Congress Stands

Foyer rules shape the design

• **Height is low.** Hotel foyers have ceilings between 2.7 and 3.2 metres; most congress organisers cap stand height at 2.5 metres. We start the design from that figure.
• **The floor is untouched.** No screws into carpet or marble, no tape marks; the body stands on its own weight, and if a platform is used we choose a base that does not damage the carpet.
• **Power is limited.** Foyer sockets carry low loads; lighting is solved with LED, and loads such as screens and fridges are declared in advance.
• **Time is short.** At most congresses the build happens the evening before and dismantling on closing night. Parts are designed to fit in the lift; in hotels without a goods lift that size draws the limit of the design.

We read the congress regulations before design starts; correspondence with the venue, height approval and the electrical declaration are ours.

What a congress stand needs

The congress visitor is prepared: a physician, an engineer or a purchasing manager who knows the product and arrives with a specific question. On this stand the meeting space matters more than the product display. A standard congress stand holds:

• A back wall graphic that states the product or service in one sentence
• A presentation point for a screen or tablet
• Standing meeting space for two to four people, with a high table if needed
• A shelf for brochures and samples, boxes in a hidden compartment
• A small closed compartment for bags and coats

If the space is small we plan the meeting area before the graphics; at a congress the sale happens in the conversation, not in front of the product.

Structure and materials

We use two systems for congress stands. The maxima aluminium profile system builds quickly and travels in a lift; printed panels and an LED facade attach to it. Custom timber is chosen when the brand corner has to stand apart within the foyer; we split its parts to size in the workshop. Which one suits you is decided together by looking at the length of the congress, the size of the foyer and the brand language. For the larger version of the same stand in an exhibition hall see our exhibition stand services, and for other layouts the stand types.

Process and timing

Within two business days of the brief we send a 3D visual and a quote with the scope itemised. From approval to build, ten business days are enough. For congress series (three to five congresses in the same year) we design once and adapt to each foyer; because we hold the graphic files, preparation time shortens from the second congress on.

The build happens at the time set by the congress organiser, usually the evening before. Our crew hands the stand over in working order; throughout the congress a named contact with a phone number is available. Dismantling is finished on closing night and the foyer is left as we found it.

Foyer rules

Hotel foyers have ceilings between 2.7 and 3.2 metres and congress organisers mostly cap stand height at 2.5 metres. No screws go into carpet or marble and no tape marks are left; the body stands on its own weight. Foyer sockets carry low loads; lighting is solved with LED and the load of screens and fridges is declared in advance.

Time is short: build the evening before, dismantling on closing night. Parts are designed to fit in the lift; in a hotel without a goods lift that size draws the limit of the design. We read the congress regulations before design starts and run the height approval and the electrical declaration ourselves.

These rules are stricter than in a fair hall but hold fewer surprises: the foyer plan and the hotel’s technical team are known weeks before the build. We describe the congress stand as a separate type on the stand types page.

What a congress stand needs

The congress visitor is prepared: a physician, an engineer or a purchasing manager who knows the product and arrives with a specific question. On this stand the meeting space matters more than the product display. A standard congress stand holds a back wall graphic stating the product in one sentence, a presentation point for a screen or tablet, standing meeting space for two to four people, a shelf for brochures and samples and a small closed compartment for bags.

If the space is small we plan the meeting area before the graphics; at a congress the sale happens in the conversation, not in front of the product. A high table is enough for a standing conversation of two; a seated table is only drawn above 12 square metres.

For congress series (three to five congresses in the same year) we design once and adapt to each foyer; because we hold the graphic files, preparation shortens from the second congress on. We run the process with the steps described on our exhibition stand services page.

Structure, process and timing

We use two systems. The maxima aluminium profile system builds quickly and travels in a lift; printed panels and an LED facade attach to it. Custom timber is chosen when the brand corner has to stand apart within the foyer; we split its parts to size in the workshop.

Within two business days of the brief we send a 3D visual and a quote with the scope itemised; from approval to build ten business days are enough. The build happens at the time set by the organiser, the stand is handed over in working order and a named contact with a phone number is available throughout the congress. Dismantling is finished on closing night and the foyer is left as we found it.

The difference between a congress stand and an exhibition stand is in the structure, not in the design language: the graphics and colour palette of a brand’s exhibition stand carry over to its congress stand. How we do this is on our design page.