With reference to DPCM 11/06/20 (Prime Ministerial Decree) and the guidelines for the re-opening of the business activities drawn up by the State-Regions Conference published on the same date, we give below the instructions for holding large exhibitions.

 

The above have been supplemented in relation to the specific context with instructions governing food services (especially as regards buffet services), instructions for installing and removing stands, and instructions for individual exhibition spaces which are similar to local shops or showrooms.

 

 

General considerations

 

 

Entering the exhibition centre

 

Access to the centre is conditional on the implementation of temperature controls at all pedestrian and vehicular entrances. Face masks must be worn inside the centre, if it is not possible to maintain social distancing of 1 m.

 

The pedestrian and vehicular entrances have been defined with special attention to traffic management.

 

 

Accesses and ticketing

 

Digital technologies will be used to automate organisation and participation, with incentives for pre-registration systems to prevent crowding, and a register of participants will be maintained for 14 days (compliant with GDPR). In the cloakrooms, personal clothing and other items will be kept in specific clothes bags.

 

 

Points of attraction

 

Points of attraction will be distributed uniformly over the entire area of the exhibition centre to distribute participants evenly and prevent localised crowding.

 

 

Information

 

Adequate information about the preventive measures will be made available, using both special signage, fixed notices and digital systems, and through warning by specialised staff charged with monitoring and promoting observance of said measures and appealing to the sense of responsibility of the participants themselves.

 

 

Cleanliness and hygiene

 

Cleaning activities will be intensified by providing dedicated washroom attendants and frequently sanitising all major contact surfaces (handles, handrails, push-button controls and touch panels, and so on). Disinfectant gel dispensers will be installed at the washrooms and food serving and relaxation areas.

 

While the use of air recirculation systems is not permitted in the halls, adequate ventilation of the interiors is assured; the checking and replacement of filters and cleaning of air handling and climate control system is also guaranteed.

 

 

 

Setting up and dismantling time

 

Stands: no specific instructions regarding the materials of stands are provided; it would be better, they should be easily washable.

 

In the exhibition areas, the spaces between individual exhibitors' areas must be reorganised to promote social distancing in relation to access to the stands themselves; wherever possible, incoming and outgoing flows of visitors should be separate.

 

Any informative and promotional materials and gadgets can be made available, for preference in self-service display stands (which the visitor can access after sanitising their hands) or using digital systems.

 

Installation, where possible, should start with assembly of the walls bordering on other stands, thus immediately creating a physical barrier which eliminates and/or reduces interferences and also enforces social distancing.

 

 

Exhibition time

 

Note that each exhibitor, within his own rented exhibition space, is legally in charge of his area and is hence the primary guarantor for the persons inside it, and must therefore observe all regulatory measures to combat and limit the spread of COVID-19, as laid out in the guidelines provided in the reference documentation.

 

Exhibitors must themselves assure the interior cleanliness of their stands (Fiera Milano may provide cleaning and sanitisation services, specifying the methods employed and types of product used).

 

During the event, rules of access must be implemented to prevent crowding and assure maintenance of at least 1 m of distance between visitors.

 

The exhibitors must guarantee ample availability of and access to systems for cleaning the hands with sanitising products, and promote the frequent use thereof by both visitors and his staff.

 

If the products on display are to be handled by visitors and staff, they must first disinfect their hands. This is obligatory. Alternatively, disposable gloves may be made available for obligatory use.

 

In all interpersonal interactions, visitors must always wear masks, as must staff. The reception area may be equipped with physical barriers (e.g. screens); if not, staff must wear face masks and have access to hand cleaning products.

 

 

Canteen/catering inside stands

 

Any dedicated chairs must be arranged to ensure observance of a distance of at least 1 m between visitors. This distance may only be reduced if physical barriers are installed between tables to prevent droplet-borne contagion.

 

Eating and drinking at the counter is permitted only if social distancing of at least 1 m can be guaranteed. A buffet can be provided with serving by staff, but measures must be taken to ensure that visitors do not touch the displayed goods, and observance of social distancing and use of face masks to protect the respiratory tract is in any case obligatory. A self-service system may be permitted for buffets using only single-portion packaged products.  In particular, the distribution of food and drink must be organised in such a way as to prevent crowding, even by reorganising the spaces in relation to the size of the area; other appropriate measures (such as floor signage, barriers, etc.) may be employed to ensure social distancing of at least 1 m when visitors are queuing at the buffet counter. 

 

Service staff in contact with visitors must wear face masks and frequently clean their hands with sanitising products (before serving each table).  After a table has been used, all usual surface cleaning and disinfection measures must be applied, and reusable tableware and containers which cannot be disinfected (salt shakers, cruets, etc.) should be avoided in preference for single-portion packages.