International Defense Industry Procurement Authorities to Meet at IDEF 21
Due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, which was officially declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020, almost all international fairs in 2020, and those in the first half of 2021 were canceled or postponed to a later date. Virtual fairs and bilateral meetings held virtually, though not taking the place of physical fairs, prevented a complete cessation of business development and promotion activities during this period. However, we should say that business developers and companies have started to discuss the efficiency of virtual events - location and time independent – which were highly appreciated initially and accepted as a way out, due to the prolongation of the process together with the impact of falling revenues.
During this period where the risk of contamination continues, some country borders are closed, international transportation-logistics as well as travel are problematic, and many international companies predictably thought twice about their participation in a fair at the beginning of the year. Consequently, many giant international companies have suspended all their activities in the first half of 2021 to protect their staff and reduce risk during the continued pandemic. At the beginning of year, Turkey announced that the 15th International Defense and Industry Fair - IDEF'21, which was planned to take place at the TÜYAP Fair and Congress Center in Istanbul Büyükçekmece on May 25-28, 2021, would be held physically as usual. But at that time, at the beginning of May, the number of daily cases were still quite high in the country and a great number of Turkish companies hoped to delay the event push the exhibition forward. Eventually, the Turkish Armed Forces Foundation announced that the IDEF 2021 15th International Defense Industry Fair was postponed to 17-20 August due to precautions in line with the recommendation of the Ministry of Health Scientific Advisory Board on 5th May.
Up to 5th May, 119 out of 446 foreign delegations who were sent official invitations have already confirmed that they would participate in the fair (In IDEF 2019, 151 delegations and 588 delegation members from 71 countries and 3 international organizations were hosted), and among these high-level officials, there would be 25 ministers. The delegations to participate in the fair include senior officials at the level of Minister, Deputy Minister, Chief of General Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff, Air Forces Commander, Land Forces Commander, Naval Forces Commander, Gendarmerie General Commander, Coast Guard Commander, Director General of Police and Undersecretary as well as a great number of the armament and procurement directors of several countries would be participated in this year's fair in advance of the postponement. On the other hand, more than 1,000 companies from Turkey and abroad are already booked the place in the exhibition.
From the beginning of the year to July, a vast number of developed countries have already attained a mature level of progress in vaccination programs and the transmission of COVID-19 seems to be controlled in particularly Europe and the South American Continent so far. As of 15th June, Turkey ultimately entered the ranks among one of the quickest vaccinated countries list. Up to 1st July, over the 40 million residents have already been vaccinated with at least a single dose and 15 million residents have received both doses. The vaccinated numbers increase daily and Turkey already has now surpassed the capacity to vaccinate 1.5 million per day. It seems that a considerable number of citizens above the age of 18 will be vaccinated with the second dose by 17th August. On the other, all restrictions were lifted as of July 1st all over the countries and normalization progress officially started in Turkey.
TÜYAP Fairs Organization Inc. runs the organization of the International IDEF Fair and in the interview below we talked with Hakan MİRGÜN, Deputy General Manager of TÜYAP Fair and Exhibition Center to gain some insight into the preparations this year and how the team handles numerous complex parameters that are difficult to control. This year will mark the event’s 15th anniversary under the management of the Turkish Armed Forces Foundation, and we’ve asked about expectations, planning and the precautions that are being taken, as well as the perspective of decision makers.
Defence Turkey: Mr. MİRGÜN, IDEF’21 would have been held between 25-28 May 2021 but, this date was postponed to 17-20 August due to the pandemic, announced just one week before the exhibition. Could you please sum-up the postponement process and new arrangements? Has booth setup started and what can you say about the latest status in terms of preparations for this year’s upcoming?
Hakan MİRGÜN: The countdown has begun for IDEF' 21 and all preparations are underway at full speed. All parties, our exhibition center, relevant institutions and participating companies are feverishly preparing for IDEF, the international trade platform of the defense industry.
We expect the fair, which brings together local and foreign industry professionals, and which hosts strong collaborative relationships every year, to be held with the participation of hundreds of companies and we anticipate the visits of many industry professionals this year. In this context, we carry on our effective promotional activities within the country and abroad. We have access to defense industry professionals through the most appropriate channels thanks to our relations with national, local, and sectoral broadcasting organizations. Domestic and foreign sector professionals will gather again at the fair this year to take advantage of our fruitful business networking opportunities.
Five meetings specific to COVID-19 measures have been held so far and have been attended by relevant Ministries and officials. Rules have been updated and have started to be implemented as well. In addition, dozens of meetings have been held with the participation of all relevant institution officials, and all necessary work has been planned and has already started to be implemented for an efficient fair.
Work on our fairground has already begun and our fair center has been reviewed and examined in detail and all necessary arrangements have been initiated. As of August 9, the official booth setup period will start for our exhibitors. To provide an efficient experience for all stakeholders, we are continuing all necessary efforts at full speed for the organization of the fair, which is a sales and marketing platform where our participating companies can deliver their products and services directly to the right buyers. Within the framework of the circumstances that our country has been going through, it is more important than ever to showcase the point at which our defense industry has reached with national and domestic facilities. We are carrying on preparations with this awareness and responsibility.
Defence Turkey: Did the option of holding a virtual fair come up on the agenda due to the COVID-19 pandemic? What kinds of measures have been taken this year for the IDEF '21 Fair?
Hakan MİRGÜN: The IDEF'21 Fair will be held physically as with previous fairs, the fair being held virtually or having a virtual part was not on our agenda at any point since we started the preparations. As it is known, the fair is being prepared under the auspices of our Presidency, hosted by our Ministry and under the management of the TAFF. In the dozens of meetings held, there was no mention that the fair could be held virtually, on the contrary, the necessary measures to be taken were discussed and what should be done in order to exhibit, to the entire world, the level of achievement that our defense industry has reached.
As the TÜYAP Fair and Exhibition Group, we set out with the motto of "Health First for Trade" and we have come a long way in implementing increased hygiene measures. We became the first and only fair organization company that obtained the COVID-19 Safe Service Certificate of the Turkish Standards Institution and we registered all of our practices that we are sensitive to in this regard. We consider it our priority to keep the controls at the highest level for everyone who wants to enter the fairground and to provide a safe fair experience to all our exhibitors and visitors with our entrance system and 2 large checkpoints that we will prepare in accordance with social distancing rules for the IDEF'21 fair. Since September 2020, the TÜYAP Fair and Exhibition Group has held fairs where we have implemented precautions that will set an example for our counterparts across the world, and we continue to do so. Combined with our experience here, all measures continue to be developed in coordination with the relevant authorities. We not only bring our exhibitors and visitors together at the fairground but also bring them together 365 days a year on our digital platforms and prepare an environment for the continuance of trade throughout the year.
With our MyTüyap app, we have become a pioneer in new generation fair organization. In 2020, we added the Connect platform to our MyTüyap app so that our participating companies are able to meet potential buyers. The smart matching system, which is an example of a successful algorithm that we have been using with Connect for years, enables our participants to meet online with potential buyers.
Hakan MİRGÜN: “450 foreign delegations were invited by the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Interior and its affiliated organizations, and our Presidency of Defense Industries.”
Defence Turkey: What can you say about the level of participation from domestic and foreign companies this year compared to previous years? Could you please share the updated figures? Will there be new company and delegation participation from abroad following the improved rate of vacation in Turkey?
Hakan MİRGÜN: As you know, IDEF is a growing fair, adding new participants to its loyal ones every year. This year, our usual exhibitors will take their places in our fair, and our new exhibitors continue to join as well. There is only a month left for the fair and our sales are about to be finalized. IDEF'21 will be held on a 120,000 m2 exhibition area with the use of our 14 halls. In addition to our indoor areas, the products and services of our participating companies will also be displayed in the outdoor area.
This year, we also opened our 4th hall on our fairground to participants. The participating companies will now exhibit their products and services in this hall as well, which we used as the Interview Offices during previous IDEF fairs. We are also preparing our Interview Offices as in previous years. However, due to and additional hall requirements, resulting from the intense interest of our participants, we have moved these offices to the 1st hall where B2B meetings can be held more efficiently.
Defence Turkey: During the IDEF '19 Fair, over 100 signing ceremonies were held which was a great success. In addition, 151 delegations from 70 countries were hosted at the fair. In this context, what is your anticipation for high level participation compared to previous years and your expectation regarding the export success of this year’s fair?
Hakan MİRGÜN: As in previous IDEF fairs, we will host our foreign delegations at our fairground again this year and we will arrange face-to-face meetings by taking all precautions in line with the COVID-19 measures.
As it is known, we host the defense industry procurement authorities of several countries at our fair every year and prepare an environment for international cooperation. This year, 450 foreign delegations were invited by the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Interior and its affiliated organizations, and our Presidency of Defense Industries. Confirmation of these invitations started much earlier than the previous fairs and up to date, 116 delegations have confirmed their participation in the fair. These include senior officials at the level of Minister, Deputy Minister, Chief of General Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff, Air Forces Commander, Land Forces Commander, Naval Forces Commander, Gendarmerie General Commander, Coast Guard Commander, Director General of Police and Undersecretary. 26 ministers have confirmed that they would attend the fair. This year, the increasing interest of senior officials responsible for the defense procurement of their countries already signals that IDEF'21 will be quite efficient and will achieve its targets.
As in 2019, this year’s meetings are planned on the basis of Participant-Participant, Delegation-Participant, Participant-Turkish Procurement Authority, Delegation-Turkish Procurement Authority and Delegation-Delegation. We have a special team that is focused on organizing the meetings to be held to ensure maximum efficiency during the fair.
Officials from the Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Interior and its affiliated organizations, General Staff, Service Commands, General Directorate of Security, Gendarmerie General Command, Coast Guard Command, and Presidency of Defense Industries will hold meetings with exhibitors and foreign delegations throughout the fair in the offices we have set up. Signature ceremonies regarding collaborations, one of the key components of IDEF fair, are also planned.
Defence Turkey: Mr. MİRGÜN, thank you for your time and sharing details with us. Along with your team, we look forward to the IDEF Fair this year as it truly contributes to the promotion of Turkey and we wish you success for a fruitful and advantageous event this year
