by Brianna Crandall — March 20, 2020 — Due to the escalating COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak and the need for social distancing as advised by national and international health agencies, many groups are making the difficult decision to cancel, postpone or reschedule events around the country and the world.
Some events have announced new dates for later in the year. Others are waiting to see how the outbreak develops before trying to reschedule. Still others have canceled completely for the year.
Online facilities management (FM) resource FMLink maintains an extensive Calendar of Events for FM Professionals that lists numerous events around the world related to various aspects of facilities management (FM). As we receive word of upcoming cancellations, we are adding appropriate changes to these events as well as posting new events when and if they are rescheduled.
Among the larger or more FM-relevant upcoming events that have adjusted their schedules are:
- International Security Conference and Exposition (ISC West) (Las Vegas) — rescheduled from March 17-20 to July 20-22
- National Facilities Management and Technology Conference and Expo (NFMT) and co-located Clean Buildings Expo (Baltimore) — rescheduled from March 17-19 to August 11-13
- IFMA’s World Workplace Europe (Amsterdam) — postponed from March 18-20
- Greenbuild Europe (Dublin) — canceled from March 24-25
- Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM) Conference (London) — rescheduled from March 24 to September 25
- IFMA’s World Workplace Asia (Singapore) — postponed from April 7-9
- IFMA’s Facility Fusion Conference and Expo (San Francisco) — canceled from April 14-16
- LightFair (Las Vegas) — postponed from May 3-7
- NeoCon (Chicago) — canceled for 2020 from June 8-10
Certain shows, such as the TRANSFORM green building event in Sydney, have switched over to a virtual format. Others are providing relevant resources to their members or attendees.
When the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) announced the changes to its events, the group also announced that it has created a coronavirus resource page online, which will be continually updated with information, learning opportunities and materials on infection prevention and control, strategic preparedness and risk management. Read about IFMA’s Coronavirus Preparedness Resource Center in this FMLink article.
We encourage readers to check the FMLink Calendar of Events regularly for updates on cancellations, postponements, and rescheduling. Event organizers can send updates to edit@fmlink.com for inclusion in the Calendar.
The staff at FMLink wish to extend their deep appreciation to all those in the FM community who are working hard to keep businesses operating, facilities clean, and building occupants and visitors safe during this trying time. We exist to support you. We encourage you to visit the FMLink site frequently to find the news and resources you need.
