After a long travel, we arrived at the end of the IX ICEC 2014 World Congress, held in Milan last 20^th, 21^st and 22^nd October 2014.
It was a really engaging journey, full of opportunities of professional meeting and exchange for all participants.
Total Cost Management experts (Cost Engineers, Project Controllers, Risk Managers, ecc..), coming from all over the world, gathered together in Milan, hosting for the first time in ICEC Congress history such a significant event.

During these three congress day, many topics were addressed,  both to provide participants with a specific approach to the practical areas of Total Cost Management and to frame the context in which TCM experts work. The main objective was to make experts, managers and researchers aware of the methods and practices of Total Cost Management, showing them how these methods could give an important support not only during the project execution phases but also (and mainly) along the whole strategic asset life-cycle, the real objective of the project and of the discipline.

Protagonists of the first day were managers and experts from important Italian and foreign business realities, lectures from eminent universities and Total Cost Management authorities.

During the parallel sessions of the second and third day, many speakers alternated telling the result of their researches in the different application sectors of TCM. 

The Congress was also an opportunity for young students to take contact with the discipline and with our association: with reference to the “Young Experience” programme, a set of meetings with managers and TCM experts has been proposed to them.

At the end of the second day, the gala dinner, set up in the beautiful Cenacolo room of the Leonardo da Vinci Science and Tecnology Museum in Milan, represented an institutional moment of award ceremony and public investiture of ICEC Board of Director. It was also a good time to reinforce relationships established in the previous days. 

In the afternoon of the last day, the congress closed with the discussion, in plenary session, of the cornerstone of the discipline. From here, we have to leave again in order to develop the TCM body of knowledge and attract new operators. 

On behalf of AICE, a right and proper thank to all participants, speakers, organizers and ICEC board for the excellent cooperation in the organization of the IX ICEC 2014 World Congress. Hoping that this Congress has been an inspiring starting point for future works, we pass the baton to our friends of IBEC (Instituto Brasileiro de Engenharia de Custos),in charge of the organization of the next ICEC 2016 World Congress.

See you in Brazil!