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How Pro AV Teams Handle Last-Minute Gear Shortages (Without Burning Out Their Crew)
Jordan Goodfellow • January 6, 2026
Last-minute gear shortage?
Here’s how pro AV teams handle emergencies with subrentals,
prep, and partners—without burning out their crew.
In live events and especially Corporate AV, nobody plans to be short on gear when they are selling their events.
However between late client changes, overlapping shows, and unorganized warehouses, last-minute shortages are almost guaranteed.
The difference between a nightmare show and a smooth recovery usually comes down to one
thing: the systems and partners you put in place before you get the 10 p.m. “We're missing _______” text.
At GigRent, we exist in that world—filling gaps for production companies when their plan A
gets blown up 72, 48, or even 24 hours before Load-in.
In this article, we’ll walk through how pro AV teams handle last-minute gear shortages without frying their crew or gambling
the show.
1. They Know Exactly What’s On Their Floor
The first way to avoid a late-night panic is to actually know what you have.
The best production houses we work with:
- Keep a live inventory system tied to holds and confirmed shows
- Flag “critical path” gear early—things like Barco switchers, UDX/UDM projectors, LED,
line arrays, and RF
- Run weekly “conflict checks” for big weeks so show overlaps don’t surprise them
When they call us for help, it’s rarely “we have no idea what we have.” It’s: “We’ve got
two UDMs and four G62s already committed, plus an E2—here’s the gap we can’t cover.” That
clarity lets us move fast.
2. They Decide Early What They’ll Subrent vs use out of inventory
Last-minute pain usually shows up where the strategy is fuzzy.
Smart shops are brutally honest about:
- Gear they must own (core inventory, brand standards, high-utilization equipment)
- Gear they’re comfortable subrenting (edge cases, overflow, one-off client asks,
specialty lenses, extra LED, High Brightness projectors)
By drawing that line up front, your team doesn’t waste time arguing the night before load-
in. If it’s already in the “subrent bucket,” the answer is simple: call your rental
partner.
3. They Build a Shortlist of “Call-First” Partners
When things get tight, you don’t have time to search and hope for the best.
The teams who sleep better:
- Keep two or three go-to subrental partners with nationwide reach
- Know who can turn Projectors, LED, and switching quickly
- Have direct cell numbers for warehouse and ops contacts
- Test those relationships during calmer weeks—not just in crisis mode
At GigRent we focus specifically on working with production pros, not end clients. That
means we can speak the same shorthand, match show specs, and tell you honestly what will
and won’t make it in time.
4. They Standardize “Emergency Show Files”
When a last-minute subrental happens, every hour you spend re-building paperwork is
another hour you don’t have on the floor.
Pro teams keep a simple emergency package ready to go:
- Standardized pull sheets by show type (general session, breakout, expo, etc.)
- Preferred projector/LED/switcher/audio models by tier
- Shipping and receiving instructions for each venue and warehouse on all the paperwork
- A clear point-of-contact list for gear issues
Then when a show doubles in size and you suddenly need three more rooms, it’s plug-and-
play: duplicate the right show file, send it to your subrental partner, and let them
mirror it from their inventory. This makes scaling a show much simpler.
5. They Protect Their Crew From “Hero Mode”
The hidden cost of last-minute shortages isn’t just freight—it’s burnout.
The best leaders we see:
- Refuse to solve every problem by working people into the ground
- Use subrentals to reduce frantic prep and focus their techs on real show-critical work
- Make a simple rule in their culture: “We don’t gamble with untested gear.”
If you’re building shows overnight or last minute, you need partners who send tested, labeled, show-
ready gear so your team isn’t solving basic issues at 2 a.m.
6. They Run a Post-Show Debrief—Every Time
Every crisis is a lesson if you’re willing to look at it.
After the dust settles, strong teams ask:
- Where did the shortage start—sales promise, design change, scheduling, inventory, or
freight?
- Did we call our subrental partner early enough?
- What should move from “we try to own this” to “we always subrent this”?
- What trigger would have caught this seven days sooner?
Those debriefs are short and sometimes uncomfortable—but they’re how you build a system
where “last-minute” feels more like a controlled fire drill and less like chaos.
Wrapping It Up
You can’t stop last-minute gear problems in live events. Client needs will change, shows
will grow, and the calendar will stack up.
What you can control is how prepared you are:
- Know your inventory
- Decide what you’ll subrent
- Build real relationships with rental partners
- Protect your crew
- Learn from every close call
If you want a subrental partner who lives in that world every day, that’s exactly why we
built GigRent. When your plan A breaks, we help you keep the show moving—without burning
out your team.
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