ISC West Moves 2020 Conference to October Due to Coronavirus Threat

Due to the stay-at-home orders in place and the shifting landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic, ISC West organizers have rescheduled the security conference and expo for the second time.

• By Haley Samsel
• Apr 09, 2020

After delaying the event from its original March dates to July, ISC West 2020 has been rescheduled for the second time due to the COVID-19 pandemic spreading across the U.S. and the globe. The large security industry conference is now set to occur at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas from Oct. 5-8, organizers announced on Thursday.

Due to the constantly changing nature of the coronavirus crisis and current stay-at-home guidelines, event organizers with Reed Exhibitions and SIA decided the July dates were no longer viable.

"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,” Will Wise, Reed Exhibitions Group Vice President, said in a statement. "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."

He added that postponing the event to the fall is the best scenario for the security industry to still be able to gather. The exhibit hall will open starting Tuesday, Oct. 6 and last through Oct. 8, while other gatherings, including SIA Committee meetings and the SIA Education programs, will take place on Monday, Oct. 5.

"It is an unprecedented time, and we appreciate how the community is adapting, adjusting and rallying,” Wise said.

About 14 percent of ISC West's 800 primary exhibitors are also planning to exhibit at the Global Security Exchange (GSX) conference set for Sept. 21-23 in Atlanta, according to a press release.To assist those companies in planning and logistics support, Reed Exhibitions will provide "complimentary caravan/freight transportation shipping services" from the Atlanta event to the Las Vegas conference center. Exhibitors that still have freight in storage with Freeman for the original March date must remove the freight by April 15 in order to avoid incurring additional charges, ISC West organizers said.

Reed Exhibitions is also still planning to host its ISC East event in New York City on Nov. 18-19, just a little over a month after the new ISC West dates.

“We appreciate the resilience, vigilance and togetherness of our ISC community of security and public safety professionals, speakers, exhibitors, and media supporters," Mary Beth Shaughnessy, the ISC event director, said in a statement. "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."