De Boer’s key role in International Afghanistan ConferenceDe Boer supplied facilities for a crucial international conference on the future of Afghanistan staged in London and attended by world leaders from more than 70 nations. The International Conference on Afghanistan attracted representatives of the coalition forces operating in the country along with Afghanistan’s newly-elected President Karzai and United Nations’ Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. De Boer, one of the world leaders in the supply of temporary structures, provided more than 5,500 square metres of accommodation in the grounds of Lancaster House off Pall Mall where the summit was held. De Boer was appointed by Host Broadcast specialists Feltech to provide a range of temporary structures to form a press centre, media briefing rooms, broadcast studios, delegates areas, catering, kitchen and toilet facilities for the event which attracted more than 600 journalists from around the world. Construction work on the mammoth project was conducted amid the tightest of security, with De Boer and several hundred contractors also working through bitterly cold and snowy conditions in one of the most severe winters the UK has seen in more than 30 years. Sales Manager David Tunnicliffe, who co-ordinated De Boer’s role in the event, said: “This has certainly been one of the most challenging and demanding projects that we have tackled. Despite the severe weather and the intense security involved, our team managed to ensure that the structures were handed over on time. The fact the media centre is situated within a royal park also provided further challenges for us. We had to ensure that that trees and plants in the park were not damaged by the tonnes of equipment shipped in.” A huge Jumbo structure measuring 60 metres by 40 metres formed the centre-piece of the media village with range of 15 further structures including Alu Halls, Chalets, Pyramids and the unique De Boer Walkway. In addition, De Boer was also responsible for overseeing all carpentry, carpeting and heating requirements within the structures. Brackley-based De Boer has provided facilities for a number of major political and royal events in the UK over recent years including the G8 Summit of world leaders at Gleneagles, Scotland. Internationally, De Boer Group has also provided conference facilities inside Afghanistan where the company supplied structures for an historic meeting of 1,500 representatives of Afghan tribes back in 2002 as part of the early discussions on the democratic future of the country. The London conference on Thursday, January 28th, was arranged by UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown as part of the developing democratic process in Afghanistan and was hosted by Foreign Secretary David Miliband. John Cochrane, De Boer’s Sales Director – Events, said: “We are very proud to have been selected to provide facilities for such an important international conference. Everyone hopes that this event will help to bring about a peaceful resolution to the Afghan crisis. It’s amazing to think that 10 years ago we shipped equipment into Kabul itself for an event which helped to pave the way for the democratic processes which have now taken place and which are on-going. “This particular project has been a massive challenge for our build team having to cope with such severe weather conditions in London and working to a very tight schedule amid strict security. However, once again it demonstrates De Boer’s ability to deliver solutions fast and reliably for even the most sensitive or complex functions.” 10 February 2010 About De Boer:De Boer is one of the leading international suppliers of temporary accommodation for large events and festivals, storage purposes, airport baggage handling and supermarkets. De Boer was established in 1924 and is headquartered in Alkmaar, The Netherlands. The company now has offices in The Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Austria, France, Spain, Sweden and Dubai. De Boer is also represented in Qatar, Russia, China and the USA. It employs more than 350 people internationally and during high season another 150 temporary workers are deployed. NPM Capital has been major shareholder since August 2005. www.deboer.com MEDIA CONTACT: PAUL SMITH ASSOCIATES
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