Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC) is delighted to announce they have been awarded ISO 20121, making them the first Venue in Scotland to receive the accreditation.
ISO 20121 is an international management system standard that has been designed to help organisations in the events industry improve the sustainability of their event related activities, products and services.
AECC recognise that it’s event management activities, products, services and operations have the potential to have both a positive and negative environmental, social and economic impact and have been working over the last two and a half years in order to implement many operational changes in order to work towards the accreditation.
AECC’s General Catering Manager and Sustainability Champion, David McDonald, stated, receiving the accreditation is a true testament to all the hard work which has been put in over the past two and a half years by all staff and stakeholders.
In order to achieve the accreditation AECC’s ISO Working Group set a number of objectives and targets based on items which were identified by internal audits and interested parties in the venue. Objectives included educating staff and making them aware of the process, monitoring waste and energy generated by specific events, ensuring suppliers are aware of AECC’s commitment to sustainability and how they can play a part in this and much more.
The accreditation describes the building blocks of a management system that will help any event related organisation to continue to become more socially responsible and reduce its environmental footprint.
AECC’s Interim Managing Director, Graeme Cumming, said: “It’s a great achievement for the Venue and staff involved and to be the first Venue in Scotland to hold the ISO 20121 accreditation is an excellent accomplishment. It will allow AECC to operate more sustainably on events and other services we provide and to continue to deliver a world class service.”