�Compared to their hotel counterparts, conference centers have generated higher revenues and operating income on both a per-available and per-occupied-room basis,� says PKF Consulting Executive Vice President Dave Arnold, who heads the firm�s Philadelphia office.  Arnold also serves as financial consultant to the IACC Board of Directors.

A specialized sub-segment of the hotel industry, conference centers are designed to provide meeting and lodging space in specially designed facilities devoted to meetings and conferences of up to 75 attendees. Conference centers typically contain state-of-the-art media and telecommunications equipment and are dedicated business/teaching environments.

The leading advisory firm for the conference center industry, PKF Consulting has compiled Trends in the Conference Center-North America for over a decade.  The 2003 edition of this annual report on the health of this hotel segment is published in
conjunction with the IACC.  The current 78-page edition presents a wide variety of operating and financial statistics compiled from conference centers across North America.  The report also presents commentary on current issues critical to this specialized industry segment.

Unlike hotels, where occupancy and average rate are the primary measurements of performance, conference centers are more aptly evaluated on the basis of their total revenue steam.  According to the Trends report, average room rates are an internal function of an allocation of the �Complete Meeting Package� (CMP) rate, with many conference centers also attracting numerous attendees for day meetings.  Whereas conference center occupancy rates are typically lower than those for hotels, the revenue generated per guest tends to be higher and operating profits are more efficient.

Executive conference centers, which generate 51 percent more revenue per available room than do hotels, essentially maintained their 2001 revenues in 2002.  In contrast, full-service hotel revenues declined 5.3 percent in 2002.  Resort conference center revenue for 2002 declined 7.4 percent, somewhat more than resort hotels� 5.6 percent decline, but still managed to achieve 31 percent more revenue per available room than did hotels.

�Conference centers occupy a thriving market niche in the hotel industry,� says Arnold.  �Their formula for success is the ability of this segment to provide a distraction-free business environment conducive to the serious business needs of Corporate America,� he explains.

Copies of the 2003 edition of Trends in the Conference Center Industry � North America can be purchased through the PKF Consulting website at www.pkfc.com or by calling (215) 563-5300.

PKF Consulting is an international consulting and real estate firm specializing in the hospitality industry.  Together with its affiliates, The Hospitality Research Group (HRG) and the PKF Capital Markets Group (CMG), the firm has offices in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Singapore.

Mr. David E. Arnold
Executive Vice President
PKF Consulting
8 Penn Center Plaza, 19th Fl. 
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 563-5300 ext 32

 Ms. Dana Ramus
Vice President
PKF Consulting
8 Penn Center Plaza, 19th Fl.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 563-5300 ext 31