UK - Le Mark's mirror effect Studiotak studio floor wowed an estimated 3.5m viewers during its broadcast on the Jonathan Ross Show Saturday night. This week's live performance saw chart-topping Rita Ora control the stage singing her new song How We Do (Party).

Fitted with Le Mark's mirror effect floor from the Studiotak flooring range, the Rita Ora stage 'mirrored' the urban styling of the performance, providing a stunning high gloss visual effect.

Le Mark's Leanne Baker commented: "The studio floor looked stunning. It's quite rare for the mirror effect finish to be used on TV as it's so incredibly reflective. The way the set and lighting designers must have collaborated to make it work how it did was absolutely fantastic and displayed brilliantly on TV. Of course, it being StudioTak, it can be installed and removed in minimal time, a key feature for temporary sets

USA - ETCP is a high quality certification programme that can further enhance your identity as a competent and knowledgeable leader in your field. Increase your credibility by becoming ETCP Certified.

Having ETCP Certification demonstrates that you are in the top third of the industry professionals in North America; furthermore, to maintain your certification, you must accrue continuing education credits which shows your employer that you are current with industry developments and practices. ETCP has issued almost 1600 certifications! Don't get left behind, submit your application today!

The ETCP Examinations will be given at USITT in Milwaukee, WI. All three ETCP examinations will be given in one session the morning of March 22, 2013. Candidates who wish to take more than one exam should contact ETCP. Members and employees of members of USITT receive a $100 discount on examin

UK - SES has just manufactured and delivered its first purpose built 1600A all HDPE Mains Distribution Unit which was ordered by Cardiff based 11th Hour Events for a long term job at the Cardiff Winter Wonderland.

This size MDU, traditionally built from steel, was designed from scratch by SES's Mark Cooper to fulfil the requirements of 11th hour events. Encompassing a 1600A Bus bar chamber, and 6 sets of outgoing powerlock, the design was a challenge even for Marks wealth of design experience. "Steel is a very forgiving and easy to work material, and can simply be bent and welded,but when using HDPE, the thought process into the engineering takes a lot more time".

11th hour wanted to get away from the traditional steel units as they are easy to damage, do not weather very well and are difficult to repair. By choosing the unit that SES manufactured, it also has the ad

UK - Due to the "undisputed recognition and popularity of the PASMA name as the sole industry-recognised training scheme for mobile access towers", the Association says it has been made aware that a small number of unscrupulous companies are attempting to pass themselves off as PASMA Training Members, without having shown that they meet the industry standards needed to become an accredited PASMA member.

Says the organisation, "There is certainly no guarantee that these fake PASMA training companies will offer the quality of training required and expected within the industry. Instead, training from these organisations is likely to lead to wrong or outdated information being given as well as sub-standard training, which could clearly create a very real safety risk and is, therefore, a waste of time and money.

"It is also certain that training from these provi

UK - The Arena Group has helped create an improved facility at Ice Rink Canary Wharf, including London's first ever Ice Path, November 2012.

Nestled under the soaring buildings of Canada Square and bathed in twinkling festive lights, Ice Rink Canary Wharf is back with a sparkling new look for the 2012/13 season. The 807m² rink opened on 7 November with a spectacular ice show and live music and is expected to attract a record number of people before closing on 13 January 13, enhancing visitor experience across the Canary Wharf district during the festive season.

Arena Group delivered a full service turnkey solution for event infrastructure, working with client Ice Rink Canary Wharf to deliver every element of the project in the sensitive location of Canada Square. This included temporary structures, branding, working with all stakeholders including main sponsor Hublot, interio

UK - Devon based drapes, starcloth, LED and visual effects specialist S+H Technical has supplied 1100sq.m of lush red velvet Pea-Light Starcloth containing approximately 6000 inbuilt lights, plus an additional 6000 Pea Lights integrated into the set walls for Strictly Come Dancing, staged in BBC TV's TC1 studio, Wood Lane, Shepherd's Bush, London.

These elements are a vital component of Patrick Doherty's set design. They help set the mood for the UK's perennially popular series - now in its tenth season - which is broadcast live each week during BBC1's Saturday evening prime time, complete with a studio audience of 600.

For this series, around the bottom half of the set (below the balcony) the individual Pea Lights have been fastened in neat rows so they all line up. More, installed in the same way, are also used to line presenter Tess Daly's interview area on the balco

Belgium - Noxx Antwerp has completed its redesign with two ArKaos Stage servers driving video on a 30sq.m 3D sculpture and a 300sq.m LED ceiling.

Five years have gone by since Noxx Antwerp first opened its doors to the public in September 2007, five years making history, making of Noxx one of the biggest clubs in Belgium, Europe even. Noxx is also a stylish venue which can accommodate up to 2500 clubbers in five different areas.

The management recently decided to renew the design of the Main Room with a spectacular 3D mapping projection driven by an ArKaos Stage media server. They also switched to another ArKaos Stage server for displaying visuals on the LED Web that covers the entire ceiling.

When entering the redesigned Main Room, your eyes will almost immediately point to the massive 3D sculpture, which forms the body for the revolutionary 3D mapping projection, unique in

UK - The first Source Book from Gerriets, produced in March of 2011, has been overwhelmingly popular, and the company has now published an expanded, 650-page second edition. Updates include new projects and products, a revised index, and more extensive information about our line of technical systems.

The new edition of the Source Book is published not only in the usual German/French/English version, but also in an English/Spanish/Portuguese language version.

Featured new products include the Batten Clew, an ingenious alternative to expensive point hoist systems and the G-TWIST, for quick and easy ceiling mounting of the classic TRUMPF95 track system. These and many other news can be found in the new Source Book (2)

(Jim Evans)

USA - Mojo Barriers US office broke its company record, supplying 800m of its aluminium stage barriers to Made in America Festival, Philadelphia, 1 -2 September 2012.

The US crowd barricade specialists provided its largest single rental to date with the length of barriers supplied totalling over the height of eight Statues of Liberties. Its team designed and installed a bespoke configuration to keep the 100,000 festival goers safe as they enjoyed acts including headliners JAY Z and Pearl Jam.

Barriers were provided across all four stages and other sensitive areas throughout the festival site which was located in the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, a busy downtown location. The main stage was located in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

J.B Dolphin, Mojo Barriers US president, says, "We extended our crowd control barriers from the main stage across the street and into

China - Trussing manufacturer MILOS recently staged a very successful product seminar and safety awareness workshop at its facility in Guangzhou, China, which was well attended by companies and individuals from Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand and Indonesia as well as mainland China.

The two day event - the fourth that Milos has undertaken in China - was modelled on the workshops that Milos regularly runs in Europe.

It was open for any interested parties to apply for places, and was attended by a wide selection of entertainment industry professionals including riggers, project supervisors, rental companies and designers.

The workshop illustrated "the high quality of Milos' trussing, roofing and staging products and emphasised the benefits of using the best products and always following safe working practices".

The Workshop was led by MILOS China's Chief Engineer Marek

UK - PLASA Events has announced the addition of a new event to run alongside its ever popular northern trade show, PLASA Focus: Leeds 2013. The PLASA Riggers' Forum will take place on Tuesday 30 April, at the Royal Armouries at Clarence Dock, only a short distance from the Leeds City Centre.

Following on from the success of the first PLASA Riggers' Forum, held in London earlier this year, this new event is an opportunity for members of the rigging community in the North of England to share their views and experiences and to have their questions answered by a range of industry experts, including members of the National Rigging Advisory Committee.

The three-hour forum will begin at 2pm with a presentation about rigging competence, entitled 'The Dunning Kruger Effect -The Dangers of Unconscious Incompetence'. The presentation will be followed by an hour of chaired question time,

UK - Le Mark's self-adhesive, high-gloss studio flooring was shown off at its best during this weekend's live seven-hour broadcast for Children in Need's 2012 appeal.

With action-packed performances from some of the UK's biggest names including Girls Aloud, Little Mix, One Direction and many more, Le Mark's self-adhesive studio floor once again stood up to the demanding non-stop requirements of a live show, says the company.

Le Mark's Leanne Baker commented, "It's amazing how much our Studiotak flooring can withstand when applied in situations just like the Children in Need event. Even after a considerable amount of dancing and performing over 7 hours the floor still looked impressive at the end. An incredible achievement from a floor less than 0.2mm thick. Even if the set designers used additional layers this is still a very impressive outcome. Studiotak is an excellent

UK - Brilliant Stages has designed and constructed the staging and spectacular suspended pyramid feature for Muse's current tour, Second Law, which tours Europe until Christmas before moving to North America in January 2013.

Brilliant has worked on several stages for Muse including the highly successful 2009 Resistance tour and subsequent 2010 stadium tour, and the band's inspirational stage design for their Reading and Leeds anniversary shows in 2011.

Oli Metcalfe's design for the Second Law tour incorporates a semi-circular stage with a straight leading edge, from which projects a full width fore-stage and thrust, and which is inset with circular polycarbonate panels housing lighting effects. Tech bunkers flank each side and a curved runway circumnavigates the upstage edge. LED panels and moving heads feature heavily in the Brilliant Stages' design which

USA - Total Structures has recently invested in a large quantity of parts for the Columbus McKinnon (CM) range of electric chain hoists.

The Ventura, CA based CM distributor is now fully stocked with parts for both classic and new style Lodestars as well as the smaller Prostar unit. Parts that are carried on the shelf are available for immediate shipment from CA, with any non-stocked items available for dispatch directly from CM's own factory in VA. The parts now compliment Total Structures' existing large stock of Lodestar & Prostar hoists that are custom prepared for their customer's requirements at the Ventura facility.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Lift Turn Move has confirmed that White Light will be a UK sales distribution outlet for the LTM Entertainment-based product ranges. This is a natural evolution of company strategy, with a focus towards increasing the avenues to market for their Entertainment Products through key distribution channels within the UK.

While the LTM office will still deal with a number of its UK customer portfolio such as stage engineering companies and professional rigging companies, top tier professional distribution companies like White Light, with its established distribution network, will ensure that the products get to end users helping LTM to keep up with the increasing demand that they have been experiencing of late, says the company.

Dan Holme, director of the LTM Entertainment Division comments, "The LTM Entertainment Division has enjoyed continued growth this year with the Lo

UK - Hertfordshire's Radlett Centre is smoothly gearing itself up for a busy autumn season after investing in a Unitrack system from pioneering entertainment engineers at Triple E.

The venue - which provides theatre, art and music, and kids' entertainment in affluent Radlett - upgraded to Triple E's Unitrack following seven years of using outdated standard theatre tracks.

"The tracks we were using were bolted together with small nuts and bolts making them time consuming to change and move, the bobbins tended to get jammed in the joints and the whole thing was pretty unreliable," says the Radlett Centre's Myles Robinson. "I instantly saw the benefits of the Triple E track design: quick to assemble and dismantle, quick to move the entire track using G clamps to rig it rather than fixed bolts as with our old track; the joints are less of an issue due to the sturdy

Australia - Stage Technologies has increased its Australian rentals presence substantially with two major projects. Saturday's official opening of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney marks Stage Technologies' second rental in Australia in as many months. The company also provided an automation system on Legally Blonde, currently playing at Sydney's Lyric Theatre.

Having automated the shows in London's West End and on tour, Stage Technologies has designed rental automation systems that allow both productions to repeat the magic for Australian audiences.

Before landing in Oz, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ran at the London Palladium from April 2002 to September 2005, and was followed by tours in the UK and internationally. Stage Technologies designed a sophisticated automation and control system to cover everything from simple scenery moves an

USA - Gerriets International has announced two new flooring products: Vario Color and Vario Sparkle. Gerriets' Vario has long been beloved by dance companies and scenic and event designers for its exceptional durability and portability; it rolls up for compact storage and easy transport, then unrolls to lie perfectly flat.

With a range of 183 colours, the new Vario Color line creates a whole new spectrum of possibilities for performance, touring, exhibiting, and other applications in which a hard-wearing, portable floor is required, says the company. Vario Color is available in matte and glossy finish and was among various new products Gerriets exhibited at LDI 2012 in October.

Vario Sparkle is an eye-catching new event flooring that has glitter embedded in the surface. Sparkle is available in six variations: white with silver or gold glitter; black with silver or gold glitter

UK - Birmingham Hippodrome has announced the successful completion of its Stage Appeal having raised the target of £1m towards extensive refurbishments costing over £2m.

The 30-year old stage was completely replaced, over 500 light-fittings were upgraded to LED, the orchestra pit was refurbished, and the entrance foyer was remodelled with a new box office, cloakroom, digital signage and new heat-efficient front doors.

Grant-making trusts and foundations contributed over two-thirds of the funds raised with significant generous donations from the Monument Trust (part of the Sainsbury Family Trusts), the Wolfson Foundation, The Garfield Weston Foundation, The Foyle Foundation and The JP Getty Jr Charitable Trust. Twenty-one further local trusts were also supportive.

Funds were also raised from the corporate sector, including donations at events and dinners, totallin

USA - ANSI E1.35 - 2007, Standard for Lens Quality Measurements for Pattern Projecting Luminaires Intended for Entertainment Use, is being revised to increase the accuracy of the measurement procedure, while keeping it simple. The draft of the revised standard is available for free download and comment through 21 January 2013 at the web address below.

E1.35 describes a method for measuring and stating the sharpness of the image projected by a stage and studio luminaire. It's meant to be a simple way to distinguish quantitatively between luminaires as to the crispness of their projected images.

For more information, please contact Karl Ruling, PLASA's Technical Standards Manager, at karl.ruling@plasa.org

(Claire Beeson)

USA - Two draft Rigging Working Group standards related to the use of chain hoists in the entertainment industry are available for free download and comment at the web address below through 28 January 2013. Materially affected members of the public are invited to review them.

BSR E1.6-2 - 201x, Entertainment Technology - Design, Inspection, and Maintenance of Electric Chain Hoists for the Entertainment Industry, is part of the E1.6 powered entertainment rigging project. This draft standard covers the design, inspection, and maintenance of serially manufactured electric link chain hoists having capacity of 2 tons or less and used in the entertainment industry. This standard does not cover attachment to the load or to the overhead structure.

BSR E1.6-4 - 201x, Portable Control of Fixed-Speed Electric Chain Hoists in the Entertainment Industry, is a standard for the controls ofte

UK - NFL fever descended on London once again this October, with the annual Wembley showdown this year playing host to American Football's St Louis Rams and New England Patriots. For the sixth year in succession, London-based Integrated Security Consultants (ISC) was called upon to ensure the complete safety and security of the visit. The company demonstrated its breadth of capabilities, managing a complex close protection operation for cheerleaders of both teams, NFL officials and VIPs. ISC also provided event security management for a large fan rally held in Trafalgar Square before the match.

The fan rally, which ran from 10am to 5pm the day before the main game, attracted an estimated 10,000 fans and saw cheerleading performances by both teams as well as the cheerleaders of the Jacksonville Jaguars, who will be playing 'home' games at Wembley from 2013-16. Other entertainment

UK - With only four stands remaining, exhibitors need to act now to secure a presence at the fifth annual PLASA Focus: Leeds 2013, taking place at the Royal Armouries, on Tuesday 30 April and Wednesday 1 May 2013.

Following record attendance in 2012, the premier entertainment technology trade show in the North has attracted even more companies that are keen to access the 50% of visitors who do not attend any other trade show during the year.

Mark Priestley, project manager at Unusual Rigging explains the rationale behind their decision to book for the first time: "Although a committed supporter of PLASA, 2013 will see Unusual Rigging making its exhibitor debut at PLASA Focus. We have completed a lot of projects in the north of England and Scotland but we believe we will be able to introduce our range of services to new customers at Leeds. When we visited the show last yea

UK - Le Mark enjoyed a busy evening at the 2012 Hunts Post Business Awards. Winning every award they were nominated for, the Le Mark team bought home a trio of prestigious honours.

Sales director Linda Gibbons said, "It was a huge surprise and such an amazing achievement to win three individual awards. The Le Mark team have worked so hard this year with some amazing achievements, from supplying the 2012 London games with our portable flooring to amazing second-year results with our new Dirty Rigger range of tool pouches and rigger gloves. I'm incredibly proud and grateful to all of them."

Managing director Stuart Gibbons also commented, "What a way to mark 30 years in business - playing a vital role in the Olympics opening ceremony, gaining new distribution deals throughout the year and across the globe for our MagTape professional gaffer tapes & Dirty Rigger ra

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