UAE - The annual Laureus World Sports Awards provide a high profile focus as stars of the sporting world come together to salute the finest sports performances of the year. And on hand to help make sure this year's show, at Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi, looked the business was Unusual Rigging & Engineering's team from the next-door emirate of Dubai.

With a brief to create an award ceremony that was bigger, better and more dynamic than ever before, production company Done and Dusted designed a set that comprised several large LED screens, two of which tracked across the stage.

Leon Ingram, project manager for Unusual Rigging & Engineering, comments, "The auditorium at Emirates Palace has no loading capacity from the roof, so in order to track the screens across the stage we had to build a ground support system. With a span of 22m, the system also had to provide support for

Earthquake Appeal - A group of UK rock acts are to play a benefit gig in aid of Japanese earthquake victims. Primal Scream, The Coral, and Liam Gallagher's Beady Eye are among the bands set to play a show at Brixton's O2 Academy on 3 April. The money raised at the gig will go to the British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal. Ex-Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft, Blur's Graham Coxon, and veteran rocker Paul Weller will also play.

Justin Bieber and U2 are among artists who have agreed to contribute songs to an album to raise funds for victims of the earthquake and tsunami. Record label Universal Music said it hoped to release the digital-only album globally by the end of the week. Bon Jovi and Rihanna have also been confirmed for the album, which will also raise money for the Japanese Red Cross. "We are doing it only digitally because it is faster," said a Universal spokesman

UK - A.C. Entertainment Technologies' rigging division will be running three further two-day Rigging Training Schools during 2011 at the LS-Live Studio in Wakefield, with the first event taking place on 29-30 March.

The second Rigging School will take place on 8-9 June, with a third event to be held in September (dates still to be confirmed).

The Rigging School is a training partnership between A.C. Rigging, leading trussing and staging manufacturer Prolyte and Backstage Academy, the Wakefield based initiative offering various types of entertainment industry training.

Keeping the same format as last year, the comprehensive two-day training programme is an established course that has been attended by industry practitioners from across Europe.

Eric Porter, experienced independent rigger, trainer, adviser and committee member for the PLASA National Rigging Certificate, will a

Mexico - Tomcat participated for the first time in sound:check expo 2011 held at the World Trade Center in Mexico City, 20-22 March. Tomcat showcased an array of products to create solutions for the entertainment and live event industry in Latin America.

"Tomcat is honoured to participate in sound:check expo as it is the most important event of its kind in Mexico and a forum to share solutions with a different perspective to customers of Mexico and Latin America to create spectacular stages. Actually we have being doing so since 1987 in the US and since 1999 in Mexico," stated Tony Vierling, Tomcat sales manager for Mexico and Latin America.

"We have been a part of important projects, like the gigantic screen for the bicentennial festivities in Mexico, the Soda Stereo concerts in Venezuela, several Televisa productions, among many others, and our support systems

UK - Showsec's ongoing expansion, across England, Scotland and Wales, has meant that the internal structure has progressed from two to three regions. Breaking these down to Northern, Midlands and Southern regions "will allow the company to better support client services throughout the country, and to allow further expansion into 2012".

The newly created Midlands region will be managed by Richard Church who has worked for the company for 16years. Ieuan Fury moves from his post in Wales to become the area manager for the West Midlands, whilst Joe Milner takes the step up from senior operations executive to role of area manager for the East Midlands.

Replacing Fury in the Wales and South West office will be Martin Lewis who moves up from operations executive. Martin previously was part of Showsec's Management Training Academy and becomes the first graduate to be promote

USA - All Access Staging & Productions, a consortium of companies, has announced the addition of Brian Sullivan, who joins All Access from B & R Scenery, to work as a consultant and engineer. Sullivan has years of invaluable industry experience after owning and operating B & R for over a decade.

"We look forward to a successful future with our new business associate and are eager to expand our staging effect product offerings," notes Clive Forrester, CEO of All Access. "We are delighted to have him as a member of the All Access family."

In addition, All Access has acquired equipment previously operated by B & R Scenery, which includes a wide selection of electro-mechanical lifts and effects.

B & R Scenery will be winding down its Camarillo operation within the next two to three months.

(Lee Baldock)

USA - J. R. Clancy has completed and passed its triennial ISO 9001 recertification audit. This is an intensive three-day audit of J. R. Clancy's Quality Management System. The audit was performed by SAI Global, Clancy's registrar.

"This is a very challenging standard, focusing on customers," said Clancy president Mike Murphy. "All of the elements are about quality - not just in manufacturing, but the complete customer experience. It's important that all our partners, from specifiers and rigging installers to end users, get a system that is on time, complete, and correct."

Murphy continued, "ISO 9001 is a set of quality management requirements with an emphasis on customer satisfaction. Our ISO 9001:2008 quality management system addresses design, installation, project management, and quality. It requires that top management be actively involved and that

UK - The assets of ES Group, which recently went into administration with unsecured debts totalling almost £7million, have been acquired by new owners. The non-trucking assets of the Group were sold to three new shareholders and will operate under the name ES Global. ES Global's three shareholders are Steven Corlfield Moore, Shane McCarthy and Tony Nobbs, who owns 50% of the company.

At the same time, the assets of ES Trucking arm of the company were sold to Transam Trucking. All 37 employees of the company have been transferred to either ES Global Limited or to Transam Trucking.

Founded in 1974, Edwin Shirley Group was one of the UK's biggest event suppliers, providing staging and logistics services to music tours and events across the UK and Europe. A succession of problems has been blamed for the failure of ES Group including, most recently, late payment issues relati

Germany - New products from Gerriets include Vario Ergodance, a new sprung-floor system specially designed for professional dance applications and featuring a sophisticated locking mechanism for quick and safe installation.

New projection screens are also scheduled. The Transmission screen (for diffusion and rear projection) premiered to much acclaim in late 2010, and is followed by Even. This pure white screen offers nearly identical luminance distribution both in front and rear projection applications, making it suitable for soft-edge blending and LED projection.

Another upcoming launch will feature a low-gain screen that minimizes reflected light while also greatly improving soft-edge blending in large-scale applications.

Among the innovations unveiled at ShowTech 2011 in Berlin (7-9 June) is the Cargo line of heavy-duty track systems, which allows smooth maneuvering of m

UK - Brilliant Stages has supplied three towering inflatable puppets and a circular projection screen for Roger Waters The Wall Live tour, the European leg of which began earlier this month.

Standing over 9m tall, three iconic images of the Teacher, the Wife and the Mother are supplied, complete with the mechanics and automation to operate them, inside inflatable skins from Air Artists.

The Teacher and Wife puppets require extensive animation so Brilliant Stages devised a system of cradles and winches to facilitate this. The puppets are suspended by fine steel wire ropes attached to individual electric winches mounted into a compact cradle. The winches move the limbs independently whilst the cradle carrying the winches also slews to enable the puppets to turn 180°.

Brilliant Stages used customised control systems from Andy Cave of Kinesys for the cradles and winches.

T

UK - Stage Electrics' specialist temporary ice rink team is toasting its busiest season to date, with no less than 19 fully-equipped ice rinks in action across the UK and the Irish Republic from November to February.

The company's ice rink installation packages have grown enormously in popularity in recent years. Venue operators range from sports arenas to local authority leisure centres and gardening centres - and, in the 2010-11 season, a stellar triple bill of the 02, the London Eye and Westfield Shopping Centre in the capital.

John Burgess, account manager in the live events department for Stage Electrics, said of the 2010-11 season, "We've developed a complete one-stop package which is very flexible in terms of the size and the site requirements, using ice rink technology that's very well proven and energy efficient, and this year it proved its worth quite spectacula

Sweden - Stockholm has recently opened a new multi functional venue - the Stockholm Water Front Convention Centre situated in the heart of the city.

The Convention Centre stands out for its multi-functional capabilities; it can easily be transformed from a 3,000 person arena into a series of smaller sections which allow hosting of intimate meetings for only 12 people. This versatility is made possible by the innovative and multifunctional hoist lifting system supplied by German Based COW Lifting Technology, a subsidiary of UK based Lift Turn Move.

Very high safety requirements were required because loads would be moving above people, so the decision was made to opt for the stringent German Safety Standard, BGV C1. COW has been offering advanced specification motion control systems for the last five years. Developed in house, COW specialises in these applications where load mon

UK - Prolyte Products UK Limited (formerly Litestructures) has announced the appointment of Miles Marsden as head of UK sales. Formerly sales director and shareholder of Bradford based The Music Company, Marsden brings with him a raft of experience in all sectors of the entertainment business allied to an intuitive commercial approach.

One of his first tasks was to integrate a hugely increased product portfolio, and this was coordinated directly with support from the technical team at Prolyte Leek. Also joining at the turn of the year was Debbie Powell as a new and valued addition to the customer services team.

Following the merger of Prolyte Products and Litestructures in September 2010, the newly formed Prolyte UK Limited (based at the former Litestructures HQ in Wakefield) has been a hive of activity. The new company is designed specifically to manage and develop UK sales f

UK - Connector and cable assembly specialist Ten 47 celebrates its 10th anniversary at the upcoming Frankfurt Prolight&Sound exhibition, Frankfurt.

Ten 47 was set up to provide "high quality connector solutions with a superior service". Throughout the past 10 years the company has introduced many new products and innovations, continuing the trend this year by launching the new Tourline SHC Screened Hybrid Connectors. This new connector offers combined power, audio and Cat 5 connections with a 360° screening of the power contacts from the audio and Cat 5 contacts. Visit Ten47 at ProLight&Sound - Hall 9.0, stand E35.

(Claire Beeson)

UK - Arena Seating supplied 200 seats on three tiered grandstands for the annual ISS Canary Wharf Squash Classic that took place between 21-25 March in East Wintergarden, London.

By carefully constructing the grandstands surrounding the courts glass walls, Arena were able to offer spectators the best possible comfort and viewing experience as the world's leading squash players fought for the title of champion, which was eventually won by England's Nick Matthew.

Arena Seating project manager, Bradley Merchant comments, "It is great to be involved in a sporting championship such as the ISS Squash, which was located in the spectacular Canary Wharf. As we do with a range of sporting and live events organisers of all different sizes, we worked closely with ISS to create the venues unique atmosphere. We provide events that require anything from 100 to 25,000 seats, each of whic

UK - Yellow Jacket, manufacturer of the popular cable protector has now opened a manufacturing facility in the UK to serve the European market.

"Manufacturing in Europe will enable us to offer significant lead time reductions, much lower transport costs and the elimination of import duty," says the company.

Yellow Jacket's Advanced Modular System allows for a floor of cable protectors in multiples of 5 channels, this combines with the company's WASP wheelchair DDA / ADA ramp system already used in prestigious venues throughout Europe. Also offered are the extra heavy duty Yellow Jacket Classic from 1 to 5 channels, and the versatile heavy duty Bumble Bee range.

Yellow Jacket Europe also offers custom marking which can be incorporated at short lead times on selected products. Visit the company at the Frankfurt Prolight & Sound exhibition in Hall 9, stand E35 where t

UK - The latest addition to the LSi Online website - home of PLASA Media's daily news service, LSi magazine archives and other resources - is the LSi Online Video Hub.

A database-driven resource for videos from across the industry, the LSi Video Hub aims to become a one-stop location for LSi Online's 20,000+ global audience to source and view industry-related video content. Visitors to the site can search by category, tag and keyword to refine their searches.

Beginning with almost 100 videos, the site will grow as more companies put their video content directly in front of LSi's regular online audience. With more than 20,000 regular users making an average of 240,000 page requests at LSi Online each month, and a wide-ranging global appeal, LSi Online is ideally placed to present video resources for product training, demo

Germany - This year marks the first time ShowTex will take part in ProLight +Sound. The stand design features a printed dance floor, an ecological velvet main curtain , a circular glassless mirror and the latest in stage motion control systems for drapes and decorative fabrics.

The popular Shakespeare and Molière flame retardant cotton velours developed by ShowTex are the first in the industry to be awarded OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certification.

For almost 20 years, the OEKO-TEX Standard 100 has been acknowledged as the world's most comprehensive and verifiable method for ensuring that textile products and the supply chains that create them do not use hazardous chemicals such as pesticides, carcinogenic dye stuffs, heavy metals, or other concerning substances that can hurt people and damage the environment.

Shakespeare velvet velour is 100% cotton, weighs 500g/m2 and meets fl

Germany -At proLIght+Sound, Movecat is presenting the new I-Motion Basic S show controller. This compact system controls kinetic drives and has been developed for mobile applications. New in the 'S' version are an ID User Card function, a VGA output and the possibility of connecting external remote units such as Go, Speed Ratio and Emergency Off buttons or controllers or a dynamic joy stick.

The I-Motion Basic S show controller is recommended for setups with up to 60 drives. It offers the comfortable control and operation of all systems involving D8, D8 Plus and C1 drives at both fixed and variable speeds as well as supporting mixed configurations of all kinds. Depending upon the drives and controllers used, entire systems can be realized from SIL1 to SIL3. The option also exists of integrating existing drives and other stage machinery.

The controller corresponds in its basic

Germany - XLNT CyberMotion, billed as the world's first fully integrated motion control system, was launched yesterday at ProLight+Sound by XLNT Advanced Technologies. The system is designed not only to change the philosophy of motion control but to open the horizons of stage engineering to a new world of creative possibilities, says the company.

XLNT CyberMotion offers a complete range of motion products designed specifically for the entertainment industry. Developed by XLNT Advanced Technologies, SIL3 certified technology was used to create a series of intercompatible road-ready products for shows and cost efficient global touring.

Intelligent, variable speed chain hoists, winches, trolley beams and other motion control mechanics, instantly add movement and velocity to permanent installations, multi-purpose venues, concert touring and theatre, TV or event productions of any

USA - Brigham Young University-Idaho turned to the Stage Technologies Las Vegas team to install an up-to-date motorized rigging system in the newly opened BYU-Idaho Centre at the heart of the school's campus. The building covers 435,000sq.ft, has a 15,000-seat auditorium and a multi-purpose area large enough for 10 full basketball courts.

The auditorium will be used for weekly devotional speeches and commencement addresses, graduation ceremonies and even regional church conferences. The building also houses a communications suite enabling the University to broadcast future events.

The system comprises 55 BigTow winches, control cabinets, a Nomad control desk and a Solo handheld control console. The system also includes two camera pylons - an engineering innovation from the Stage Technologies research and development team. The camera pylon enables perfect filming of motion shot

UK - Bath- based production, rental and installation company Enlightened has designed and installed a bespoke Milos Quatro 290V trussing ground support system for a new performance space that has been created in a Grade 1 listed building on the Corsham Court campus of Bath Spa University.

Enlightened's Simon Marcus has been using and specifying Milos products for many years and the company has a substantial quantity of different Milos products in its hire stock. "Milos has a wide range of trussing and accessories, it is very strong and has all the right technical specs as well as looking great for a host of different applications," he says.

The new space is called The Image Capture Studio and will be primarily used for postgraduate studies, assorted productions and media related research. It includes a full image capture studio, green screen, projection facili

USA - Tomcat USA participated in Event Live Expo 2011 held at the LA Convention Centre, 12-14 April where the company showcased an array of truss products to create solutions for the entertainment and live event industry. In addition, case studies were presented on product and custom project solutions.

"For 24 years Tomcat has provided innovative solutions to the touring and the live events industry" stated Don Dimitroff, sales & marketing director, Tomcat USA. "Being part of a cutting edge trade show that brings stakeholders together is a wonderful opportunity for Tomcat to share a different perspective with industry pros from all aspects of live entertainment."

Tomcat exhibited standard truss products including Bax, Edge, Core, Light Duty and heavy Duty truss. In addition Keith Bohn, custom projects director, presented daily case studies on product and pr

UK - J&C Joel installed 49 acoustic roller banner units in the Apex Centre, Bury St Edmunds' newest multi -purpose community venue.

The adjustable roller banners allow the Apex's technical staff to alter the venue's acoustics to complement any performance. The acoustic panels consist of cognac wool serge (WS011) bonded to black premier wool serge (WS090) and are ideal for reducing sound reverberation in the performance hall.

The acoustic roller banner units fitted by J&C Joel's installation team are of differing lengths and widths depending on their positioning within the hall. The majority of the banners were made with a single drop of bonded wool serge, but a number of dual sided banners were installed which are operated by a single motor within the unit's housing.

The acoustic roller banner system is controlled through a multi channel hand held unit which enables the bann

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