Rules and regulations

Exhibition regulations for LABORAMA 2025

These regulations apply to the LABORAMA trade fair that will be organized by the Federation Laborama for the year 2025 (hereinafter referred to as "LABORAMA").

The LABORAMA trade fair consists of 2 sections:

Part 1:  a physical trade fair of 2 days that will take place in hall 3 of Brussels Expo.

Part 2:  a 2-day congress that is organised parallel to the physical trade fair in cooperation under the supervision of a scientific committee who monitor and supervise the quality of the programme.

The costs for organising the congress are borne by the Laborama federation.

Exhibitors only need to register for the physical trade fair LABORAMA. They only pay for the stand reservation. All prices mentioned are excluding VAT.

Registration for participating at LABORAMA is binding. By subscribing the exhibitors commit to respect the rules and regulations of the exhibitions as well as every new directive that is adopted and implied in the interest of the exhibition

Participants at LABORAMA commit themselves to only exhibit products and/or services that are directly linked and connected to the laboratory sector.

Both members and non-members of the federation Laborama can register to participate at the trade fair LABORAMA. Non-members will only be admitted after a decision by the board of the federation Laborama that the commercial activity of the exhibitor is sufficiently related to the laboratory sector.

Further, the organization is entitled to reject an exhibitors’ registration, if said exhibitor has no direct commercial activity or no office in Belgium.

Companies subscribe under their own name. Only the company that subscribes will be considered an exhibitor by the organization. Only this company will have access to the services mentioned in the rules and regulations.

The exhibitor is not allowed to sublet or share his booth or part of it to/with and 3rd party for whatever reason.

Should the exhibitor act in breach of this rule, the 3rd party will not have any claim to any service or rights.

Subscribing to LABORAMA can solely be done through the subscription form that is available on the website expo.laborama.be

The organization reserves the right to reject or accept an application for participation at LABORAMA at any time and for any reason.

Only 1 invoice, for the full amount of the booth reservation will be made. The invoice must be paid on the due date and at the latest 2 weeks before the start of LABORAMA. Should the amount due or part of it remain unpaid, the organization is entitled to cancel the participation, in which case the participant will be requested to pay damages equalling the amount that he owes according to article 10 of the present regulations. The organization is also entitled to allocate the booth to a different participant.

The fixed price for participation in LABORAMA (see introduction for description) with a standard booth (see article 13 for more information) is:

For each module of 12m²:

• For Laborama members: EUR 2.890,00 (VAT excl.)
• For non-Laborama members: EUR 3.665,00 (VAT excl.)

Members of the federation Laborama-are entitled to this important reduction provided that:

• they are a member of the Laborama federation at the time of the reservation of their booth and have paid their membership fee for the full year preceding the fair (year of edition -1)
• they remain a member of the Laborama Federation for at least the full year of the fair (year of the edition)
• they don’t have any payment pending towards the federation Laborama (except for an accepted dispute).

All prices indicated are 21% VAT excluded.

As of January 1, 2011 a new VAT regulation is applied.

All foreign exhibitors (i.e.non-Belgian VAT-numbers) now have to fulfill their VAT obligations in their own country, with the exception of catering for which the VAT has to be paid in Belgium.

Laborama accepts registrations until 5 weeks before the start of the event. After that date Laborama cannot guarantee reservations anymore, nor provide all services (e.g. catalogue).

This rule also applies in case of unpaid invoices for booth reservations at 2 weeks before the event.

A participant who cancels his participation at LABORAMA 2024 for any reason will have to pay the following fee to Laborama:

• cancellation at more than 60 days prior to the start of the trade fair: 10% of the total amount due
• cancellation between 60 to 30 days prior to the start of the trade fair: 30% of the total amount due
• cancellation between 30 to 14 days prior to the start of the trade fair: 50% of the total amount due
• cancellation less than 14 days prior to the start of the trade fair: 75% of the total amount due

Force majeure clause

For reasons of force majeure, the Federation Laborama can cancel LABORAMA.

A. Force Majeure Event means any event that:

• was not caused by the Federation Laborama, and
• substantially aggravates the further performance of the obligations under this agreement for Federation Laborama.

The common law application condition of unforeseeability with regard to force majeure must therefore not be fulfilled.

The following are considered an event of force majeure, without this list being exhaustive:

• natural disasters (such as flood, storm, lightning,…)
• social turmoil (such as strike, demonstration,…)
• crimes (such as theft, terrorism,…)
• disease, epidemic, virus, pandemic (such as the coronavirus,…)
• power and telecommunication outages
• accidents (such as fire,…)
• government intervention, including government measures to combat a disease, epidemic, virus, pandemic (such as a ban on events, a travel ban, government measures relating to the control of the COVD-19 coronavirus or the consequences thereof which make it impossible for the organiser to fulfil his commitments)

B. If the Federation Laborama is affected by an event of force majeure, it will notify the registered exhibitors by e-mail as soon as possible.

The Federation Laborama will submit all useful supporting documents with this notification in order to allow its counterparties to establish the existence and the impact of the invoked force majeure event.

C. The Federation Laborama will take all reasonable measures to limit the effect of the invoked event of force majeure on the performance of its obligations under the agreement.

In the event of an event of force majeure that significantly aggravates the commitments regarding the organisation of the trade fair in Brussels Expo, the Federation Laborama will make all reasonable efforts to organize a digital event if necessary.

D. If the Federation Laborama invokes an event of force majeure, it is released from any contractual or extra-contractual liability as of the occurrence of the event of force majeure. The Federation Laborama will therefore in no way be liable for non-compliance with the obligations affected by force majeure.

If an event of force majeure substantially aggravates the further execution of the obligations under the agreement for the federation Laborama, the federation Laborama will immediately dissolve the agreement for the part of the physical fair. However, should it still be viable to organise a digital version of the event, and should there be sufficient concensus among the parties involved, Laborama will make reasonable efforts to organise a digital version of the fair.

E. In the event of dissolution of the agreement due to an event of force majeure, each registered exhibitor will be obliged to pay 40% of the price owed by him, with a maximum of € 3000;-, and this by way of a fixed compensation for the costs and services provided by the Federation Laborama regarding the organization of ' LABORAMA 2024 '. The Federation Laborama will refund or credit 40% for cancellation of the fair, increased with, if applicable, the part of the fixed compensation exceeding € 3000,-.

For the remaining 20% the exhibitor, who registered for the 2024 edition, can opt for a refund or for a voucher, which can be used for future events of the Federation Laborama within a period of 2 years from the notification of the dissolution due to force majeure.

Each registration for participation at LABORAMA will be confirmed or rejected within the 3 weeks following the date of receipt of the registration by the organization. In case of a rejection, the organization is under no obligation to motivate its decision. In case the exhibitor did not receive an answer from the organization within 3 weeks after his application, the exhibitor should consider his registration as non-existent and enter a new registration.

The booths at LABORAMA are made up of modules of 12m². Each booth of 12m² is as equipped as follows as standard:

• white partitions,
• aluminum frame,
• nameplate and booth number of the exhibitor (standard type of letters),
• 3 spotlights (no electricity connection)

Both the floor and the alleys are carpeted.

The exhibitor can order a pantry for his booth at an additional price.

The minimum surface that exhibitors can reserve is 12m² (= 1 module). The maximum surface available is 120120m²(= 10 modules). Booths with a surface of 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72 or 96 m² are available. No L-shaped booths will be allowed.

Exhibitors have the possibility to choose from different possibilities for lay-outs of booths:

• Linear positions of the modules (all booths one next to the other). This lay-out is available for booths of 12, 24, 36, 48 and 60m²
• The modules are in 1 block (modules back-to-back without partitioning). This lay-out is available for booths of 48, 72 and 96m m²
• The modules are in face-to-face mode. The number of modules on both sides of the aisles is equal. The modules are booked opposite one another. This lay-out is available for booths of 2 x 24, 2 x 36 and 2 x 48 m²

It is forbidden to use the dividing aisle as extra exhibit space. The sole function of the aisles is to allow the smooth passage of all visitors.

• Booths of 12, 24, 36 or 60m² are only offered in line (modules next to each other).

Theme Islands and dedicated zones

The organizer may decide to set up one or more theme Islands. These Theme Islands are specifically reserved for companies with a well-defined specialty.

For the upcoming edition, the organisation has decided not to set up a theme island.

The booths in the general zones are maximum 2.5 m high and are built as defined in Article 13. The exhibitor may decorate the interior of the booth, but decoration, exhibit material or other display items may not, in any way, be higher than the maximum height of the booth, or exceed the surface of the booth. As floorcovering, the exhibitor is obliged to use the carpet that is provided by the organizer.

The structures supplied by the organizer may not be damaged, replaced or dismantled by the exhibitor. Exhibitors causing any damage or making alterations (unless described in art. 17 and 19) to the booth supplied to them by the organizer or to any other item placed in the exhibition hall by the organization will be charged for all necessary repairs which the organization needs to carry out.

Exhibitors are not allowed to fix hanging signs to the ceilings of the exhibition hall for whatever purpose.

Damages to the material made available must be compensated by the Exhibitor.

Raised floors

The use of a raised floor in the stands is permitted for booths with a surface of 48m² or more. The main function of a raised floor must be to hide a surplus of electrical cabling thus increasing safety in the booth.

When using a raised floor in the stand the following rules must be respected:

• The organizer must be informed at least one month before the start of the event, that the exhibitor will install a raised floor in his booth;
• The maximum height of the raised floor is 10cm, measured from the floor of the building to the top of the raised floor;
• The sides should be closed and a neatly finished;
• The floor may in no way exceed the surface of the booth;
• At the top, the raised floor will be finished with the carpet tiles made available by the organizer. This means that the carpet tiles in all booths will be of an equal size and colour;
• The maximum height of the booth (walls) including the raised floor is 2.5 m.
• Exhibitors, who place a raised floor in their booth, are requested to take accessibility for all into account, ensuring that the step created by the raised floor is no obstacle in any way and for any person.

The flat rate per module of 12m² includes:

• the rental of the surface,
• the booth,
• lighting (no electricity connection) (see Article 13),
• invitations for the visitors,
• promotional material (=posters and digital logo of LABORAMA),
• presentation of the exhibitor’s company in the on-line catalogue in 3 languages,
• mentioning of the exhibitor’s name and booth number on the on-line exhibitors list.

The texts for the on-line catalogue, in the language(s) of your choice, can be sent to the organizer via the LABORAMA website expo.laborama.be.

Responsibility for the information placed in the catalogue and on the website lies solely with the exhibitor. He is directly responsible for entering the correct address, text, selection of product categories; have his company logo put on the LABORAMA website ... The federation Laborama can in no way be held liable for any errors, incorrect information, and omissions… of any kind that may be made in this context.

Laborama does not accept any liability towards third parties if the exhibitor data is incorrect.

The costs for an electricity connection are not included in the price. Every exhibitor is obliged to order an electricity connection from Brussels Expo. The connection can be ordered at the Brussels Expo web shop to which the exhibitor has access via the exhibitor manual.

When ordering additional services and goods (including those in the exhibitor manual), the Exhibitor commits to paying the associated costs to the relevant supplier.

The organiser may decide to make a limited number of modules/stands available where no modular stands will be constructed. Only carpet and stand number will be provided by the organiser.

These stands can only be reserved by exhibitors who reserve a stand of minimum 72m² and maximum 120m² in 1 block. These modules/stands are offered at the same fixed price as mentioned in article 7 of these regulations.

The exhibitor who wishes to construct his own stand on either one of these emplacements commits himself to respect and comply with all other rules of the exhibition regulations and in particular the regulations regarding stand construction.

Reservations for these stands are:

• no acquired right
• subject to availability (to be awarded on a first in first out basis)
• always limited in number
• depending on the location where LABORAMA takes place. If the location is not suitable to offer this service, the organiser may decide to suspend the offer of these emplacements.

A company can purchase advertising space in the on-line catalogue of LABORAMA without participating at the exhibition at a cost of € 2.500, - (excluding VAT). This price applies to the trade show and not per year (assuming that in that year more than 1 trade show would be organized).

Only the board of the federation Laborama decides in the setup of the trade fair, its location, size and dimension of the booths and the assignment of the latter.

Booths will be assigned based on the following criteria:

• a. date of the exhibitor’s registration for LABORAMA
• b. reserved exhibit space
• c. being a member or non-member of the federation Laborama
• d. date of payment of the invoice for booth reservation

When registering, the exhibitor may indicate a preference for a location of his booth. However, the exhibitor’s information is purely indicative and implies no commitment from the organization in whatever way. The organization on its part does not have to motivate its decisions as to booth assignments. However, the organization will assign the booths to the best of its abilities, considering the indicated preference, the above-mentioned criteria, the availability of space and the regulations as much as possible.

In case of simultaneous subscription (in terms of date and/or surface) of a member of the federation Laborama and a non-member of Laborama, priority will be given to the allocation of the booth of the Laborama member.

Laborama reserves the right to make modifications to the floor plan and consequently the location of the booths as it deems necessary and useful for the exhibition, without the exhibitor having the right to claim any compensation.

The floor plan of the exhibition is given for indicative purposes and will, if the Organiser deems it necessary, be adapted to the evolution of registrations for participation in the exhibition.

If necessary, and with regard to optimization of the trade fair, the organization may reallocate an exhibitor’s booth. However, the reallocation of a booth may be executed only with the consent of the exhibitor to whom the booth was initially allocated.

Additional services can be ordered online through www.laborama.be. These orders can be placed directly with the suppliers featured in the technical file that is at the disposal of the exhibitor. Additional services will be invoiced to the exhibitor.

When ordering additional services and goods (including those in the exhibitor manual), the Exhibitor commits to paying the associated costs to the relevant supplier.

Laborama offers the exhibitors a number of free extra services.

The following list is a non-exhaustive list of free services to the exhibitors:

• insertion in the online catalogue and search engine on the LABORAMA website
• parking vouchers (2 per module of 12m² per day)
• access to the wireless network available during the days of the trade fair (for consulting e-mails)
• insertion of company’s name and booth number on the online floorplan
• logo in the streamer on the LABORAMA website
• logo next to the company name in the exhibitors list on the website
• daily cleaning of the booth and the aisles

These extra services can never be considered as acquired. The organizer has the right to change, add or cancel the number of free services offered.

Exhibitors who do not take advantage of any or all these services for whatever reason, are not eligible for any financial compensation

Set-up:

The afternoon before the start of the exhibition, exhibitors can set up their stands from 12h00 until 21h00. The day of the exhibition, they can finish the set up (decoration and small equipment only) between 07h00 and 09h00.

Access to the fenced domain of Brussels Expo with a vehicle is only possible on presentation of an admission ticket. These can be requested from the organisation. The organisation will also inform the exhibitors about this on several occasions.

Opening hours of the trade fair:

Day 1 – Thursday:

• Visitors: from 09:30 to 16:30
• Exhibitors: from 07:00 to 16:30

Day 2 – Friday:

• Visitors: from 09:30 to 16:00
• Exhibitors: from 08:30 to 21:00

Booths must be staffed at all times during the opening hours for visitors.

Access to the exhibition hall by car is not possible during exhibition days.

Dismantling:

At the end of the 2nd day of the exhibition (Friday) exhibitors have to empty their booths between 16h30 and 21h00.

If the stand used by the Exhibitor is not vacated on time or in its entirety or if it is not delivered in the state in which it was made available to him, the Organiser is authorised to take the necessary measures at the exhibitor's expense.

Access to the fenced domain of Brussels Expo with a vehicle is only possible on presentation of an admission ticket. These can be requested from the organisation. The organisation will also inform the exhibitors about this on several occasions.

No exhibit, equipment, product, documentation, poster… shall be packed, removed, or dismantled prior to the closing of LABORAMA (Friday at 16h00) without written permission of the organization. The exhibitor must ask the organization for this exceptional permission in writing. In the general interest, the Organiser may decide to move the closing time forward (with a maximum of 2 hours).

The organizer will apply the names and the booth numbers of the exhibitors on their booths. Exhibitors are not allowed to affix any name, publicity, or logo on the existing nameplates or anywhere outside of the booth, including the friezes. It is also forbidden to make any kind of publicity in the aisles or any other common spaces of the exhibition (including the entrance and on the parking lot).

Infringements to this rule are cause for the immediate removal of improperly affixed names, logos….

Exhibitors are not allowed to distribute price lists, catalogues, flyers… outside of their own booth. The only exception is made for the racks that are placed by the organizer at several points in the exhibition. In these racks, the exhibitors can place printed brochures or leaflets. These brochures/leaflets must relate to the products and/or equipment the exhibitor represents.

Infringements to this rule are cause for the immediate removal of the improperly distributed price lists, catalogues, brochures/leaflets….

The organizer (Laborama) provides insurance for the equipment used to build the booths.

He subscribes an insurance policy, which covers the civil liability of the Organisation versus third parties, in the common parts, outside the stands.

The exhibitors are responsible for having their own equipment insured.

The exhibitor is responsible for and is obliged to be insured against all damages of any kind that may be caused by any action of negligence by himself, his staff, persons who work for him in any way whatsoever or are under his instructions.

The exhibitors waive all claims against the organizer, the owners or tenants of the buildings, for any damage caused to the exhibited material, the stand construction, etc. for any reason.

The organizer is in no way to be held liable for any theft, damage, fire, etc. to displayed material or any other equipment that is present in the exhibition halls.

In order to avoid theft to a maximum, the organizer asks to avoid leaving any valuable items on display and / or easily accessible places.

Electricity

The electricity connection is not included in the price for the stand.Every exhibitor is obligated to order his own electrical connection for his stand according to the needed. The connection can be ordered at the Brussels Expo web shop. This electric power should also include the standard lighting in the stand, which consumes ± 100 watts per reserved area of 12m&sup2.

The exhibitor takes this into account when calculating the total electrical power, he needs in his booth.

Only the electrician appointed by the organizer has the right to make the connections from the booths to the electricity grid. The exhibitor will be required to specify and order any and all additional power supplies he may need in advance by using the adequate order form in the trade fair manual.

The organizer is only obliged to deliver the electrical power that is technically available and feasible in the exhibition hall. The non-availability of a particular electrical supply will not give rise to any compensation or refund to the exhibitor, even if out of unawareness or ignorance, the supply was at first granted by the organization.

Any electricity failure or interruption resulting from having ordered too little electrical power beforehand will be claimed from the exhibitor in question.

In case an exhibitor acts against or in breach of the regulations, the manual or is in breach of any other agreement or instruction; the organization will have the right to shut down the electricity supply to the exhibitor’s booth, without further notice until settlement of the problem.

Catering is made available to the exhibitors in dedicated areas. Exhibitors have access to this area during opening hours of the exhibition.

Exhibitors can pay their consumptions in the catering area in cash, by master bankcard or visa.

A database with the addresses of the visitors to the trade show will be made available after the trade show. This database is only available to exhibitors who actually participated at the latest edition of LABORAMA.

The association Laborama has the right to make this database available to exhibitors against payment. The database will only be transferred to the exhibitors who ordered it, after payment of the invoice.

In all cases that are not covered by these rules and regulations, the organizer will decide.

Disputes. The exhibitors shall comply strictly with the stipulations of the regulations of LABORAMA or with any supplementary provisions.

In the event of any dispute concerning the validity, content and/or interpretation of these regulations or of the conditions of the application form, Belgian law shall apply exclusively. Any and all disputes concerning the validity, content and/or interpretations of this regulation shall be referred only to the courts of Brussels (Belgium).