The following booth guidelines were developed to help you plan the design and construction of your booth. For the complete Annual Meeting rules and regulations, please reference the 2023 Annual Meeting Exhibitor Rules, Regulations and Policies.
Items Included with Your Booth Space
The following items are included in your booth space:
All booths must be set by 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 30, 2023. Please refer to the Exhibit Hall Schedule for the complete move-in/move-out schedule. To ensure that you receive advance order discounts for all required booth services, please refer to the list of Important Dates.
The Exhibit Hall atmosphere must always be consistent with the educational mission of ASTRO. All booth activities and content must be professional in nature and provide educational information related to the field of radiation oncology.
All exhibit space must be carpeted or covered with an ASTRO approved material. Bare floors in booths are not permitted. Carpet is NOT included in your exhibit space package and must be provided at the exhibitor’s’ expense. Rental carpet will be available through the General Services Contractor (GES.)
Any booth bordering another exhibit booth must have the exposed back and side of that portion of the booth finished and may not carry signs or other copy that would detract from the adjoining exhibit. All exposed surfaces of the exhibit must be finished or may be masked at the discretion of ASTRO Show Management at the exhibitor's expense.
Regardless of the number of inline booths utilized, display materials should be arranged in such a manner so as not to obstruct sight lines of neighboring exhibitors. The maximum height of 8 feet (2.44 meters) is allowed in the rear half of an inline booth and a maximum of 4 feet (1.22 meters) in the remaining space forward to the aisle. No objects or materials that obstruct visibility will be permitted in the front half of an inline booth. Hanging signs are not permitted over inline booths.
All guidelines for inline booths apply to corner booths. Please refer to the inline booth requirements for more information.
Island booths must be constructed to allow access from all sides. Solid walls cannot span more than 30% of the booth and must have a 30% see-through effect from front to back and side to side, so that the surrounding area can be viewed around and through the booth and that neighboring booths are not inappropriately obstructed. Please note that opaque and/or frosted walls are not considered see-through. Any theater presentation or demonstration areas should be set back a minimum of 5 feet from the booth edge and allow adequate room for seating or standing without obstructing any aisles.
All booths that are 400 square feet or larger are required to submit a rendering of the booth with all necessary measurements clearly indicated, as well as any hanging signage, truss/lighting, suspended product, etc., for ASTRO approval, by August 21, 2023. Booth renderings must be submitted via the online submission process in the Exhibitor Resource Center.
Island booths may not exceed 24 feet in height from the floor to the top of any structure or from floor to the top of any signage, unless approved in writing in advance by ASTRO Show Management. Any structure or signage exceeding the 24 feet height rule will be adjusted by ASTRO Show Management to conform with this regulation at the expense of the exhibitor. Towers and other components over 16 feet in height must be engineered appropriate to their use and constructed from drawings bearing the stamp of a reviewing structural engineer.
Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis due to federal regulations.
Covered or roofed areas must conform to the regulations set forth in the General Policies, Rules and Regulations of the San Diego Convention Center. The exhibiting company is responsible for any costs related to this requirement.
Multi-story booths must follow the same rules as an island booth and must have a booth rendering with a stamp of a qualified structural engineer attesting to its construction standards. Any company constructing a multi-story booth must comply with the requirements set forth for multi-level booths by the City of San Diego Fire Prevention Bureau and submit an Architectural Design plan to the Fire Marshal a minimum of 90 days before the first move-in date for the event for approval.
All exhibits that require rigging, including but not limited to hanging signs and banners, structures, lighting and truss, must submit their rigging renderings to ASTRO for approval. Rigging renderings must be submitted via the submission process in the Exhibitor Resource Center. Please be sure to include measurements for the sign or structure's size as well as measurements for the exact placement within the booth.
Hanging signs will only be permitted for island booths that are 20 foot by 20 foot or larger. Hanging signs may not block the visibility of ASTRO signs or other booths and should hang over contracted space only. Hanging digital signs are permitted provided that the images are static in nature and do not flash or move.
Island booths may use special lighting. All lighting must be directly over or in the exhibitor's booth and must not affect the aisle or other exhibitor booths. Exhibitors may request that overhead lighting at the San Diego Convention Center be blacked out to accommodate an exhibitor's specific lighting requirements. Such requests may only be made on-site by contacting ASTRO Show Management. All lights-out requests are subject to ASTRO review and approval. ASTRO will not approve any overhead lighting adjustments that may affect aisles or another exhibitor's space. The San Diego Convention Center will charge a $350 fee for the removal of any lights.
No flammable fluids or materials of any nature, including decorative materials, use of which is prohibited by national, state or city fire regulations, may be located in or used in any exhibitor's booth. For more information on fire safety regulations, view the San Diego Fire Department Regulations.
All wiring on booths or display fixtures within an exhibitor's booth must meet underwriters' rules and standard fire department inspection applicable under all appropriate state, county, city and San Diego Convention Center’s electrical and fire codes and regulations. This applies to booth construction only and not to pre-wired radio and electronic equipment. Visit the San Diego Fire Department Regulations for all fire safety, use of caution tape, cabling and other regulations related to electrical safety.
Flashing or glaring lights, noisily operating displays, and/or exhibits producing objectionable odors will not be permitted in the Exhibit Hall. Sound equipment may be used in the Exhibitor's booth provided that the noise level does not disrupt the activities of neighboring exhibitors. Exhibitors using audio systems should direct the sound into their booth and not toward the aisles or neighboring booths. Sound levels should not exceed 85 decibels. ASTRO shall have sole discretion in determining what is noisy, obstructive and/or objectionable and take such action as they deem appropriate.
Any exhibitor using music must ensure that proper licensing fees have been paid to the appropriate agency, i.e., ASCAP, BMI, etc., by said exhibitor. ASTRO is not responsible for any licensing fees for music played in exhibitor's booth.
The use of music, dancers or mimes or other entertainment similar in nature is not permitted in the Exhibit Hall. Models that are professional in nature may be used for demonstration purposes within an exhibit but may not leave that individual exhibitor's booth space parameters to drive traffic to the booth and/or pass out information or take "polls."
Any demonstration or activity that results in excessive obstruction of aisles or prevents ready access to any other nearby or adjacent exhibitor's booth shall be suspended by the exhibitor totally or for any specific periods as specified solely at the discretion of ASTRO.
Please be sure to review the San Diego Fire Department Regulations for the complete list of rules for Exhibitors.
Should Exhibitor violate any provision of the Booth Equipment and Design Guidelines or the 2023 Annual Meeting Exhibitor Rules, Regulations and Policies, as determined by ASTRO Show Management in its sole discretion, including but not limited to giveaways, sound, entertainment, etc., ASTRO Show Management reserves the right to take one or more of the following actions:
In cases that ASTRO Show Management believes present pressing legal, health or safety situations or could cause irreparable harm, ASTRO Show Management may take immediate action to remedy or address the situation and require payment by offending Exhibitor(s) for the reasonable costs associated with these actions. In addition, ASTRO reserves the right to expel Exhibitor from the Exhibit Hall and/or Event without refund of any fees for actions or omissions, as determined solely by ASTRO, that violate the Rules.
