--- title: "What should you ask a stand builder after sending the brief?" url: https://www.peoplecanbuild.com/blog/what-to-ask-after-brief/ lang: en description: "Eight questions to ask a stand builder after the brief: exhibit weights, exclusions, crews, site supervisor, change orders, deadlines." updated: 2026-09-17 --- September 17, 2026 # What should you ask a stand builder after sending the brief? One of our stands had to carry an X-ray system with a long articulated arm. On the drawings it looked harmless. On the show floor, any curious visitor could pull that arm out to full reach, and at full reach it pushed on its mounting hard enough to affect the stand structure. We asked about the machine early, so the structure was planned for it and nobody got hurt. That’s the kind of thing worth knowing before you compare quotes. You’ve sent the brief (floor plan, renders, the venue manual, dates, a budget range) and now you’re waiting for a number. On its own, the number tells you surprisingly little. What tells you more is what comes back with it, and how the builder answers your questions. These are the ones we’d ask if we were on your side of the table. ## 1\. Has anyone checked the exhibits, not just the design? Buildability usually gets discussed as a property of the render. But the products on the stand are part of the structure too. A free-standing machine has a weight and a footprint, and it has to get onto the stand somehow, sometimes up a ramp. Anything fixed to a wall adds load, and how far it sticks out into the stand decides how that wall has to be built. A builder who has checked will ask you for weights, sizes and how each exhibit arrives. If nobody asks, nobody has checked. ## 2\. What isn’t in the price? Get it in writing: transport, rigging, venue services, graphics, storage, dismantling, standby during the show. And say out loud what you expect beyond the stand itself. We regularly meet clients who assumed catering or a concierge desk came with the package. Those aren’t standard builder services, and the first morning of the show is a bad time to find out. ## 3\. What are the walls actually made of? “White walls” can mean three different price levels. Ask for the material and finish of the elements visitors will look at most, and for confirmation that fire certificates will be available. Venues require flame-retardant materials, and some want to see the paperwork. ## 4\. Which crews will build it? Who owns which workshop matters less than people think. A stand is put together by several specialised crews (structure, graphics, AV, logistics), and the real skill is picking them and getting them to work as one team. The crew also has to fit the job. You don’t need the people who do two-storey steel stands and 24-hour build-ups for a simple stand; you’d be paying for experience the project doesn’t use. On a complex stand you can’t do without them. Horses for courses. Choosing the right people for each project is a big part of what we do, and it’s how a very good show ends up at a sensible cost. ## 5\. Whose name is in the offer? At two in the morning on the last build-up night, “our team” doesn’t pick up the phone. A person does. Ask for the site supervisor’s name, number and languages. We put that name in the offer, and on large projects there’s more than one. Alongside the site team there should be one account manager who takes you from brief to handover, whether you’ve bought assembly only or a turn-key stand. ## 6\. What happens when something changes? Something always changes. What matters is how it’s paid for, and the time to agree that is before you sign, not in the hall when you can’t really say no. Plenty of clients know the other version. A low quote wins the job, and then every moved socket and extra shelf arrives as a separate line. The venue’s electricity bill comes back with a handling fee on top. Project management turns out to be charged by the hour. And on the last build-up night there’s an envelope with the “extras”, at a moment when you have no choice but to pay and argue later. We work the other way, because we’d rather keep a client for years than win one haggle. Small changes on site don’t cost extra. Bigger ones that need more people or extra purchases are usually charged at cost, and we tell you what they’ll cost before we do anything. We don’t add a margin to venue payments we make for you, and we don’t charge extra for project management. ## 7\. When do the crews need to be booked? Everyone asks about venue deadlines, and they do matter: drawing approvals, rigging and power orders all have cut-off dates, and late orders cost more. But a builder who knows the venue can usually move fast there. The real bottleneck is crews, especially on large projects. The good ones at a good price get booked early, and in peak season they’re simply gone. The earlier you decide, the better the team you get for the money. ## 8\. Who signs off the structure, and what’s insured? Tall or hanging structures need structural calculations, and venues check them. Ceilings aren’t uniform either. Halls in the same exhibition centre can differ in load per point, suspension height and where the points are, so a rig that works in one hall may not work in the next (more in [what rigging really costs](https://www.peoplecanbuild.com/blog/rigging-costs)). Ask who does the calculations and when they go to the venue. Ours are done by structural engineers whose qualifications are recognised in the venue’s country. Ask about insurance as well. We’re covered, and when a client needs more, for expensive exhibits for example, we buy additional cover. ## Two that rarely come up **Is standby during the show agreed?** It has to be arranged beforehand. If you want someone on call, a technician is there with the tools for fixes and adjustments, and a complex AV installation always comes with one. When we build several stands at the same show, one technician looks after all of them and each client pays less. A dedicated technician is billed at the normal hourly rate. **What if the venue rejects a drawing?** We fix it straight away, together with you. In more than fifteen years we haven’t had one we couldn’t sort out. ## Before you compare Ask every builder on your shortlist the same questions. Their quotes become comparable (the rest of that story is in [why two quotes can differ 2×](https://www.peoplecanbuild.com/blog/why-quotes-differ)), and you learn how each of them works before you sign. _Send us your brief and we’ll come back with our questions, a buildability check and a price. More at peoplecanbuild.com._ ## Questions this article answers What should I ask an exhibition stand builder after sending the brief? Ask whether the design and the exhibits have been checked for buildability (weights, access, wall-mounted loads), what the quote excludes, which materials are behind the most visible elements, which crews will build it, and who supervises the site. Then ask how change orders are priced, when the crews must be booked and which venue deadlines apply, and who signs off statics and insurance for tall or hanging elements. When should change-order pricing be agreed with a stand builder? Before you sign the contract. On site, under build-up deadline pressure, you can no longer compare offers or say no. A rate card, hourly rates or a written quote before any extra work, agreed in advance, is the real protection. Who handles rigging and structural approval for hanging stand elements? At most venues only the official rigging contractor may install points in the hall ceiling, and the venue sets the order deadlines. Tall or suspended structures typically need structural calculations submitted to the venue in advance. Your stand builder should prepare the drawings and tell you which deadlines apply. Share: Scan in WeChat to share [← All posts](https://www.peoplecanbuild.com/blog/) ## Have a design or tender on your desk? Send it over — we respond fast with a realistic price and a free buildability review. [Request a Quote](https://www.peoplecanbuild.com/contact)