Carnegie Mellon University

Conference & Event Services

Your Headquarters for Effortless Events

Services

Our event planning team specializes in academic, athletic and special events, and offers logistical planning, on-site coordination and all the amenities of the University. To ensure your experience is effortless, Conference & Event Services is here as your single point of contact to facilitate all coordinated services from start to finish, including event day execution.

Our services are fully customizable based on your needs. We can handle all of the details from A to Z, or we can handle a single detail based on a client’s preference. For more information, please contact Conference & Event Services.

Please visit our Event Request page to submit a formal request if you are interested in hosting an event at CMU and/or if you require summer campus housing for your participants

Conference & Event Services works closely with internal and external audio/visual vendors to meet the needs of your event. CES can assist in the coordination of the following and more:

  • microphone and sound/audio equipment
  • screen/projection, monitor rental, confidence monitor rental
  • pre-event A/V consultation, on-site technician support
  • hybrid event support: Zoom meeting/webinar support, livestream and recording, post-production editing
  • miscellaneous: flipcharts, lighting, podium rental

Conference & Event Services partners with internal and external caterers to create menus tailored specifically to your event needs. We will work with your desired caterer on all details including attendee dietary accommodations, special menu requests, and other enhancements to make your event a success.

In addition to catering, CES can facilitate the Social Event Registration process on your behalf. Note: an approved Social Event Registration form is required for any events where alcohol is served: with attendees under the age of 21, internal events with 25+ attendees, and all external events.

Whether you need assistance with crowd control, traffic control or if you plan to serve alcohol at your event, Conference & Event Services will work to ensure your security needs are met. We can work with University Police, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police or a combination of the two.

In addition to event security, CES can facilitate the Social Event Registration process on your behalf. Note: security and an approved Social Event Registration form is required for any events where alcohol is served: with attendees under the age of 21, internal events with 25+ attendees, all external events.

Carnegie Mellon University offers a multitude of event spaces suitable for a variety of event sizes and setups. Whether you are planning a small luncheon for 10 attendees or a large conference for 600 attendees, Conference & Event Services can help you find the perfect event space on or off-campus.

  • Select one or more of our recommended Meeting Room Setups and Styles, or work with CES to create a custom setup.
  • CES will work with the university facilities team to execute floorplan design, pre and post event custodial services, building access and more.
  • For additional information regarding current availability and pricing, please Contact Us.

Note: On-campus event space reservations for external events are limited to dates outside of the academic year.

When Conference & Event Services coordinates a service on behalf of a client, we take care of the entire financial process from start to finish including but not limited to:

  • obtain financial quotes and competitive bids
  • provide recommendations on budgetary items and monitoring expenses throughout the planning process
  • complete required paperwork for services such as purchase orders, contract approvals, bid checklists, etc.
  • review for accuracy and payment of final vendor invoices
  • provide one comprehensive invoice for all services following an event
Visitors and guests that do not have a direct affiliation with Carnegie Mellon University may be granted visitor internet access or issued a visitor account to gain access to the internet while on-campus. Conference & Event Services can coordinate this access for your external event attendees, free of charge.

Parking
CES partners with the university's Transportation Services to assist in the coordination of event parking for your attendees and campus visitors in a variety of ways. From parking garage access codes and visitor validation tickets, to vendor/contractor passes and visitor parking for events with large quantities of vehicles expected, we've got your on-campus event parking needs covered.

CES can also assist in the coordination of parking off-campus via public parking and meter buyout/reservations as necessary through Pittsburgh Parking Authority.

Event Transportation
Managing the transportation details for your event attendees can be a hassle when you have many other event logistics to tend to. Let CES assist in coordinating transportation services on your behalf, whether it be a private car for your VIP guests, shuttle bus service to one or multiple locations, or chartering coach busses to transport a large number of event attendees. CES can facilitate pre-event transportation arrangements as well as on-site management with the transportation vendor.

For events including undergraduate and graduate students, CES can also assist in facilitating the required transportation waiver process when applicable.

Conference & Event Services can provide professional and/or student staffing for your event registration needs. Each client works with their assigned event planner to determine their unique event registration needs. Registration staffing support can include but is not limited to:

  • event attendee check-in
  • on-site name badge production
  • distribution of event materials

Note: registration support must be requested at least 30 business days prior to an event.

Conference & Event Services can coordinate a variety of rental services including (but not limited to):

  • tables, chairs, linens, China, flatware
  • stage equipment, pipe & drape, flooring
  • soft seating
  • poster boards, white boards, flipcharts
  • coat racks, stanchions, easels
  • tents, portable A/C

Additional event specific rental requests can be accommodated as needed.

Signage
Conference & Event Services can work with clients to obtain logos and text for the production of in-house event signage for a fee (directional signage, recycling/composting, seating charts, etc.). This service includes the rental of H-frames, sandwich boards and easels as needed.

Packet Production
Packet production includes compiling printed event materials in folders for each guest in advance of an event. Note: the cost of packet production does not include the cost of printing, folders, additional non-printed items such as event swag, etc.

Name Badges
CES can create in-house custom name badges with your logo, guest name and other information as requested. Upon request and staffing availability, CES can also provide on-site name badge production (please note: Registration Staffing must accompany this service).

Professional Printing of Event Materials and Signage
CES can work with on-campus print vendor, Tartan Ink, or the printer of a client's choice to produce professionally printed items. This service can be paired with graphic design services or the client can opt to provide fully designed materials to CES for print.

Housing
Campus housing is available for event guests early June - early August annually. Clients are encouraged to contact Conference & Event Services as far in advance as possible to begin discussing their event accommodation needs.

As an alternative to on-campus housing, CES can also assist in the coordination of hotel blocks year-round for event participants.

Dining
For groups utilizing campus housing, the following dining options are available:

  1. Meal Blocks: can be used at the all-you-care-to-eat dining facility on-campus
  2. DineXtra: allows guests to utilize dining dollars at campus locations outside of the all-you-care-to-eat facility on-campus

Conference & Event Services is equipped to develop and manage Web Registration Portals for online housing reservations, individual event registrations and revenue collection to include some or all of the below services:

  • development of your event's housing/web registration landing page
  • collection of credit card payments (VISA, MasterCard, Discover, American Express)
  • processing of refunds according to client-determined refund/cancellation policy
  • registration confirmations and correspondence to attendees
  • access to Client Portal to view registration information and communicate with attendees
Is there something you had in mind for your event that you do not see on this list? We are committed to making your event the absolute best it can be. Contact Us to discuss custom services.