Sustainable Trade Show Exhibit Design
DisplayCraft Fabricates Custom Island Exhibit for Schuco
As we all look at limiting our footprint on Mother Nature and the environment, sustainability transforms how we design, build, maintain, and manage our trade show exhibits. Reduce – Reuse – Recycle – Re-think. Over the last decade, DisplayCraft has moved towards sustainable trade show exhibit design through a proper selection of green and sustainable building materials, lighter-weight exhibit materials, energy-efficient lighting, and eco-friendly printed graphics. An excellent example of sustainable trade show exhibit design practices is Schuco USA’s 20′ x 20′ custom island booth for Greenbuild.
The Greenbuild International Conference and Expo is the nation’s largest green building design and construction trade show. Schuco USA, with Sales Executive Lisa Cyr, premiered their new build 20′ x 20′ exhibit at Greenbuild in New Orleans.
Sustainable Trade Show Guidelines
All trade shows have guidelines. Greenbuild had their set “Greenbuild’s Mandatory Exhibit Green Guidelines (GMEGG).” A set of requirements exhibitors like DisplayCraft must implement for the construction and operation of a Greenbuild Exhibit. Booths were designed to the requirements outlined in GMEGG, and documentation with objectives and goals for sustainability was submitted. Some of the guidelines fell under the following categories: Energy Conservation, Booth Material, Shipping Practices, and Water Reclamation.
- Energy Conservation – There was a big push to reduce the power consumption of lighting and electronic devices. DisplayCraft designed the exhibit to utilize lighting from the event hall and reused an existing energy-efficient 60″ monitor from the client’s showroom for product videos: one monitor, one message, and a clean design.
- Booth Materials – This was a tad trickier in the design process. This category runs the gamut, from Flooring, Signage, Booth Structure, Communications and Collateral, and Air Quality.
- We sourced and rented the flooring through Greenbuild general service contractor to comply with the guidelines and save on shipping.
- Booth Graphics and Signage – DisplayCraft strategically chose Images, logos, and signage that can be reused. New dye-sub fabric graphics were printed using water-based inks.
- Booth Structure – The main booth structure is fabricated using 20% recyclable aluminum, meeting the reuse requirement for at least one year.
- Communications & Collateral – No paper consumption or paper handouts.
- Indoor Air Quality – Schuco reused pedestals from their showroom, complying with the reuse of materials. The raw aluminum structures used required no painting.
- Shipping Practice – DisplayCraft produced 100% recycled custom-built wood crates for shipping and storage of the exhibit.
- Water Reclamation – The exhibit used no water.
Beginning the design process with material limitations is challenging, but the beauty of the design is sometimes just that – the challenge. The Schuco USA booth stood 14′ tall and featured full graphics branding the surround and integrated product displays. Predominantly white, the booth lent itself an air of elegance with striking black Schuco lettering and black-framed products.
DisplayCraft was pleased to participate in the world’s largest green building event. We continuously strive to do our part to help our industry strive towards a sustainable future.
