Bringing technology into the San Diego Convention Center
What an exhibitor needs to know before equipment arrives: who takes delivery, what power you have to order, who supplies the internet, and the rules that catch people out. We deliver into this building regularly, and the same few things go wrong every time.
The building does not take your delivery
The Convention Center will not accept freight or show materials, and the FedEx Office inside only handles outgoing shipments. Deliveries go to your show's official service contractor, or through the docks with the labor the show requires. Ship to the contractor's advance warehouse, or have someone on site to receive at your booth. Equipment that arrives with nobody named on it goes back on the truck.
There is no power until you order it
The Convention Center provides no event electrical service, so power is ordered separately and in advance. Count the draw for everything you are bringing, not just the screens: laptops, iPads charging all day, a printer, a router. Order one more outlet than you think you need. Moving a drop on show morning is the expensive way to do it.
Power strips: what is allowed
The venue's rules are specific, and enforcement is real. All equipment must be UL approved. Extension cords must be three-wire with ground, serving one device each. Multi-plug adapters must be UL approved with an internal overload breaker. Household cube taps are prohibited.
- Bring UL-listed power strips with a breaker, not cube taps
- One device per extension cord
- Tape down anything crossing a walkway
Internet is Smart City, not the venue's free wifi
Network services for exhibitors, including wired internet, wifi and phone, come from Smart City Networks. Order ahead: the rate onsite is not the rate in advance. If your demo needs the internet to work, wired is worth the money, and a dedicated line is worth more than shared wifi in a hall of thousands of phones. What an exhibitor may or may not bring in wireless-wise depends on the show, so check the exhibitor manual before assuming.
Order early, for the discount and the calm
Services are cheaper booked in advance than onsite, and the exhibitor services desk is usually open 7am to 4pm during move-in, though hours vary by event. Anything you can settle two weeks out costs less and takes less of your show morning.
Where we fit
We deliver and set up computers, iPads, screens, printers and AV into this building and the hotels around it, and our staff can stay for the event. Equipment arrives imaged and tested, so a registration desk starts working rather than starting with troubleshooting. If you would rather ship it in yourself, everything goes out boxed with return labels included.
Check the show's manual, not just this page
Everything above comes from the Convention Center's published rules as of September 2026. Venues change their rules, and your show's own exhibitor manual can be stricter than the building. Read both, and call us if you want a second pair of eyes on the technology parts.
Equipment for this
Tell us what you need and a person replies the same business day. Nothing is booked until you say so.
Tell us what the job is
You don’t need a parts list. Describe what has to happen and we’ll work out the kit, tell you what it costs, and book nothing until you say so.