Safe Exhibiting Guide

ESSENTIALS

EXCLUSIVE DIGITAL CONTENT ASKED AND ANSWERED One of the challenges as events reopen is that venues and shows are certain to have new guidelines and rules that may not be explicitly spelled out in the exhibitor manual. Amy Gattoni, manager for strategies and insights at Access TCA Inc., suggests program managers ask their show reps the following nine questions to better understand the lay of the land.

QUESTION 2

Is the venue GBAC certified? Most key venues and many vendors have completed the GBAC STAR certification or a similar accreditation, which indicate how thoroughly and seriously the venue has prepared for reopening. This piece of information may help you make a stronger case to managers and internal stakeholders that multiple safeguards are already in place to reduce the spread of contagions. QUESTION 1

Can you share your health and safety plan?

These documents should include outbreak plans, health and safety guidelines, enforcement plans, signage examples, and a resource guide. If show management does not have such documents, ask if the venue has them. In the event neither has a plan, consider establishing your own that details how your company will respond to various scenarios.

What cleaning protocols and schedule will be enacted in the exhibit hall each day? QUESTION 3 Some shows will close the hall for a few hours to conduct cleaning beyond what typically happened before COVID. Many of these clean ing methods require that no people be in the vicinity during and for a few hours after. This will be important for exhibitors to know as they may be unable to access their exhibits during that time. Also, there should be a cleaning schedule during show hours.

QUESTION 4

What cleaning measures are exhibitors responsible for?

This should be limited to cleaning their own properties and high-touch surfaces such as counters, touchscreens, and kiosks. But it’s important to clarify that show management is not putting more on exhibitors than is reasonable. It’s also important to understand what additional tasks you may need staffers to perform so that you can train them appropriately.

16 EXHIBITOR ESSENTIALS © EXHIBITOR MEDIA GROUP