A Four-Day Dual-Load Programme
The Gas Machinery Conference runs 4 to 7 October 2026 at the Indiana Convention Center. The programme loads the building two ways at once. The exhibit floor carries heavy equipment. A technical track runs short courses, technical papers and technology updates from Monday morning to Wednesday afternoon.
The organiser, the Gas Machinery Research Council, publishes 1,100 attendees expected, 100 or more exhibitors, and 80 or more short courses, technical papers and technology updates across four days of learning. Its sponsorship section reads 900 or more attendees and 70 or more technical sessions. The venue's own event page forecasts 900. Carry each figure with its publisher.
Floor Load Limits Decide Where Equipment Can Stand
Floor load is the first number to clear with the venue. The facility guide sets 500 pounds per square foot in Halls A, B and C, 350 pounds per square foot in Halls D and E, and 500 pounds per square foot in Halls F through K. The 8,600 square foot swing space between Halls C, E and F carries 500 pounds per square foot and can be rented as additional exhibit space. The Sagamore Ballroom 1-7 and the first and second floor meeting rooms and public areas carry 100 pounds per square foot.
Wheel loads follow axle spacing. The guide publishes 2,300 pounds per wheel at five feet of spacing, 1,500 pounds at three feet and 1,000 pounds at two feet. It states that a four-wheel load rarely distributes evenly, and a loaded forklift puts the greater weight on the front wheels.
Power Drops Exist Only Inside the Exhibit Halls
Heavy electrical, gas, water, drain and compressed air sit inside the exhibit halls. Utility grids in the halls run on 30-foot centers and carry electrical at 110 and 208 volts, compressed air, water, drains, telephone, internet and data. Natural gas hookups run on 30-foot centers in Halls D, E and F and at designated locations in Halls A, B, C, G, H, I, J and K. A 480-volt service and microphone hookups run on 60-foot centers in Halls A through G and on 90-foot centers beyond. Exhibit hall floor pockets carry three-phase 100 amp 208 volt service or six 20 amp 120 volt lines, and every other pocket carries three-phase 100 amp 480 volt. Meeting rooms average three 20 amp 120 volt lines, and the venue publishes no water, gas or compressed air in meeting rooms.
The venue requires its own personnel to make every connection to sound, video, television and utility systems. An exhibitor orders through the venue utility desk, and the order covers installation and inspection against applicable codes.
Rigging Runs on Union Jurisdiction
The building uses union labor. The Sound and Lighting Department, under IATSE Local 30, performs rigging and operation of sound equipment, theatrical and special lighting, projection screens and equipment, audio-visual equipment, scaffolding, traveling stages and barricades. It also unloads equipment trucks and operates forklifts and aerial lifts. The setup department, under Teamsters Local 135, provides the room set, and the client may not move furniture. The guide publishes a four-hour minimum charge on that labor.
The organiser agenda lists no separate rigging window. It lists exhibitor move-in on Sunday 4 October from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and a second window from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Freeman Exhibitor Kit carries the setup and teardown schedules. Dock guards are required during move-in and move-out on a four-hour minimum, drawn from the venue pre-qualified security list.
Freight Routing Belongs in the Contract
The venue will not accept freight shipments. Packages reach the building through the Ricoh Business Center at 100 South Capitol Avenue, at a maximum width of 34 inches, a maximum height of 82 inches and a maximum weight of 120 pounds, for $10 per box, with no skids or pallets accepted. The organiser sends advance freight to 4960 Decatur Blvd, care of SAIA and Freeman, and show-site freight to the Indiana Convention Center, also care of Freeman. The venue ICC dock sits at 5 South Missouri Street and is reached from northbound Missouri Street. Docks are assigned by hall: 1 to 3 for Hall A, 4 to 6 for Hall B, 7 to 9 for Hall C, 10 to 12 for Hall D, 13 to 15 for Hall E, 22 to 24 for Hall F, 25 to 28 for Hall G, 40 to 46 for Hall H, 47 to 52 for Hall I, 53 to 55 for Hall J, 56 to 58 for Hall K, and 30 to 35 for the swing space.
Crates and skidded items travel on four-wheel flatbed trucks or on forklifts with rubber bumpers and non-marking rubber-tired wheels. Forklifts are barred from carpeted areas and from the second floor. A crate into a meeting room caps at 61 inches by 81 inches, and into the Wabash Ballroom at 5.1 feet by 6.5 feet. An exhibitor appointing a contractor other than Freeman Services files the form and a certificate of insurance by 4:30 p.m. CST on 27 September 2026.
A Four-Day Meeting Cycle
The Sunday to Wednesday shape compresses food and beverage into 15 published windows. Three are breakfasts, three are lunches, three are evening functions and six are breaks. Monday carries breakfast at 7:00 a.m. in Wabash 2-3, a kick-off keynote and luncheon from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the White River Ballroom, and three breaks. Tuesday carries breakfast in White River A-E, an exhibit hall lunch with exhibitors from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., a coffee break, a refreshment break, a hall reception from 4:45 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-B, and an evening function at the Indiana Roof Ballroom, 140 W Washington St., from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday carries breakfast with exhibitors from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m., a break, and an exhibit hall lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Sodexo Live! holds exclusive food and beverage distribution rights in the building, and the facility is cashless. Indiana sales tax of 7 percent and a Marion County food and beverage tax of 2 percent apply. Booth catering belongs to the catering department alone, and items used as traffic promoters, including coffee, popcorn, sodas, bar service and ice, must be bought from Sodexo Live!.
Contracting Notes
Booth rates are published by size and membership: 10 by 10 at $1,950 for members and $2,950 for non-members, 10 by 20 at $3,900 and $5,900, and 20 by 20 at $7,800 and $11,800. A booth includes one full conference registration, one skirted table, two chairs, one wastebasket and pipe and drape. Registration runs $950 for members, $1,150 for non-members, $450 for guests and $475 for students, with $200 added on site from 4 October.