The Exhibitor Manual Paperwork Nobody Warns First-Time Exhibitors About

Lab Innovations opens in Hall 2 at the NEC on 4 November 2026, but space-only exhibitors at that show had a much earlier date to hit. The organiser’s checklist set 21 September for detailed stand plans, risk assessments, method statements, a health and safety declaration and a construction phase plan, and stand orders placed after that day attract a 25% late surcharge. Most first-time exhibitors only meet this paperwork when the exhibitor manual lands, and by then the clock is already running.

You are the client, whether you planned to be or not

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 apply to stand building, and the HSE leaves no room for doubt about who sits at the top: “The Exhibitor is the CDM Client for their own plot as they decide what to build and who will undertake the work.” In the HSE’s own space-only example, the stand builder plans, manages and coordinates the build and so acts as both Principal Designer and Principal Contractor.

That arrangement only protects you if you make it formal. Regulation 5 requires a client to appoint both roles in writing whenever more than one contractor works on a project, and a client who fails to appoint them must fulfil those duties personally. Once your builder brings in a separate electrician or flooring firm, more than one contractor is working on your plot. The London Book Fair’s CDM guidance also puts the construction and dismantle phase plan on the exhibitor’s list, and states plainly that permission to commence build will not be issued until the organiser receives it.

The documents, and the dates behind them

A space-only submission usually bundles a technical stand plan, a risk assessment, a method statement and proof of public liability insurance. Deadlines vary by show, so read your own manual early. The BOA Annual Congress at Olympia, running from 22 September 2026, wanted every contractor form and document by 31 July, more than seven weeks out.

Height and structure change the timetable. Infosecurity Europe at ExCeL treats anything over 4m, any raised platform over 600mm and any bespoke suspended structure as complex, requiring technical drawings and structural calculations. Its manual warns that late or incomplete detail means permission to build over 4m will not be granted. Motorcycle Live at the NEC set complex stand plans due three weeks ahead of standard ones in 2023, and charged £405 plus VAT for a certificate of structural integrity, or £565 for a double-decker.

Insurance levels differ too. The Society for Endocrinology’s BES 2025 manual asked self-build exhibitors for £5m public liability against £2m for shell scheme, while Infosecurity Europe required contractors to hold at least £2m per claim. Check whether the organiser wants your certificate, your builder’s, or both. Power has its own calendar as well: BSG LIVE’26 at ACC Liverpool set an early-bird electrical deadline of 29 May for a show opening on 22 June.

What happens when something slips

The penalties escalate quickly. A missed order deadline costs money, as Lab Innovations’ surcharge shows. A missed health and safety deadline costs access: the BSG LIVE’26 requirements state that failing to return the forms means you will not be permitted into the exhibition area. At Infosecurity Europe, non-compliance can lead to permission being revoked and the stand being altered onsite or removed entirely.

A competent builder writes the RAMS, drafts the construction phase plan and commissions the structural calculations as part of the job. The legal duty to make sure it all happens still rests with you as client. So ask at quote stage whether the builder will accept the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor roles in writing, who pays for any structural certification, and which date they are working to, with a week of margin before the organiser’s deadline. A builder who answers all three without hesitating has done this many times before.

Stand Between introduces exhibitors to vetted stand builders who handle this paperwork with them. If you have a show coming up, get in touch.