FAQs

EMS (Event Management System) is the University of Richmond’s centralized scheduling and event management software, powered by Accruent. It is used to reserve campus spaces, coordinate event details, and request event services, such as catering, multimedia support, and event setup.

Users can access EMS in the following ways:

• EMS Web App - used by UR faculty, staff, and students to request and manage event spaces.
• EMS Desktop Client - used by event schedulers and administrators for advance event logistics and approval workflows.
• EMS Outlook - allows users to check space availability and book select rooms directly through Microsoft Outlook

Yes, the Office of Events, Conferences & Support Services regularly hosts live webinars for interactive training on the use of the EMS software. Watch SpiderBytes for upcoming training date announcements.

Additional self-paced learning is available on our Training page with brief training videos for the most common tasks in EMS.

Additional training can be provided by contacting us at urevents@richmond.edu.

Space requests remain in a tentative status when the event scheduler is waiting on details and approval of services. Once all details have been confirmed and updated in the system, the event scheduler will change the status to a confirmed status.

Space requests for meetings (simple / no services) can be made up until the day of the meeting. Any other space requests cannot be booked any later than 3 days prior to the event date.

This allows time for event schedulers to review the space request to ensure services can be provided in a timely manner and that the request will not disrupt operations for already confirmed events.

Each space is unique as is the nature of each event or meeting. Therefore, the time it takes to setup for the event is determined by the event scheduler when finalizing the details of your event. Support Services will typically have the space set 60-90 minutes before your event is scheduled to take place.

If you need additional time to set up for your event after the space is physically set, please let your event scheduler know so they can make the necessary adjustments in EMS.

Depending on the nature of the event, or what’s happening near your event in time or location, Events staff will place holds for space setup time and to protect your event setup. You don’t need to do anything with it!

A space may not be available for a number of reasons. Some spaces are only reservable by an office that uses the space for a conference room (local space). Some spaces are only available for certain groups of users and require additional approval. Check out the University Events & Space Reservations Policy for more definitions and information.

If you can’t find the space you’re looking for, contact us at urevents@richmond.edu. 

Any general inquiries about adding food or a vendor to your event are made through the Office of Events, Conferences & Support Services. If UR Catering is accepted, any questions related to your specific menu should be directed to University Catering at catering@richmond.edu. 

If you prefer to use an approved vendor, please follow the Food Waiver process to submit your request ahead of your event.

Email us at urevents@richmond.edu and our EMS Application Administrator will follow up with you. Please include details about what is occurring and they can troubleshoot the issue with you.

A first contact is the primary event organizer and is the individual that Events staff will contact for details about the event. Contacts can also see the event in their "My Event" section of the Web App, but will not be able to make changes to the reservation.

An everyday user will be able to see and make changes to the reservation.

Contact us at urevents@richmond.edu for any questions about your access to your event in the Web App.

Once you have added all of the rooms and dates of your reservation, there will be a "Next Step" button at the top of the page that will take you to the Services section.

Services are additional needs to support your event, which include Support Services event setup, Catering, CSI audio-visual, and TMSS/Technical Support.

When in doubt, visit our EMS Training Suite with short videos for common EMS tasks, like this one.

Please visit our EMS Training Suite to view the video to assist you with this process in the Web App.

Please also contact the Office of Events, Conferences & Support Services as soon as possible when you know you need to cancel so we can avoid unnecessary labor of setting the room and canceling other related services.

Contact the Office of Events, Conferences & Support Services at urevents@richmond.edu or call 804-289-8585 regarding any updates to your event setup, or contact your event scheduler directly. Please be prepared with your EMS number to reference.

Please contact us at urevents@richmond.edu and our EMS Application Administrator will be in touch to discuss the changes.

Contact us at urevents@richmond.edu and our EMS Applications Administrator will be in touch to discuss your needs.

You must be on the campus network or VPN to complete some functions in the EMS Desktop Client. It is best to close out of EMS, check your connection, restart the EMS application, and try again.