Robe - LEADERBOARD - Feb 2025
Doughty - Banner - from 6 June 2025

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Italy - The Nordeon-Group, a leading European lighting company has further strengthened its comprehensive proposition to the market through the strategic acquisition of Italian-based Griven. Griven specializes in architectural lighting solutions and is very complimentary to the Hess product portfolio and offerings to architects and lighting designers across the globe. As part of the Nordeon-Group, Griven will continue to operate independently under its own brand through its existing organization and management team in Castel Goffredo, Italy.

Patrick van Rossum, Partner of Varova, the owner of the Nordeon-Group, sees a win-win situation in the acquisition for both companies: "With its broad product and lighting solution portfolio, its extensive technological know-how and deep

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Czech Republic - Robe Lighting has announced 2014 as the best year in the company's history, together with comprehensive expansion plans for its HQ and production operation in the Czech Republic, which is ramping up again in response to demand for Robe's products worldwide.

This is part related to the company's planned medium-term expansion strategy and also in response to the success of the new BMFL range of moving lights - the first of which was launched in September 2014, plus the continued demand for other popular moving light fixtures like the Pointe and the LEDWash series.

Robe has recently completed the acquisition of nearly 8000sq.m of land including four large buildings immediately next door to its current main factory premises in Valasské Mezirici. Robe, which first moved to this facility in 2002, has gradually been buying up other commercial premises along th

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UK - Artistic Licence has launched Art-Osc, an open domain, free-of-charge protocol that enables the transport of DALI lighting control data over an ethernet network.

The DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) standard provides a popular means of controlling ballasts that do not require fast special effects. It operates over low cost and simple wiring, but is limited to 64 devices per circuit. Until now, DALI has lacked a standardized and open method of integration into larger networks.

Art-Osc solves these problems by providing a non-proprietary method to transfer the DALI language over a network; putting this into numbers translates into control over a billion DALI ballasts. Historically, the situation bears close analogy with the invention of Art-Net, an ethernet protocol designed to overcome the channel restriction of DMX512 while still utilizing its structure.

In

PLASA Show 2025 - Banner - June-Aug 2025

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UK - Sonalyst became the latest UK technical production and rental specialist to invest in Robe's new BMFL Spots which were specified by lighting designer Richard G Jones for the latest Strictly Live arena tour produced by Phil McIntyre Entertainment.

The popular tour takes all the glitz, glamour, excitement, celebrities and sizzling hot moves from the BBC's hit series on the road.

It is always a challenge to light. Each of the dancing couples needs a series of different and dramatic looks for their dances, while the whole space also has to have that air of dancehall intimacy. Flexibility is key when it comes to choosing fixtures.

This year there were also more full production numbers in the show. Richard worked closely with production manager Andy Gibbs who originated the set design which included the multiple dancefloors, Austrian drapes, chandeliers and 14 prominently pla

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USA - One of the Midwest's most popular brewpubs, HopCat, opened its sixth establishment in December, this one in the mid-town section of Detroit. Fantasee Lighting of Belleville, Michigan, was called on to add a sense of ambiance and flair to the new location and chose a dynamic LED lighting package from Elation Professional for the job.

HopCat, which opened its first venue in 2008, serves some of America's best craft beers and regular live music. At HopCat Detroit, which opened on 13 December in an historic 100-year-old building, a second floor music and entertainment space, the Huma Room, features a variety of music from DJ's to classical concerts, as well as other events.

In order to accommodate the wide variety of acts that may perform there in any given week, venue owners wanted a lighting system to be as versatile as possible. Fantasee advanced the all-purpose benefits

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ETC Halcyon Silent

High End Systems Halcyon Silent builds on ETC’s legacy of fanless automated fixtures by incorporating features from the highly sought-after Halcyon family. Halcyon Silent perfectly balances silent operation with brilliant output of 18,400 lumens and high-impact features. 

For more information visit us at www.etcconnect.com

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Germany - At Frankfurt Prolight + Sound 2015, DPA's booth will be the place to go to if you want to learn the best placement of a microphone on your instrument, and how to get the best sound from your instrument or voice, says the company.

The booth (Hall 8, Booth B70) will feature workshops with live performances up to five times a day, hosted by DPA product specialists who will demonstrate vocal and instrument microphone placement on saxophone, acoustic guitar and upright bass. There will also be a listening area where visitors can compare sound samples from DPA microphones with those from other brands.

"At DPA, we know what it takes to make great sound and we are not satisfied with anything but the best," says DPA's CEO Christian Poulsen. "Getting closer to our customers and sharing knowledge is very important for two reasons: it helps us improve our micropho

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USA - Designers who "dream of transforming the world" are invited to join a community of visionaries at the 2015 Vectorworks Design Summit on 27-29 April at the Sofitel Hotel in Philadelphia, PA. The event features breakout sessions by leaders in the architecture, landscape and entertainment industries, as well as opportunities to network with Vectorworks software engineers, power users, third-party partners and other professionals during educational sessions, meals and evening events. Registration is now open at www.vectorworks.net/design-summit.

"Every day, designers choose Vectorworks because it's a tool that allows great design to materialize from inspiration, exploration and discovery," says Nemetschek Vectorworks' chief marketing officer Stewart Rom. "The Design Summit will provide a gathering point for our community of users to generate new energy

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Create new traditions – Cameo P6 - High Output Full-Spectrum Ellipsoidal

Cameo's P6 is a future-proof LED profiler with a powerful 600 W RGBACL engine and 16,000 lumens. It’s an energy-efficient replacement for 2.5 kW halogen profile lights in theatres and venues. With excellent light quality and natural colour rendering, it fits perfectly in theatres, musicals, TV studios, congresses, and live events.

With an LED life of 50,000 hours and low power use, the P6 cuts energy costs and supports the EU’s ‘Green Deal’ goals for climate neutrality by 2050. It also meets updated eco-design rules for lighting.

www.cameolight.com/p6profile

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The Netherlands - At ISE 2015, software providers Stardraw.com logged a record number of visits to the stand, extremely healthy sales and to cap it all, Stardraw Design 7.1 was voted a winner in the InAVation Awards in the category of Most InAVative Integration Tool. The Stardraw Design 7 suite of design and documentation tools has already been bestowed with a Commercial Integrator BEST award in the Project Management & Design/Web software category and a Highly Commended from InAVate.

Commenting on this latest award, CEO Rob Robinson said, "It's always extremely gratifying to receive recognition from our peers in the industry, but this award is particularly special, for three important reasons. First, the category of Integration Tool was a very broad one, encompassing all sorts of product types from other innovative software to some very novel and interesting hardware produ

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Germany - In the installation and event technology sectors, one often has to cover long distances. Thanks to the Cardinal DVM-HDBT extender systems from Sommer Cable, customers don't need to accept any compromises regarding image and audio quality.

"With our flexible signal management and extender systems of the Cardinal DVM series customers will benefit from a stable HDMI signal transmission over max. distances of 100m. Uncompressed content can therefore be distributed using only a single cable. And this with just a regular network cable," says Peter Rieck, key account & distribution manager at Sommer Cable.

The newly launched latest generation of Cadinal DVM devices can handle a "HighSpeed HDMI with Ethernet" signal which supports the current 4Kx2K, 1080p, 3D, ARC, HDCP, 7.1CH, Home-Cinema-TrueHD as well as DTS-HD standards, thus safeguarding a long-term

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The Netherlands - Sarah Joyce, Electrosonic's vice-president, EMEA and member of the InfoComm Board of Directors, hosted the first Women of InfoComm Network Breakfast (WIN) at this year's ISE 2015. Over 50 women and men attended the event to discuss gender diversity within the AV industry.

Sarah shared her leadership journey in technology, which spans almost 20 years, and acknowledged women are still very much underrepresented in the audio-visual industry in a wide range of roles. She commented, "We have the opportunity and requirement to do something to change that. I see the importance of groups such as this to share experiences, hear from others and for us all to guide, mentor and motivate each other.

"The culture we have created at Electrosonic is open, creative, inquisitive, and supportive." said Sarah. She encouraged organisations and individuals to invest

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UK - Since its arrival on the market, the Clay Paky Mythos has continued to make its presence felt across all sectors of the industry. Richard Martin Lighting is the latest rental house to invest in the Mythos, adding a substantial number of units to a warehouse that already boasts a comprehensive range of Clay Paky fixtures.

"We first saw the Mythos at PLASA last year: they were indisputably the stand out light at the show," comments Gemma Oldfield, RML's marketing coordinator. "Clay Paky always take the time to think of something new and make sure that they get it right - which is really refreshing when there is so much fierce competition between manufacturers and so many products coming onto market each year."

The purchase was made through Clay Paky's exclusive distributors and customer support in the UK, Ambersphere Solutions. "Ambersphere's friend

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Poland - Registration is open for the AES 138th International Convention, being held in Warsaw, Poland, 7-10 May 2015, at the Sofitel Victoria Hotel. Hosted by AES 138th Convention co-chairs Bozena Kostek and Umberto Zanghieri, the convention is set to be the largest European gathering of audio industry professionals of the year.

Warsaw is home to a number of recording facilities, movie studios, broadcast and media production houses and more, while boasting a thriving music scene, from classical and jazz, to electronic music and more. This first-ever AES Convention in Poland will host a wide range of tutorials, workshops, engineering briefs and paper sessions covering a wide range of topics relevant to the professional audio industry.

"The AES is once again excited to take our Convention to yet another new location with AES138," stated AES executive director Bob Mose

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France - A chic bar restaurant - named Bar Le Treize - has opened in the French eastern city of Colmar, better known for its fine Alsatian wines (and being the birthplace of Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor who designed the Statue of Liberty). And the local community has welcomed the new cocktail lounge with open arms.

When local company Enjoy Events were brought in by the main electrical contractor to carry out the technical integration, their director, Alexandre Bunzli specified RCF's Media Series as meeting all the requirements for sound, at the same time providing an elegant design.

A total of eight Media M1001, powered by a pair of RCF HPS1500 Class H 2-channel professional amplifiers have been distributed evenly over the two floors (the ground floor club atmosphere making way for more reserved upstairs dining). These two-way 10in Media speakers prov

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Germany - The scenery surrounding the Dahn Rockland is spectacular. Situated right in the centre of the Palatinate Forest Biosphere Reserve and surrounded by spectacular giant rock formations and legendary castles, the Felsenland Hotel with its wellness area stretching over 3.000 m² is a haven of tranquillity for those who are searching for peace and relaxation in a particularly attractive environment.

The sound system of the extensive wellness department and guest areas of the hotel has recently been realised with components from the Belgian manufacturer Apart Audio.

For this project, first a 100 volts sound system was installed enabling diffusion of specific recordings through the loudspeakers in the wellness department such as the sauna, the swimming pool and the fitness centre. Furthermore, also the classical guest areas such as the breakfast room, the restaurant, the bar

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World - Robbie Williams has recently completed his Swings Both Ways tour, which saw lighting designer Mark Cunniffe create a fun and extravagant Vegas-style show, employing an array of Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330s to deliver vibrant and varied colour.

To complement the swing theme of the tour, Ric Lipson's set design was super theatrical with a huge 50ft high and 90ft wide working Austrian and four separate acts - jungle, nightclub, hotel and ship. LD Mark Cunniffe therefore needed a wash light versatile enough to create a multitude of different looks and so specified 88 Sharpy Wash 330s from Neg Earth.

"The set also had a large video wall, 80ft by 40ft, so I needed something really punchy that would cut through and give me the depth I needed, which the Sharpy Wash 330s were perfect for," explains Cunniffe.

The Sharpy Wash 330s were rigged in pairs in chandelier arra

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UK - In 2015, after topping the UK charts once again with her hit single Bang Bang, pop vocalist Jessie J toured the country performing music from her latest album, Sweet Talker. Entertainment production supplier White Light provided lighting, rigging and production support for the seven-date concert tour, working closely with lighting designer Vince Foster and production manager John Pryer.

From the start of the design process, Foster worked with Lester Cobrin, White Light's head of concert touring, on specifying the package and working out particulars. "I've known Lester for years, so working with him at White Light was easy and efficient - and the equipment and service from the entire White Light team was great."

Foster, whose touring history includes Janet Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Duran Duran, Alt-J, and Kylie Minogue, worked with Jessie J previously

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France - Over the past 31 years, with acts that range from obscure to household names like Coldplay and Indochine, Le Bikini has earned its reputation as one of France's best live music venues. Driven by its goal to help the more than 150 bands that perform at the club each year deliver the best concert possible, Le Bikini recently upgraded its lighting with the acquisition of new Martin Professional MAC Quantum Profile LED fixtures.

Le Bikini is widely regarded as a true beacon on the landscape of French culture. The venue is located in Ramonville, near Toulouse, and takes its name from a painting by the artist Clovis Trouille called Les filles en bikini (Girls in bikinis). It initially focused on club nights when it opened in 1983, but the management's commitment to stay ahead of new musical trends began to cement its reputation as both a club and concert hall. N

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UK - Manchester-based lighting and rigging specialist dbn had an opportunity to show some real rigging finesse at Manchester's Whitworth Art Gallery - just re-opened in a blaze of glory after a £15m revamp that includes a new wing and some new gallery spaces.

dbn has worked on various projects at the Whitworth over the years. dbn's Nick Todd joined the Gallery's own installations team to mastermind the rigging of four specific elements of the current permanent exhibition by sculptor and installation artist Cornelia Parker into the newly refurbished Gallery 6, 7 and 8 spaces.

The works include her acclaimed Cold Dark Matter : An Exploded View - suspended fragments of a garden shed that was exploded by the British Army, installed with a lightsource in the centre projecting dramatic shadows all around the gallery.

It also features the new intricate, precise and sli

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Denmark - For its first location in the heart of Copenhagen, Danish chain Café Vivaldi has chosen a Meyer Sound system featuring IntelligentDC technology to provide exceptional audio quality rarely heard at a bistro. Serving the main floor and mezzanine areas, the system presents musical fidelity for daytime background tracks and boosts the energy level for live music showcases during the weekends.

"With IntelligentDC, we have achieved a whole new level of clarity for both ambient music and high-impact live entertainment," says Niels S°rensen, technical chief for Café Vivaldi. "And because of the positive feedback we have received on the audio, we will soon be expanding our Meyer Sound systems to the outdoor areas as well."

IntelligentDC is the Meyer Sound technology that combines the performance advantages of self-powered loudspeakers wit

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UK - The National Theatre's newly transformed Dorfman Theatre opened for the first time in its seated format last month with Tom Stoppard's The Hard Problem. More seats than ever before are available for the show, following the regeneration of the theatre by architects Haworth Tompkins and theatre consultants Charcoalblue.

The improvements mean that an extra 27,000 people each year can gain access to what are often sold-out performances in the Dorfman, formerly the Cottesloe. In total, up to 130 more seats are available for each performance of The Hard Problem thanks to innovative seat designs and layout changes developed by Charcoalblue.

"By placing each row of the pit seating on an individual elevator, we have reinstated the original shallow rake format and made it possible to change from this to steep rake or flat floor quickly", says Alex Wardle from Charc

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UK - Students from the University of South Wales' Lighting Design and Technology course recently lit up Penarth Marina in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the docks, once one of the busiest coal docks in the world.

Organised in co-operation with the Penarth Marina & Haven Residents' Association and Penarth Quay Marina, both architectural lighting and live projections were used across six sites around the Marina including the Harbour Master's Office, the swing bridge and hoist dock.

Course leader Stuart Green challenged the students to produce competing plans for the project, detailing the visual effects they aimed to achieve and the technical facilities required to implement their creations. From these plans, five were selected to be presented as part of the final event.

Successful students included: Nils Voerste and Claire Pinkney who lit the Lock Gates; Charlie Lapa

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Astera - Large MPU - June 2025
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