Elation in refurbished MECC auditoriums
- Details
As the audiovisual partner for the biggest convention centres in the southern part of the country, Houben Souren enjoys special insight into the audiovisual needs of the venue and drew upon its close relationship with Elation’s European office to realize a successful installation.
The upgrades to the facility, begun in 2019, included investment in new lighting equipment for two newly renovated auditoriums. Under the supervision of theatre consultants Theater Advies bv and the MECC, Houben Souren won the tender and was awarded the contract to deliver and install the new lighting gear.
Tijs Verfurth, operations manager at Houben Souren, contacted Bert Schmeits, key account manager Benelux at Elation, for input on a suitable solution. “We were looking for an LED-based light that was silent; something with a framing option and good color mixing,” Verfurth explains. “The venue also needed an automated fixture with a high CRI value because the congresses are often livestreamed and recorded on camera so good quality lighting was a must.”
Schmeits and Verfurth considered several options before examining closely the Fuze Profile LED moving head and eventually setting up an on-location demo. “The MECC were surprised at the output and were excited about its performance vs price ratio,” says Verfurth. “The assumption was that if we were going to spec automated lights, we wouldn’t have the budget for many fixtures. With this fixture though, we got a very good product at the right price range, a good combination of product features and price that fit the project well. It was a real win-win.
“Each auditorium had 1,000W and 2,000W conventional lights installed sometime in the 1980s so this was a significant upgrade. With the colour mixing, animation wheel and framing, there are a lot more possibilities with the Fuze Profile compared to a conventional profile light.”
The auditoriums are situated back to back and are unique in that a dividing wall can be retracted to combine the two rooms (1100 and 600 capacity) into one large performance space for 1,700 guests. Each auditorium houses 14 Fuze Profiles for front lighting while Colour 5 Profile ellipsoidals with 180W RGBAM LED engines and 26-degree lenses, eight per auditorium, provide top light from positions in overhead electrics.
All of the lights are discreetly hidden in the space, an aesthetic that could have had consequences for the lighting crew. “The way the space is built, it is very difficult to access the fixtures to focus them manually,” Verfurth says. You need someone to put on a harness and climb up into the ceiling. With the Fuze Profile we can focus at every moment from the lighting console so that’s really a lot more efficient, and we are always able to adapt to last second changes.”
When data distribution for the system was discussed, Tijs turned to the Netron RDM645 and Netron EN4 from Obsidian Control Systems, a brand he is very familiar with from his many visits to Elation’s nearby Kerkrade office. “I visit the Elation office several times a year so I am quite up to date on the different brands and what is available,” he said. “The Netron products both look nice and work flawlessly so they were the best choice for this installation.”
