What Your Stand Builder Needs from You

The drawings, decisions and dates a builder needs before they can quote and build without surprises.

This guide lists what a stand builder needs from you so the quote holds and the build has no surprises. It covers the space, the drawing set and the decision calendar. It ends with a 30-item handover checklist you can copy.

What a stand builder needs from you fits on one page. It is the space fixed, drawings to scale, and decisions on a calendar. Most build surprises come from facts that arrive late, or in versions that do not match. Give the builder one approved, to-scale set and a calendar of decisions before the workshop starts cutting. Then the quote holds.

Execution starts on drawings

A stand is built on site, but the work starts on the drawings. Every cut in the workshop follows a sheet, so the sheet has to be right first.

The order matters too. A render the builder cannot build is a promise the quote will break.

Late facts cost both sides. The builder quotes again, orders new material or rebuilds parts already cut. The exhibitor pays for the same work twice, sometimes at overtime rates during build-up.

The space, fixed

Before quoting, the builder needs the show name, the hall and the stand number. They need the stand size, the open sides, the height limit and any setback rules. They need the hall plan with its columns, services, floor loads and rigging points. Last, they need the organizer's technical manual with its deadlines.

Deadlines differ by venue, so quote them exactly from the current edition. The Las Vegas Convention Center Facility Guide (July 2026) wants booth plans at least 30 days before move-in. It wants rigging plans 14 days before. Messe München wants two-story stands applied for at least six weeks before set-up. The application needs a verified structural calculation.

The drawings a stand builder needs

The builder works from a drawing set, not a render. The set needs these sheets.

• A plan set out from a hall grid line or aisle edge, so the stand lands where it was drawn.
• Elevations with heights, materials and finishes.
• Sections through raised floors.
• A rigging plan for anything hung, with weights.
• Structural calculations for two-story stands, where the organizer asks for them.
• The electrical and AV layout.
• Graphics templates at final size.

All of it comes from one approved version. A plan from Tuesday and elevations from Friday describe two different stands. What makes a drawing production-ready sets the standard each sheet should meet. A system build also needs the frame maker's parts list.

Render first or validate first

An early render helps a team agree on an idea before it is locked in. A buildability check first stops a client falling for a stand nobody can build at the price.

Both orders are right if the render comes from a to-scale model of the stand in the hall. Then the image the client approves and the drawings the builder prices show the same thing.

Decisions and dates

Large stands take longer than most exhibitors expect. A big custom stand can need months of planning from the first talk to show open. The organizer's deadlines fall well before that.

Build the calendar backward from show open, and name who approves each step. The brief comes first, and how to brief an exhibition stand designer covers it.

• Brief agreed
• Concept signed off
• Design freeze
• Graphics files final
• Organizer submissions: plans, rigging, two-story
• Workshop build starts
• Move-in
• Show open
• Breakdown and move-out

Set one rule for late changes. After design freeze, every change goes to the builder in writing, with its cost and its effect on dates. Only the named approver can accept it.

Where Monet fits

Monet is built for the two failures above. They are late facts and versions that do not match.

Upload the hall plan as a PDF or DWG, or start from Monet's library of to-scale venue plans. Generate the stand from a prompt, and it is laid out to scale in the hall. Renders and walkthrough videos show the stand in the real room. So the client signs off on what will be built.

Production-ready plans and elevations come from the same layout. Exports come in DWG, DXF, PDF, JPG and GLB.

When something changes, one edit regenerates the plan, the renders and the drawings. The layout checks re-run too. They cover exit clearance, temporary structures in the main walkway, crowd flow and noise on nearby booths. Everyone works from one current version.

The builder still owns shop drawings, joinery details, cut lists and material quantities. Monet does not add custom objects such as signs or props, so those stay in the builder's drawings.

The 30-item handover checklist

• Space and rules. No.: 1. Item: Show, hall and stand number.
• 2. Item: Stand size and open sides.
• 3. Item: Height limit and setback rules.
• 4. Item: Hall plan with columns and services.
• 5. Item: Floor load limits.
• 6. Item: Rigging points and hanging limits.
• 7. Item: Organizer's technical manual, current edition.
• 8. Item: Every organizer deadline in one list.
• Drawings and files. No.: 9. Item: Plan set out from a grid line or aisle edge.
• 10. Item: Elevations with heights, materials and finishes.
• 11. Item: Sections for raised floors.
• 12. Item: Rigging plan with weights.
• 13. Item: Structural calculations where required.
• 14. Item: Electrical and AV layout.
• 15. Item: Graphics templates at final size.
• 16. Item: Final artwork files.
• 17. Item: Approved renders that match the drawings.
• 18. Item: Revision number and date on every sheet.
• Decisions and dates. No.: 19. Item: Named approver for design and budget.
• 20. Item: Concept sign-off date.
• 21. Item: Design freeze date.
• 22. Item: Graphics deadline.
• 23. Item: Organizer submission dates.
• 24. Item: Rule for changes after freeze.
• 25. Item: Payment stages.
• Logistics. No.: 26. Item: Move-in and move-out times.
• 27. Item: Freight and dock booking.
• 28. Item: On-site contacts and phone numbers.
• 29. Item: Storage and return instructions after the show.
• 30. Item: Who orders power, internet, rigging and cleaning.

One set, one calendar

Send the builder one approved, to-scale set and the decision calendar together. Do it before the workshop starts cutting, and the quote holds.

Frequently asked questions

What drawings does an exhibition stand builder need?

Start with the plan. Set it out from a hall grid line or aisle edge. Add elevations with heights and finishes, sections for raised floors, a rigging plan, and structural calculations for two-story stands where required. Include the electrical and AV layout and graphics templates at final size, all from one approved version.

How far ahead should I brief a stand builder?

Count back from the organizer's deadlines, not from show open. Venues ask for booth and rigging plans weeks before move-in. A large custom stand can take months from the first talk to show open. So bring the builder in before the concept is signed off.

Can the builder work from the venue's PDF or DWG?

Yes, if it is to scale and current. Check two long, known dimensions against the venue's figures before anyone sets out the stand. Then confirm columns, services and rigging points with the venue's operations team before the drawings go out.

Who should approve changes after design freeze?

One named person who controls the budget. Every change after freeze should reach the builder in writing, with its cost and its effect on dates. Work should start only after that person accepts it. Changes that nobody records are where quotes stop holding.

To give your builder one current set from the first quote to the last change, try Monet free on your next stand and send plans, elevations and renders from a single version.