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• Federal Health Minister Spahn, Prime Minister Söder, Bavarian Health Minister Huml and Mayor König inform themselves about the vaccination centre at NürnbergMesse
• Plans for coronavirus vaccination centre to open on 15 December in ideally situated and state-of-the-art Hall 3C
• Safety first: floor area of approx. 9,600 m² means up to 1,000 citizens can be vaccinated daily

The countdown is on. Before the Nuremberg coronavirus vaccination centre at the exhibition venue is ready for use from December 15, senior federal and state politicians visited today to see for themselves how preparations are progressing. During their tour of the blue illuminated hall 3C, Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn, Bavarian Prime Minister Dr Markus Söder, Bavarian Health Minister Melanie Huml and Nuremberg Mayor Marcus König gained a compact overall view of the situation – from registration to the medical consultation room and the actual vaccination procedure. The unanimous view expressed by the politicians to the two NürnbergMesse CEOs, Dr Roland Fleck and Peter Ottmann: “The vaccination centre has been made ready in record time, and is ready for use from December 15!” Nuremberg mayor Marcus König: “With its state-of-the-art infrastructure and handy transport access, the Exhibition Centre has everything a high-performance vaccination centre in a metropolis like Nuremberg needs.”

Hall 3C at NürnbergMesse was selected as the venue for the vaccination centre, and has been converted in recent weeks into the central vaccination centre for the city of Nuremberg by the safety experts at the exhibition company in close collaboration with city representatives, the fire brigade, Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW), police and the public health department. Professional processes and infrastructural activities will ensure the forthcoming vaccination work will be kept clearly separate from the exhibition and congress business, which is expected to resume during 2021.

Important role for NürnbergMesse in combatting the virus

NürnbergMesse responded quickly to the request from its two main shareholders, the city of Nuremberg and the Free State of Bavaria, to set up a vaccination centre: “For us, it goes without saying that we will assist the population of Nuremberg in the middle of the pandemic,” says Dr Roland Fleck, CEO of the NürnbergMesse Group. “Immediately after the coronavirus pandemic broke out, we made our halls available to store disinfectants and protective masks. Now we are taking our commitment a step further by setting up the vaccination centre for the city.” Fleck’s fellow CEO Peter Ottmann underlines the clear signal the vaccination centre sends out: “The international exhibition sector is one of the groups most strongly affected by the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. By establishing the vaccination centre we are sending out a strong signal in the fight against the virus, and at the same time we are helping to get real-life exhibition activities back on track!”

Up to 1,000 vaccinations a day

The Nuremberg vaccination centre will start work on 15 December and remain in operation until at least 30 June 2021. If everything goes to plan, the medical professionals in Hall 3C will be able to vaccinate as many as 1,000 people each day. Thanks to its ease of access by public transport and private passenger vehicles, its extensive grounds and the infrastructure available on-site – electricity, water, sanitary facilities and data cables – the Exhibition Centre is the perfect venue for the planned mass vaccination programme.

The most advanced of the halls at NürnbergMesse, Hall 3C, was selected because of its good transport access within the Exhibition Centre, directly facing the “Messe” underground station; its large, pillarless interior; and also logistical considerations. Hygiene factors were also particularly important: Hall 3C not only has a total floor area of about 9,600 m² but also offers a highly efficient ventilation system that replaces all the air in the hall up to six times an hour. Nuremberg stand construction firm Mesomondo, a specialist in modular and individual stand designs, is responsible for the interior work of converting the hall into a vaccination centre. Thanks to its commitment, NürnbergMesse is making an important contribution to the fight against coronavirus, and is helping to ensure that exhibitions and congresses will once again be able to take place in Nuremberg, the City of Trade Fairs.