UK - Ambersphere Solutions was formed back in 2011 with just four staff to look after the UK sales, service and support for Clay Paky and MA Lighting. Since then the company has gone from strength to strength, growing steadily whilst maintaining its strong support ethic.

In June 2013 lighting manufacturer Robert Juliat came on board and just over a year later Ayrton joined the Ambersphere family. Likewise, from the original team of four, the company's West London base is now home to a much larger workforce and is still recruiting.

Sales director Philip Norfolk explains: "We are very proud of our reputation for delivering the very best in sales, customer support and service so expanding our team was a vital ingredient in maintaining or even improving the level of service we

USA - The new TRUSST CT-Tent Clamp make it "safer, easier and quicker than ever to hang lighting fixtures, audio gear and decorative elements inside tents at outdoor events", the company says. The CT-Tent Clamp attaches firmly to the slots on clear span tent Keder beams, so items can be suspended from it securely without requiring extra trussing.

"We introduced the CT clamp because big outdoor tents are being used at more weddings, festivals, concerts and other events," said Kenny Miller, TRUSST product marketing manager. "Rigging large gear in these tents can often be a challenge. Our new CT product offers a safe and practical alternative to the multi-piece handmade clamps that people struggled with in the past when hanging items in a tent."

With a load capacity of 150 kg, the TRUSST CT-Tent Clamp can safely support a very wide range of audio and

Germany - With hundreds of Hippotizer V4 units joining the herd of award winning Hippotizer V3's, Green Hippo and B&K Braun get ready to showcase the latest innovations in media server technology.

Says the company, "After an incredible February with a single Hippotizer Taiga unit driving the 87th Academy Awards, we're bringing Taiga to Prolight and Sound where it will be driving the entire stand along with its smaller brothers used for private demos on the B&K stand Hall 11 stand B15-D14.

The impressive stand will also feature Boreal which recently set sail on the largest cruise ship designed for the British holiday market. The vessel, officially named by the Queen, carries 3,600 passengers with the Hippotizer Boreal controlling video playback in the ships theatre!

Three Green Hippo staff will be on site with Sascha Werner, Media & LED specialist, B&K Braun delivering m

UK - London-based creative technology expert Realtime Environment Systems Ltd (RES) has provided the media server know-how in collaboration with LM Productions and Mapp3D Producciones for a 'full dome' installation celebrating Mexican culture.

The temporary 25m white dome was constructed at Potter's Fields Park on London's Southbank for two weeks as part of the official Year of Mexico in the UK celebrations. Inside, the Mexican Tourism Board pop-up featured a huge projection mapped dome, where images of the country's rich cultural and natural heritage swirled above visitors' heads.

RES's Mark Calvert worked closely with LM Productions' Tim Kingsmill and Stephen Harvey to supply an Avolites Ai EX8 Pro 2 media server running the latest software - Ai V8 - which features the powerful new Autoblend feature. This feature uses a camera-based warp and blend tool set, allowing m

UK - Avolites provided lighting control to Paines Plough's Roundabout which won Theatre Building of the Year at the 2015 Stage Awards. The touring pop-up theatre features lighting controlled via an Avolites Sapphire Touch console running Titan Version 9.

The structure, described as "one of the most exciting new spaces in the country" was praised for its unique portability by the judges. Roundabout shares the honour with The Everyman in Liverpool.

The Roundabout is one of the first venues to utilise Titan Version 9, having had close involvement with the Avolites team. Lighting designers Emma Chapman and Howard Eaton specified Avolites for the installation, with Howard particularly keen on Titan for its Pixel Mapping ability.

Avolites technical director, JB Toby and lead software developer, Oliver Waits had close involvement with the Roundabout team, developing softw

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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. 

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UK - The new Chroma-Q Color One 100 premium performance LED Par is being utilised on some of Northern Ireland's most prestigious opera and television projects after Belfast-based ACK Productions added the fixture to its rental inventory.

ACK Productions opened for business in 1991 and is a specialist hire company, installer, systems integrator and reseller, offering a wide range of theatrical equipment and services tailored to suit the needs of schools, theatres, venues and live events.

Owner, Alastair Kerr first encountered the Color One 100s at PLASA London 2014, and invested in a quantity of the units soon after.

"Lighting designers have historically not been interested in our LED Pars, but this has now changed as the technology has advanced," says Alastair. "I was immediately impressed with not only the intensity of the Color One 100s, but also the dimming

USA - Northern Colorado Cowboy Church, or N3C for short, is located in a former restaurant building in Lucerne, Colorado. Although a large number of cowboy boots walk through the door every Sunday, N3C is open to everyone. The "Cowboy" in its name reflects the church's down-to-earth attitude. As one might guess, services at N3C are lively and contemporary, with high-energy music complementing colourful sermons.

Although the church originally moved into the converted restaurant with a home-grown PA-on-sticks, N3C aspired to something with much greater musical impact and intelligibility to cover its five-hundred-plus seats. Local integration firm Audio Video Colorado designed and installed a new system centred on two Danley Sound Labs SM-60F full-range loudspeakers.

"They had a lot of complaints about intelligibility and the overall quality of the sound of the hom

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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

Germany - On 9 June 2015 Stage|Set|Scenery will open its doors. With Stage|Set|Scenery, Messe Berlin and DTHG, the organisers of the event, aim to address the industry's forward-looking international markets. Leading international manufacturers and service providers from various parts of the industry will be attending and showcasing their projects, products and innovations.

International interest in the event is high and exhibitors from the following 19 countries have registered to take part: Belgium, China, Germany, Finland, France, the UK, Italy, Canada, Latvia, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Serbia, Spain, Taiwan, the Czech Republic and the USA.

The participation of foreign associations cooperating with DTHG is a measure of the widespread interest in international dialogue. Thus, partnerships and sponsorships have been secured with the Organisation o

UK - In response to a recent increase in demand, Stage Electrics has decided to invest in a fifth manufacturing workshop. The already busy manufacturing function assembles a range of products including internally wired lighting bars, facility panels, equipment racks, mains and low voltage cables as well as standard and bespoke stage management desks.

This change in demand has prompted the decision to move the process nearer to the components stock, which will allow the team to cut their current production time by 15% and support the manufacturing department's effort of hitting their operational targets with greater ease.

Head of manufacturing, Richard Thompson comments: "The existing workshops are at maximum capacity therefore this new infrastructure is vital to the busy manufacturing process we have here at Stage Electrics. Much of the £1.5m that the department tur

Canada - Winnipeg's striking new Canadian Museum for Human Rights explores the universal concept of human rights with a special emphasis on Canada.

Electrosonic was contracted to do the audio-visual design of the museum's 11 galleries, and subsequently the company directed the AV equipment installation working with local partner Advance Pro. The museum features theatres, interactive touchscreen stations, projections on a digital canvas and hundreds of video clips.

Eleven media partners were involved in the build-out requiring considerable technical coordination by Electrosonic. The company worked closely with SH Acoustics, LLC of Milford, Connecticut, on the museum's audio elements.

The project posed a number of challenges due to the building's architectural profile, which was designed by US architect Antoine Predock, working with Winnipeg's Architecture 49. Designed to move

Germany - After the operator of the Dresden theatre Wechselbad der Gefühle (Rollercoaster of Emotions) ceased operations in May 2014, TW.O GmbH took over the business of the operation, rebamed Boulevard Theatre Dresden. After a four-month renovation, operations in the listed building started again in September 2014.

In addition to the complete redesign of the auditorium, there were also heavy investments in the modernization of the stage and the entire theatre technology. Dutch manufacturer Alcons Audio pro-ribbon solutions were chosen for sound reinforcement.

"After many advisory discussions with sound engineers and other competent professionals, we organized test setups with different systems. The impressive performance of the Alcons systems and the professionalism of Event-net GmbH made it an easy decision", said Dan Becker, one of the directors of TW.O GmbH.

A

Czech Republic - German production house Showem is the latest company to invest in a Nexo STM M28 system, which made its inaugural appearance at the new Skoda Superb launch. Both the car and the modular line array system were unveiled at the Forum Karlin auditorium in Prague, where a stunning new symphony was premiered to 500 invited media guests.

The symphony, performed by a 50-piece orchestra, was written to symbolise a new era for the 120-year-old Czech car manufacturer, and this fresh approach extended to the choice of sound system used at the launch. Showem's technical production manager, Dieter Mantzel, wanted to mark the occasion with a different PA system to those typically used for new car launches, and Nexo STM was the number one choice.

"We'd been waiting for Nexo's new M28 modular line array, and this was the perfect opportunity to purchase it," says Show

Denmark - A.C. Entertainment Technologies (AC-ET) has announced the appointment of Brith de Blanck in the new role of regional sales representative for Denmark - with immediate effect.

Brith has over 25 years of experience working in sales andmarketing roles for various technology and media companies. Since joining the industry in 2006, she has gained extensive commercial experience and knowledge of the latest entertainment technologies whilst working in product marketing roles for Martin Professional A/S and Harman International.

This previous experience makes her well placed to provide the highest level of local sales and support for the many exclusive and key technology brands available in this region from AC-ET. These include the Chroma-Q range of premium performance LED entertainment and architectural lighting solutions. Other technologies include the Jands range of award

USA - Elation Professional has announced two new ellipsoidal spot fixtures with the superior quality of light required for broadcast and theatre environments, the multi-colour Colour 5 Profile and the warm-white WW Profile.

Both the Colour 5 Profile and WW Profile emit an exceptionally flat field of light with CRI's over 94 for more faithful reproduction of an object's colour. Both luminaires support multiple interchangeable lens options - 19°, 26°, 36° and 50° (sold separately) - making for highly effective and highly flexible directional spot luminaires. Manual focus and a four-blade framing system allow for full control of the beam shape for more precise illumination with less light spill. Both luminaires support B-size metal or HT transparency gobos for custom gobo projections.

The Colour 5 Profile is an ellipsoidal spot that houses a 180W five-colour RGBAM

UK - To coincide with National Apprenticeship week, Skills Minister Nick Boles has announced that hundreds more top employers have joined the government's successful Trailblazers programme to design high quality apprenticeships in everything from renewable energy to video games. Within that group are 13 PSA member employers, led by PRG UK, who have been approved to develop an apprenticeship for Live Event Technicians - a role that, according to many employers, has not been successfully catered for by current apprenticeship models.

The Trailblazer scheme will help employers decide training content, means of delivery and methods of assessment, all designed to meet their needs and deliver relevant skills.

John McEvoy, head of production for PRG UK, said: "As suppliers to the live events industry we wholeheartedly support the idea of apprenticeships being developed by employe

UK - A lighting project for Stansted Airport designed by Morgan Sindall Professional Services (MSPS), the multidisciplinary design and engineering firm, working with lighting manufacturer OSRAM has been nominated for a prestigious Lighting Design Award.

The nomination for the Low Carbon category marks the second accolade for MSPS' electrical engineering team in three years.

To win the highly-competitive Low Carbon award, a project must demonstrate significant energy savings through excellence and innovation in terms of design, equipment or technique.

The project was for Stansted's 306m undercroft. The brief was to optimise lighting levels with improved controls that could vary illuminance levels, to reduce maintenance costs, and future proof the system so that it could be updated or integrated with other building management systems when required.

Daniel Eggington principal

UK - Baldwin Boxall reports that Professional Sound Consultancy Ltd has reached Customer Gold Status level. Working closely with Baldwin Boxall for over a decade, Professional Sound Consultancy has gained an exceptional knowledge of the company's systems and products. The Gold Status reinforces the commitment between the two companies to promote, build, install and maintain systems of high quality with exceptional service.

Professional Sound Consultancy Ltd was formed by Katie Bradford and Stephanie France in 2003. The company takes great pride in its staff and employs top quality designers, engineers and project managers from the industry. Specialising in designing, installing and maintaining voice alarm and public address systems they have some of the largest and most prestigious sites in the UK on their portfolio.

Professional Sound Consultancy's reputation has grown over t

Spain - With 85,000 people attending over the course of the four days, the Mobile World Congress (MWC) is the world's largest exhibition for the mobile phone industry. Held annually in Barcelona within the purpose-built arena Fira Gran Via, the MWC is renowned as the industry's forum for launching major technological breakthroughs.

Creative Technology (CT) has supplied various exhibitors at this event over the last nine years with the London office providing most of the equipment used. As CT Spain has heavily invested in new equipment, the 2015 event involved a much larger contribution from CT Europe's resources, as well as an increased number of exhibitor stands being delivered.

CT provided services for six international clients with equipment including LED, touchscreens, audio systems, and media servers. One of the most challenging was a gala dinner held in the Museu Naciona

UK - Brit rockers You Me At Six have stormed through the UK this month on their first ever arena tour. Lighting designer Louis Oliver of Okulus chose an array of Clay Paky's newest product, the award-winning Mythos, for his vibrant show design.

Co-headlining with pop punk foursome All Time Low, the band played such venues as Cardiff Motorpoint Arena and London's O2. For this run of major shows, Oliver used his design for the band's Cavalier Youth touring campaign. However, he scaled it up with more dramatic looks, using 27 of the super powerful Mythos supplied by Zig Zag Lighting.

"For the arena tour, we just made everything bigger and grander," says Oliver. "The video screen behind them has expanded so when we started looking at the fixture choices for the run we had to keep this in mind. Having fixtures that could not only complement the content but cut throug

UK - The new addition to Nexo's STM modular line array series, the compact M28, has been installed in La Belle Angele nightclub in Edinburgh.

Nexo has had a long history with the live music venue, which opened in 1992. For a decade, the original Nexo SI 2000 system provided sound for live acts including Oasis, The Libertines and Radiohead. Destroyed in 2002 by a fire which ravaged the Cowgate area of the city, the club's owner, Hafid Mahboubi, has fought a long and hard battle to have it rebuilt.

"After 13 years it was a great feeling to be able to return to the venue we built and bring it back to life," says George Macdonald, who worked as club promoter, resident DJ and technician at the club until the fateful fire. "I was lucky enough to be trained on the original Nexo system, and I have many fond memories of what we achieved with it. I ended up taking co-owne

USA - Barry Manilow has taken to the stage for his One Last Time Tour with Bandit Lites providing the lighting. In what is being hailed as his grand finale (or at least a goodbye to a full production touring show) Manilow brings his epic catalogue of hits from his 40+ year career to the adoring masses.

Back in 1998, Seth Jackson was told he was 'filling in for a guy' and now jokes, "I don't know when that guy is coming back!" "Over the years I moved from lighting director to lighting and set designer, production designer, and now I'm the show's creative director and production designer," he said. "We've been around the world a few times, spent seven years in Las Vegas residency, and now I guess we've got One Last Time."

Planning for the tour started back in October with conversations between Manilow and Jackson starting with a blank drawing board

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