UK - Kramer Electronics, the worldwide supplier of signal management products, has announced the availability of its new DXF Drawing Library of files for CAD and other industry drawing programs. These DXF (Data Exchange Format) files are available for download from the Kramer Electronics and Sierra Video websites and include every model in both the Kramer and Sierra Video product lines.

The DXF Drawing Library offers product line drawings (of the front and back panel) for use in rack elevation illustrations. It also offers CAD blocks for use in signal flow and wiring diagrams. Each drawing is provided in a standardized CAD format and depicts detailed product information including model number and description, indications of directional and bi-directional lines of communication, as well as input, output, and control connector types and wiring schemes.

"Creating this exhaus

South Africa - Gearhouse (PTY) Ltd and Ashraf Omar (AV Network) this month announced the launch of a new company, Inhouse Venue Technical Management (Pty) Ltd (IVTM). Part of the Gearhouse group of companies, Inhouse VTM was formed to facilitate the supply and management of technical equipment and personnel within key venues across the Western Cape. The service enables venues to rent in the latest equipment and technical expertise without incurring expensive capital outlay. Cutting edge lighting, audio, staging, audio visual, daylight screens, power and rigging equipment coupled with experienced technical staff ensure that the event is seamless and there is also the additional benefit of an onsite branch to resolve any last minute eventualities.

The joint venture is the culmination of years of discussion between Inhouse managing director Ashraf Omar and Gearhouse directors, whic

Dubai - Install Middle East, the AV installation and integration technology sector of the PALME Middle East show, has received a major boost with the confirmation of several major new exhibitors.

Show organisers IIR Entertainment & Installation Technology Group says that the addition of companies such as Bose, Crestron and Opus Technologies to the exhibition roster will have implications not only for residential/lifestyle enhancement, but also in the commercial world.

These are joined by Visionaire, which supplies advanced audio visual and communication solutions to major commercial projects, and architectural lighting giants, Lumasense.

Said Lumasense's Mike Kanaan, "PALME Middle East has matured into an important show. We look forward to using it as a showcase to expose our premium lighting products to both the architectural and entertainment sectors, and to becoming

USA - Wybron, Inc. reports that it has been granted US Patent No. 7,163,317 which covers Wybron's core technology relating to its dichroic CMY colour-changing system that allows for colour fades across a wide spectrum, inside profile and wash style fixtures. This technology is integral to Wybron's family of Nexera fixtures.

"For more than 25 years, Wybron has continually invested in innovating and developing advanced lighting systems," said Larry Turner, CEO of Wybron. "We listen to our customers and base our unique designs on their demands. Because of positive customer feedback, we are integrating this patented technology into new products like our fibre-optic illuminator. We intend to launch this new product in the coming weeks."

The Nexera utilises a set of cyan, magenta, and yellow dichroic filters, which are introduced into the beam of light, controll

World - Alternative rock band Tool has added two grandMA full-size, one for lighting control and one for video control, to its manifest for its forthcoming US, European and Australian dates. "Video is a very dominant factor with Tool," notes designer/director Mark Jacobson who has been working with the band since 1996. "All the video is pre-taped; there's no live camera. We don't use spots, just the fixtures we have on the rig to give a more mysterious look.

"I've used the grandMA almost exclusively since 2002," he continues. "It gives me the flexibility to move things around the way I like it to work. I'm not forced to run the show the way whoever designed the board wants me to; instead, the grandMA is very open to the user. I also love its wireless remote."

The lighting complement controlled by the grandMA includes 24x Martin Mac 2000 profi

Sweden - Dalhalla, a natural amphitheatre by picturesque Lake Siljan, hosts an annual summer programme of opera, classical, jazz, and rock concerts. The open-air design makes it impractical to maintain permanent audio and lighting installations. As a result, Dalhalla requires an AV installation each May. That task is the responsibility of Park Brothers (Bröderna Park AB), a full-service production company with headquarters in Insjön. Managing director Bengt Park notes that the annual installation consists entirely of sound and lights. "We don't use much video," he says. "Because the environment is so bright, video is not often used." What is often used is the venue's system of Meyer Sound self-powered loudspeakers.

Diana Krall's FOH engineer, Dave Lawler, was impressed with what he found at the facility when the jazz pianist and vocalist played at Dalhalla

USA - GoboMan has introduced the GP100 GoboMan Projector Light. The new GP100 is designed to be a brighter version of the popular GP75 GoboMan Projector Light. This 100-watt Gobo Projector has all the same features of the GP75 but is 30% brighter. Rebel Hoffman, co-owner of GoboMan says, "Everything is the same in the GP100 as far as operation and simplicity of design; we just increased the light output with the 100-watt lamp. The ease of operation is a key feature of our Projector Light and we didn't want to sacrifice any of that by changing around too many things in this next step."

GoboMan's Steve Hoffman agrees, "We've had such a great reaction to the original GP75 Gobo Projector, but from customer feedback, we knew that people would want a brighter unit so we started working to introduce this 100-watt version quickly. Our goal at GoboMan is to listen to our c

USA - Picture the band in a box, interior-decorated with 12 High End Systems DL.2 projections all around. That's the set design for The Tragically Hip, touring North America to promote their new CD World Container.

LD Brent Clark, says: "The DL.2 looks pretty cool and I was really surprised by the brightness and the edge blending. They are way brighter than I thought and creating the Collage (using Collage Generator software feature) on 12 of them a day is actually pretty easy. Also to be able to move the image around from the band to the house to the rear screens is so cool. DL.2 is an amazing light!"

Concerning the overall set design, Clark says: "The idea was to make a box (relating to the CD title World Container) and then project images from around the world. We contracted a company from Vancouver called The Collective to film all the content,

UK - Christie, a provider of visual solutions for business, entertainment and industry, launched the latest in its series of 3-Chip DLP HD resolution presentation products, the Christie Roadie HD+30K and Christie Roadster HD18K projectors at Integrated Systems Europe 2007. Providing a total of seven new, powerful models ranging from 5,000 to 30,000 ANSI lumens of brightness and 1,600-2,000:1 full field contrast ratio, Christie projectors power the most demanding presentations in boardrooms, houses of worship, post-production, broadcasting and rental/staging marketplaces.

The new Christie Roadie HD+30K projector generates 30,000 ANSI lumens of brightness at 2K resolution (2048 x 1080). Combined with extensive warranties and Christie service, the unit features a unique split-body design, a scooped hood for improved airflow, built-in rigging points and body handles or optional stac

UK - XL Video Uk supplied screens, cameras and PPU for two separate events at the recent Russian Winter Festival, staged in London's Trafalgar Square.

The Festival was organised by Eventica - a Russian-EU relations event management team - for the GLA. XL was working for production company Out Of The Blue for the first, a London v Moscow ice chess match, who in turn were brought onboard by PR company Freud Communications.

XL supplied one of their Barco B10 mobile trailer-mounted screens for the ice chess which took place live via a two-way satellite link between London and Pushkin Square in Moscow. The screen measured 10 square metres and was located right next to the action taking place on a giant chess board made from Steeldeck.

Team London was led by UK Grandmaster Nigel Short, the strongest British chess player of the 20th century, helped by author Peter Ackroyd and 8-yea

UK - The huge educational technology show BETT, the world's leading educational information & communications technologies (ICT) event, attracted 600 educational suppliers and over 28,000 visitors to Olympia for four days of innovation and inspiration.

Organised by EMAP, this year's event saw a significant trend towards live demonstrations and presentations on stands, according to Lauren Steadman, manager of PSL Exhibitions, the approved supplier of all audio-visual services for the event. "In the field of business-to-business (B2B) exhibitions, this is one of the busiest shows on our calendar. However, this year, we saw a significant rise in the number of sound systems and plasma screens we were providing for live events on the stands."

In addition to providing full AV facilities for more than 50 exhibitors, including Adobe, LEGO and Tomi, PSL serviced the four prese

The Netherlands - At the recent ISE Show in Amsterdam, the Dutch professional video distribution specialists Pixlvision, part of the Ampco / Flashlight Group, were appointed as distributors for Holland by two of the world's leading names in video technology - Altinex and Christie. In the case of Altinex the distributorship is exclusive. Pixlvision is headed by video industry specialists Hans Denekamp (sales manager) and Robert Kaarsmaker (account manager).

The company was appointed by Christie, the leading provider of visual solutions for business, entertainment and industry, as a distributor for the Netherlands from 1 February. It will handle the complete range of Christie's business products and solutions and provide full technical support to the Dutch marketplace.

Christie manufactures purpose-built systems for professional use. Over the last 30 years the company's systems

Italy - The Mole Antonelliana dominates the skyline of Turin. At over 167m, La Mole was the highest brick building in the world at the time of its completion and remains the tallest building in Turin. To celebrate International AIDS Day, architect Daniela Fabbris began a search to find a lighting fixture capable of projecting a logo directly on to La Mole from a terrace at a distance of 30m.

Alessandro Fantin from Vari*Lite distributor Audio Link explains: "During the meeting I had to personally guarantee that the VL3500Q spot would be able to project the standard colour of the red AIDS logo - as it was impossible to do tests due to the city location of La Mole and the webcams connected. A risky promise, but one I knew the fixture could deliver!"

The Turin government have embraced the project as previously the only logos that could be projected and seen on the brown

UK - Musion Systems, the projection technology behind the seminal video holograms of Sir Richard Branson, Madonna and virtual band Gorillaz, have installed the largest virtual 3D video hologram ever to appear in a single unit retail outlet - the projection of a full-size Toyota Auris family car spinning in mid-air, complete with a life-size human test driver.

The ground-breaking project at the Bluewater shopping centre in Kent was undertaken on behalf of Toyota GB in collaboration with creative agency Brandwidth Marketing and video production house Square Zero. High definition digital video projection of the 5m wide x 3m high image is achieved using a single Barco R12+ Performer fitted with a special high brightness short-throw lens and an HD digital interface card installed and configured by Barco UK. The image reflects from a Harkness Screens high contrast grey front projectio

UK - PLASA Events Ltd, the new wholly-owned events division of the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA), has revealed the first details of the PLASA07 Show at Earls Court - including a new layout that extends the show over one floor into both Earls Court 1 and Earls Court 2.

A host of innovations, based on exhibitor and visitor research, are designed to build on the show's reputation as the premier international new product showcase and PLASA Events anticipates a record number of new product launches this September.

The most radical development is the new show floor layout, which sees PLASA07 transformed into a two-hall, single-level show by expanding into the adjacent Earls Court 2. Essentially, this re-draw will secure premium exhibition space for the future growth and expansion of the show, whilst addressing industry and exhibitor demands.

The show design t

UK - XL Video has won its fourth Total Production International Award (TPi) for 'Favourite Video Services Company' of the Year. The 2007 TPi Awards - which recognise the industry's most innovative and ambitious technical, creative and production achievements - were presented at a ceremony in west London on 5 February.

The award was collected by members of the XL Video UK team. XL Video also won this coveted award in 2002, 2003 and 2005. XL UK's Chris Mounsor says: "Winning the 2007 Award means a huge amount to us, particularly as its voted on by our peers, giving it even more credibility and significance.

"The imaginative use of LED technologies has definitely stepped up a notch during 2006," says Mounsor, adding, "I'd also like to take the opportunity to thank all our crews and those out there representing us on the 'frontline', on tours, events and festiv

USA - The Long Reach Long Riders and The ESTA Foundation have announced their annual raffle to benefit Behind the Scenes at the USITT conference. This popular event will be held on 17 March at the Sapsis Rigging/ESG/Behind the Scenes booth (#525-625) on the trade show floor of the USITT conference in Phoenix. Tickets, which are $5 each or five for $20, may be purchased at the booth throughout the show.

Every dollar raised will be tripled thanks to challenge grants sponsored by I. Weiss and Sapsis Rigging. The list of twelve terrific raffle prizes, which have been donated by industry companies, can be viewed at www.lrlr.org/LRLRsponsors.html or www.estafoundation.org/bts/events_USITT.htm

All proceeds of the raffle go directly to The ESTA Foundation's Behind the Scenes programme, which provides entertainment technology industry members with grants for emergency situations, such

UAE - The announcement of the fourth all-star annual Dubai Desert Rock Festival at the 30,000-capacity Dubai Country Club in March, is having a profound effect on interest for May's Event 360 expo, an integral part of PALME Middle East.

According to Jonathan Gadalla, project manager for the vertically-integrated show, interest in live music is running at an all-time high in the desert, with international legends such as Iron Maiden, The Prodigy and Incubus heading a Festival line-up that will appear on one of the largest stages in the region. Also included are Junkyard Groove, the winners of SHAMAL (a competition for unsigned rock bands in the region).

Gadalla believes that the world is starting to take notice now that the Middle East is not only attracting leading names in the world of rock, but will also stage a second F1 Grand Prix (in Abu Dhabi) in 2009 - which will

UK - The ABTT Theatre Show's organisers - The Association of British Theatre Technicians - have announced that its 29th edition has sold out five months before it takes place on 13 and 14 June in London's Royal Horticultural Halls.

Filling all three exhibition halls in London's Royal Horticultural Halls to capacity, the show will again play host to over 100 exhibiting companies who will showcase a comprehensive range of products and services for professionals involved with equipping, refurbishing or up-grading their drama studio, theatre, auditorium or multi-purpose performance space.

Committed to building on the show's success the organisers aim to expand the show's attendance which grew by 5% last year to over 2,400 visitors, and included theatre and venue managers, technical directors, technicians, technical managers, heads of drama departments, architects, consultants, des

UK - When the plush new Bar Plazma in Wickford burnt down in October 2005 shortly after opening, it was hard to believe that it would re-emerge a little over a year later with an up-rated specification.

But the town centre venue, owned by experienced nightclub operator Douglas Quirk and managed by Alistair Burrell (who had safely evacuated all the staff and customers on that fateful October evening), has done precisely that.

Quirk, who made his name running the epochal Hollywood Romford in the 1980s, turned to fellow Essex contractors, Southend-based Essex Sound & Light and interior designer Colin Stone of Stone Me Design, to deliver a superior interior package. What they have produced is an upscale, all-day chameleon venue which trades from 11am until 11pm (midweek), 1am Thursday and 2am at weekends.

ESL were asked to carry out the technological integration in view of their

UK - XL Video chose one of the highest profile live TV events of the year - the 2007 Brit Awards - to launch its new high definition PPU.

The newly commissioned PPU is based around a Grass Valley HD Kayak mixer and GV LDK 8000 HD cameras, three of which XL supplied for the Brits. 10 further HD feeds from broadcasters CTV were also fed into the XL system which was used for the live stage IMAG mix, cut by Chris Hilson.

This was beamed onto a striking heart shaped high resolution LED screen centre stage and another large landscape shaped screen on stage left, upstage of one of the two performance areas. Both screens were also supplied by XL, built from Lighthouse R16 modules.

XL's two project managers were Chris Saunders and Paul Wood. Saunders managed the control side of the show, while Wood did the same for the screen elements. Both worked closely with technical

USA - The ESTA Foundation's Behind the Scenes announces the first two Challenge Grants during the USITT Annual Conference & Stage Expo. I. Weiss and Sapsis Rigging will both be sponsoring $5,000 challenge grants at the upcoming USITT Raffle, March 15 - 17 in Phoenix, Arizona. Thanks to both companies coming forward after the announcement of the Challenge Grant Program, every dollar donated at this year's USITT will triple in value.

Established challenge grant slots are still available for the Behind the Scenes / Long Reach Long Riders 2007 USITT Raffle, March 15 - 17 in Phoenix, Arizona at $5,000 each (four openings left) and The Long Reach Long Riders 2007 New England Charity Ride, July 29 - August 6 at $10,000 each (two openings).

David Rosenberg, president of I. Weiss, explains that it was an easy decision for his company. "We believe that we should be supportive of th

UK - 5 Star Cases has supplied Warwickshire-based conference production and installation company, Insight Presentation Systems, with a range of bespoke flightcases to house a wide variety of equipment - including lighting fixtures, TFT Screens, projectors, microphones and many more elements. Insight first encountered 5 Star at PLASA 2006 - drawn into the stand by their eye-catching fish-tank flightcase - and were immediately impressed with the diversity of 5 Star's ranges and the rugged build quality of the trunks.

Since then, 5 Star has manufactured and supplied a steady stream of cases to the AV specialist. These have been selected from 5 Star's recently-launched lightweight EX brand through to their robust and popular Tour Grade specification, and has also included bespoke cases for Doughty stands, PAR 64 floor cans and HP printers. The EX range is particularly suited to ligh

Dubai - Formed in August of last year, SGMedia's Live Events division has immediately made an impact on the UAE's events market, the company reports. Started by UAE-based businessman Steve Graham and production manager Nick Groves, the business stemmed from a need in the market place for a more personal touch within the live events market. "Our clients expect and require more than just a crew and equipment; they like to know that we are on the end of the phone 24/7 and are willing and able to assist them with all of their production needs," states Nick Groves, the managing partner of the events and special projects division.

"I think that the recent success lies in the personal touch. We take on the brief and follow it through from concept to completion. We then sit down with the client post-event and do a thorough 'post mortem'. It enables us to constantly improv

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