After initially announcing that ISC West 2020 would be postponed until late July due to the coronavirus outbreak across the U.S., Reed Exhibitions on Thursday said that the show dates are being moved once again to October 5-8.
According to Reed, the continually evolving pandemic and stay at home guidelines made the July dates no longer viable for the industry.
“Considering the escalation of COVID-19, travel and social distancing restrictions, and the economic impact over the past five weeks across the United States and the world, it is necessary to reschedule the event to October,” said Will Wise, Reed Exhibitions Group Vice President. “Working closely with the Sands Expo, we were committed to pursuing the best opportunity for ISC West to facilitate the conduct of business, education and peer-to-peer engaged platforms. Holding the event six months from now in October will offer the best scenario to support the security and public safety industry, in addition to the Las Vegas community. It is an unprecedented time, and we appreciate how the community is adapting, adjusting and rallying.”
When asked if Reed had any concerns holding ISC West in such close proximity to GSX 2020 (scheduled to take placed September 21-23 in Atlanta), Wise told SecurityInfoWatch that they would be providing complimentary freight services from Atlanta to Las Vegas for those who would be exhibiting at both shows.
"Among the ISC West primary exhibitors base of 800 companies, approximately 14% are currently also slated to exhibit at the GSX event, taking place September 21-23 in Atlanta. To help provide and invest in operational support and logistics for these customers, Reed Exhibitions will be providing complimentary caravan/freight transportation shipping services from Atlanta to Las Vegas, to help alleviate any additional planning and logistics stresses during this time," he said.
In a message posted on the Security Industry Association's website in response the postponement of the show, SIA CEO Don Erickson said that the pandemic is forcing its members to adapt and that the association will continue to be agile as it works to help members navigate these uncharted waters brought about by the coronavirus. "As the security industry, we are stronger together and we make the world better – even when we are distanced. The security industry is a vibrant and constantly innovating industry. We are problem solvers. We are protectors. We are collaborators and partners," he said.
Erickson also noted that ISC West will now be co-located with the Global Gaming Expo (G2E), another event operated by Reed Exhibitions that services the commercial casino and tribal gaming industry.
“Our industry is essential to the safety and security of our communities, infrastructure and businesses. This is going to be a very tough year for people everywhere, and the sooner we can get some clarity on the new normal and provide solutions relevant to our situation, the better,” said Pierre Trapanese, SIA Chairman and CEO, Northland Controls. “Our mission is to be a catalyst for success within the global security industry. We look forward to ISC West Fall 2020 providing a forum from which everyone in our industry can begin to re-establish ties with each other and work toward succeeding in this new environment.”
“We appreciate the resilience, vigilance and togetherness of our ISC community of security and public safety professionals, speakers, exhibitors, and media supporters. Our team is looking forward to immersing ourselves in the planning for the October event, along with providing digital engagement and sharing as we all prepare to gather face-to-face again in the Fall,” said Mary Beth Shaughnessy, ISC Event Director. “And, as we all focus on building a bridge together to a brighter future with economic recovery and momentum for 2021, we have lots of strategic planning underway for ISC East, occurring in NYC November 18-19, 2020, to uplift and support the Tri-State area, as well as ISC West 2021 taking place March 23-26 in Las Vegas again.”
