Rigging / Staging

Stage Technologies

Details: 14 March 2016

>Repeatedly moving a bottle of champagne between an ice bucket and a table may not seem the most production-orientated of actions (unless perhaps for certain journalists or PR people), but this millimetre-accurate task was an excellent way of demonstrating Stage Technologies' Visual Creator system. The software removes the complex mathematics from three-dimensional stage automation, building a virtual environment through which the user plots the path that s/he wants an object to follow. With these developments seeming set to ensure that the use of multiple-motor stage automation will become more widespread in future, the PLASA Award for Design Excellence was well deserved.

Columbus McKinnon

Details: 14 March 2016

>The new Lodestar BGV C1 electric chain hoist was on show from Columbus McKinnon's Entertainment Division. Designed to meet the German standard for entertainment rigging, it's avaialable in capacities from 1/4 to 1 ton (250 to 1000kg) and speeds at 16fpm (4mpm). It has a 10:1 design factor to meet the most demanding rigging applications in the entertainment industry. CM's ProStar Hoists are now available in 227kg (500lbs) and 454kg (1000lbs) models. Other new products and the company's well-known, established rigging products, were also being shown and the team was enjoying a successful show.

https://www.claypaky.it/products/ultimo-hybrid/

PCM

Details: 14 March 2016

>PCM highlighted its new Unibar at PLASA, designed in collaboration with Slingco, and collected a Product Award along the way. A winch system that presents a cost-effective alternative to the more sophisticated power-assisted winch sets, Unibar is initially available in 250 or 400kg models with single or two-speed options. The entire Unibar unit is self-contained, with the motor unit positioned on the end of the track. Single or three-phase power options are offered, and dual brakes are also available as an option. Unibar supports any number of suspension cables and any length of suspension bar with the top and bottom limits contained within the unit's controls. Units can be positioned side by side with the suspension bars at 200mm centres - a vital requirement for all theatres. The control panel can either be fixed to the wall or operated by hand-held remote.

Awards for Product Excellence - Staging

Details: 14 March 2016

>Award for Design Excellence
>PCM/Slingco

>Unibar

The Unibar system allows (a joint development between PCM and Slingco) for the quick and easy raising and lowering of suspension or lighting bars for scenery and lighting equipment with a motor-driven unit. The system has been designed to be installed onto any style of fixing or structure and will prove a cost-effective alternative to the more sophisticated power-assisted winch sets.

Initially available in 250 or 500kg models with single or two-speed options, the entire Unibar unit is self-contained, with the motor positioned on the end of the track. Single- or three-phase power options are offered, and other highlights include its simple, logical 'plug and play' operation.

Although initially designed for five suspension cables, thanks to flexibility in its design approach, the Unibar can be amended to support any number

Merger creates new Events Group

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Two of the UK's most respected supply companies have announced a merger which will create a major new event structural and rigging company in the UK.

Star Hire (Event Services) Ltd and Star Rigging & Technical Services Ltd have joined forces to create Star Events Group Limited. The new company will offer clients a wide range of services, including equipment hire, installation and consultancy, within the field of music, broadcast and corporate, sporting and public events. The principals of the new company are Mark Armstrong, Roger Barrett, Phil Broad and Maddy Sheals - all of whom will be shareholder/directors with Pete Rayel as an additional shareholder.

The Group will have five divisions - Star Mobile (mobile, trailer-based stages); Star VerTech (stages and temporary structures); Star Design (creative design & visualization, structural analysis); Star Ice (temporary ice

Metalworx

Details: 14 March 2016

>Formed as a result of a buy-out of the Penn lighting and trussing business from Penn Fabrication, Metalworx is the European manufacturer of the original Penn trussing. The company featured coloured Par cans on the stand in addition to triangular, box and circular truss. The company also offers a complete custom manufacturing service.

Tomcat // Brilliant Stages

Details: 14 March 2016

>There were two new products from Tomcat: Swing Wing Trussing, winner of a 2003 Eddy award, is an old idea given a new make-over. Still 30" by 30", this trussing is purpose-designed to take a whole variety of modern automated lights 'permanently' mounted within (or at least for the duration of your touring production). Also from Tomcat comes Dek, a re-designed extrusion to improve on the existing stage deck system from sister company Brilliant Stages. The extrusion includes an M10 nut rail to allow the fitting of a host of accessories, not least handrails and steps.

Slingco

Details: 14 March 2016

>Aside from the Unibar, new for Slingco this year is the Unibar hoist, a cost-effective system developed in tandem with PCM, which allows easily controlled raising and lowering for general lifting purposes. The company has also had a busy year with its popular Cablenet 'virtual floors'. Sales engineer Matt Dykins said they were working on more installations and more applications of the system than ever before.

Hall Stage

Details: 14 March 2016

>Three products were highlighted by Hall Stage. First up was the new BGV70 band hoist, a fully programmable, variable speed, load-sensing hoist designed for a variety of lifting purposes, including people flying. The band hoists don't have a clutch, so there are no components to wear out. Also on display was the new 2-channel infra red assistive listening system from Williams Sound, the TX925, as well as the innovative Hold-On clips, designed to hang and fix material without the need for eyelets. Very nice.

Awards for Product Excellence - Software

Details: 14 March 2016

>Award for Design Excellence
>Stage Technologies

>Visual Creator

Visual Creator brings sophisticated control of motion-through-time out of the realm of specialist applications and makes it available to all. The advantages of theatrical automation are clear. At the push of a button, a modern power flying system can move a substantial load from A to B with pinpoint accuracy time after time. But what about the movement along the way between A and B? To date, most flying systems have been unable to handle the sophisticated motion profiles through time that designers and directors imagine in their shows.

Visual Creator addresses this need: gauzes drifting in a breeze, an automated bouncing ball, an acrobat flying in 3D around the auditorium - all these effects and more can now be drawn as imagined and executed seamlessly with Stage Technologies' standard automation systems.

Blackout in the frame

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Drapes and rigging specialist Blackout was appointed by London based production house, GSP to help realize the set for the launch of Canon's new EOS 300D 6.3 mega pixel digital SLR camera. The event was staged at Sketch, the exclusive, mega-chic London creation of Mourad Mazous (of Momo) and Michelin chef Pierre Gagnai.

Blackout¹s project manager Kevin Monks collaborated with GSP's Jules Stevenson from the outset to design and build a blacked-out freestanding studio, where over 50 EOS 300Ds took centre stage. Suspended on tracks, they were deployed remotely to capture real-time effect images of the guests Matrix style.

The freestanding truss structure measured 10m x 8m, and was initially constructed to GSP's exacting specifications at Blackout's headquarters, before being rigged on site by the Blackout team. Dressed in black serge drape, the box totally excluded a

CM's new Hurricane inverted manual chain hoist.

CM Hurricane goes down a storm at PLASA

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Columbus McKinnon displayed more new products at this year's PLASA exhibition than ever before. Recent optional upgrades to the ever-popular Lodestar electric chain hoist were being displayed for the first time. These include a double brake, which is available as either factory-fitted on new units or as a retrofit kit for existing owners. A direct control Lodestar, which has proven extremely popular since its launch earlier this year will also be available for inspection.

A CM manufactured variable speed Lodestar hoist, dubbed the Varistar will also be making its worldwide debut. This will be shown alongside a sample of the company's new BGV-C1 specification Lodestar hoist.

"Although Lodestars with these features are already available they are conversions of standard units made by end-users or our distributors" comments Adrian Forbes-Black, CM's regional manager

Nautilus Entertainment Design Serves up Holland America's Newest

Details: 14 March 2016

Americas - Holland America's MS Oosterdam, the second of five planned Vista Class ships, joined her sister ship MS Zuiderdam on the high seas with a maiden voyage on 10 July 2003. Her first outing was a Viking and Czars themed cruise, highlighting major ports from London to Oslo. Her first transatlantic crossing will be from Lisbon to Fort Lauderdale in November 2003, after which she will begin sailing to Caribbean and Panama Canal destinations.

With a capacity for just 1848 passengers, Oosterdam has the highest passenger-to-space ratio of all Holland America ships giving a greater sense of intimacy yet maintaining the same elegance Holland America is known for. A unique feature of the ship is the exterior glass elevators with sea views that carry passengers to any of the 11 decks.

Nautilus Entertainment Design (NED) designed the systems in the entertainme

Lodestar variable speed conversions from Kinesys

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Following unprecedented interest during PLASA 2003 in Kinesys' Elevation 1+ variable speed chain hoist control system, and its special commendation at the PLASA Awards, Kinesys is delighted to announce that Lodestar conversion kits are now available for both the large body and small body sizes of CM Lodestar.

These conversion kits allow standard CM Lodestars to be run as full variable speed hoists while still allowing the hoists to be controlled, fixed speed, from a standard motor controller. The conversion kit upgrades all the wiring within the Lodestar and includes a new 24V transformer and a high-resolution encoder. A circuit board accommodates all the contactor and brake switching components; provision for circuitry to control silent DC brakes is also included ensuring a simple and cost-effective upgrade path. The conversion kit leaves the hoist fitted with a multi-way

The Norwegian Theater purchases Visual Act

Details: 14 March 2016

Norway - The Norwegian Theater in Oslo has taken delivery of a Visual Act Analog wagon system. The system includes two modular drive units which can power wagons of over 2000kg. The drive units are easily bolted to different constructions and will be used by the theatre both to move sets in repertory and automate scenic elements. The first use of the system will be a 9m revolve for the new musical Frendelaus by Øystein Wiik.

The system uses a dependable analogue radio system which is certified for the transportation of people. Servo-motors guarantee constant speed, independent of load, so that the motion of dancers on the Frendelaus revolve will not affect the movement of the floor.

(Lee Baldock)

Kremlin orders ChainMaster chain hoists

Details: 14 March 2016

Russia - The Kremlin in Moscow has ordered 35 BGV-C1 chain hoists in the 500kg weight class from German manufacturer ChainMaster. The lifts are equipped with a position encoder and a ChainMaster control system comprising three switch servers combined with two operation desks. Parallel redundancy is assured by the presence of an additional manual controller, also from ChainMaster. The Kremlin order was placed by the Arlecchino Business Center in Moscow and the installation of the high-tech system is scheduled for the beginning of October.

For nine years, ChainMaster has been developing and manufacturing stage chain hoists and chain hoist controllers. The firm's current range covers chain hoists for weights ranging from 125kg to 12 tons. ChainMaster's most successful product worldwide is the VarioLift (which includes models for loads ranging from 125kg to 6,300kg) which was introd

Mini Cooper's join in the fun at the private screenings.

Blackout's Mini adventure for The Italian Job remake

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Drapes and rigging specialist, Blackout was appointed by G2 Productions to help create a cinematic environment at the BMW Group's Oxford Plant, for exclusive preview screenings of the remake of The Italian Job. The screenings were attended by BMW personnel, including a fleet of Mini Coopers, just prior to the film's UK premiere on 12 September.Blackout's Chris Brain collaborated with G2's managing director, Andrew Owls to design and build a giant free-standing truss structure, which was clad in black wool-serge drape, excluded all light and contained the 1,000 capacity auditorium.

Blackout's team suspended the drape onto the truss and rigged the giant 60f x 25 ft screen supplied by Bell Theatre Services. Andrew Owles explained: "It was great working with Blackout - the team handled the project professionally from start to finish with great attention to detail. W

Working at Heights Regulations (WAHR) delayed further

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Expectations were high at the PLASA show that a detailed presentation concerning this vital set of Regulations would be delivered by representatives of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). However, policy makers from the HSE announced that the promised third draft of the Regulations, with its accompanying Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) and guidance material, would be delayed further - with the consultation period now scheduled for December 2003 through to April 2004.

Those who attended the seminar on the last day of the show were hoping to get an opportunity to discuss the application of the new Regulations and how their impact would affect the entertainment industry, but all that was on offer was a run-through of the existing proposed Regulations published in the last draft, which may or may not have some bearing on the final set of Regulations.

The delayed consult

Stage collapses at Birmingham Alexandra Theatre

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - News came in last night that a stage collapse left up to 20 people injured prior to a sing-along performance of The Sound of Music at Birmingham's Alexandra Theatre. The BBC news website reports that the temporary part of the stage covering the orchestra pit gave way when audience members were invited onto to the stage for a fancy dress competition. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive into the cause of the collapse has been launched today.

The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham is an Edwardian Theatre with a seating capacity of 1,347. The theatre presents a variety of productions from pre- and post-West End productions to touring shows, opera, ballet, musicals and concerts.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

M.J. Lighting strengthens The Weakest Link

Details: 14 March 2016

South Africa - A full lighting rig and ground support front-of-house truss system was supplied by M.J. Lighting to Rapid Blue, for South Africa's first series of The Weakest Link, which was shot at the Gallagher Estate auditorium during August 2003. M.J. Lighting's brief was to recreate the distinct visual feel of the original BBC programme.

The company's Francois van der Merwe oversaw the installation and reprogramming of the show on a dummy rig set up in the M.J. Lighting premises a week before the load-in to the Gallagher studio. A variety of fixtures was used on set, including six High End Systems Studio Colors, 13 High End Studio Spots, 11 Martin MAC 2000s, 11 custom-made Zip Strips, 2k Fresnel units, 5k softlights and eight 1k spots or 'Pups'. ETC Source Fours were used as key lights on each contestant, as well as on the quizmaster, Fiona Coyne. M.J.'s back-up Wholehog 2 w

Left to right, Paul Burke (ADlite system tech), Stuart Gray (ADlite LD), Robert Bull (ADlite set guru), James Neale (Adlib system tech) and James Coates (Adlib system tech).

Fun Lovin' Criminals

Details: 14 March 2016

Europe - ADlite Productions and sister company Adlib Audio from Liverpool have supplied the sound, lighting and set to the current Fun Lovin' Criminals European tour. LD Stuart Gray has been working with the band for the last 14 months, during which time they have used ADLite and Adlib to supply all their technical production requirements. Fun Lovin' Criminals have been gigging constantly since last summer, but for their own tour they approached Gray for lighting design. As their name suggests, the band are renowned for their enjoyment of life and music and came up with the idea of having a real onstage bar as a set piece.

Gray developed three onstage scenic bars with fully working optics and drink mixing facilities. He utilized existing set elements from the ADlite warehouse, and created others with the help of Scenex from the Midlands, who made the bar fronts and mirrors. Them

Rola-Trac protects Goodwood Revival

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - Rola-Trac installed the ground protection required around the motor circuit at this year's Goodwood Revival festival, to ensure the site was not damaged by the vehicles and crowds. The Goodwood Revival runs for three days in September each year, celebrating the racing venue's active years of 1948-66, by re-enacting the races that once occurred there. This year 94,000 racing fans visited the event.

Each year owners of vehicles from the pre-1966 period descend on Goodwood to display their treasures for the first two days, when visitors can take a good look at the cars. For the owners there is also the business of winning, after two days of qualifying and warming up, the third and final day of the event offered some surprisingly competitive races around the circuit.

This year event was blessed with fine weather, which meant the ground remained very dry and the Rola-Trac gro

MJK & Outback at the MOBO Awards

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - MJK Productions staged a spectacular production for the Mastercard MOBO (Music Of Black Origin) Awards 2003 at London's Royal Albert Hall on 25 September. The awards were dominated by 50 Cent, who picked up the honours for Best Hip Hop Act, Best Album and Best Single, while Justin Timberlake won Best R&B Act and Big Brovaz scored Best Newcomer.

Featuring many of the production team from the Mastercard BRIT awards, the MOBOs was directed for television by Julia Knowles and produced by Sharon Ali. MJK, for the eighth year since the event's début, were in charge of the live production and a team that included Britannia Row (audience sound), 021 (broadcast sound), VLPS (lighting), XL Video (video), Outback (rigging), Steel Monkey (set) and Eat Your Hearts Out (catering).

The show featured MJK's trademark five-minute changeovers between live performances, a substantial lighti

Nigel Dobson and Martin Tyrer with Neil Norrissey.

Neil Morrissey gets help from SCV and LiteStructures

Details: 14 March 2016

UK - When television star Neil Morrissey was challenged to help a worthy cause for an upcoming ITV series With A Little Help from My Friends, pro audio distributor SCV London and staging and trussing specialist LiteStructures were among the companies he called on to help him complete the task. The voice behind Bob the Builder chose to help children's charity 'Kids Company' renovate a derelict community centre and wanted it to have a stage, so that kids could follow in his footsteps.

Morrissey called SCV London's marketing director, Steve McDonald, and asked him for a Fostex VF-160 Digital Multitracker for free. Steve was more than happy to give the Men Behaving Badly star the equipment to assist the charity, which works with deprived children. The Fostex VF-160 will be used to teach youngsters the elements of sound recording.

Morrissey also put in a call to LiteS

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