Check against the fascia, not the ceiling
A shell scheme fascia is typically around 2.5m. A 6.6ft unit clears it comfortably; a 10ft Saloon Bar Shoot Out or a 16ft inflatable does not, whatever the hall roof is doing.
Power, Space and Height
These are the numbers you need before you commit to a stand size, and they come off our own kit rather than a manufacturer's brochure.
Unit size is not the number that matters
Every product page here lists two figures. Unit size is how big the thing is. Required space is how much floor you need to give it so that somebody can actually play, which includes swing room, a place to stand and room to get out again.
Required space is the one to plan against. A Batak Pro is 7ft by 3.3ft as an object and wants 8ft by 5ft in practice, because a person needs to stand back far enough to reach the outer targets. Ignore the difference and you will fit the game onto the stand and then discover nobody can use it without stepping into the aisle.
Required space, smallest first
| Game | Unit size | Required space | Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crack the Code | 2ft x 2ft | 2ft x 2ft | 6ft |
| Gold Bar Challenge | 2ft x 2ft | 2ft x 2ft | 6ft |
| Pick 'N' Mix Sweetie Stand | 3.3ft x 1.5ft | 4ft x 3ft | 5ft |
| Prize Crane Arcade Grabber | 3.8ft x 2.3ft | 5ft x 3ft | 6.6ft |
| Giant Gashapon machine | 3.8ft x 2.3ft | 5ft x 3ft | 6.6ft |
| Virtual Bowling | 3.8ft x 2.3ft | 5ft x 3ft | 6.6ft |
| Virtual Pinball | 3.8ft x 2.3ft | 5ft x 3ft | 6.6ft |
| Batak Lite | 3.7ft x 3.1ft | 5ft x 5ft | 7ft |
| Saloon Bar Shoot Out | 6ft x 2ft | 7ft x 3ft | 10ft |
| Giant Labyrinth | 4ft x 3.5ft | 6ft x 6ft | 6ft |
| Grab a Grand | 4ft x 4ft | 7ft x 6ft | 7.6ft |
| Batak Pro | 7ft x 3.3ft | 8ft x 5ft | 6.6ft |
| Bounce a Ball | 5ft x 5ft | 8ft x 8ft | 6ft |
| Horse Racing Gold Cup | 6ft x 4ft | 8ft x 8ft | 6ft |
| Double Shot Basketball | 4ft x 7.5ft | 4ft x 10.5ft | 7.5ft |
| Racing Car Simulator | 6.5ft x 6.5ft | 10ft x 10ft | 8ft |
| Sega Rally 2 twin | 7ft x 7ft | 10ft x 10ft | 6.6ft |
| Fast & Furious twin | 7ft x 7ft | 10ft x 10ft | 7.5ft |
| Reaction Table | 8.5ft x 4.2ft | 11ft x 7ft | 6ft |
| Snatch It | 8.5ft x 4.2ft | 11ft x 7ft | 6ft |
| IPS Podium Challenge | 12ft x 12ft | 13ft x 13ft | 9ft |
| Interactive Football Challenge | 12ft x 12ft | 13ft x 13ft | 9ft |
| Inflatable Basketball | 12.5ft x 11ft | 13ft x 11ft | 16ft |
Figures for the simulators are per unit, so a pair side by side needs the room doubled across.
Height is the one people forget
Three checks are worth doing before you sign off a stand plan.
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Check it fits through the door
The Batak Pro is 2080mm wide, 950mm deep and 1950mm high free-standing, and goes through a standard single door. Not everything does, and a service lift is the usual pinch point.
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Check the rigging and banner line
Overhead banners, lighting rigs and hanging signage eat height that the floor plan does not show, so it is worth checking the stand elevation rather than the plan view.
Power
Most of what goes onto a stand runs off a standard 13A socket, which is the socket exhibition organisers sell as a matter of course. The Batak Lite, Prize Crane Arcade Grabber, Racing Car Simulator and Sega Rally 2 all run from one. Whack a Mole draws 500W, which is well inside it.
The thing to check is what you actually ordered from the organiser. Many exhibitors buy a lighting-only supply because it is cheaper, then find it is not rated for a game as well. Tell us what is on your order and we will tell you whether it stretches.
Where there is no mains. Generators supplied where there's no mains on site. We carry diesel sets from 6 kVA up to 30 kVA, and battery generators where noise or fumes rule diesel out, which on an indoor or a heritage site they usually do. Distribution units, cable protectors and the rest of the run come off the same order.
Cable routing. Anything crossing a walkway needs a protector over it, and most venues will stop you trading until it has one. They cost a couple of pounds a metre, so it is an easy one to sort before you set off rather than on the morning.
Floors
Exhibition halls are generally fine. The two cases worth flagging are raised platform stands, where a heavy unit needs the platform spec checking first, and venues with a loading limit on upper floors or mezzanines. Neither is common, but both are much easier to sort a month out than on build-up morning.
Outdoors, the ground decides more than the game does. Grass suits inflatables and rides with the right anchoring, hard standing suits everything, and ground protection matting covers the gap when a heavy item has to cross soft ground.
Next
Once you know what fits, shell scheme versus space only goes through what each stand type will physically take, and the costs guide has the money.