios) as well as a show with guest interaction.

Event engineering: A logistical megaproject.

Tasked with convincingly conveying this new spirit at all levels, from 3 October to 7 November 2016 no fewer than 1200 people were working full out under the supervision of standing ovation to ensure that the ABB gala event was a complete success. We assumed the role of general contractor, cooperating with a total of 30 partner companies on this major project.

The event engineering logistics and planning were challenging. 120 articulated trucks were underway to ferry some 1400 tons of material to Wettingen to set up the gala site. 110 kilometres of cable were laid, in part to connect 52 giant projectors with 1050 m2 of projection area and 180 m2 of LED screen area to the electrical grid. The various digital productions at the gala event generated a total of 23 terabytes of video and image data. “This large amount of cutting-edge equipment enabled us to use the event gala to emotively showcase ABB’s avowed intent to be at the vanguard of those shaping the industry-wide digital revolution,” explains Michael Dancsecs.

Hospitality: A continuous guest journey from arrival to departure.

standing ovation’s hospitality concept for the ABB gala event was also orchestrated down to the very last detail. It was conceived as a guest journey which began for the numerous international invitees at the moment they received their invitation. It later took in their arrival at the airport, the hotel check-in and transportation to the gala. This extensive guest journey also included all communication measures (invitation, registration process, writing paper, microsite, maps, give-aways etc.) as well as the event identity at the actual gala evenings.

Given the magnitude of the entire process of designing and staging this mega-event, standing ovation had to provide and deploy substantial resources and an extensive infrastructure. “To ensure that these infrastructures could still serve a use after the gala, we subsequently turned them over to ABB Switzerland to allow them to organise and put on various follow-up events,” points out Michael Dancsecs.

2016: “Very much an ABB year.”

ABB’s 125th anniversary gala events represented a milestone project for standing ovation. This is true of the entire anniversary year celebrated by the Swiss showpiece company. “There is no doubt about it,” says standing ovation owner Michael Dancsecs, “2016 was very much an ABB year for us.” Even months beforehand, standing ovation began planning and designing a wide range of anniversary activities in close collaboration with the ABB event team. The year’s events kicked off with the “Gottardo 2016” locomotive christening on 19 January 2016 to celebrate the entry into service of a modern ABB branded Lok2000 locomotive in French-speaking Switzerland.

Events kicked off with the «Gottardo 2016» locomotive christening.

This was followed by a highly regarded ABB presence at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos at the end of January. Later on the event agenda, the huge Gotthard Base Tunnel opening ceremony was held on 4-5 June. As part of the overall programme, standing ovation organised an ABB event on the SBB site in Rynächt (Uri) and another at the site in Pollegio (Ticino) under the heading “What is ABB’s contribution for Switzerland today and in the future?” Prompted by the immense interest this generated, a mobile ABB pavilion was set up at short notice and presented on an ABB Gottardo Roadshow 2016 in Biasca, Lucerne, Zurich, Lugano and Baden.

Likewise in close collaboration with the ABB event team, in October standing ovation designed and staged ABB Capital Markets Day (also featuring an employee event) as well as the ABB Technology Forum. At this year’s Technology Forum, the first USD 300,000 ABB Research Award in honour of former Chairman Hubertus von Grünberg was presented to a young researcher from Belgium.

An event in a class of its own.

Carmen Feuz, ABB Ltd.