USA - ESTA (the Entertainment Services and Technology Association) announces the finalists for the 2003 Dealers' Choice Customer Service Awards and the finalists for the 2003 Manufacturers' Choice Awards: the 10 Manufacturers vying for the Prestigious Dealers' Choice Awards are as follows: Doug Fleenor Design, Johnson Systems, L.E. Nelson Sales Corp, and Production Intercom in the category of manufacturers with 1-6 employees. City Theatrical, Lighting & Electronics and SSRC in the category of manufacturers with 7-25 employees, and Apollo Design Technology, Electronic Theatre Controls and Lex Products Corp, in the category of manufacturers with over 25 employees.

And for the manufacturers awards the finalists are: Circuit Lighting, Indianapolis Stage Sales & Rentals, Murphy Lighting Systems and Premier Lighting & Production Co, in the category of dealers with 1-6 employees; BMI S

UK - The Building Regulations* now require building log books containing details of the building services installed in new non-residential buildings, enabling owners or occupiers to monitor and control energy consumption. In response to this new regulation, Action Energy has published Building Log Books - A User's Guide to provide advice on using building log books for facilities managers, building operators and energy managers. The Guide is also designed to help maintenance staff, consultants and contractors who work in a range of buildings.

Using log books should improve the understanding, management and operation of buildings resulting in lower running costs and reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to the atmosphere. The Guide is an integral part of CIBSE's own new toolkit which also includes, Building Log Books - a guide and standard template for preparing log b

USA - VTG Audio has unveiled its new application, NetCAD. Based on the Stardraw.net engine, NetCAD is a web service that allows users to design, configure and order custom connection and control panels. The application will be delivered through the websites of VTG's daughter companies Horizon Music and Rapco, two of the largest suppliers of cables, connectors, custom panels and metalwork in the US, with outlets in the UK and Europe.

Tthe new service is delivered by a web server and works from within a browser so there is nothing to download or install in the conventional sense. It comprises a drag-and-drop interface linked to a complete library of all of Rapco's and Horizon Music's panel products so the user simply selects the panel he or she wants, drags on the connectors that are needed, and sets engraving, finishes, artwork and so on. The resultant design is linked in real ti

UK - PLASA 2003 closed its doors after four days of lively business, as a year of planning had resulted in one of the best shows in PLASA's history. During the course of the event, numerous exhibitors not only generated leads, but also took large orders - a sure sign that the industry is beginning to turn the corner.

Feedback from exhibitors has been excellent - Steve Warren from Avolites commented: "We have generated stunning amounts of business and a number of new distributors." Chris Rolph from LED specialist Tryka said: "Its my 13th PLASA - its been phenomenal! We ran out of brochures on Monday," while Dennis Harburn from Shure Distribution UK said: "The layout has made the show more accessible, with a revitalised injection of life and new better quality visitors."

This year, the New Technology Gallery introduced the visitor to an impressive d

UK - Expectations were high at the PLASA show that a detailed presentation concerning this vital set of Regulations would be delivered by representatives of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). However, policy makers from the HSE announced that the promised third draft of the Regulations, with its accompanying Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) and guidance material, would be delayed further - with the consultation period now scheduled for December 2003 through to April 2004.

Those who attended the seminar on the last day of the show were hoping to get an opportunity to discuss the application of the new Regulations and how their impact would affect the entertainment industry, but all that was on offer was a run-through of the existing proposed Regulations published in the last draft, which may or may not have some bearing on the final set of Regulations.

The delayed consult

Lots of new members joined PLASA in the summer months.

Three UK companies have signed up as Full members. Cheshire-based VME (tel: +44 1625 585525) specializes in the hire and sale of audio for broadcast, sound reinforcement and installation applications. SDD Sound & Light of Belmont (tel: +44 1784 455666) provides a complete service from self-hire equipment to fully serviced seminars and conferences. Point Source Productions (tel: +44 20 8661 7200) provides full lighting, sound and staging services.

PLASA's Associate Business category, intended for businesses which have traded for less than two years, has two new members. Cantoris Sound (tel: +44 1522 536981) provides design and consultancy, along with installation of permanent sound systems. Blank Canvas Publishing (tel: +44 1892 676280) is a business-to-business publishing company, which produces the bi-monthly title, Pro Audio As

UK - News came in last night that a stage collapse left up to 20 people injured prior to a sing-along performance of The Sound of Music at Birmingham's Alexandra Theatre. The BBC news website reports that the temporary part of the stage covering the orchestra pit gave way when audience members were invited onto to the stage for a fancy dress competition. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive into the cause of the collapse has been launched today.

The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham is an Edwardian Theatre with a seating capacity of 1,347. The theatre presents a variety of productions from pre- and post-West End productions to touring shows, opera, ballet, musicals and concerts.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

UK - Expectations were high at the PLASA show that a detailed presentation concerning this vital set of Regulations would be delivered by representatives of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). However, policy makers from the HSE announced that the promised third draft of the Regulations, with its accompanying Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) and guidance material, would be delayed further - with the consultation periodnow scheduled for December 2003 through to April 2004.

Those who attended the seminar on the last day of the show were hoping to get an opportunity to discuss the application of the new Regulations and how their impact would affect the entertainment industry, but all that was on offer was a run-through of the existing proposed Regulations published in the last draft, which may or may not have some bearing on the final set of Regulations.

The delayed consultat

UK / USA - Autograph Sound has incorporated a new company in London and New York to develop the sales of selected digital products specifically aimed at the theatre market. Named Autograph A2D, it aims to advance the acceptance of digital mixers and infrastructure in the predominantly analogue world of theatre.

In the UK, the company will draw on the combined experience of Andrew Bruce and Duncan Bell of Autograph and Nigel Olliff, co-founder of BSS Audio. The US company will be led by Lew Mead, former owner of ProMix, a New York-based rental company whose association with Bruce and Autograph spans 15 years.

The company has secured the exclusive distribution rights in the US for the DiGiCo D5T, the theatre version of the D5 Live, and will be working closely with DiGiCo to promote the D5T in the UK and the rest of the world. Autograph A2D has been working on the development of

UK - McKenzie Group recently announced that Steve Forster has been promoted to MKG group operations director. Forster spent three years as general manager of Carling Academy Brixton, before two years as group operations manager, during which he successfully oversaw the opening of Academy venues in Bristol and Glasgow. Forster has been instrumental in the recent growth of McKenzie Group with September launches of two more sites - Carling Academy Liverpool and Carling Academy Islington (London). His appointment as group operations director will ensure the consistency of operations across the Group and maximize the commercial potential and growth for each venue.

Commenting on the appointment, managing director John Northcote said: "Steve has shown both the talent and application necessary to ensure that McKenzie Group's venue stock has a consistent reputation for all that's be

USA - SIA Software, a Loud Technologies brand, has announced its nomination for a Technical Excellence & Creativity (TEC) award for SmaartLive 5 software. Presented annually by the Mix Foundation for Excellence in Audio, the TEC Awards honour individuals, companies and technical sound innovations behind recordings, films, TV shows and live performances. The 19th Annual TEC Awards ceremony takes place on Saturday, 11 October, 2003 in New York City.

SmaartLive is an industry-standard for dual-channel FFT-based audio measurement software for real-time sound system measurement, optimization, and control. The software combines powerful audio frequency measurement, analysis and data logging capability with a highly intuitive, user-friendly interface and the ability to remotely control an extensive list of leading equalizers and DSP processors.

The latest release, Version 5.3, now in

UK - The Dave Martin Memorial Sailing Trophy or DAMMSTY held its 12th annual sailing weekend on its usual date in the calendar, the last weekend in September, when seven boats from the audio industry sailed from Sunsail, Port Solent to Cowes, Isle of Wight, stayed overnight and sailed back on Sunday.

Saturday evening went well with 60 diners exclusively occupying the 'Red Duster Restaurant' in Cowes High Street, where the generosity of all participating raised over £400 in the raffle and around another £2,000 will go to the profoundly deaf pre-school children at the Elizabeth Foundation School in Portsmouth, bringing the total donated to over £50,000.

This hugely worthwhile industry fund raising weekend has for the past 12 years succeeded in providing a great opportunity for novice, experienced and highly efficient sailors alike who together race in Solent waters in modern

UK - In order to improve its service to customers, the company is restructuring, moving to new premises and changing its name. The moves come as the result of a partial management buyout, in which directors Diane Grant and Wyatt Enever have increased their stake in the company and key staff are being given the opportunity to become shareholders.

"David Hersey had the foresight to realize that if the DHA brand and reputation are to remain as strong as they are today, structural and strategic changes would be needed," says Diane Grant. "The three DHA directors are at different points in their lives: David is ready to reap some of his investment in DHA, Wyatt wants to concentrate on R&D - integrating photographic techniques into laser output on dichroic glass and digital imagery for Scene Change - and I want to steer the company through another phase of growth toward

UK - The Association od Stage Pyrotechnicians (ASP) is running a one-day awareness course, resulting in an Association Certificate, on Friday 17 October 2003. The course runs from 9am - 5pm at the Wynd Centre, 6 School Wynd, Paisley. The course is aimed at technicians and managers who seek confidence in the inherent safety of off-the-shelf systems, whilst showcasing aspects of and uses for pyrotechnics. With a strong focus on practicality and safety, the course is designed to expand your pyrotechnic horizons.

The course is priced at £70 for members of the ASP and £100 to non-members, although non-members taking the course will be eligible upon completion for membership of the association, free of charge, for one year.

For further enquiries or to reserve your place contact Tim Reid on telephone 07941 032646 or at the e-mail or web addresses below.

(Lee Baldock)

USA - Martin Professional has announced two new appointments at its West Coast office in Simi Valley, California. Joining Martin Architectural as Western regional sales manager for the US market is Mike Case. Case's lighting background includes four years at Lithonia Lighting as Western regional manager for lighting controls and 13 years with Premier Lighting as vice-president of sales. He joins Martin Architectural from Pro Sound & Stage Lighting where he was also involved in sales.

Case told us: "I am happy to be a part of one of the industry's up and coming architectural lighting divisions and look forward to the challenges ahead. As a previous Martin dealer, I have first hand knowledge of Martin's product line and have been impressed with the rapid developments in the architectural range."

Martin's West Coast branch manager, Frank Montero, commented: "Bring

UK - PLASA exhibitors are being targeted by a premium rate phone line scam. Faxes have been sent to exhibitors overnight, including to the PLASA head office in Eastbourne, requesting that product and cost information be faxed back to the sender. The return number is an 090 - premium rate - fax number, which will cost the caller £1.50 per minute. The letter comes from 'Total Information Service UK - or 'TIS UK'.

In the short-term do not send any information through as T.I.S. UK is not a legitimate buyer, although the company is not doing anything illegal. In the long-term, you can register with the Fax Preference Service (FPS), which can help ensure that your fax number is not available to companies who want to fax you with promotional material that you do not want to receive. Companies using fax marketing are legally obliged to ensure that they do not fax numbers that have reg

UK - PLASA Media has learned that Farmer Studios, the Leicester-based provider of turnkey special effects solutions for leisure attractions, has gone into voluntary liquidation with the loss of 37 jobs. The company, founded by Nick Farmer in 1976, was for many years a highly successful specialist in its field, designing and manufacturing rides, shows, attractions, animatronics, scenery and interactive experiences for attractions worldwide. In 2000, the company won a TEA (Themed Entertainment Association) Award for its creation of a 'dark walk' at Liseburg, Sweden's largest theme park.

(Lee Baldock)

UK - The Tussauds Group has announced that it has appointed City of London investment bankers Lazards as advisors in preparation for a flotation in 2004 which is expected to value the business at £900m. The Group, which owns the world-famous Madame Tussauds and other attractions including the London Eye, Thorpe Park, Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures and Warwick Castle, says that following a significant improvement in performance over the last three years, it is now in a position to consider flotation, and will be working with Lazards to evaluate strategic options to ensure further growth in the future.

Charterhouse Development Capital, the private equity group which has a majority stake in Tussauds, acquired its share from Financial Times owners Pearson in 1998, for £352m, and has since invested a further £300m in the business.

(Lee Baldock)

Finland - Audace Ltd, the UK-based manufacturer of the Intelliplate programmable control system for audio-visual installations, has appointed Starlike Oy Ltd of Vantaa, Finland to distribute its products exclusively in Finland. The deal was brokered by Audace's global distribution partner Comsec International. The deal was confirmed at PLASA 2003 recently, where managing director of Audace, Bryan Waters met with Jari Ukkonen from Starlike.

Bryan Waters commented on the appointment: "Starlike is a welcome and highly appropriate addition to our growing portfolio of high-quality distribution partners. We have been in discussion with them for several months now and with the advent of SuperHub and other plans we have for the development of the line, both parties felt that the time had come to solidify the relationship. Starlike brings a broad range of expertise and an excellent

USA - QSC Audio Products Inc has announced two new appointments. Paul Kenline takes the position of senior technical trainer, while Shawn Watts joins the company as systems specialist for installed sound.

Kenline joins the Marketing Services team after four years as an engineer in QSC's R&D division. His in-depth knowledge of QSC's products makes him the ideal person to spearhead the company's education and demonstration initiatives, say QSC. Kenline's responsibilities will include conducting informational seminars, overseeing technical marketing support material, and co-ordinating the development of QSC's new education and demonstration programs. These programs are part of QSC's effort to distribute product and background information to each specific vertical market in a manner that is consistent with the company's drive for excellence.

Prior to joining QSC, Shawn Watts held

UK - Elections for the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) executive committee are set to take place during November. Employees of Full UK member companies are currently being invited to put themselves forward to play a key role in the future direction of the Association.

This is a pivotal time for PLASA as it reviews its long-term goals, and with issues such as safety, training and legislation high on the agenda, those who stand will be able to directly influence the way these aims are met, and the way in which PLASA moves forward.

Letters have been sent to all eligible members, inviting representatives to stand for the three places available, which have arisen as a result of the stepping down of long-serving members Mick Hannaford (LightProcessor), Sammy de Havilland (Deco Leisure) and Neil Darracott (Total Fabrications). If you feel you can make a positive

UK - Entec Sound & Light has launched a visual/video division with the purchase of a RADlite digital media server from Projected Image Digital. This will go into immediate use on the forthcoming Jools Holland tour, specified by LD Simon Honnor.

Entec's Noreen O'Riordan says that apart from its immediate use on the Jools tour, they also picked RADlite to add another element to their expanding range of LED fixtures - which includes the - James Thomas Pixelline - as it runs their Pixeldrive control software. "All those associated with RADlite - David March at Projected Image Digital and Simon Carter and Emma Long from IRAD - were incredibly helpful, and took time answering all our questions at PLASA," she said.

At PLASA, LD Dave Byars (Blur) gave an impressive hands-on demo of Pixeldrive in action on the James Thomas Stand, and talked over his own show experiences of us

UK - Leading pro lighting and audio sales specialist Stagetec UK and its sister distribution company have moved into new, larger premises in Bracknell, Berkshire. The companies' new address and contact details are: Stagetec UK Ltd, 9 Bilton Industrial Estate, Lovelace Road, Bracknell, Berkshire RG12 8YT, UK. Tel: +44 (0)870 224 7808, fax: +44 (0)870 224 7818. E-mail and web details are given below.

The move addresses the need for more space and the recent expansion of the team. The purpose-built unit is being customized for Stagetec to meet the growing demands of its business and workflow. The site includes a large, open prep area for equipment to be tested and set-up before being dispatched for installation or sale, and dedicated areas for both the audio and lighting elements of Stagetec's business, plus large demonstration and training areas. The offices are also designed and

UK - Following the successful launch in 2003 of the first ever Museums & Heritage Awards for Excellence, created to celebrate best practice within museums, galleries and heritage visitor attractions, plans are now well underway for the 2004 event. The organizer of the Awards, the Museums & Heritage Show Ltd, have announced support from Dulux and The Independent newspaper for 2004. The new partnership will ensure next year's winners receive both industry acclaim and wider public recognition.

Taking place from 12-13 May 2004 at Earls Court, to coincide with the opening of the Museums & Heritage Show, the 2004 Awards will also include two new categories to ensure all areas of the industry have the opportunity to contribute. With a host of UK-based contractors and suppliers working on exciting projects throughout the world, the new Award for Excellence Overseas, supported by UK Trad

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