exhibition stand installation: how it works.

Build-up starts when the crates reach the hall and ends when the finished stand is handed over. In between the work follows a fixed order: the load-bearing wall structure goes up first, then the graphics are tensioned or the panels fitted, lighting and power distribution follow, and the counter, shelves and display cases come last.

Because Octanorm is a modular system, elements join through profiles and connectors, with no welding and no glue. Build-up needs no special tools and the stand space stays clean: no cutting, no dust and no construction waste to haul away after the show.

Duration is driven by the size and complexity of the layout, not by the type of fair. A small inline stand with one graphic wall, a counter and a few spotlights is standing well before an island layout with a ceiling structure, an upper deck or built-in LED panels.

A modular stand is not welded or glued but assembled, so build-up in the hall runs in hours rather than days. A custom-built stand runs the opposite way: material arrives in pieces, is worked on site and is mostly discarded after the show.

Conditions outside the structure matter too: when the organiser opens access to the space, how far the unloading point is from the stand and whether power has already been brought to the plot. A realistic schedule keeps a buffer for delivery and for waiting on shared hall infrastructure.

A standard Octanorm layout goes up with your own team: the joints are always the same, the elements are labelled and no special tools are required. Exhibitors who buy their own kit usually take over installation after the first show.

The second option is for us to handle build-up and breakdown while the equipment stays yours. That makes sense for larger layouts, for short build-up windows and whenever your team needs the time for visitors rather than for screws.

The third route is turnkey: design, build, installation, breakdown and storage in one package, with you arriving at a finished stand. The same applies to rental, where build-up and breakdown are already part of the service.

Every fair has its own hall rules and its own build-up window. Before the show, confirm when the space opens for installation, by when the stand must be finished and when the hall takes breakdown, because these windows differ from fair to fair.

Power is ordered separately: the exhibitor books the connection on the stand space with the organiser and sizes it by the number of spotlights, light frames and devices on the stand. Distribution, cables and power supplies are covered in the stand electrics guide.

If the layout involves a suspended ceiling structure, heavier elements or work at height, that normally needs separate organiser approval and often hall equipment as well. Arrange it in advance, not on build-up day.

Breakdown runs in reverse order and is shorter with a modular system: elements unclip, graphics come off, profiles break down into flat parts and go back into the crates. That is exactly why removal has to be agreed before the show rather than on the last day.

Aluminium does not rust, so a dry and clean space is enough for storage; keep printed panels and fabric prints flat or rolled so they do not crease. Exhibitors without their own warehouse leave storage, transport and preparation for the next show to us by arrangement.

Because the same elements go back up in a new layout, breakdown is not the end of the stand but preparation for the next appearance. Between two shows it is usually only the graphics that change, while the load-bearing structure stays the same.

As the official Octanorm distributor for Slovenia and the former Yugoslavia we build stands at fairgrounds in Ljubljana, Zagreb, Belgrade and Novi Sad, and the same equipment travels to fairs abroad. Dates for the region are collected in the fair calendar.

Send the floor plan, the name and dates of the fair and whether your own team will handle installation. You get a layout proposal with a build-up and breakdown schedule, and on request a quote for storage between shows.