UK - 31st August is the last day that visitors can pre-register for free entry to PLASA Show 2015, the UK's premier business event for the live entertainment technology industry. International pre-registrations are at their highest level since the show moved to ExCel in 2013, with registrations coming from over 90 countries so far. Visitors who haven't already registered are urged to take advantage of the last few days of the free registration period.

PLASA Show 2015 takes place at London's ExCel from 4th - 6th October. From 1st September to 3rd October visitors can pre-register for £10, meaning doing so before the end of the free period can make a significant saving. On site entry will cost £25.

"The show will feature over 300 brands, covering all production di

UK - Lift Turn Move based in Bromborough, Wirral, has already shown a commitment to training future engineers and this is set to continue with the announcement from director, John Jones, that they are training three apprentices this year; Joshua Baines, Brandon Gillam and Liam Shone.

Josh joins Brandon in the work shop as the second apprentice currently being trained in the LTM workshop. Brandon and Joshua are studying for an apprenticeship in Mechanical Manufacturing which will involve one and a half days of tuition at a local college to learn essential theory and 3 and a half days a week working in the hoist assembly area to develop their practical skills. They will both spend time in the warehouse receiving product training, dispatching goods and observing the other engineers at work.

Liam is joining as a sales office trainee. Liam will be studying for an apprenticeship in

USA - PLASA's Technical Standards Programme has announced two actions to widen the programme's benefits in the entertainment industry.

The first is a new standard, one that will help performers and performance venue designers; the second is a programme to extend the benefits of the TSP to other organizations in the entertainment and special events industry.

The first is the publication of a new standard, ANSI E1.55 - 2015, Standard for Theatrical Makeup Mirror Lighting, which was developed at the request of Actors' Equity Association to help their members. The standard was approved by ANSI's Board of Standards Review on 25 August and published two days later, on 27 August.

The lighting market's move away from incandescent lamps has complicated the job of providing good makeup mirror lighting. ANSI E1.55 helps clarify what good makeup mirror lighting is by describing the topo

USA - The deadline for ordering 2015 Behind the Scenes Holiday Cards is just two weeks away. These unique cards were created especially for Behind the Scenes by designers William Ivey Long, Robert Mendoza, Bruce Rodgers, Court Watson, Paul Weimer, and Paige Weintraut. What better way to spread holiday cheer to friends and family than with cards that bring help and hope to your colleagues in need. The order deadline is September 14th so place your order now!

Three card ordering options are offered: personalized cards with a company logo and custom message, card packs of 10 with a standard greeting, and electronic versions for delivery by email. All proceeds benefit the Behind the Scenes charity which provides financial assistance to entertainment technology professionals who are seriously ill or injured. View and order cards at www.behindthescenescharity.org/holidaycards.

For m

Money, Money, Money - The piano that featured in nearly all ABBA's recording between 1973 and 1977 is going to auction. Sotheby's expert Philip Errington said, "The opening piano glissando from Dancing Queen is one of the most distinctive sounds of the 1970s and we are delighted to offer the actual instrument used by the legendary ABBA in their major recordings. The piano itself is an instrument of real importance and with the added ABBA provenance we expect it will have worldwide appeal."

The piano was made by Swedish musical instrument designer Georg Bolin for the US jazz pianist Bill Evans. It was bought by Stockholm's Metronome Studios in 1967 and appeared on nearly all of ABBA's recordings between 1973 and 1977.The group's pianist Benny Andersson said, "The Bolin Grand is one of a kind and was a great source of inspiration while working in the recordin

UK - South London-based technical production and design specialist Presentation Rentals has re-branded as 'PR Live' to reflect the dynamic nature of its business and the current scope of the company's activities.

The company was launched in 1997 by MD Ian Coull as an AV equipment rental company - initially supplying small projectors, screens and PowerPoint presentation kits.

It's now grown into a highly successful full high-end technical production supplier offering the latest audio, lighting and video hardware and technology, plus a comprehensive range of associated services including complete show and event design, video content creation, graphics, artwork and set design / building. In short, everything to cover all aspects of any types of live event or brand activation, together with a full logistics department and transport fleet.

"Live - and larger scale - producti

Media Pressure - The producers of forthcoming musical Elf will introduce a £30 ticket band after bowing to "overwhelming public and social media demand" for more affordable tickets. The show, which runs for 10 weeks over Christmas at the West End's Dominion Theatre, has been criticised for its ticket prices, which rise as high as £240 for a top price seat.

The producers said that strong sales on more expensive seats allowed them to offer a limited number of £30 tickets throughout the run. "The producers acknowledge the show and the West End itself should not exclude families or anyone who cannot afford the higher priced seats, and have therefore used the incredible sales on the higher prices tickets to offset the cost of the new lower priced seats being introduced at all performances," a statement said.

Under Pressure - Foo F

USA - Production Resource Group (PRG), the world's leading provider of entertainment and event technology solutions, today announced it will extend its branding in Germany and the UK to integrate the brand of the recently acquired XL Video Group. The integrated companies will be known as PRG XL Video for a transition period while the operations are being merged.

PRG will continue to use its brand name in all other countries across Europe and North America. XL Video teams in those territories will be immediately transitioned into the PRG family.

"Part of our decision to acquire XL Video was the premier value of its brand in many of our markets," said Jeremiah J. Harris, PRG's Chairman and CEO. "We recognize that the XL Video name and logo are synonymous with outstanding quality, customer service, and technical expertise in some of our territories, equal to that o

UK - On 8 September, The Unicorn Theatre, the UK's theatre for young audiences, provided a symbolic venue for the press launch of SiPA - The Sustainability in Production Alliance.

"We have set ourselves ten challenging goals for the decade ahead. Only by working together will we be able to solve our biggest issues. These goals set the pace for the live production industry and reflect our shared aspirations and needs," says SiPA's Craig Bennett.

SiPA has been created by the industry to provide a central hub for collaboration and culture change. Its initiative encompasses issues around equality, well-being, education and development, waste, procurement, renewable energy, transparent reporting of environmental and social impacts, fair pay and resilient industry economics. The SiPA goals create an aspirational, active and practical framework that is common to all. www.si

UK - With just under a month to go until PLASA Show 2015, pre-registrations are up 10% compared to 2013 and 2014, making this year's show already the most successful since the move to ExCeL in London's Docklands.

Featuring over 300 brands, with many showing new products and services, a major new initiative for this year sees PLASA Show adopting the successful 'Focus' model of a sector-specific, zoned layout, which will facilitate easier networking and make navigation around the show much easier than in previous years.

By the beginning of September, pre-registration data for PLASA Show 2015 was tracking at 10% up year on year over the past two shows, with 62% of those registered being either final decision makers or equipment specifiers. In addition visitors from 94 countries have pre-registered, against those from 74 countries who attended in 2014.

"When PLASA Show move

Arts Cuts Campaign - Equity has launched a campaign to raise awareness of the "catastrophic" effect that further cuts could have on the arts. The campaign, Stop Arts Cuts, has been created by the union to make the case for cultural investment to government in the face of ongoing austerity measures. It follows a Treasury announcement that government departments such as the Department for Culture, Media and Sport should prepare for budget reductions of up to 40% in the spending review, the outcome of which will be revealed in November. Equity assistant general secretary Stephen Spence, who is leading the campaign for Equity, said that the arts "simply cannot sustain any more cuts". He added, "Our view is that it would have quite a dramatic effect. You will start to get theatres closing."

Main Attraction - Cast members are the biggest draw for a

UK - Experienced sales specialist Susannah Rushden has joined VDC Trading in the role of sales manager.

Susie has worked in a sales management, development and training role for several major UK companies.

"My main areas of expertise include motivation, training and sales psychology," says Susie, "So, even though the company has super levels of after sales service, my efforts will be aimed at working on improvements which relate to the sales message and the morale of the team. My objective is to raise the energy levels of the team and to provide a better service from the first contact."

"I welcome any comments or questions from customers and aim to try and be available as much as possible for customer liaison."

(Jim Evans)

Denmark - Neets has added three new members to its team - Dennis C. Hansen, technical trainer and backup for support; Ditte Beck - marketing manager and firmware developer Brian D. Rasmussen.

"They had their first day at Neets on 1 September and they all bring great expertise to our team. The goal for us is to have even more focus on how we can grow our business together and continue to develop and improve Neets Control Systems with new solutions and features," says Neets.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Now the summer season is over, regular LSi contributor James Eade is running more temporary electrical training courses around the country. The popular industry-backed Creative Skillset Certificate in Temporary Power Systems has several new dates for later this year and into January 2016, including a new venue in Salisbury in November.

With nearly 600 candidates having completed the course to date, the feedback is continually proving positive: visit bit.ly/scites to read more and find out about dates and venues. Some courses are being organised by BECTU so members may be eligible for a discount. Currently the major broadcasters plan to enforce Creative Skillset Certificate in Temporary Power systems on their productions by April 2016, so time is slowly running out to beat the de

Australia - The Antipodean branch of the London-based theatre consultancy launched on 1 September 2015, and follows the opening of the company's New York studio in 2012 and Bristol Studio earlier this year.

Leading the Australian business is Eric Lawrence, Melbourne resident and long-term Charcoalblue associate, who has worked with the team on the RSC Courtyard, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and the forthcoming Astana Expo 2016. He extends a warm welcome to anyone visiting or passing through Melbourne to the Design Studio, which is based at 104 Johnston Street, Suite 4A, Fitzroy.

"We share our building with a film co-operative in Fitzroy," says Eric. "There's great coffee, decent wifi and our local bar is the wonderfully named Naked for Satan! Pop in for a pint if you dare!"

Supporting this global growth is Gary Sparkes in Charcoalblue's London studio, who

Middle East - As the Middle East prepares for a busy event season Showforce has announced the addition of two new services to their portfolio of event support services. From this September the company will provide female event crew and technical support staff alongside their stage crew, technicians, production staff and promotional personnel.

With many events in the Middle East attended only by women, there is a need for can-do ladies who provide an extra pair of hands and ensure their successful delivery. Showforce's newly launched female event crew offer a team of experienced, friendly and resourceful all female event crew. Launched primarily to cater for private events, weddings and galas they can assist with set-up, decoration, operate lighting and sound desks, follow spots and other technical elements.

Ian Spendlove, Showforce's founder and chief executive comments, "

Pastures New - War Horse is moving on to pastures new after a seven-year run in London's West End. The play, based on Michael Morpurgo's book, has been a major success since its award-winning puppetry first took to the National Theatre stage. The final performance at the New London Theatre will take place on 12 March next year. Morpurgo paid tribute to an "iconic play, but not simply a play, certainly not a musical, a show like no other, with puppets at its heart". He said, "It has moved millions in London and all over the world. How great to see the theatre always full of people of all generations, all caught up in the story playing out before them, in a show once called 'the greatest anthem to peace ever seen on a stage'." War Horse is the most successful play in the NT's history.

Cultural Ties - Shakespeare's Globe and the National Theatre ar

World - Flight case and speaker component manufacturer Penn Elcom has invested close to two million pounds in new manufacturing plant and technology across the group's international operations in China, Mexico and the UK.

Over a million dollars alone has been ploughed into upgrading the powder coating lines at all sites, part of a planned reinvestment strategy in Swiss made Gema spraying equipment designed to increase efficiency and output worldwide for Penn to keep abreast of the current growing demand for its products.

The powder line installed at the factory in Guangdong Province, China, is completely new and replaces the previous one with the latest air cooled technology. This will enhance the working environment for the 30 employees as well as being more energy efficient, kinder to the environment and more cost-effective to maintain and run. The plant is also run on re-cy

UK - PLASA has announced the first of its nominees for the 2015 Awards for Innovation, which recognise and reward new product ideas. Nominated products should meet at least one of the Awards' criteria for 'Innovation' - to offer a new style of thinking, an improvement in existing technical practice, a new or improved aid to safety, a new commercial advantage, use new patents or unique intellectual property, or introduce new technology, materials or manufacturing techniques.

The final assessment of those claims will take place at the PLASA Show, where an independent panel of industry experts will judge the entries, based on the strength of their innovation alone. Respected for their impartiality, the panel will hear a five-minute presentation from each of the nominees, and have the opportunity for questions and answers, before making their final selections.

There are no product

UK - Launched last September, Current RMS has been working hard building new features into the system, now being used in over 400 event rental businesses worldwide.

To celebrate a year on, the Current team has launched a new website as well as the release of the new Resources Module. Now, Current not only manages all of the renting and sale of products but also the services that go with these jobs too whether that be crew, transport, venues or rooms.

Key features of this new Module include: View all your bookable resources and any job with unallocated services; Flexible service charging by; hours, days or distance; Simple resource allocation using drag and drop functionality; Handy iCal feed for all resource bookings; Use Stores to determine the whereabouts of your resource; Specify periods of unavailability for bookable resources.

The Current team look forward to demonstrat

USA / Japan - This September, the EtherCAT Technology Group (ETG) conducted two Plug Fests: the 2015 Japanese EtherCAT Plug Fest in Yokohama, Japan, and the 2015 North American EtherCAT Plug Fest in Newark, New Jersey, USA. Both events showed the typical high variety in EtherCAT devices, as well as a high level of system conformance.

The 2015 Japanese EtherCAT Plug Fest was held 10-11 September at the facilities of Beckhoff Japan in Yokohama. The ETG was pleased with the improved quality, variety, and functional range of devices at the event, even when compared to the equally impressive results from the year before. In 2015, the Plug Fest had significantly more devices exhibiting advanced features such as highly-precise synchronization through Distributed Clocks, as well as modular device description (Modules/Slots). Additionally, the number of new and unique EtherCAT Slave Cont

UK - What can just £5 do? It can win you an Amazon Gift Card for £100, £250 or even £500 - but more importantly it can help a colleague in need who has fallen on hard times because they, or an immediate family member, is seriously ill or injured.

Stop by the Behind the Scenes UK stand (C10) at the PLASA Show 5-7 October to do your part to bring help and hope to your colleagues in need. Raffle tickets are just £5 each and will be available throughout the show. The drawing will be held on Tuesday afternoon, 7 October but you do not need to be present to win.

The raffle is to help raise funds for the new UK charity Behind the Scenes which provides grants to entertainment technology professionals that may be used for basic living costs, some medical related expenses, transportation, retraining, or funerals. One grant recipient said, "I just want

UK / USA - To allow PLASA to refocus and concentrate on the needs of their respective membership bases, the PLASA Governing Body announces that PLASA's North American and European Union Regional Boards will end their cooperation agreement and return to functioning as separate associations.

A statement from PLASA reads: "This move will allow the associations to set strategic direction to meet their individual demands. It affords more focus of resources in each market toward the activities that are most relevant and pertinent to members and it will allow for more agility and decisiveness.

This in turn will foster the health of both organisations and protect their futures. As we did prior to the start of the cooperation agreement, the two associations will continue to work cooperatively on issues of common interest for the benefit of their members and the industry."

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UK - Fifteen special theatre industry events take place on The Theatres Trust's TheatreStage at PLASA Show 2015 from Sunday 4 to Tuesday 6 October at ExCel London.

The TheatreStage plays host to key organisations and associations in the theatre sector announcing their latest activities, making presentations and giving awards, including the Association of Lighting Designer's Michael Northen Award on Monday 5 October at 1.30pm.

The programme includes 15 presentations over three days from the Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT), Association of Lighting Designers (ALD), Backstage Heritage Collection, Behind the Scenes UK, Production Managers' Forum, Society of Theatre Consultants, The Theatrical Guild, and ourselves, The Theatres Trust, the National Advisory Public Body for Theatres.

We're delighted that many academic institutions are also part of the line-up on th

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