# How to design a booth when your equipment is too big to ship Bring the benchtop or lab-scale unit, run it on the booth and show the pilot and production scales on screen. A life-size render, a cutaway animation of the inside and a single-use bag or sensor that people can pick up explain more than a catalogue photo. Design the booth around those three things. [Web version](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/guides/trade-show-booth-equipment-too-big/) By David Monje, crida studio · Published 2026-02-10 · Updated 2026-02-10 ## Bring the small unit and run it Shipping a 2,000-litre bioreactor to a show is costly and complicated, but a benchtop unit fits on any booth. Bring the smallest scale in your range and, if you can, have it running with the control software open on a screen. Visitors see how it is set up, how the data reads and how the bag is changed, which is what they want to understand before asking for a quote. If the small unit uses the same software, sensors or consumables as the larger ones, say so on a clear sign. That way the unit in front of them also explains the ones you left at home. If it does not, do not imply it, because a process engineer will ask straight away. ## How to show the production scale on screen Large scales belong on a large screen, with life-size renders or a person standing next to the equipment so the size is clear. A cutaway animation that opens the vessel and shows the agitation, sensors and bag explains in seconds what a catalogue cannot. Make it silent with short captions, because the noise of the hall makes audio hard to hear. A 3D configurator on a tablet lets visitors choose volume, options and connections while they talk to your sales engineer. Augmented reality can place the equipment at full size on the booth floor, but it is only worth it if it opens instantly and someone from your team runs it. ![Industrial hall seen from above with several process skids of different sizes and a few people at work](https://www.crida.studio/recursos/assets/nau-amb-equips-de-proces.d91489b606d3.webp) Process equipment of several sizes in a hall, in a photo by TECNIC Bioprocess Solutions. Large scales can be shown like this on the booth screen. TECNIC Bioprocess Solutions / Unsplash — https://unsplash.com/photos/YvQJI4M513c ### What booth size do I need for a benchtop unit? At ACHEMA the minimum stand is 12 square metres, and the ready-built packages run from 12 to 25. For a benchtop unit, a screen and a meeting table, a small booth can be enough if the layout is right. Measure the unit with all its accessories and leave room for people to walk around it. ## What visitors should be able to handle At a bioprocess show, people tend to want to handle the materials. A single-use bag, a sensor, a sterile connector or a sample of your stainless steel finish take up no space and start conversations. Put them at hand height, close to the aisle, rather than inside a locked display case. - An open single-use bag so the ports and connections are visible. - The sensors and connectors you use, clearly labelled. - A stainless steel sample with the finish you offer. - A card with a QR code that leads to the large unit's page on your website. ## How to lay out a 12 to 25 square metre booth AUMA, the German trade fair industry association, recommends a stand with clear zones for consultation, product presentation and quieter conversations, with well-placed media technology. On a small booth, that means the unit at the front, the screen on the back wall and a meeting table set apart from the passing crowd. At ACHEMA, the All-in-One Compact package covers stands from 12 to 25 square metres, with 2.50-metre walls, a 2.00 by 2.60-metre fabric graphic wall, a table, three chairs and a lockable counter. The Pro package, from 18 to 25 square metres, has 3-metre walls, a lockable 1-square-metre cabin and a 2.00 by 3.00-metre print on the rear wall. ### Is augmented reality worth it on a booth? It can be, if it answers a specific question, such as how much floor space the production unit would take in the customer's cleanroom. It has to open instantly, on a tablet that stays on the booth, with someone from your team guiding it. If visitors have to download an app, keep it for the website instead. ## An interactive showroom instead of the whole product range David Monje, founder of crida studio, led marketing at TECNIC Bioprocess Solutions for four and a half years. There he took technical content into 3D, animation and interactive tools, and organised TECNIC's presence at the #MEVO 2024 event. The summary video TECNIC published on 7 May 2024 shows the interactive showroom, the equipment and expert opinions. The idea works for any manufacturer. The physical unit draws people in, the screen explains the scales that do not fit and the person on the booth does the rest. If you prepare this material in good time, you can also use it on the website, on sales visits and on video calls with customers. [Exploring the Future of Biotech with TECNIC at #MEVO 2024 | An Exclusive Insight](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYx1k3LCsQ0) — TECNIC Bioprocess Solutions, YouTube, 2024-05-07 For booth ideas, look at the interactive showroom and equipment in TECNIC's #MEVO 2024 summary video. It dates from the period when David Monje led TECNIC's marketing. ### Renders or photos to show large equipment? If the equipment exists and you have an installation you can photograph without customer data in view, a photo builds trust. If you want to show the inside, different options or a unit that has not been built yet, renders are more flexible. Often the two are combined, with real plant photos and renders for the options. ## Booth material keeps working after the show Renders, animation and a configurator are paid for once and can work all year. Commission them from the start in website and LinkedIn formats, landscape and portrait, and with text-free versions you can translate later. That way the material from the Frankfurt show also serves the Madrid one and your product page. ## References - [AUMA, stand design and stand construction](https://www.auma.de/en/exhibit/tips-for-trade-fair-participation/6-stand-design-and-stand-construction/) - [ACHEMA, all-in-one stand packages](https://www.achema.de/en/for-exhibitors/stand-construction) - [ACHEMA, FAQ for exhibitors](https://www.achema.de/en/for-exhibitors/faq) ## The crida perspective We are a marketing, brand and technology studio based in Girona. We bring identity, content and development together so a digital experience makes sense from beginning to end. crida studio, Caldes de Malavella (Girona, Spain). David Monje, founder and director. ## Need to show equipment that will not fit on your booth? Tell us what equipment you make, which scales you want to show and which show you are going to. We will suggest which renders, animations or 3D tools would make sense on your booth. [Let's talk](https://www.crida.studio/en/#contact) ## More on web design - [Marketing for biotech, bioprocess and pharma companies](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/services/biotech-bioprocess-pharma-marketing/) - [How to follow up trade show leads in the week after the event](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/guides/trade-show-lead-follow-up-week-after/) - [Biotech, bioprocess and pharma trade shows worth attending in 2027](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/guides/biotech-bioprocess-pharma-trade-shows-2027/) - [3D and rendering](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/services/3d-renders/) - [Product renders for catalogues, brands and online sales](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/services/3d-product-renders/) - [Motion graphics and video for businesses from Girona](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/services/motion-graphics-business-video/) - [What to prepare before commissioning a 3D render](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/guides/prepare-3d-render-brief/) - [Trade show cost calculator for bioprocess equipment makers](https://www.crida.studio/en/insights/guides/trade-show-cost-calculator-bioprocess/)