Rigging / Staging

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14 March 2016

A platform to showcase fashion's future rising stars and known for launching careers of the likes of Stella McCartney and Julien MacDonald, this year's GFW attracted over 25,000 guests, hosted 20 catwalk shows and showcased over 40 talented universities.

The annual event, in its 23rd year, made the move to the edgier East End, deciding on the Old Truman Brewery as its new venue. Blackout's experienced rigging and draping team were called in to install two catwalk structures; one using ground supported truss and the other flown using 10 half ton motors.

"The two catwalks were held in completely difference spaces, Catwalk A was upstairs in a much lighter room with skylights and Catwalk B was located on the ground floor," explaine

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14 March 2016

The Temptation tour, which travelled from Wolverhampton Civic Hall and finished at The O2 Dublin in April, replaced cancelled shows from 2013 and showcased music from his Disc-Overy album and the more mature grime-pop sounds from his recent album Demonstration.

LS-Live welcomed the opportunity to work with Tinie Tempah and the team once again to design, build and modify the set at its arena-sized rehearsal unit. LS-Live designer Gaz Mallon worked closely with show designer Anthony Randall and production manager Phil Broad to ensure their creative vision was aptly brought to life for the relatively brief, but big-bite, tour.

Said Gaz, "They wanted to create the look of an underground, grimy car park, like those you find beneath city apartment block

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14 March 2016

But to ensure the venue could play host to the spectacular musical phenomenon, it needed a little assistance from the team at Unusual Rigging, specifically to make the grid of the King's compatible with the magnitude and distribution of suspension points required for the show.

Gavin Snelling, project manager at Unusual Rigging, said, "The main problem in staging Wicked at the King's Theatre was the overall weight of the show. The King's grid was not strong enough to provide the suspension points required and so Unusual was brought on board by Mike Jackson, ATG's external consulting engineer, to install an array of ste

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14 March 2016

TSL have decided to establish a separate rigging division to focus on a wide range of projects, requiring equipment rental, design and specification. TSL's MD Sam Tamplin commented, "We are glad to have Tim's experience and skill to add to our team and to focus on growing our capabilities in the rigging market."

Tim Roffey added, "I am excited to be involved with TSL, as they continue to expand as a brand and operation. TSL's commitment to investing in quality equipment and their high production values are smoothing I am proud to be associated with. I am looking forward to getting i

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14 March 2016

The company is headed by two industry professionals - Cristiano Giavedoni and Amedeo Guizzi. They bring many years of experience and a vast knowledge of the professional entertainment industry to the equation as well as their respective individual areas, plus imagination and an innovative approach.

Amedeo is a structural, mechanical and materials engineer with extensive experience working for high profile live entertainment projects. He is a skilled performer flying project & technical manager and has been technical director for numerous live shows and festivals.

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14 March 2016

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14 March 2016

Speaking of Mathew's appointment, Laurence Dyer, Doughty's UK sales representative, said, "In the short time that Mathew has been with us, we've already noted his great potential. He hit the ground running on day one and has demonstrated his excellent customer service skills, expertly dealing with some very challenging customer requests. Being a full time member of the export department, Mathew's skills and experience will allow me to focus on carrying out my customer facing role to greater effect, which will inevitably lead to a better experience for both new and existing clients."

Mathew, who was previously with K-Tech R

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14 March 2016

Over the last three years, Dirty Rigger have worked closely with one of the UK's largest crew service suppliers, Crewsaders. By sending in a selection of new, existing and under development rigger wear to be worn by the Crewsaders team, Dirty Rigger have been able to closely monitor the performance of their gloves throughout the varied industries in which Crewsaders work.

From event security to rigging crew, the trained Crewsaders staff have provided report sheets which help to pinpoint any weaknesses in the gloves and identify areas of possible improvement.

Dirty Rigger's Steve Ma

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14 March 2016

Brian Logan, Eve's divisional manager in the North, comments, "The breadth and depth of sporting events in Scotland this summer is unprecedented. It's hugely exciting to be involved, in and around Glasgow and at Gleneagles, alongside our traditional work."

The Ryder Cup, which pitches the cream of European golf talent against the United States, comes to Scotland in September, for the first time since 1973, and Eve has committed new trakway panels to the project.

Edward Kitson, match director, Ryder Cup Europe, comments, "We have had a very good working relationship with Eve, built up over years of service at the Scottish Open, so we know they always put an outstanding team on s

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14 March 2016

The range of complementary modular products was showcased on the Doughty stand and has been designed to allow designers to quickly create robust and professional lighting or scenic structures of varying drops and shapes.

Accepting the award from Olivier award winning actor Lesley Manville, Julian Chiverton, sales director of Doughty, said, "Until now, the Drop Arms, H Frames and T Bars have only been seen in prototype form. so we really weren't expecting to be in the running for this award. But feedback on the stand from lighting designers and others has been amazing and we're honoured that our new range has grabbed the attention of so many of our peers and industry exp

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14 March 2016

The racks are manufactured using extra thick steel and are powder coated. The units come with SES's new Digital meter and complemented with two LED rack lights which are new to the SES range. The racks are fully engraved to indicate all the outgoing functions and have the customers Logo, which is now a standard feature on all 19" racks where space allows.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Utopium's hire and sales manager Ben Knowles commented, "It was great to work with the festival organisers putting together the full scale production to ensure it translated for every element of the event.

"It was also a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase our new lighting technology live for the first time. We supplied six SGM X-5 LED Strobes, 12 Chauvet Legend 419 Washlights, 16 Chauvet 230 SR Beams and 18 Chauvet Nexus 4 x 4 panels, which allow f

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14 March 2016

Katy Perry toured across the UK with 75m of Mojo Barriers' patented aluminium stage barrier, configured to follow the layout of the singer's v-shaped stage which was designed to reflect her latest album's title, Prysm. The layout, designed by Mojo Barriers' CAD specialists in cooperation with Perry's production team, featured a secondary barrier line within the 'v', used to create a custom 'golden circle' for fans to get up close and personal to the Roar star.

Justin Timberlake's 20/20 Experience toured with 18m of Mojo's stage barriers to provide crowd control solutions across all of its UK and European dates. The tour also engaged Mojo B

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14 March 2016

Over 5,000 visitors queued up to admire 250 classic racing cars registered for the race which recalled the golden age of BMW, Ford, Porsche and Jaguar to name a few. 15 lighting balloons from Airstar's Lunix range were deployed and used for various purposes including decoration, space filling, lighting and signage.

With a diameter ranging between 2 and 2.5m, all 15 balloons were inflated with helium and contained a couple of 1kW halogen lamps, with one exception: a gigantic 10m wide balloon suspended in the mi

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14 March 2016

"SimTread lets Vectorworks users design with confidence by identifying crowded areas and factors that inhibit or change circulation flow," said Dr. Biplab Sarkar, chief technology officer at Nemetschek Vectorworks.

"It therefore expedites the iterative design process and helps to determine the best designs for safe traffic flows. Plus, several new features enhance SimTread's crowd movement simu

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14 March 2016

These are being used to house a variety of different monitors and screens that are in active service on major events and broadcast projects. The order comprised casing for 110 x 42 inch screens, 90 x 32 inch screens and 50 x 22 inch screens.

The cases were delivered in just a few days from the Cambridgeshire based manufacturer, while its specialist bag making facility - which has just been expanded to meet increased demands - was kept busy for around three weeks, as the bags are all individually hand-made and finished to order.

The cases and bags were purchased to refresh a whole raft of the protective cases and packaging for CT's television projects. They will be put

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14 March 2016

Mark Fisher, senior account manager at Eve, comments, "Our teams are well versed in top tier cycling events, having worked on the London 2012 Road Races and the 2007 Grand Départ, so we're really looking forward to it."

As an official supplier to London 2012, Eve delivered and installed all the crowd control barriers for the Olympic road events.

The company has invested a record £14m to add to its already market-leading stocks since, and new kit will be roadside for the Grand Départ contracts with WRG Live and Innovision.

Eve barriers will keep cyclists and fans safe as the Tour passes through Yorkshire towns such as Harewood, Otley and Skipton, Elland, Huddersfield and

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14 March 2016

Litestructures will handle the manufacture of LiteConsole in the UK with Gear4DJs managing the distribution worldwide from its brand new warehouse (opening summer 2014). Nick McGeachin, the driving force behind LiteConsole, will be fully focused in the new company on increasing sales and continuing development of the product platform.

Gear4DJs will add specific dedicated back office LiteConsole staff to support Nick, the growing network of official dealers, and to provide direct customer support. Nick McGeachin said, "This initiative represents a wonderful new dawn for LiteConsole. As all

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14 March 2016

There has always been a special atmosphere around Glastonbury Festival, emanating from the tightknit team assembled around organisers Michael Eavis, his daughter Emily and her husband Nick . Enteetainment are in constant touch throughout the year's planning that goes into constructing the world's most famous festival stages and their associated production, ensuring the 135,000-strong audience enjoys the 51 bands appearing on these two stages across the weekend.

The core team comprises Dick Tee, head of production, along with daughter Frankie Tee, (in the role of Pyramid stage office manager) working her seventh year, Amy Harmsworth (operations and logistics manager Pyramid and Other Stage) working at her 13th Glastonbur

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14 March 2016

Festival director, John Probyn, who has described the event as the best one yet, comments, "Eve is critical at Download, due to its wide list of products and its knowledge of the venue and all the unique limitations a race track presents."

Eve account manager, Ben Chambers, said, "John has put a top team together in the production office and across the site in terms of suppliers. There's a really progressive approach at Download and it's a pleasure to be a part of."

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Stufish designed the three-dimensional diamond-shaped 'skate park' with multiple performer levels that spread across the 54m wide x 21m deep main stage. The set incorporates pairs of ego- and band-risers, perimeter ramps and screamers arranged either side of a steep central slope, which rakes upstage at a 19° angle to a height of 4.5m, and is fronted by a 34m long skate thrust to the B-stage.

Brilliant Stages designed and built the decking and supporting framework for the walkways and risers, along with scarlet powder-coated aluminium access stairs and onstage treads,

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14 March 2016

Triple E's managing director David Edelstein awarded the TDRIVE prize to two Guildhall students, Seb Matthews, and Sam Gosling, who rigged one of Triple E's popular motorised Unitrack systems the fastest. The ABTT competition was held as part of Triple E's 30th birthday celebrations, and attracted a lot of interest. Other participants included the Brit School, Imperial College, and Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and teams from Flint Hire and Supply and Northern Light.

Guildhall's Seb and Sam completed the rigging challenge in 11 minutes 50 seconds - a full one minute 10 seconds faster

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14 March 2016

The tour's spectacular scenic aspects and lighting have been designed by show directors Lee Lodge and Willie Williams and LD Mark Cunniffe.

Lighting includes three eye-catching chandeliers above the stage, each constructed from three concentric semi-circular trusses and flown on a total of nine points per chandelier. These are driven into numerous different positions by Liftket motors fitted with Kinesys Elevation 1+ drive units - giving 27 axis of automation in total.

The chandeliers are made from custom HUD style trussing manufactured by Thomas, which allows all the attached lighting

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14 March 2016

Automation CPD Training course: Automation for the Entertainment Industry in one of the newest, fully-automated theatres in the UK - the Guildhall School's new building Milton Court. The training is delivered by practicing automation specialists from Stage Technologies and comprises a mixture of hands-on practice and theory.

The Automation for the Entertainment Industry course is suitable for those pursuing a career in automation as well as technical theatre graduates and professionals in other backstage industries, such as lighting and sound, who are looking to increase their skills and knowledge.

The course aims to provide students with a thorough introduction to automation and eChameleon software: from control basics and theory through to grid work and complex moves, and two dimension