Since its inception, the PRG Alliance has grown in both size and reputation, and now offers technology, services and support to event producers in a total of 25 countries.
There are now 15 member companies which make-up the PRG Alliance. The newest addition is DB Schenker - the first member supplying services other than audiovisual. DB Schenker supports the Alliance members with specialized logistics for events with a large worldwide presence and multi-modal transportation requirements.
The PRG Alliance Summit is already a key date on the calendar for members, allowing them to meet face to face, share knowledge and best practices, and increase their collaboration. The location of the Summit at Prolight + Sound also enables them to meet at an event where the newest and most exiting technology is on display.
This year's Summit included a presentation of the PRG Alliance's future plans from Alliance director, Tom Van Hemelryck, and account manager, Luciana Rosa, which include expansion into new regions, opportunities for training, and the aim to include a wider variety of service companies. There are also confirmed regional summits around Infocomm in Sao Paolo, Brazil, and Palm Expo in Beijing, China.
After the introduction, members of the Alliance shared their experiences and knowledge acquired during the past year, including a custom-shaped large-scale LED floor and wall for concert touring; special lighting for fashion shows; and the logistical issues facing shows located in unusual or remote locations.
Following this, the PRG Projects team shared examples of their work with custom LED projects for major opening ceremonies including wireless hex panels and pixel tablets seen by millions around the world.
"Watching the presentations, we see the potential applications for these technologies in Italy - we are always eager to bring new services to our clients and we see the potential for customized LED solutions in our market," commented Alessandro Rossani, CTO of STS Communications in Italy.
Members also enjoyed a presentation from Chris Reed of Restless Communications on the best ways for technical production companies to use social media to promote their brands; and this was followed by sessions from Minesh Pore, general manager of Pico Europe on working with corporate clients and managing expectations, and Lee Charteris, VP operations, Flash Entertainment on the challenges of producing concerts and events in emerging markets.
Alliance member Ally Yoon, CEO of Ally & Co. in Korea commented, "The content of the summit is very helpful to us in Korea. We are right now in the middle of a production with PRG for a corporate event in Seoul and getting the insight on client expectation helps us to improve our services."
The Summit concluded with a dinner in the Festhalle which further enabled the members to network with each other.
"We see how the PRG Alliance is well established and continues growing through making personal connections between the members and with the market," said Tom Van Hemelryck, director of PRG Alliance. "We carefully select the members and I am happy to have such an unprecedented group of companies with high-quality technical production services working together on several events in the last year - success always comes from collaboration."
(Jim Evans)
