Any preparation you can do before a show can save you time and money. Staging your freight as it arrives is a way to save both and is well worth your time.
I arrived early for the NACStech show here in Nashville. On the Sunday before the show set for a Monday set up day (the show opens Tuesday), I connected with the drive of the truck delivering my freight. Knowing the driver was coming allowed me to alert the freight desk (thank goodness this is a smaller show) and let them know when the truck would be arriving.
Once the truck arrived I was able to anticipate when the items would be coming off the truck. As the forklift drivers brought in the crates and skids, I was able to ask them to drop each item in a strategic location. That way the panels I needed to assemble the central closet could be set down the booth edge closest to where the would be needed to be unloaded. The workstations that array the front of the booth could be placed closest to where they would reside. Carpet rolls and pad were placed near the end of the space where they could be rolled out with the least amount of movement.
The idea here is that the less you can move something saves you jockeying time and therefore I&D labor cost.
Try it the next time you set you booth.
TTSG
