Pharos - Leaderboard - May 2024
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Rigging / Staging

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UK - Unusual Rigging has dealt with a fair few strange and, well, unusual, requests over the years. So when Gary Beestone was brought on board as technical director for Netflix and Sonia Friedman Productions’ Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Unusual was chosen for the production’s complex rigging.
“Bringing Stranger Things to the stage is incredibly ambitious and challenging,” explained Gary. “The Unusual team and I are old friends, having worked on some pretty major events and productions over the years. I knew they were really the only sensible choice f

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UK - The 2023 ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform winner was revealed on Thursday 1 February in a ceremony at the annual ALPD and White Light New Technology Showcase in the Embassy Theatre at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.
This annual industry event features the latest in lighting technology and felt like an appropriate opportunity to speak on the Virtual Ideas Platform and its winner, whose innovative idea is now being developed by Triple E.
Presented by ABTT co-chair Mig Burgess and introduced by platform developer Charles Haines, David Ripley was awarded the ABTT
Leeds - Main Banner - Apr24

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UK - LIVE (Live music Industry Venues & Entertainment) has partnered with Handle Freelance Solutions, The Back Lounge and UK LIVE Event Freelancers Forum to launch a survey, The Hidden Side of Freelancing 2024, to understand and identify the changes required to improve the experience of freelancers who are crucial to the success of the live music industry.
The new survey will explore pay transparency and the personal experiences of freelancers at live music events. It aims to help freelancers understand their true value and benchmark their own experience whilst also cele

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Europe - This year’s ISE (Integrated Systems Europe) show was a special one for Truss Aluminium Factory (TAF). On 30 January, the first day of the exhibition, the company revealed its new TAF logo.
The new image was also featured in a special logo reveal video released that same day on TAF’s social media channels and website, as well as in the TAF newsletter and on industry media websites. Going hand-in-hand with the redesigned logo was news of TAF’s new strategic direction as ‘The Factory’.
The teaser campaign highlighted ‘a truss brand you know’ and a facto

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UK - PLASA Focus Leeds is gearing up for another successful year at the Royal Armouries from 14-15 May 2024, and you can now register for your free entry badge.
Attracting over 2,000 visitors, the popular regional event is known for connecting professionals with lead names in the entertainment technology industry across two friendly days of networking and discovery.
Boasting a fully booked show floor, PLASA Focus Leeds will feature 150+ brands in pro audio, AV, lighting, rigging, and staging. Attendees will have the chance to closely examine new products and engage in face-

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Spain - Tempest launched its latest rental and staging projector enclosure system, Fly, at ISE 2024. Fly’s innovative chassis folds flat into less than half its volume for compact shipping and storage. Fly enables rapid setup and teardown, with minimal tools, saving on time and labour.
Weighting in at just over 20kg (44lbs), Fly is less than one quarter the weight of a standard Tempest Typhoon rental enclosure. Fly is available in four models and is compatible with a wide variety of projectors up to 50k lumens, including all the most popular models in the equipment rental space

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UK - Stage Electrics Group has acquired specialist mechanical inspection and testing company, Just Rigging & Inspections Scotland. The acquisition strengthens the group's existing mechanical inspection, maintenance, testing and reporting capabilities across the UK and enhances the services it provides to the education, entertainment and events sectors.
On sharing the news with colleagues, Dave Coull, chief executive officer of Stage Electrics Group, told them, "Additional to our continuing, solid growth as a group organically, I'm delighted to announce the acquisition of Just

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UK - Build solutions specialist Star Live has invested in a QC-Check safety inspection system from Data Strategy following its recent investment from LDC, part of Lloyds Banking Group. QC-Check embeds safety into the processes of Star’s new lifting division which underpins the safety and compliance issues for the company’s four pillars of business.
QC-Check streamlines the process of professional electrical appliance and cable testing in bulk, with full electrical-safety test records referenced to an individual asset level. For Star Live’s purposes however, QC-Check’s abil

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UK - Owing to the demand in services, Artistic Solutions has appointed a regional hire manager to oversee operations north of the border in Scotland. Neil McCallum is based in Fife, and his primary role will be to continue to support clients into 2024 and beyond.
Neil joins Artistic Solutions with considerable experience, with a strong background in live theatre working with both professional and amateur organisations. His expertise will cover hire, sales and installations.

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USA - BNW, a leading production rigging company based in New York City, founded and run by Tony Bonilla, successfully executed the challenging lift of the Sonic Sphere at The Shed utilising Eilon Engineering’s Ron StageMaster wireless load cells to ensure precision and safety.
Bonilla, with over two decades of rigging experience, recognised the need for higher calibre rigging in the industry following years of work on concert tours, Broadway musicals, the circus and car industrials. The realisation led to the establishment of BNW in 2012, a company that has since become synonym

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Europe - Full-service video and lighting company 4Wall has launched its first product guide, addressing UK and European markets and giving clients access to the company’s complete catalogue of products.
The product guide, which is currently available online, features a full index of the company’s video, lighting and rigging inventory and everything in between. You can also discover additional information about the impressive additional support the company offers, including an in-house innovation department, CAD design service, sustainability and production spaces available to

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Sweden - XM Automation started the new year on a high by successfully demonstrating its XMove software controlling a number of automated bars in an existing theatre system. The XM team were able to show how easy it could be to upgrade the control front-end without requiring costly upgrades to the existing hardware or electrical installation.
The demonstrations attracted more than 50 Swedish theatre technical directors, technicians and consultants, all keen to see how XMove, the new front-end software could be used to run an existing system with minimal changes to the back-end. Acc

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Spain - HOF will debut the PG3 NEO Design Stand. The set contains all the necessary items to realise countless installation variants: the universal carrier enables lighting or small loudspeakers to be mounted. There is also a universal plate to mount moving lights, projectors etc. and a TV mounting plate. Speakers can be mounted centrally using a spigot.
The set is rounded off by a display mount to hold two displays with a maximum surface area of up to 1.5 m² per display (back to back) and a display holder that can be adjusted in four angles (e.g. for previewers or touchscreens).

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Spain - Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) will return to Barcelona (30 January - 2 February 2024), billed as ‘the most comprehensive exhibition for the pro AV and systems integration sectors and is set to raise the bar once again’.
Mike Blackman, managing director, Integration Systems Events says: "Without a doubt, ISE is your ‘destination for innovation’, and we will prove that this is not just a claim. With more than 1,200 confirmed exhibitors and the biggest ever show floor space, attendees will have plenty of opportunities to discover innovations at ISE 2024.
“I

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UK - The festive period is a busy time for the riggers at Unusual. The team certainly has its hands full with Christmas lights being hung in Regent St, more than 20 pantomimes taking place across the UK and a big Christmas musical on the West End.
Based on the Hollywood hit movie starring Will Ferrell as Buddy, Elf opened at London’s Dominion Theatre on 15 November for a limited eight-week run, with production manager Stuart Tucker bringing the Unusual team on board to handle the rigging requirements.
Stuart commented: “This is quite an involved show from a riggi

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UK - Focusrite plc has announced the acquisition of UK-based Sheriff Technology Limited, trading as OutBoard, the company behind both TiMax immersive audio solutions and OutBoard stage rigging motor control products and PAT4 enterprise electrical safety testing. They will join the Audio Reproduction division of the Focusrite Group alongside Martin Audio, Optimal Audio, and Linea Research.
Founded in 2001 by Robin Whittaker and David Haydon, OutBoard is a UK-based company specialising in innovative entertainment technologies, which it sells globally. Operating under two sub-brands

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UAE - In November 2023, aviation companies and organisations descended on the new Dubai World Central aerotropolis for the biennial Dubai Airshow.
The 645,000sq.m site, which features a purpose-built 42,870sq.m exhibition hall - about the size of seven football fields welcomed some 1,046 exhibitors from 60 countries and drew a trade attendee intake of 60,692. Such a massive event required an equally massive amount of rigging, with Tarsus Group contracting Unusual Rigging and Engineering to handle the task.
“In total we provided more than 900 rigging points - 750 of which a

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UK - Celebro is a global broadcast TV company that rents out production and studio space around the world. All studios are located in prime city centre locations in Washington DC, New York and London - and all boast quality broadcasting equipment, including a wide range of kit from Doughty Engineering.
The London studio recently moved to a new location - from Portland House near Oxford Circus to the old Hospital Club in Covent Garden. And, because the team are such big fans of Doughty, they decided to take all their kit with them.
Wesley Dodd, CEO, Celebro explained; “We h

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UK - Hosted in the Heineken Suite at Bristol City’s Ashton Gate stadium - the Stage Electrics Showcase will feature more than 25 of the leading manufacturers of lighting, audio, rigging, pyrotechnics and special effects. The showcase on 25 January presents an opportunity for visitors to get hands-on experience with the latest products from exhibitors, and to discuss their needs with representatives from all the brands.
The Stage Electrics Showcase is free to attend, registration is now open. Delegates who sign up to attend the Showcase before 20 January, will be eligible for fre

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Slovakia - HOF has announced Adam A Syn as its new sales partner for Slovakia. Adam A Syn was founded in 1990 and has many years of experience in the distribution of professional event technology. The company works with TV studios, theatres and congress halls, and more.
Dagmar Pastorkova, CEO of Adam A Syn, says: "We offer top products from well-known brands. We are impressed by the innovative and high-quality products of the MLT Pre Rig Truss series from HOF, which save a lot of time and space."
Edwin Duivelaar, export & sales manager at HOF, adds: "Adam A Syn is a majo

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UK - Prolyte is set to collaborate with long-standing partner Stage Electrics, one of the UK's premier Prolyte suppliers, for two exclusive campus events in Glasgow and Birmingham this January.
Prolyte and Stage Electrics invite industry professionals to join these insightful events, helmed by Prolyte's expert, Eric Laanstra. With over 23 years of expertise, Prolyte's seasoned product manager, promises a profound exploration into the intricacies of rigging, trussing, and staging.
The Glasgow event takes place 23 January 2024 at RCS Glasgow; Birmingham’s venue is MAC Birmin

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UK - TAIT has announced plans to open a central London base in early 2024 at Tileyard London in the heart of King's Cross. This new office follows the trajectory of TAIT’s extensive growth both in the UK and globally.
TAIT’s current UK locations include super-factories, equipped for heavy entertainment engineering, in Wakefield in West Yorkshire and Haverhill in Suffolk, as well as training and R&D facilities in Hampton.
Born through strategic acquisitions of Stage Technologies, Delstar, Brilliant Stages and Kinesys, TAIT’s UK based team have played a key role in s

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UK - Global investment group CDPQ has acquired a minority stake in Solotech. The goal of this transaction, which represents the largest investment in the company since 2013, is to support Solotech’s acquisition and organic growth strategy to expand its presence in various markets and create more value for its customers.
“With this investment - the largest in the last decade for Solotech - CDPQ will support the company in its next growth stage. Aligned with CDPQ’s priorities, this means not only shifting activities into high gear, but also facilitating the company

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Germany - Movecat, specialist in the field of stage automation technology, has announced its change of name to Moveket.
This decision is a direct response to the continuously increasing worldwide demand for stage automation solutions with the highest safety standards in the entertainment sector, says the company. The resulting global expansion of Moveket GmbH has led to increasing trademark challenges, which have been resolved by the change of name.
The suffix ket in the new company name stands for Kinetic Entertainment Technologies.
"The change of name is an importan
  1. Tim Otte joins the HOF sales team
  2. Elation, 4Wall and Paradox take Power Trip
  3. MCS adds equipment picking feature
  4. MVR recognised as open standard
  5. MSA has designs on Suspekt in Copenhagen
  6. HOF lowers prices for standard truss
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