The hall's voluminous roof void was an obvious 'dead' space to try and utilize in the name of technical production. However, the roof had no weight loadings - so traditional truss suspension techniques were not practical. Mark Bailey turned to PCM to help find a flying solution that also retained the hall's internal integrity and aesthetics. The system needed to be capable of quick assembly and have an easy raising and lowering operation, as well as accommodate a wide variety of sound, lighting and AV equipment.
PCM's project team took the initiative and proposed a vertical suspension system usually employed for moving industrial cranes across factory ceilings and gantries - usually on a horizontal plane. However with a small amount of customization, the system lent itself equally to vertical orientation, as the supporting truss trolleys are encapsulated in the track and therefore remain captive.
Two synchronized Gis hoists move each of three 10m de-mountable triangular 30.5cm spans (Thomas SuperLite) up and down. Each runs along a pair of vertical tracks up to a maximum height of 15m. PCM has also installed all necessary electrical and control systems for three more spans to be added later.
The vertical tracks themselves are incredibly discreet - only a few centimetres wide - and fixed unobtrusively to the hall's structural wall pillars each side of the room, where they are easily accessed for maintenance. The trusses can be completely removed for events requiring use of the room's full ceiling height. The hoist control system - housed in a separate room - was also custom designed. It's user friendly and built specifically to accompany the flying system by PCM.
The school's learning resource manager David Brodie, said he was delighted with the results, explaining that the trusses have made a big difference to the versatility and dynamics of the hall.
(Lee Baldock)
