Rigging / Staging

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14 March 2016

Running alongside the established international trade show, PLASA 2010, this special event is the first of its kind for the event and entertainment rigging community and promises to be an invaluable industry forum.

Unusual Rigging's Alan Jacobi, Star Events Group's Roger Barrett, Prolyte's Marc Hendriks, CM ET's Cristiano Giavedoni and Sapsis Rigging's Bill Sapsis are among the line-up of international speakers confirmed.

Bill Sapsis of Sapsis Rigging in Philadelphia comments, "In the past 10 years alone, the event and entertainment rigging industry has experienced incredible growth and change. The PLASA International Rigging Conference offers a unique opportunity to meet with colleagues and peers from across the world

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14 March 2016

Baishakhi Mela is the biggest Bengali event in Europe and features a mix of a colourful parade, live music, DJs, dance, costume, arts, crafts and the best Bengali food outside of Bengal itself.

It was AP Security's second year providing staff at the event, the company's long working relationship with both the Metropolitan Police and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets ensuring that its safety and stewarding was seamlessly integrated.

"The Mela is a complex event and all our staff need to have a very clear understanding of what's required," say

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14 March 2016

'Ballman' as he has become dubbed, is a World Cup project for sportswear brand Nike. He is comprised from 537 x 2 mm steel wire rope drops each containing specific numbers of balls.

The atrium of the Carlton Centre is being used as a Nike event and exhibition space for the duration of the tournament. Summit was initially approached by structural engineers, Leeds based Ratcliff Fowler Design, who designed the sculpture for Nike, and then needed some serious rigging expertise for the very intricate installation.

Prior to being sea freighted to South Africa, a complete Ballman test-build took place at Magna, the Science Ad

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14 March 2016

Promoted at the event, Prolyte Theatre Products is a strategic alliance of partners Prolyte Products Group, Silicon Theatre Scenery and Silk Production Design, focusing on the theatre market.

"We have valuable know-how to offer to this audience of architects, consultants, installers and theatre professionals; not to lecture, but to add to and share with the already existing knowledge. This conference offers a special mutual leaning opportunity for the benefit of our customers and end-users" states Michiel van der Zijde, product manager for Prolyte Theatre Products.

The presence of Prolyte Theatre Products as Gold Sponsor at the ITEAC is supported by a team of sales and technical representatives who will be attending the confe

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14 March 2016

The GC Brasserie, (taking its name from the initials of the German Centre where it is based in the Pudong region of Shanghai), is a beautifully designed modern interpretation of a traditional French Brasserie.

Whilst the 100 cover restaurant with its adjoining BBQ and Beer Garden is serviced by its own dedicated kitchen, the impressive facilities extend a further 400sq.m, built to the latest catering requirement under Chinese law. Already these facilities have been put to work with clients queuing up for the outside catering services offered by GIG Asia. Already

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14 March 2016

Kim Akester from ShowTex South Africa explained the challenges of printing on such a grand scale, "We started with a design depicting a figure playing football. Since the dance floor rolls are 150 cm wide, the print had first to be divided over these panels at just the right spot. Then, after printing, came the intricate work of matching up all the panels on the stage and attaching them without visible seams.

"Not only did the lines and the colours have to blend into each other to recreate the image, the wide a

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14 March 2016

SES's Gordon Cooper commented, "Despite our usual heavy demand for our products during the summer season, we managed to produce the power requirement for the racecourse a day ahead of schedule, ensuring that demands were met by the racecourse for its vendors.

"A wide range of products have been supplied over the past few weeks but this last minute order really did put us to the test, and we are very pleased that we were able to meet expectations. This time of the year is always a very busy time for us and this has been added to with two exceptional exhibitions namely PALME in Dubai and PLASA Focus.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

5 Star will be showcasing specialist cases aimed primarily at the aerospace, military and engineering sectors, all of which will be displayed on a purpose-built exhibition stand designed specially for FIA 2010. The stand was also built by the 5 Star team at their facility in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire.

It is the first time that 5 Star has participated in the show. "It reflects a growing interest from new sectors in our products, and our intention to diversify and expand," explains Keith Sykes. In the past 2 years, 5 Star has designed and built bespoke tool cases for the Red Bull Air Race pilots and also cased a number of racing cars.

(Jim

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14 March 2016

LTM recently purchased 100% of the shares in COW Lifting Technology - the Aichach (near Munich, Germany) based manufacturer of BGV C1 and SIL 3 chain hoists, winch and control systems.

Together the two companies offer solutions for most lifting and control applications within the entertainment industry.

LTM is showing the LoadGuard electric chain hoists in capacities from 250kg to 5 tonnes as standard rigging hoists and to all current European entertainment standards.

COW Lifting Technology is showing the C-Force range of hoists, winches and control systems. C-Force products specialise in fixed or variable speed hoist and control systems to BGV C1 and up to SIL 3 performance standards.

Also on d

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14 March 2016

Showsec operations director Simon Battersby was appointed as the festival's head of security, prior to seven months strategic planning that led into coordinating 1300 security professionals and stewards at the event. Headline acts AC/DC, Rage Against the Machine and Aerosmith were among 125 bands entertaining the dedicated rock fans over three days.

Battersby comments, "Live Nation were keen to have a more co-ordinated overriding security operation which managed the increased size and scale of Download this year more effectively. My new role within the festival management team meant that I engaged all stakeholders from Leicestershire police, licensing autho

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14 March 2016

"We wanted a concise document that gives good advice on the best type of access equipment to use in a theatre, given the constraints that some venues bring," said Andrew De Rosa, ABTT CEO.

"Working at heights is dangerous. All the way through the book we emphasise that formal training by qualified instructors is required and that equipment that looks easy to use can seriously injure you, and others, if used improperly."

The publication is in seven sections and after a general introduction, deals with Powered Access Equipment, Access Towers, Tallescopes, Ladders, Step Ladders

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14 March 2016

The show was broadcast to tens of millions of music and football fans worldwide on 10 June, the night before the first match.

The eclectic mix of African and international artists was executive-produced by Los Angeles-based Control Room whose technical director, Jim Baggott, and Gearhouse's project manager Bill Lawford oversaw all technical disciplines offered by the Gearhouse Group.

Gearhouse Audio supplied all audio equipment along with Britannia Row with whom Gearhouse has a long-standing relationship. These elements included racks-and-stacks for the main stage and B stage, with Britannia Row supplying front-of-house and monitor consoles, all the RF equipment - mics and IEMs - plus a crew of

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14 March 2016

"The PAL Road case labels are an essential part of our flight case management and distribution, being able to easily write on each case/label with the case contents, stage position, show dates and any other relevant information is a must," says PRG Lighting's Mark Gosling

" Plus the fact any information we write remains unaffected by water, bumps and scrapes is brilliant. We then clean the ink away with a special label wipe and they're ready to re-use for the next job. The Labels are i robust and last a considerable amount of time."

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

This initiative is the brainchild of PSI's Sean Pagel, who also heads up the company's rigging team. It's something that PSI has wanted to do for some time - but the recent move to larger premises with a large dedicated training room has really facilitated this on a practical level.

Apart from the demand for it, one advantage for PSI explains Pagel is that many venues are council run, and have a commitment to keep their staff updated with the latest good working practices. "Therefore it's really important that they have a concept of what rigging is all about - it's one of the starting points for any show," he says.

Pagel qualifies that it's im

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14 March 2016

Eric Porter, experienced independent rigger, trainer, assessor and committee member for the PLASA National Rigging Certificate will be delivering these courses which will include truss types and uses, hanging from chain hoists and bars and slinging trusses and flying frames.

The Equipment Suspension Course is a one-day course tailored for people wishing to get a flavour for rigging who, for example, might be involved in hanging lighting, audio, video or scenic equipment from rigging which has been provided by others (including Theatre Flying Systems).

Entry onto the course is £150.00 (plus VAT) per person, and includes lunch and refreshments throughout the day, course materials and

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14 March 2016

Dan Herbert of Distributed Sound & Video says , "We are pleased to be one of the first companies to stock this range of new and exciting products within the industry."

"Distributed Sound & Video are a great company, we found them really easy to work with and are so happy they've chosen to stock the Dirty Rigger range. A clean, easy to navigate website is so important when selling online and DSV have just that," says Mark Gibbons, development director of Dirty Rigger. Introductory prices are available at store.dsavltd.co.uk.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Manufacturing motors for the entertainment industry since 1993, ChainMaster introduced the first variable speed VarioLift motor in 1998. Their product line spans from 1/4 to 12 ton motors, 2-32 channel control boxes, their XYZ computer control for large jobs, and trolleys. ChainMaster was recently awarded the rigging contract for the Qatar Convention Center in Doha and is supplying that venue with nearly 1,800 VarioLifts and seven 256-channel control systems.

"We are very happy to partner with ChainMaster," said Tim Brennan, vice president of PRG Distribution. "When I saw the precision placement and the low noise level of the VarioLift at the Prolight+Sound show, I knew th

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14 March 2016

"We are very excited about this relationship and have already begun selling Eurotruss systems into permanent installations through our dealer network," stated Eric Mueller, director of sales for PRG Distribution NA. "It is evident to me that that our friends at Eurotruss have the same mindset for support and responsiveness as we do in any situation. They are very responsive to our needs for our customers and we look forward to working together with them for some time to come."

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

"We had been looking for a floor to best suit our school for some time, as we offer such a wide variety of performances we need a floor that could do it all. Overall we found Le Mark's Consor portable dance & performance floor to be incredibly durable easy to roll out and very well priced. My personal thanks to Le Mark for the flexibility and patience in arranging the order and delivery, a great floor, and great service to match" says DanceWork's Sue Stead.

DanceWorks hosted two sell-out shows in June in aid of Help for Heroes.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Named in honour of the late designer, developer and commentator Tony Gottelier, this award aims to recognise the product developers who have made a significant contribution to the development of the equipment and tools that enable our entertainment technology practitioners to continually push the boundaries of event production, presentation and installation.

Once the shortlist of nominees is decided, the Voting Phase will begin. This year, to help ensure that only legitimate industry professionals can cast a vote, voting for the n

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14 March 2016

Stageco project director Dirk de Decker and creative designer Es Devlin consulted with Muse production manager Chris Vaughan, and Malcolm Birkett, technical designer for the tour to create the unique stage designs to support the artistic concept of the show.

Stageco's Koen Peeters and Tom Frederickx were also essential to the team, creating CAD designs and complex calculations needed for the bespoke stage, which was comprised of 20% unique components alongside Stageco's trusted staging system. Dirk then worked out the tour logistics to create the stage in the most efficient way for transportation and building.

The 34

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14 March 2016

Eric Porter, experienced independent rigger, trainer, adviser and committee member for the PLASA National Rigging Certificate, led the two-day course. A structure was built in the studio area that allowed delegates to carry out working at height training, truss building, motor flying and rigging exercises, with a separate classroom area for theory work.

The course included an evening out allowing people attending the course to get together and enjoy a meal alongside staff from A.C. Rigging and Litestructures.

Jay Bridges, technical manager - produced, for the Derby LIVE group of venues, commented, "I was looking for a forma

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14 March 2016

TESS has worked with Glastonbury since 2002 and in the past eight years has promoted a health and safety culture within the UK festival. The most prominent change is that TESS has successfully engaged the Glastonbury suppliers in improving health and safety in their own specialist areas.

Tim Roberts from TESS comments, "By being realistic, positive and getting everyone on message, we have created an empathetic understanding that what we want to do is a necessary requirement and is beneficial to everyone on the event."

This year was the first time TESS was appointed head of fire safety at Glastonbury; this new area was headed up by Mike Herbert, who developed a new strategy, working closely with the Devon and Somerset Fire Brigade. TESS was invo

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14 March 2016

The system consists of six Kinesys Elevation 1+ variable speed motor controllers and Kinesys converted 1Tonne, 10m/min, 20m HOL Liftket chain hoists. The Elevation 1+ controllers, as well as the hoists, were all supplied in a customised white finish, and the system is controlled using Kinesys' Vector PC based motion control software.

The Kinesys motors and controllers are used in the dramatic finale of the show for which the custom white lighting trusses are flown in at variable speed for the final crescendo, featuring the whole cast onstage singing the anthemic ABBA numbers, Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia! and Waterloo.

The trusses have to fly in with precise timing and speed and then stop exactly o