Robe - LEADERBOARD - Feb 2025
Doughty - Banner - from 15 May 2025

Rigging / Staging

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UAE - As house riggers at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, Unusual Rigging & Engineering is used to handling the requirements of the array of different events that are hosted there. However, The International Indian Film Academy Awards 2023 presented URE with its biggest project at the venue to date.
URE’s Richard Hoare explained: “IIFA is a massive event - the Bollywood equivalent to the Oscars - held annually, it celebrates the best talent the Indian film industry has to offer. This year we were asked to supply our venue rigging services for the event. This involved more than 316 points to suspend more than 105 tonnes of production equipment. This was 100+ more points than we rigged for the 2022 event and three times the amount we’d expect to put in for a normal show.”
One of the big challenges this year was time. The venue was booked back-to-back with ev

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Spain - HOF has confirmed that it has appointed Acson as a distribution partner in Spain. The cooperation will start with immediate effect.
Acson is a professional lighting and sound system distribution company that has been in the industry for more than 30 years.
Alex Costa, managing director at Acson, says: “Many of our customers are production companies that need brands and products that help them reduce set-up and dismantling times for their shows across Spain. We found HOF to be the perfect match to what we were looking for to be able to meet our customers’ requirements.“
Edwin Duivelaar, export & sales manager at HOF, adds: "Acson is a very respected company in Spain. They can push the HOF products in their wide range network in Spain. We are sure that the HOF products will give Acson a complement to their already wide product portfolio."
Ac
Doughty - Banner - from 15 May 2025

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UK - Unusual Rigging will commence building works on a ‘ground-breaking’ new headquarters today, 26 July as part of its commitment to respond to the climate emergency.
The innovative project is set to see the company pave the way as pioneers - showing what can be done towards regenerative design within the built environment whilst also sharing the obstacles they face with the wider industry.
The organisation, known for its work on events like the Olympics, the World Cup and West End and touring theatre hit shows, says it is taking ‘a huge leap forward’ in their commitment to the circular economy.
The design for the new HQ and research building, on the company’s current site in Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire, takes all the economic principles of the circular economy and applies them to the new building.
Tom Harper, managing director at Unusual Rigging

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Portugal - Europalco delivered a memorable event using Kuka robots for the truck and bus manufacturer Fuso to unveil the new eCanter, a light truck 100% electric. Prime Minister António Costa, Secretary of State for the Economy Pedro Cilínio, and company representatives were among the 150 guests.
Team4 relied on Europalco to organise the one-day event at Fuso's manufacturing plant in Tramagal, Portugal. It took two days and 20 dedicated audiovisual and structural technicians to assemble and programme an event that marked the commencement of the manufacturing of the new Fuso truck.
The Lisbon-based provider was responsible for the scenery, stage, audiovisual, automatic controls, and furniture. Europalco built an 8x4m LED wall that displayed the opening reel of the event.
For the unveiling of Fuso's new truck, Europalco designed a show to reflect modernity, nove

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UK - Pearce Hire has announced the opening of its new warehouse in Peterborough. The new facility aims to streamline workflows and enhance the quality of services provided.
Located in the heart of Peterborough, the expansion from 17,000 to around 27,000sq.ft of floor space will not only help the business to grow upon its already extensive inventory of lighting, sound, video and rigging equipment, as well as its staging and power distribution systems but also offer more space to prepare and process equipment for different departments.
As projects started to increase after the COVID pandemic, it became evident that Pearce Hire began to run out of space. From storing, to manoeuvring and maintaining equipment, more space was needed to prevent staff from working longer hours, which in time, could have increased the risk of mistakes.
Designed from the ground up, this

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Denmark - Entertainment automation specialist, Motor Stage Automation (MSA), has made a substantial investment in Kinesys, comprising 30 x Kinesys Apex 500 Kg hoists and 30 x Kinesys Apex V2 drives plus three Mentor 401 safety controllers - offering SIL3 safety over Ethernet and safety control of up to 60 devices simultaneously.
This follows up a second-batch purchase of 21 x Kinesys Apex 500 Kg hoists and 26 x Kinesys V1 Drives, a Mentor 401 and Vector control delivered last year, bringing MSA’s current total of Apex hosts to 72, including Apex 1250Kg motors that arrived when the company launched in 2021.
MSA is a brand-new company, and before launching in 2021, Christian Vigso and his team scoped out the market to find brands that were reliable, respected, flexible, and good value, and assessed the advantages of each. They also wanted brands that were omnipresent w

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UK - 50 Cent, Lil Yatchty, Travis Scott and D_Block Europe were among the urban music line-up appearing on the Serious 25m TZ Roof at Wireless Festival last week.
Serious Stages is supplying stages and site structures for Festival Republic across a range of UK festivals throughout the summer and has recently returned to Wireless Festival.
Serious operations manager Abbey Thomas says: “We work closely with Festival Republic’s creative and production teams to design and install stages that meet the needs of the headliners, while also creating a unique aesthetic for their events.
“Our TZ Roof was installed as the main stage at Wireless and incorporates bespoke curved screens on the goalposts to create a seamless, immersive visual experience for the audience. With the use of recently designed HD bowstrings, we were able to increase the capacity of the roof loa

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UK - Star Live, the specialist production agency that delivers live event and specialist build solutions, has secured a significant investment from LDC, part of Lloyds Banking Group.
Star Live was responsible for the bespoke stage, grandstand seats and Royal Box at last month’s Coronation Concert. The company has delivered other major projects at events including the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, BST Hyde Park and the Platinum Jubilee, along with stadium tours by acts such as Adele.
The business is enjoying considerable growth, having increased revenues by more than 30% in the last year alone to reach over £24m. It has also secured major projects both in the UK and internationally, including the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and the 2023 Ryder Cup in Italy, alongside a multitude of major sporting, cultural and entertainment pr

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UAE - Dubai-based iRIG has announced its partnership with Eilon Engineering as the exclusive distributor of their Ron StageMaster load monitoring systems. The partnership became effective on 1 June 2023, marking a significant milestone for both companies in expanding their presence in the Middle East market.
Eilon Engineering’s innovative load cell technology and commitment to quality have earned them a solid reputation among professionals worldwide. By partnering with iRIG, Eilon Engineering aims to leverage their expertise and strong regional presence to better serve customers in the Middle East.
The partnership will allow iRIG to enhance its product portfolio with Eilon Engineering's wireless and wired load cell solutions, providing customers in the region with access to the appropriate products for their lifting and load monitoring needs.
Both iRIG and Eil

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South Africa - Andrea ‘Dray’ Fowler has joined DWR Distribution’s sales team in Johannesburg.
For the past nine years, Dray has worked for a company that specialises in signage lighting while her career has seen her operate in business finance, office automation and sales.
“I knew about DWR Distribution from my husband Clint who also works in the live events industry, and from our friend Kyle Robson who works at DWR,” said Dray. “It always sounded like a vibey organisation where I've heard they work hard, play hard and fight hard. To me it seemed like a company where if I looked after them, they would look after me.”
“It’s wonderful to be able to expand the sales team and we are already impressed with Dray’s energy and the way she so easily fits into the team, almost as if she has always been part of it,” said Robert Izzett, sales director

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Singapore - Acoustic & Lighting System has joined the international network of Fenix Stage distributors.
Discussions began at ISE Barcelona 2023. Acoustic & Lighting will add Fenix Stage's lifting towers, ground support towers and display support solutions to its product offering for the Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore markets.
“We are delighted with this partnership, as our international expansion efforts are paying off and our network is growing rapidly,” says Fenix.
Fenix Stage sales director Alex Bryan has already presented training sessions at Acoustic and Lighting bases in in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) and Bangkok (Thailand).
These training sessions marked Fenix's official welcome to Acoustic & Lighting System. “We thank the attendees and our new distributor for their support and are excited to a

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Denmark - Theatre and musical producers Lion Entertainment turned to automation specialist Motor Stage Automation (MSA) to provide specialist knowledge and equipment for three major moving elements and control for its production of musical Pretty Woman.
The system included Kinesys motors and control, Litec trussing and EXE trolleys in MSA custom touring dollies, and an ALFA Systems double revolve, all of which helped bring a fantastic set design by Benjamin la Cour to life, enhancing the narrative set to music and lyrics by Bryan Adams and Jim Valance.
The automation system was specified and designed by MSA’s Christian Vigsø in conjunction with the requirements of Lion Entertainment’s automation supervisor, Thomas Sunesen, who also operated the Kinesys Vector console running everything on the road.
The show featured three specific aspects that needed

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India - Fenix Stage has appointed Stagemix Technologies as its exclusive distributor in India.
The Mumbai-based company, which currently distributes brands like DAS Audio, Adamson, and Adam Hall, will expand its product catalogue to include Fenix products. Among them are lifting towers, ground support towers, and solutions for elevating and stacking LED screens, such as the new FLES (Fenix LED Support).
"We are delighted to continue advancing in our international expansion strategy with a company like Stagemix, a reference for us in the Indian market,” says Alex Bryan, sales director at Fenix Stage. “Our team is excited about the future of this market and we can't think of a better partner than Stagemix to grow our presence in the country."

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UK - When Simon Marlow was brought on board as production manager for the stage version of Mrs Doubtfire in London’s West End, he turned to Unusual Rigging to meet the show’s extensive rigging needs.
The adaptation of the ‘90s movie starring Robin Williams, originated on Broadway, before transferring to the UK where it enjoyed a successful run at the Manchester Opera House. It opened at The Shaftesbury Theatre on 12 May and, like most big scale musicals, boasts several large scenic pieces to be rigged, flown and stored - along with extensive lighting and sound rigs.
Simon commented: “Unusual Rigging has provided all the rigging motors, grid diverts and general rigging for this complex show which is multi scenic and heavily automated. The Shaftesbury theatre is much smaller than the Sondheim Theatre on Broadway where it originated so getting the show to

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Germany - The HOF team continues to grow and has gained another event technology expert in Lars Noske.
Lars will work as product manager, and will reinforce HOF‘s product development and product management team. He has been working in the event technology industry for many years and is already very familiar with HOF's portfolio.

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Portugal - The Intermunicipal Community of the Coimbra Region (CIM/RC) attracted much interest at BTL 2023 with its innovative and immersive booth.
CIM/RC was the only booth at the fair to replace promotional paper with digital screens, emphasising sustainability and quick and easy access to information. The booth was composed of a municipal counter, an auditorium for presentations and a total of 240m² that invited visitors to live a unique experience with the projections on its LED screens.
“The CIM/RC booth was the result of many months of preparation, idea development, concept and project design,” says Gaspar Magarreiro, director of Creative LED. “It culminated in four days of intense work by 38 technicians from different areas who carried out another successful project. The immersive experience of the booth was made possible thanks to a 100m², circular scre

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Denmark - Rigging and automation specialist Jimmy Johnson joins the team at Motor State Automation (MSA) led by Christian Vigsø, where he will be focusing on technical sales for MSA’s innovative solutions including the bespoke design and delivery of systems for entertainment projects involving artists, set, scenery, props, equipment, objects, or anything else that needs to move.
Motor Stage Automation (MSA) is a new company based in Denmark, working internationally.
Christian commented, “We are hugely excited about this collaboration. MSA will benefit from Jimmy’s wealth of experience and massive enthusiasm for the industry and the world of automation as well as his love of logistics and the challenges involved in finding smart and creative solutions!”
Jimmy stated, “MSA’s approach to business and investment is impressive. We all share the same val

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USA - The Morton Salt complex in Chicago had been in operation for nearly a century before it was closed down in 2015. Today, the complex has been transformed into a multi-purpose venue for live music and other events named The Salt Shed. Boasting modern sound and lighting systems, including a comprehensive Elation stage lighting rig from Upstaging, The Salt Shed is quickly becoming a popular performance space in Chicago.
The venue spreads over 1.5 acres of land along the Chicago riverfront and can accommodate around 3,300 people indoors and 5,000 at an outdoor performance space, which opened in the summer of 2022. The newly renovated indoor space was previously a storage facility for salt and features a distinctive A-Frame structure. Today, it boasts a performance stage and an entertainment lighting system of Elation Artiste Monet, Proteus Lucius, Proteus Rayzor 760, Fuze M

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UK - The ABTT has announced a programme of free skills workshops and seminars at the upcoming ABTT Theatre Show which takes place at Alexandra Palace next month.
Promoting learning, the ABTT will be encouraging conversation and collaboration through a diverse range of free inspiring seminars and discussions educating attendees on a variety of topics, including VR, automation, sound design, AI, comms, health and safety, lighting, staging in the wilderness and mental health.
Supporting training and skills development, the ABTT has arranged a selection of free hands-on workshops including Crucial knots used in backstage roles, The importance of correct manual handling, Finding faults in the workplace and Learning how to handle, hang and store drapes. These fun taster sessions give attendees a glimpse at the importance of ongoing training while

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UK - IPS were delighted to exhibit again at the 2023 PLASA Focus show, returning to Leeds has become a firm date in the company calendar. “The team on the stand met lots of familiar faces during the busy two-day event and had lots of productive conversations about upcoming projects and the latest hire items in the IPS inventory,” says IPS’ Tom Warden. “There was also interest in the IPS offering from new potential customers, as well as students and others interested in starting out within the technical events industry.”
The IPS stand was consistently busy as people visited to have a look at the fixtures on display, which included the new Martin MAC Aura XIP LED Wash fixture (which was recently one of the stars of the show at the Windsor Coronation Concert) and the new GLP Impression X5 IP Bar, which will arrive in hire stocks very shortly. The X5 IP bar boasts a br

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UK - Eurovision star Sam Ryder recently paid a visit to London’s RD Studios as brand partner to Vodafone.
This marks Ryder’s first venture into brand association since his public breakthrough in 2020. Rising to prominence after posting music covers on TikTok during lockdown, he went on to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, finishing first in the jury vote and second overall, and was recently voted the UK’s favourite Eurovision entry of all time.
Captured in the colossal Studio 3, the shoot involved creating an entire concert (complete with Ryder’s band and dedicated fans) to promote Vodafone’s EVO plan, which offers more flexibility across new and refurbished phones.
As a project that promotes a sustainable alternative to buying new, the importance of utilising a sustainable production facility was paramount. Locat

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Norway - Oslo-based CT Norway enjoyed a successful LLB exhibition in March, its busy booth including a showcase of systems from event and broadcast comms specialist, Green-GO.
LLB (Lyd Lys Bilde or Light Sound Picture), held every two years in Oslo, is a major social event for Norway’s industry, attracting professionals from all over the country. This year, however, following COVID, it returned for the first time since 2019, bringing an added anticipation for all concerned.
Part of the global Creative Technology Group, CT Norway provides audio, lighting, visual and staging technologies and expertise for all kinds of live, virtual and installed environments. It is also the exclusive Norwegian distributor for a number of leading brands, including Green-GO’s range of innovative, Ethernet network-based, digital intercom systems.
As well as making Green-GO technol

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USA - Las Vegas and Los Angeles based full production and rental specialist, 3G Productions LLC (3G), has invested in a substantial amount of Kinesys automation kit, adding to its already robust inventory.
The purchase comprises 500kg and 1000kg Kinesys Elevation Liftket motors with Elevation drives, Vector control console, multiple PD-ES Array Power Distros, and all necessary Libra Cell digital load cells, Libra Pro controllers, and networking switches.
3G has invested heavily in all departments since the pandemic, including rigging and automation, explained CEO Keith Conrad, who believes that automation will become an increasingly important element of future visual and stage designs.
The company works across multiple sectors including large-scale events, concert tours, festivals, and corporates, together with “significant” work up and down the world-famo

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UK - Gary Beestone Associates made Unusual Rigging their contractor of choice to supply the rigging and automation for Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool. The event, held at Liverpool’s M&S arena, was hosted on behalf of last year’s winner’s Ukraine and featured one of the entertainment world’s most complex stages.
As well as the rigging requirements of the show itself, Unusual was also contracted to supply the aerial rescue cover. With the set design finalised and ready from the get-go, the team had approximately 10 weeks of pre-production time for this huge-scale event. “Knowing exactly what we were working towards from day one was a huge benefit given the sheer quantity of work involved,” says Paul Rhodes, senior production rigger at Unusual.
He continues: “This year’s Eurovision set had a lot of automation. The set design required nearly 600 motors,
  1. PLASA Focus Leeds 2023 brings business and buzz to the north
  2. Motor Stage Automation invests in Litec
  3. Backstage Academy becomes Academy of Live Technology
  4. Doughty Studio Rail deployed at UCL
  5. Ruud de Deugd brings rigging insight to SA
  6. PL+S: TAIT puts focus on automation and training
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GLP - MPU - Feb, Apr 2025

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