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UK - Raycom has completed the design and installation of an elaborate radio system for the new Corinthian Television facility in Chiswick Park London. As the leading supplier of professional wireless solutions, Raycom custom designed a robust frequency plan which allowed the use of a complex mix of radio equipment.

The supplied system included four Raycom RTB3211 talkback base stations. One base station is shared between Studios 1 and 2, a second is in the Green Room covering all the downstairs areas outside the studios, the third is located on the roof performance area and the fourth unit is used for the outside performance area. The latter two base stations used ‘down-firing’ antennas to contain the coverage of the radio signals.

Raycom also supplied and programmed 21 Icom IC-F22 UHF radios with belt packs, headsets, cases and chargers and other ancillary equipme

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UK - Former Audio-Technica sales manager Rod Geary has joined forces with Chris Collings of Aspen Media to create Gearline Marketing, a professional sales management company working in the entertainment technology and commercial installation markets which provides face-to-face contact with a dealer or contractor on behalf of manufacturers or distributors.

Geary explained the reasoning behind the new venture: "Having studied the success of commission-based manufacturers’ representatives in the United States, I believe that with our integrated approach - the right team and the right lines - our model will be very successful in the UK. The salaries, cars, overnight stays, pensions and all the other associated costs make a single line sales team very expensive to maintain. Out-sourcing sales to Gearline Marketing cuts the supply channel costs for manufacturers and distrib

PLASA Show 2025 - Banner - June-Aug 2025

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UK - Few in the entertainment and installation industries can have failed to notice how LEDs have transcended their original role as indicators, to become true illuminators. They are 90% energy efficient (compared to just 10% for tungsten), can be made to produce a ‘daylight’ white light, are virtually unbreakable, have life spans of up to 100,000 hours and produce minimal heat. They are poised to become the standard light source, taking over from incandescent sources in many applications, from traffic indicators to street lighting.

Wavicle is a new company set up by former lighting designer and technician Nick Cooke to deal in torches, lanterns and headlamps based on the latest advances in LED and electroluminescent light sources. The advantages offered by LEDs are combined in these products to produce lightweight hand-held lighting instruments. The user benefits by

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Australia - Port Fairy, a coastal village south west of Melbourne, Australia, held its annual Port Fairy Folk Festival over the March Victorian Labour Day holiday weekend, and this year the event was attended by over 15,000 people, entertained by more than 130 acts including 20 international acts.

Performers came from as far as Ireland, Scotland and the USA to join well known local performers such as Jenny Morris, Joe Cameleri, the Waifs and David Bridie for the four-day festival. Powa Audio were contracted to provide sound and lights for four of the seven stages, with Phaseshift Productions supplying the lighting.

Well known lighting industry figure Dave Jackson was engaged to design and operate Stage 2 for the festival. Drawing on the experience of previous years he built a design based around subtle projections and soft moods. X.Spots (eight in total) were selected as the k

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UK - Lumileds LED technology has been used by lighting specialist Tryka LED Ltd as part of a project to light the outside of the new M Club in Belfast. Developed as an additional element to the overall M Club launch, the external lighting project was designed around the building, with the glass windows at the front of the club providing the ideal basis for an LED lighting system. Initially tested on a single window, the design was finalized by PSD Electronics, who worked with Tryka to achieve the desired control and effects.

The project utilizes the Tryka Strip Module 36 in two different lengths - 22 strips at 1200mm and 34 strips at 1700mm. In total, 2016 Luxeon LEDs, 672 each of RGB, have been used to light the external fascia of the M Club. By using a standard silver film over the interior of each window, together with a sealed 'light box', Tryka was able to create a dramatic

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UK - On Monday 24 March 2003, the nva organisation, one of the UK's most successful independent arts charities, will unveil two major outdoor lighting schemes for the Glasgow College of Building & Printing and the Glasgow Tidal Weir at Glasgow Green.

Both schemes have been designed by David Bryant of Spirit Design UK, and are part of Glasgow City Council's Lighting Strategy for the City. nva began to develop artist-led lighting designs for buildings having been awarded a grant of £95,000 from the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery Fund. A number of keynote buildings, structures and architectural details were and partnership funding was acquired through Glasgow City Council's £2.4m lighting strategy and from the building owners themselves.

The two lighting schemes being launched this spring are the most ambitious to date and will set a benchmark for urban lighting design

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UK - Asked to provide sound services for American legend Arthur Lee and Love, Worcester-based RMPA considered that the UK tour would offer a relatively gentle opportunity to ease themselves back into the rock and roll rental market. Instead, Lee's profile went through the roof, with the star being mobbed by MPs amongst others, and shows selling out all over the country.

Arthur Lee and the band he fronted, Love, are acknowledged as one of the finest and most influential groups of the late 60s, their psychedelic-folk masterpiece, Forever Changes, regularly appearing high in polls of the greatest albums of all time. Their comeback tour included several weeks in the UK, with RMPA providing an Electro-Voice system with Midas control when required.

"The show was already challenging," says Rick Bailey of RMPA, "featuring a rock band plus eight-piece orchestra on stage.

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UK - This week has seen the launch of The Marketing Business, a company which offers SMEs in the entertainment technology industry, the full range of marketing expertise, from business development and export advice to corporate identity and public relations.

The Marketing Business is an informal association of three companies which together have over 60 years experience in the entertainment technology business and which individually are recognized as experts in their field: PE Consulting, Harmer PR and The Wells Partnership. PE Consulting was formed in 2002 by Peter Ed, previously marketing director for ETC Europe and business development manager for Strand Lighting. Peter’s experience will be of great benefit to companies wishing to expand their business by moving into exporting or into new market segments by combining tried and tested marketing techniques with in-depth k

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UK - As Trevor Nunn's reign at the Royal National Theatre ends, DHA Lighting has just concluded work on three major productions at the theatre. Tom Stoppard's The Coast of Utopia, Nunn’s revival of the Cole Porter musical, Anything Goes, and the director’s swansong, Shakespeare’s Love's Labour Lost, all called on the expertise of DHA staff as well as the company’s products. DHA has a long association with the theatre and has contributed to many prestige productions. The company’s founder, lighting designer David Hersey, has himself lit a number of acclaimed shows over the past 30 years.

DHA was called upon last summer to work with Hersey and set designer Bill Dudley on Stoppard’s The Coast of Utopia, nominated for four Olivier awards, including best set design and best lighting design. With Anything Goes, exp

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UK - The Canford Group has announced a big increase in profits. Pre-tax profits rose from £142,000 in 2001 to £545,000 in 2002. Figures released recently show that while total sales fell by £1.25m in the last financial year, profits substantially increased.

The fall in sales was largely down to a decline in sales to France and Germany, reflecting weak European demand, and a planned reduction in low margin business, but exports overall remained stable and contributed just under 30% to the group’s turnover. Sales to the Middle East were particularly strong, trebling to £600,000, whilst sales to the Irish republic were also good thanks to the completion of a £1m contract with the Irish police. NEAL, the security side of the Group’s business continues to strengthen.

Gross margins improved by just under one per cent, and interest costs were substantially reduced as

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UK - The education market has traditionally been a strong business area for Strand Lighting thanks toits diverse range of products suitable for use in Educational facilities of all sizes. The introduction at PLASA last year of a wide range of new controls and dimmers aimed at this market has further enhanced the company’s product range, and in support of this, Strand has now launched a new website dedicated to the Education Market and those who specify products for it.

(Ruth Rossington)

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UK - A recent comprehensive install in the Soho Cafe Bar in Christchurch, Dorset, by the CPS Group is an impressive example of the often complex brief such installations require. "Our brief was to install a sound system which was truly multi-purpose," explains Richard Colegate of the CPS (Complete Production Solutions) Group.

"The venue is a fashionable wine bar/pizzeria which has three distinctly different clientele types. On weekday daytimes the system is required to provide a low-level background music source throughout the whole venue at an even level with even coverage. With things livening up considerably on weekday evenings, the system then provides dance floor music levels on the main dance area, and bar/club style programme material throughout the venue. This also has to cater for DJs doing personal appearances some nights. Friday and Saturday night are,

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UK / Germany - PCM, the UK-based specialist in lifting, moving and flying equipment, used the recent Frankfurt ProLight+Sound show to launch its new sales and manufacturing operation for special Columbus McKinnon Lodestar hoists to the German market. PCM is renowned for establishing the Lodestar motor as an industry standard in the UK and Europe. This started in the early 1990s, and the company continues to be the most proactive European supplier and stockist for these industry standard hoists.

This latest strategic move leaves PCM’s German sister company, Augsburg-based Pfaff Stage Technologies (PST), free to concentrate on the design, sale and installation of major special projects. Recent examples of PST’s work in this area include a project for the Flora Theatre in Hamburg, a huge new theatre to which PST supplied 24 customized electric winches.

PCM’s man

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UK - TSC Music has retained it highly valued ‘Investors In People’ recognition for a record third time.The Crawley-based company, which produces professional business music compilations and systems to high street shops and corporate brands across the UK, has become the only company in its market to earn this status and successfully maintain it three times in a row, after satisfying IiP inspectors during the company’s recent reassessment.

Having surpassed necessary key indicators, the IiP standard helps TSC to continue working more closely with its staff to monitor and develop employee skills in an effort to becoming a more customer-focused organisation.

Chairman and managing director Neal Abdool, said: "We recognize staff as our most valuable asset and with the right nurturing and appropriate training they make the difference that counts in TSC achieving

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Hong Kong - Hong Kong's famous Cathedral of Immaculate Conception has recently completed the installation of their new state-of-the-art audio system. Nestled in the foothills of Hong Kong Island overlooking Victoria Harbour the Cathedral has served as the religious and social centre for the Island's sizeable Catholic population since it was completed in 1888.

The lead contractor for the installation was Hong Kong's Pacific Audio Supplies who made extensive use of the Bose Modeler and Auditioner design programs in the design and consultative stages of the project. Featuring an innovative Loudspeaker System constructed from multiple Bose FS32SEs in a line array configuration the system is powered by a combination of Bose and Carver power amplifiers.

All Loudspeaker Feeds from the console output groups are equalized with ARX EQ60 1/3rd octave graphic equalizers. Bose ‘doubl

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Canada - Q1 Production Technologies Inc introduced its new banner, new image and a new approach to its business at the Q1 open house and product showcase at its Vancouver facility on 28 February and 1 March. With over 35 years of combined industry experience, Q1 partners Brian Konechny, Phil Bernard and Marc Raymond were on hand to introduce Q1 to over 500 industry representatives who gathered to learn about the new partnership, innovative new lighting products, and the products and services available at Q1.

"Q1 combines our international experience and expertise with the impressive service reputation of Showtime Lighting in Vancouver and our expanded asset inventory in our 20,000 sq ft facility here in Vancouver," stated partner Marc Raymond on behalf of partners Phil and Brian at the open house.

Representatives from Vari-Lite, High End, Strand Lighting, Rosco, Sm

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UK - Award-winning event production company, AVC Productions, has just added to its already impressive portfolio of presentation solutions by investing in the very latest indoor LED screen technology.

The ultra slim 36-panel system allows screen sizes of up to 12sq.m and facilitates the relay of both video and data imaging. Patrick Hill, Group managing director told us: "We have always driven our business forward by looking for ways to improve the service we offer. By investing in this product, we can now provide clients with an innovative solution where more conventional projection alternatives just don’t work."

The LVP0630 purchased from Lighthouse, has a pixel pitch of 6mm and a very high brightness of 3000 Nits. It incorporates Lighthouses proprietary fourth generation M4 Technology that has been developed to ensure that the colour balance of every pixel, a

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UK - Following its launch at PLASA 2002 and subsequent installation on the hit musical Our House, AVW’s Impressario Advance! motion control system has now been given its first permanent home at the RNT’s Cottesloe Theatre.

It’s not the first time the RNT has turned to AVW: this latest project follows the success of the Impressario system in the Olivier Award-winning productions of A Streetcar Named Desire staged in the Lyttleton Theatre and other work carried out on Anything Goes in the Olivier Theatre. Impressario Advance! controls 13 flying bars in the Cottesloe, including four point hoists and three dedicated lighting bars, and with the amount of equipment set to increase on a yearly basis, it was deemed the best tool for the job. It was the use of the Impressario in the RNT’s production of Howard Katz that captured the interest of

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UK - ARB is preparing to move into new premises in Buckingham this April, consolidating its nationwide operation into one site. Pictured (right) taking tenancy of the empty 35,000sq.ft premises are directors (left to right) Adrian Jones, Paul Gardiner, Peter Boot, Steve Kilby and Nick Brooks-Ward.

The move is part of the company’s ongoing restructuring since it became part of the CSS Stellar Group PLC, and all its regional branches will be transferred to the new facility. The move coincides with the launch of a new corporate identity and significant restructuring of the procedures and team approach. Commercial director Steve Kilby commented: "The move is one of several significant changes that will improve our efficiency and the service we can offer clients. The events marketplace has changed a lot in the last decade and it is time to bring some long-established ARB p

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The Netherlands - Ampco Pro Rent is to take delivery of a Midas Heritage 3000 bearing the serial number 600 to add to its already considerable fleet of Heritage consoles which now numbers 15 within the group. This makes Ampco one of the largest owners of Heritage consoles in Europe, and significantly, the sale of the 600th Midas Heritage 3000 console goes to the same company who also own serial numbers 1 and 2.

Head of Midas sales, David Cooper, recalls that Ampco was one of only six companies in the world who liked the concept of the Heritage 3000 so much that they ordered two consoles purely on spec before they had even seen a prototype. According to Ampco Pro Rent managing director Fred Heuves, the investment has more than paid for itself. "We were the first people in Europe to offer our customers a console that has since become an industry-standard, so we have been reap

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UK - White Light and Rosco are jointly organizing an ImagePro session to allow people to learn more about the practical applications of Rosco’s gobo slide projector. The informal afternoon event has been arranged to give visitors the opportunity to gain hands-on experience of the Rosco ImagePro. Joshua Alemany, Rosco product manager for the ImagePro and gobo products (and a lighting designer in his own right) will give a practical demonstration of the system and introduce people to the secrets of making a successful slide. Anyone attending can take their own artwork, and create and project their own slide.

The event takes place on Thursday, 3 April 2003 from 2.00pm onwards at White Light’s Merton Industrial Park, Jubilee Way, Wimbledon, facility.

To attend, RSVP to the e-mail address below.

(Ruth Rossington)

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UK - A rigger who was left paralysed following a fall at the Olympia Exhibition centre in West London has been awarded £2.1m in compensation. David Upton, aged 38, is wheelchair-bound and deaf in one ear as a result of the accident, which occurred in September 2000. Mr Upton, from Finsbury Park in north London, was described in court as a safety-conscious worker who loved his job.

His employer, Unusual Rigging Ltd, admitted liability for the accident, and Judge Anthony Thompson QC approved a £2.1m settlement on Wednesday.

In a statement to PLASA Media, the company said: "In September 2000, Mr David Upton, an employee of Unusual Rigging Ltd, had an accident at Olympia Exhibition Centre, where he fell from an entrance canopy, approximately 12ft above the pavement, whilst erecting a signage panel. Unusual Rigging Ltd's insurers settled the claim out of court last week.&quo

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Denmark - Danish pro audio manufacturer MTi A/S has launched a new website. Currently in its infancy, the website will have regular updates to ensure it continues to be a powerful tool for all users and a source of fresh information for all those with an eye on the future of pro audio.

Features of the site include full product information with concise narrative and comprehensive specification downloads for the new LARC1 line-array system, new MPA-82000 8-channel amplifier and the current range of BR products. News information is also presented, along with an extensive reference segment and a brief history of the 30-year old company. Company contact details and an interesting staff segment can also be found.

(Ruth Rossington)

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Switzerland - Mirco Cibin has moved his famous Bypass operation to the Les Acacias development area of Geneva, and created a luxurious multi-million dollar club for the city’s chic and VIP clientele. The marble-interiored venue, which boasts a VIP champagne bar and an 80-cover fine dining restaurant on the mezzanine floor, has already hosted a number of ritzy parties - most recently during the Geneva Motor Show and the returning Americas Cup Team Alinghi - as well as many television crews. With this affluent target market in mind, the club demanded a high specification of lighting, sound and video.

The club favoured Coemar lighting, and Alessandro Caldarera (Coemar’s technical and marketing man) supported the architect, Marco Lucchi, by designing an inventive rig equal to the talents of lighting operator, Romain Toppano, and controllable from an MA GrandMA desk. The

  1. Light Relief provides help in Ridler tragedy
  2. Stagetec launches schools initiative
  3. Laser Grafix turns BT Tower green
  4. Screenco/Unitek's world first for World Indoor Games
  5. Projection Company Launched
  6. Barco LED screens for major European sports venues
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