UK/Norway - Software providers Stardraw.com recently announced the appointment of leading Norwegian distribution specialists, Benum AS, as resellers throughout Norway for the entire range of Stardraw's design and documentation packages.

With nearly thirty-five years experience in distribution, Benum represents over sixty premium brands in the audio, video, broadcast and MI market sectors including Renkus-Heinz, Digigram, NetCira by Fostex, Digidesign, Shure and Telex to name but a few.

Benum sales manager, Ronald Hernes, says he is pleased to include Stardraw products in the Benum portfolio. "We already count a number of other software tools among our product range, and therefore have experience in the market. We also carry a number of complementary ranges with whom Stardraw has already forged a relationship including Digigram and NetCira by Fostex, so the addition of Sta

UK/USA - Stardraw.com's most recent application, Stardraw Control, has been selected as a finalist in the Best Software Product for the Commercial Market category of the InfoComm Installation Product Awards. Stardraw Control has already been honored with a PLASA Award for Innovation at London's PLASA show in September 04 and an Innovation in Technology Award at the recent NSCA show.

Stardraw's marketing director, Rob Robinson, explained the key features of Stardraw Control that set it apart from other control solutions. "Stardraw Control generates standalone, customized control programs that can manage any remotely controllable equipment from any manufacturer using any protocol over any communications infrastructure. Instead of being locked into closed architectures wherever system control, monitoring or signal routing has been required, Stardraw Control offers systems inte

UK - Clarion Events Ltd (CEL) and the NEC Group's Centre Exhibitions are to form a dynamic new joint venture, to be called Clarion Events NEC Ltd (CENL). The two will come together in an innovative partnership to drive forward The NEC's exhibition organizing capability and maximize opportunities to stage and acquire new shows. The new partnership will combine the expertise of the two companies, bringing together CEL's creative approach with the NEC's formidable brand position.

CEL, which manages the PLASA Show on behalf of the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA), is the former in-house organizer of Earls Court and Olympia Group, and completed a management buyout last year. CEL will invest a two-thirds majority share in the joint venture which will acquire a portfolio of 10 shows including Antiques for Everyone and The Classic Motor Show. Simon Kimble, managing di

UK - Leading RF manufacturer Trantec will launch its S6000HTX handheld transmitter at the ABTT Theatre Show (15-16 June, Royal Horticultural Halls, London). Designed for use exclusively with Trantec's international award-winning S6000 wireless radio microphone system and its sister products - the S6001 and S6002, it has been engineered to the highest specifications at Trantec's south London based HQ.

Perfectly complementing the S6000's unique advanced systems' design, the HTX is a high quality frequency agile handheld transmitter that boasts a brand new ergonomic design. Aimed at the professional user, the HTX will be offering a variety of inter-changeable capsules in the near future - dynamic, condenser, omni or cardioid. This will augment the systems' potential, as a very versatile tool across a variety of application environments, including live, theatre, broadcast and AV app

Canada - To celebrate its first 25 years of existence, Montreal-based MDG Fog Generators is 'refreshing' its corporate signature and its image. Known worldwide for their high quality fog generators, the company says: "MDG wants an image that reflects this quality, this reliability tested and tried since a quarter of a century. Just as its range of products, the new corporate look contains only the essential elements. No complications, nothing superfluous. The three letters speak for themselves. MDG is a company that continuously betters not only its products, but the excellence of its service and its international network of distributors. MDG is very proud to be a privileged link between different creators and users, whether they stem from the entertainment, industrial or military sectors."

Martin Michaud, president of the company, says: "The corporate image must

UK - Size and scale are no advantage when it comes to overall financial success, according to a new study by Sound Equipment industry analysts Plimsoll Publishing. It seems the industry's smaller players are putting their larger counterparts to shame when it comes to overall financial performance. The study has looked at the industry's largest 40 companies and compared their financial performance with that of 238 smaller UK Sound Equipment competitors.

There is no doubting the dominance of these 40 'major players' - they currently control almost 94% of the market. Yet look beyond their size at their individual financial performance and their image appears somewhat staid.

Of the Top 40 companies profiled; 12 failed to increase sales beyond that of the industry average, dispelling the myth that they are capturing ever more market share. 14 made less profit than the average indus

UK - A.C.Lighting North - Blinding - quite literally. Why? The entrance into the show blasted visitors witha star-shaped array of light - courtesy of the Chroma-Q Color Block LED fixture (never knowingly oversold!), no doubt cleverly programmed on a Jands Vista by Mr Neil Vann. Glyn O'Donoghue explained they had been positioned there on purpose to demonstrate exactly that, just how very bright the ChromaQs are. It worked.Once again, A.C's mini-tradeshow up north was hailed a huge success. With numerous new distribution deals, A.C. Lighting moves ever nearer to becoming a one-stop-shop for all hard and software needs in the live entertainment industry.

The popular seminars covered various current themes and issues concerning the industry such as production, lighting, digital vs. analogue sound, the new legislation on electrical colour coding, timeline programming, plus the art of

USA - Peavey celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. The company, still family-owned, today employs well over 1,100 people in the US, and occupies two million square feet of manufacturing, R&D, office space, warehousing and other facilities in and around Meridian, Mississippi.

Hartley Peavey began building amplifiers, in 1965; the first real boost came when in 1968 when he saw a gap in the market for a portable PA system, and introduced the PA-3. Success continued with the Peavey Classic and Peavey Vintage amplifiers between 1972-1973, followed by the Peavey Bandit, which became the world's top-selling amplifier. 1976 saw the CS-800 power amp, and the first mass-produced electric guitars. Then followed Peavey's own range of loudspeakers, beginning with the Black Widow.

In the 1980s, Peavey began the foundations of a digital programme that continues to this day, and in 1984

USA - Following the letter in the last issue from Brett Kingstone, president and CEO of Super Vision Inc, L&SI put some further questions to Color Kinetics regarding its recent US patents and patent applications.

L&SI: Patent application (20050044617) for 'Methods and apparatus for illumination of liquids', was filed on 3 March 2005, and another, very similar Patent (6,869,204) was granted on 22 March 2005. The abstract of the granted Patent 6,869,204 'Light fixtures for illumination of liquids' appears to be very close to that of the latest application. What is the purpose of applying for the second, very similar patent?

George Mueller, Color Kinetics: "The patent applications referred to here (dated 2005) are actually continuations of previously filed, issued patents and pending applications, dating back as far as 1997. The specific details are c

UK / USA - David Edelstein, MD and founder of track systems specialist Triple E Ltd, is to ride a Harley Davidson across the USA as part of The Long Beach Long Riders charity cross-country motorcycle ride in aid of the charity Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights Aids. Sponsored by Triple E's US distributor, Rosebrand, Edelstein is the only British member of the 11-strong team of technical theatre professionals.

Founded in 1988, BC/EFA is America's leading industry-based AIDS fund-raising and grant-making organization. By drawing on the talents, resources and generosity of the theatre community, BC/EFA has to date raised over $100 million for people with AIDS, HIV and HIV related illnesses. The 2005 Long Beach Long Ride begins on 26 June, and Edelstein and co will traverse over 1,300 miles in three days, from Washington DC to Hays, Kansas. He told us: "This is a fantastic opportun

USA - SurgeX has re-engineered its one-rack-space (1U) surge protectors and power conditioners to feature new Advanced Series Mode surge suppression and proprietary power-conditioning technologies such as Impedance TolerantEMI/RFI filtering, SurgeX ICE inrush current elimination, and COUVS catastrophic over/under-voltage shutdown.

Advanced Series Mode technology is the latest generation of SurgeX's proven Series Mode circuitry, which uses an inductor as the first and primary surge-suppression component to intercept and contain destructive surge energy. There has never been a failure of Series Mode protected equipment. Unlike other approaches, Advanced Series Mode technology does not rely on metal-oxide varistors (MOVs) as a sacrificial component. In addition, it creates no ground-wire contamination or common-mode surges and has zero let-through voltage.

SurgeX 1U products prov

UK - Hawthorn has taken exhibition space for the first time at this year's ABTT Theatre Show (15-16 June 2005, Royal Horticultural Halls, London). "The show will give us the opportunity of raising awareness of our Hire, Sales and Installation teams and also give our staff the opportunity to meet the people they talk to on the phone," said the company's Alan Jackson.

Hawthorn was started nearly 20 years ago by MD Martin Hawthorn, hiring equipment out of his garage, and has now grown into an international company with over 85,000sq.ft of warehouse space in Old Dalby, near to Melton Mowbray, at the heart of Britain. "Being dealers for many of the world's leading suppliers and with a team who have many years of professional theatre, events and entertainment experience, we feel we are very well placed to offer all our customers the best advice and product available&quo

UK - An observant reader of the May 2005 issue of Lighting&Sound International has alerted us to an errant piece of misinformation in the Technical Focus column, in particular the article on the implementation of the WEEE and RoHS directives (p.54, column 3).

The paragraph that read: "The WEEE directive has been put back from August this year through until January 2006. The RoHS directive though is due to come into force on 1 July this year . . ." Should actually have read: "The WEEE directive has been put back from August this year through until January 2006. The RoHS directive though is due to come into force on 1 July next year . . ."

While not wishing to alarm readers prematurely, depending on the size of one's manufacturing operation this timescale is still not long - but at least it's not in a couple of weeks' time! Apologies to those who were

UK - PLASA's Professional Development programme continues its strong start with 'From Concept To Reality'; a new seminar that will be held in Newbury, 22 June 2005. Aimed at anyone who is either involved or interested in new product development the seminar will cover:

An overview of the Design process and how Rapid Prototyping fits in the R&D plan;
Reviews of the benefits and types of Rapid Prototyping as well as examples of functionality and the different types of Rapid Tooling methods available;
A review of the options for potentially winning funding for research and development projects;
An informative tour of a leading Rapid Prototyping companies premises;

The seminar is co-presented by Neil Darracott from design solution company Xolve, and representatives from 3T RPD - one of the leading prototyping companies in the UK. Lunch will be provided and there will be th

UK - O2 has joined forces with Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), one of the world's leading providers of live entertainment, sport events and facilities, in order to transform London's Millennium Dome and the surrounding area into the UK's "most exciting and technically advanced music, sport and entertainment destination".

The venue, now renamed 'The O2', will form the centrepiece of the multi-billion pound development, set to open in early 2007. It will incldue an indoor arena with a capacity of up to 23,000, that will, according to the partnership's plans, host at least 120 world-class music, entertainment and sport events in its first year of opening. Within the facility there will be the O2 Music Club with a capacity of over 2,000, an ice rink called the O2 Ice Pad, and a "bubble" shaped exhibition space and a vibrant "entertainment district"

USA - ESTA (The Entertainment Services and Technology Association) has published its 2005/2006 Membership Directory - a valuable reference resource for the industry. To receive your free copy, email ESTA at the address below or call +1 212 244 1505 with your address and the quantity required.

The publication includes complete listings for all of ESTA's members including location, prime company contacts, phone and fax numbers, email addresses and websites, and a brief description of each company's activities, while indexes allow you to search for members alphabetically, geographically, and by membership category.

(Lee Baldock)

UK - Ian Herbert has been elected the new Chairman of the Society for Theatre Research. The Society provides a meeting point for all those interested in the history and technique of the British theatre, offering its members annual publications, the journal Theatre Notebook and many other privileges. It also organises an annual series of public lectures, whose speakers last season included David Wood, Oliver Ford Davies and Professor Peter Thomson. It is responsible for a number of research grants, and awards its annual Theatre Book Prize. The Society's president is Timothy West.

Herbert, founder and now consultant editor of Theatre Record, is also President of the International Association of Theatre Critics. He edited the last three editions of Who's Who in the Theatre, and contributed to or edited all but one of the International Theatre Institute's reviews The World of Theatr

UK - The Association of Stage Pyrotechnicians has announced that a new series of one-day pyrotechnic safety awareness courses is currently in preparation. The dates are provisional at the moment but anyone interested in attending can register their interest at the website below.

The dates are: Belfast - 16 June; London - 24 June; Cambridge - 8 July; Cardiff - 13 July; Manchester - 20 July; London - 29 July; Warwick - 2 August; Birmingham - 3 August; Ryde (Isle of Wight) - 1 October.

(Lee Baldock)

Belgium - Sony Professional Solutions Europe has confirmed that it will be a Platinum Sponsor at ISE 2006 which will be held 1-3 February 2006 at the Brussels Expo. Following its successful debut at ISE 2005 in Amsterdam, Sony will demonstrate its "latest array of products that provide new ways to interact with multimedia information in the office and on the move".

"Sony is looking at the major shows to enhance its visibility in this emerging market and ISE is an emerging platform to achieve this." says Ian Collis, VP marketing for Sony Europe.

"We were pleased with the positive response, feedback and general enthusiasm generated by the 2005 show in Amsterdam and are delighted to see that ISE 2006 is already 40% bigger that the previous show. We see ISE as a pivotal event that has gained an important foothold on the Integrated AV systems market and we

UK - Theatre Royal Newcastle has been awarded training partner status with Stage Electrics. The award, say Stage Electrics, is in recognition of the Theatre Royal hosting and promoting industry specific training days to entertainment workers from all over the country.

In February this year the Theatre Royal hosted two days of intensive training workshops on behalf of Stage Electrics, which included courses on electricity at work and pyrotechnics safety awareness. As Brian Cleary, business development manager for Stage Electrics explains, support from organisations like the Theatre Royal is key to raising awareness across the industry of important health and safety issues. "We think it is very important to raise the standards within our industry and recognise the skills people have achieved."

He continues: "We have a wide range of courses on offer and it's great

South Africa - Luke Kane-Berman has been promoted to High End Systems' regional sales manager for Africa, following two years as an inside sales rep at the HES European headquarters in London. "I am very excited about my new role with HES in Africa and to return to my home town of Cape Town, South Africa," he says. "These are exciting times here and I look forward to revitalizing HES as the quality and powerful brand of lighting and controllers that it is and to introduce our new and existing technology into the marketplace."

Kane-Berman's territory includes all of Africa except for Libya and Egypt, which are handled by HES regional sales manager Tony Magana. Says Bill Morris, VP of sales: "It was time to put some investment into the territory to realize the growth potential of the continent. We were very fortunate to have Luke fully trained as a sales r

UK - Stagecraft has raised £5,000 for The Mayor of Salisbury's Appeal in aid of The Trussell Trust. The Salisbury based live events, lighting and sound company organized two musical comedy shows, More Tea, Vicar? and Pass the Port, starring Sue Flannery and Michael Lunts, which were held in the function room at Salisbury's Guildhall. "We were absolutely delighted with the success of our events and thanks must go to all our supporters. The Trussell Trust is an invaluable resource to Salisbury and the surrounding area and we hope that with the help of the appeal its projects will continue to flourish," said managing director of Stagecraft, David Goodrich.

Money raised at the events will help raise awareness of The Trussell Trust Food Bank, a community-based project which provides emergency food to people in short term crisis. Food given to The Food Bank by

UK - mm productions has a new owner. Martyn Hunt, who has been with the company for the past four years, and has run the company for the last two, has announced that he has purchased mm productions from the company's founder and owner John Hoskyns. Hunt, who has worked within the sound industry for 16 years, says he will continue to build on mm productions' reputation for quality sound design and hire.

Previous to him joining mm productions in November 2000, Hunt worked on many West End and touring productions; he has commissioned sound for Princess Cruises Los Angeles, worked for the BBC and Ulster Television, and spent time working in Germany and Palm Springs, California. His first full-time job in sound, however, was at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. And it was whilst at the Crucible that Martyn became addicted to live performance sound.

"It is my real passion for mu

UK - The specialist entertainment industry recruitment company Taylor-Phillips has recently joined forces with the Cambridge Media Group (CMG), which comprises Entertainment Technology Press Ltd, Realnet Ltd (internet solution specialists) and another newly-acquired company, Liverpool Academic Press.

Taylor Phillips was established in 1999 after founder Julie Kirby spent a long period working in the lighting and sound industries; the success of the company is largely due to an understanding of the market and how this sector operates, says Kirby, who will continue with the company as the operation is expanded with a growing team base in Cambridge.

(Jane Cockburn)

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