This spring, my colleague Hannah Kitchener and I were once again privileged to work with SE10 client Mediapoint & Exhibitions in Piacenza, Italy. Insights into industry trends and exciting new technology, warm welcomes, and good food and gelato were all on the agenda, and duly delivered.
Following being on-hand at lifting, industrial and port handling and heavy transport show GIS in October 2023 and the largest European exhibition dedicated to the concrete industry, GIC, earlier this year, SE10 returned to Italy to assist Mediapoint & Exhibitions at Pipeline & Gas Expo 2024 in conjunction with the inaugural CYBSEC-EXPO, a new cybersecurity exhibition.
Piacenza, a city in Italy’s north approximately halfway between Milan and Parma, has a population of 100,000 people punctuated by over 100 churches – about one church every square kilometre! – and the medieval Palazzo Comunale right at its heart. Mediapoint & Exhibitions events take place at a convention hall a 10-minute drive (or a bumpy twenty-minute bus journey) south of the city. On this occasion, Hannah and I were kindly invited by the director of Mediapoint & Exhibitions, Fabio Potestà, to a formal gala dinner at the Collegio Alberoni, a Roman Catholic seminary in Piacenza dating back to 1751, to take place on the first evening of the expo. Not only did we get to enjoy a guided tour of this historic building and the paintings and artifacts it possesses, plus a five-course meal with a pianist admirably keeping up the mood for a solid three hours while the banquet hall indulged, it was also a fantastic opportunity to engage with exhibitors, visitors, and the VIPs who would be in attendance at both Pipeline & Gas Expo and CYBSEC-EXPO over the next several days. Indeed, our objective of gathering feedback and industry opinion of exhibition attendees at the expo was made all the more pleasant and easier over the forthcoming days by the presence of familiar, friendly faces, and the new awareness of SE10 and the role we had to play at the exhibitions.
As representatives of SE10, Hannah and I appreciated being welcomed to many of the stands in the main exhibition pavilion, which housed over 50 exhibitors and brought approximately 2,500 visitors across the three days of Pipeline & Gas Expo and CYBSEC-Expo between 29th to 31st May.
At stalls willing to engage and often encourage our rudimentary Italian, we were talked through key cybersecurity issues and concerns across industries, including in the midstream oil and gas sector and water distribution networks, by both those contributing to a modern and more sustainable energy infrastructure and intent on improving cyber protection.
Those three days in Piacenza allowed Hannah and myself, on behalf of SE10, to not only once again work with a trusted and valued client in Mediapoint & Exhibitions directly, but also connect with industry figures. We expanded our own knowledge of important industry sectors, trends, technologies, and applications, which will inform our work and content creation in the future, and we look forward to returning to the city to assist Mediapoint & Exhibitions again later this year.
By Jack Porter
Account Executive
About the author
Jack is an account executive based in London, UK, who joined SE10 in 2022, assisting with media coverage and campaign management for European accounts. Arriving from a background in sports writing and video content production, thoughtfulness and consideration in presentation, and networking and building strong client relationships are key skills that have transitioned easily into PR. Jack has extensive experience in interviewing knowledgeable subjects and conveying received information to a wider readership in an understandable, relatable tone.
