China - A new command room at the Emergency Centre for Environmental Protection in Guangxi Province, China, has been equipped with a large front-projection display wall from dnp Denmark, enabling the agency to better monitor and present the degree of pollution.

Eight 72" Supernova Infinity Screens were supplied by dnp distributors, Wincomn Technology, and installed by Wincomnpartner, JinYanjing Technology Co., Ltd, who had successfully bid for the contract.

The facility is used for emergency management and the solution was based around a display matrix of Supernova Infinity Screens in a 2 x 4 configuration. These were recommended for their high output in a brightly lit environment, in a 20m x 8m room offering minimum space.

The display, which fills most of the back wall, was optimised using low gain 08-85 screen material, for extreme viewing angles.

Wincomn met the ch

USA - This year's LDI Show proved a massive success for coolux and its multifaceted Pandoras Box product family. The positive feedback that coolux received for their new Pandoras Box Version 5 release was crowned with additional honours in the form of two prestigious awards.

The coolux Widget Designer PRO 3.0 was awarded the Parnelli Indispensable Technology of the Year Award and the PLASA Rock Our World Award.

The Rock Our World Awards were created to honour innovative achievement by PLASA members and to acknowledge the genius of both the creator of the technology and the designer or integrator who applies it in a real world environment.

The Parnelli Award "recognizes pioneering, influential professionals and their contributions, honouring both individuals and companies."

The ongoing award success highlights the flexibility and reliability offered by the coolux

USA - Monterey Jazz Festival organisers decided that 2011 was the year they would bring performances from the venerable festival to a global audience through the power of streaming media. The decision paid off as the festival and two media partners reported impressive online viewing statistics for performers including the Robert Glasper Experiment, Carmen Souza and the Benny Green Trio.

Streaming media and content delivery provider StreamGuys provided the Internet broadcast services for the 54th Monterey Jazz Festival. Evening performances from the Night Club/Bill Berry Stage were hosted live over the websites of the Monterey Jazz Festival and Santa Cruz-based NPR member station KUSP-FM. Popular NPR jazz music blog 'A Blog Supreme' also hosted the performances.

StreamGuys delivered H.264 video and AAC+ audio at varying bit rates to support an array of user speeds and media pla

UK - Southampton's new Sea City visitor attraction has selected Sysco AV for the contract to design, supply and install the entire audio visual system requirements for the new attraction.

Opening in 2012 at a total cost of £15m, the new visitor attraction will celebrate Southampton's 2,000-year history as a global maritime port. It will be housed in the city's Grade II Old Magistrates Court and completed in April 2012, in time to commemorate the centenary of the Titanic leaving Southampton. It is anticipated that over 120,000 visitors each year will visit the attraction and immerse themselves in the story of the city and its most famous ship.

Sea City will be home to three galleries, two permanent and one temporary, with Sysco responsible for the design, engineering and installation of all the audio visual and interactive elements. The first permanent gallery, Gateway

UK - Michael Forever - The Tribute Concert in Cardiff's Millennium Stadium featured Michael Jackson's greatest hits performed live by Beyoncé, Cee Lo Green, and Christina Aguilera, as well as a number of Michael Jackson's siblings.

On behalf of the Bristol-based TV production company Iambic, Dutch facilities company UNITED was charged with recording the concert. The challenges for Bolke Burnaby Lautier, manager operations sports and events, and his approximately 55-strong team were many, and included a very tight set-up schedule and the need to record the show in 3D format, so enormous importance was attached to ensuring flawless communication between all members of the production team.

The appropriate communications infrastructure was provided by equipment from RTS/Telex, the nerve centre being an RTS Advanced Digital Audio Matrix (ADAM) with a 144 x 144 port configura

UK / USA - MediaMatrix by Peavey has announced the new nTouch Series control interfaces, consisting of touch-screen interactive controllers designed for remotely controlling audio systems designed in MediaMatrix NWare software for the NION platform.

The nTouch 180 and nTouch 60 feature full-colour, resistive touch-screen panels that measure approximately 7" (180 mm) and 2.4" (60 mm) diagonally, respectively. The nTouch panels display and control projects hosted on a MediaMatrix NION or nControl processor.

Based on an Intel Atom N270 CPU, the nTouch 180 controller runs an embedded version of NWare Kiosk software for NION, the control arm of NWare system design software. System designers can programme the nTouch in NWare and then control an audio project designed in NWare from a remote location. Once the nTouch is programmed, it runs independently of external computers

Belgium - Creative Technology (CT) has announced a major new purchase agreement with Belgium based Barco.

CT has committed to a spend of over US$ 11m across their European and US operations which will result in a phased delivery of a number of products based on the existing C Series platform but with significant technical enhancements developed by Barco in consultation with CT.

The first product, the C5, which will be available to CT at the end of2011, is a new black face, indoor display offering a 10% resolution premium over the most established 6mm products on the market. A flown weight of less than 40kgper m², integral concave and convex curving, no fans (resulting in silent operation) and Barco's NNI interface allowing full integration with the DX700 processing unit provide a sample of some of the technical features of the new products.

"The past couple of years, w

China - Medialon has been selected by ECA2 to be the main show control system on the Mangrove Groove aquatic show, a 38-minute multimedia show in Octbay, Shenzhen, China.

ECA2 - a French-based company specialising in creating and producing major events and shows around the world - designed and produced Mangrove Groove show, with probably the world's largest aquatic stage which covers an area of 5,600sqm.

Every evening, up to 5,000 spectators can celebrate the return of the birds "in an amazing decor dedicated to the mangrove". The artistic and technological challenges represent the forces of nature, staging the four elements merged with the magic of captivating images, with water, fire, lighting, video and air effects, all entirely controlled and synchronized by a Medialon Manager PRO Show Control system.

Thanks to Medialon Manager Panel, free user in

UK - PLASA is hosting an informal get together on Thursday 8 December for all manufacturing members. The aim is to have an open discussion on the key areas of exporting and product copying/IP and to create an opportunity for manufacturers to share ideas and experiences.

James Gordon of DiGiCo will chair the meeting and introduce a number of members who will outline their own experiences, before things move to an open discussion to see how members can share information and how PLASA can provide practical support.

The meeting, which is free to attend, will take place in the Roberts Building at University College London from 4pm-7pm, followed, by Christmas drinks at a nearby pub.

If you'd like to attend or want further information, please e-mail feedback@plasa.org

(Claire Beeson)

USA - On 9 and 10 November Green Hippo Hippotizers and staff were in attendance at this year's Worship Facilities Expo at the Dallas Convention Centre in Texas.

Located in downtown Dallas, the Convention Centre plays host to a variety of events and installs ranging from exhibitions and museums to cultural centres and concerts. This month saw Halls D-F taken over by technology companies and churches of different denominations and sizes. Presented by Church Production magazine and Worship Facilities magazine the exhibition provided an opportunity for key people from both sectors to meet and greet.

For Green Hippo's Samantha Bailey and Tom Etra this was a new experience. "Our move into this sector is still at the early stages but we are very committed. TMB, our distributor for the Americas, has already made good progress into this market; a couple of churches i

Denmark - Neets A/S, a specialist in developing and selling control systems for AV-equipment has introduced introduce the Neets Control - Alfa.

Neets Control - AlFa is the company's largest and most sophisticated system as well as the first dedicated 19" rack mount AV controller in the Neets product range. Developed with ease of installation in mind, the AlFa provides comprehensive AV system control in advanced auditoriums and conference rooms with only one touch of a button.

Neets Control - AlFa is controlled from an Apple iOS or Android touch device or by computers with Safari or Chrome browsers. Using the Neets Project Editor software, users can create their own custom-designed graphical user interfaces. The system controls the connected devices through RS-232, IR, LAN and dedicated I/O. Integration of the touch device makes off-site control possible simply by accessin

Spain - Christie has announced the opening of a Spanish branch in Madrid. Christie's new office is located in Boadilla del Monte, a town just 14.5 kilometres outside Madrid, and right next to Ciudad de la Imagen, an office and audiovisual leisure complex which is home to many TV channels, audiovisual producers, multiplexes, postproduction companies, film schools, audiovisual industry associations and film archives.

With a total surface area of 500sq.m, the new branch hosts a large showroom displaying Christie's latest technologies and products, including projectors and videowalls. It also has several rooms set aside for staging live demos, commercial meetings, seminars and training courses, plus a space dedicated to technical services. The new facility is also available to Christie's clients and partners for their own use.

Christie's Iberic branch will be headed by Marcos Fern

UK - Earlier this year, Lighthouse LED screens were chosen by Carphone Warehouse Group (CPW), Europe's largest independent mobile phone retailer, for its building at Portal Way in London. The building faces in-bound London traffic on the busy A40 and the screen is being utilised by the company as an advertising medium.

The installation comprises 24 x 5 panels of Lighthouse's new Impact 12 and measures 18.5 m (w) x 5.8m (h). This innovative solution has 6000 nits of brightness, which makes it suitable for viewing behind glass and in direct sunlight, as at Portal Way, and the large panel size (each one measures 768mm (h) x 1152mm (h)) made installation a quick and easy process.

"CPW has owned the building for a number of years," explains head of finance, Rob Murray. "It was originally occupied by TalkTalk, which was part of our group at the time, and they had a su

UK - LED screen brand Pixled has significantly expanded its range of portable, lightweight screen surfaces.

The P-6 is a high resolution lightweight dynamic tile, offering 2000 Nits of brightness, available with either white or black faced SMD's, and a true 6 mm, budget friendly product, suitable for rental and staging companies and fixed installations.

Flex-10 is a newly developed ultra-thin flexible display module, currently available in 6 and 10 mm resolutions for convex and concave fixed installations. The bendable Flex-10 LED display opens many new possibilities for LED usage, says the company. It can be bent and flexed to fit curved surfaces of almost any shape or form, both convex and concave as well as horizontally and vertically.

The F-50C/F-75C/F-150C Soft Curtain LED "makes ideal stage backdrops and has great imaginative potential including for the cladding o

UK - XL Video UK supplied specialist LED and IMAG projection screens plus control to the 2011 MTV European Music Awards, staged at Belfast Odyssey Arena, Northern Ireland, and broadcast live to 45 countries worldwide.

The live music video production specialist has been involved with this high profile event for several years, and XL's Chris Saunders was project managing for the third year running.

The show included a dynamic, star studded line up of artists performing live, including Lady GaGa, Coldplay, Bruno Mars, Jesse J, Justin Bieber, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Selina Gomez, who was also hosting.

Technical challenges included fitting an ambitious and visually spectacular stage set designed by Es Devlin - complete with integrated screens - into the venue. Also the XL team had to be flexible enough to accommodate specific requests from some artists late on as their ind

UK - Ross Ashton and The Projection Studio's Crown of Light projected artwork on Durham Cathedral- created for the 2009 Lumière - is back by popular demand for this year's four-day festival of light event, which is curated and produced by Artichoke for Durham City Council.

Lumière 2011 features the work of dozens of artists, lighting designers and community groups in 35 installations, bringing a "sparkle of magic" to the medieval city.

Says Ashton, "It's a real testament to the piece and very flattering to be asked back with the same show. It's also extremely rare for the same creation to be requested again in its entirety, offering those who enjoyed the experience the first time around the chance to do so again, a new audience the opportunity to see it for the first time plus real value for the producers."

(Jim Evans)

Canada - DJW has supplied, installed and programmed a wealth of equipment at Fort Edmonton Park, Canada's largest living history site on the bank of the North Saskatchewan River.

Thanks to the production team led by Rob Wyatt of Artisan Design, visitors to the park are able to gain a much better understanding of how Edmonton developed through the ages; from the ice age, man inhabiting the planet, Canadian first peoples to the arrival of early settlers and coming up to the date of the Capitol Theatre on the 1920's street and life in Edmonton in the 1920's.

The project is centred around the park's re-creation of Edmonton's original Capitol Theatre. Walking through the theatre's lobby, past framed pictures on the wall, which in fact show '1920's moving pictures', hearing the voice of a 1920's actress over the speaker, guests are ushered into the 250 seat theatre, complete with lu

Russia - Summer 2011 has seen the rise of the new Green Centre in the city of Orël in Russia, a multi-purpose building that aims to be a major point of congregation for the city.

The structure is designed to accommodate sporting events, concerts, exhibitions and theatrical performances. Therefore the lighting had to be versatile to adapt to different types of events.

The technical requirements of the client regarding the lighting design, foresaw several important points that had to be met. The choice of equipment was carried out through a careful selection, comparing various brands of projectors, made available by the Russian retailers.

The choice fell upon Coemar products, including 20 Infinity Wash XL 1400W, with zoom range from 5° to 84°, to ensure a uniform illumination throughout the hall; 12 Infinity Spot M, which scored the highest in the weight, compactness

China - ArKaos has been instrumental in the Centenary Celebrations of Tsinghua University, Beijing.

Tsinghua University, China's famous school of higher education and internationally recognised as one of the leading universities in mainland China, is located on the west side of Beijing and surrounded by beautiful scenery.

The university is well known in China for its famous alumni, such as the President, Hu Jingtao, the Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Yang Zhenning, and many other scientists and writers.

To mark 2011 as the centennial anniversary for Tsinghua, a ceremony was staged on 24 April in Beijing, which was attended by most of the Chinese political leaders.

Lighting and stage designer Mr. Sha Xiaolan contributed to the celebration by setting up a huge stage with a spectacular visual show driven by ShowPower's MTL media servers running ArKaos MediaMaster Pro.

It was the f

Germany - wysiwyg software suite from CAST Software of Toronto was recently the 'steering force' of the creative vision behind the 125th anniversary of the first car. Autosymphonic was held on 10 September, 2011 in Mannheim, Germany, the birthplace of the car, invented by Carl Benz in 1886.

The event was a g kaleidoscope of lights, video, sound and lasers delighting approximately 17,000 visitors. The multimedia-based event told the story of the development of the automobile and provided a glimpse into its future.

The celebration featured 80 automobiles with an accompanying orchestra, choir and the Söhne Mannheims pop group. The young singers, amongst them Xavier Naidoo, opened the evening with their own songs and accompanied the SWR Baden-Baden and Freiburg Symphony Orchestra and the SWR vocal ensemble throughout the symphony.

The automobiles, representing a variety

UK - Buckinghamshire-based Universal Event Productions (UEP) has recently invested in a batch of the new i-Pix Satellite MkII LED fixtures as well as i-Pix' popular BB4 LED wash lights to service its busy on-going schedule of corporate and live events.

UK-based specialist LED manufacturer i-Pix launched the new Satellite Mk II LED 'brick' lightsource at the 2011 PLASA Light & Sound exhibition in September.

This was five years after the launch of the original Satellite, which was the then new company's debut product, and rapidly became a trend-setting massive best seller worldwide.

Universal Events purchased 24 of the original Satellite products when they came to the market in 2006. They have been in constant use - and are still going strong today, "They have been an absolutely essential element and a constant workhorse product in our hire inventory," confirms UEP's

UK - The UK government has more than doubled the budget available for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies - from £40m to £81m.

The increase, which was announced in the latest London 2012 quarterly economic report by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), comes from the £9.3bn public purse, which is in theory meant for building, infrastructure and security, while the ceremonies is paid for from the privately-raised funds of the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games - money raised from the IOC, ticket sales and sponsorship.

In the DCMS report, Hugh Robertson MP, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, says: "The ceremonies for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are a unique opportunity to portray a positive image of the UK to a huge potential global audience - an estimated 1 billion people watched the openi

Denmark - In October 2011, Legoland in Billund, Denmark, offered a variety of Halloween-themed activities, competitions and special shows. As part of the spooky fun, Legoland dressed up its King's Castle in Halloween-themed colours and graphics, including animated images from energy-efficient, LED-based Martin Professional Exterior 400 Image Projectors.

Projected onto the King's Castle's turrets were a variety of themed images - ghosts, skeletons, jack-o'-lanterns and bats - up to six images per luminaire with creative options such as image rotation, dynamic focus and dimming. The Exterior 400 Image Projector's interchangeable colour slots allowed each image to change colour up to eight times, adding a further dynamic element to the ghostly atmosphere.

At over 7000 lumens of power, the Exterior 400 Image Projector had no problem handling the 40m projection throws, and the fixt

UK - Paradigm AV will have a powerful presence at BETT 2012 (11-14 January, London Olympia).

After securing the contract to provide well over 200 dnp Supernova Core optical screens for primary and secondary schools in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, the company will be showcasing the power of this front projection platform - possibly in 3D as well as 2D.

Paradigm AV also represents GestureTek, gesture-controlled technology in the UK - which is proving increasingly popular in schools, particularly those with special educational needs.

One of the more recent innovations has been the GestureTek Cube, which will be on display at BETT. This is a compact, turnkey, 'plug and play' interactive portable interactive floor. The latest version projects entertaining games and special effects in a larger, higher resolution image, onto virtually any floor, enabling children to

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