New building, new management, lots of possibilities and one big goal: With 12,000 square meters of exhibition space, 12,000 square meters of foyer space and 12,000 seats in up to 50 halls, the new CCH – Congress Center Hamburg will be one of the largest and most modern congress centers in Europe.

Hamburg Messe und Congress remains operator of CCH

The good news came in the fall: Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH (HMC) was awarded the contract to operate the new Congress Center Hamburg in the EU-wide tendering procedure. The trade fair and congress company will thus continue to operate the international congress center, which started comprehensive modernizations and renovations in January 2017. The agreement between HMC and CCH Immobilien GmbH & Co. KG, the municipal owner of the Congress Center Hamburg, has a term of 25 years.

Despite the closure of the CCH, many successful congress events were held in the A-halls of the Hamburg Fairgrounds in 2017. This included the ENDOCLUBNORD, the International Forum for Endoscopy, the Vereinigung Hamburger Schiffsmakler und Schiffsagenten e. V. with its 69th Eisbein meal, the Diabetes Congress with almost 7,000 participants and numerous works meetings and annual general meetings of listed companies. The CCH team was also involved in the G20 summit.

In 2018, CCH employees will be organizing around 30 events at the Hamburg Fairgrounds, providing them a perfect setting. In other words, the team will be staying busy!

Heike Mahmoud is Chief Operating Officer CCH

Heike Mahmoud was recently welcomed to CCH. The business graduate, who has been one of the top managers in the global meetings and events industry for many years, was appointed Head of the CCH on March 1, 2018. Her vision is to continue the success story of CCH and to position the new building as a leading congress center in Europe. In addition, she wants to ensure that the number of major congresses increases and that this added specialist knowledge has a positive effect on the further development of the Hanseatic city. Sustainability is a topic that is of great interest to Heike Mahmoud. For instance, she is fascinated by the question of how events in the new CCH can influence the Hamburg’s growth, the innovation process and the international transfer of know-how.

Ready for the challenges of the future

Hamburg Messe und Congress is making intensive use of the revitalization phase to promote the professional development of CCH employees. For example, Mirko Ertmer from the technical department for congress events is currently in training to become a master in event technology with a focus on stage events. “The technology in the new CCH will be epic,” says the future master. And he should know: His expertise has influenced the planning for the cutting-edge technology to be used in the CCH. Lars Schierbaum is also working to become a master in event technology with a specialization in lighting. In the new CCH, he will put the events in the right light as a member of project management. He can hardly wait to see the plans implemented once the building is completed.

Pioneering technology for individual room occupancy

Digital solutions play an important role in the national and international marketing of the CCH. To better advise customers when planning their events, sales team employees have been using a new configurator for several months now. This highly specialized software (the only one of its kind in Europe) makes it possible to create customized and graphically appealing room plans within seconds. For instance, at the push of a button, the optimal use of space, room allocation options and the desired seating form can all be displayed.

A showroom provides a glimpse of the future

Since May, customers and potential new customers can also get a immersive impression of the new CCH in a showroom. The hologram pyramid floating freely in space is a particular highlight. The virtual architectural model illustrates different room and space configurations. Additionally, interested parties can intensively explore the future congress center via a virtual tour on a large interactive flat screen.