Rigging / Staging

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14 March 2016

PLASA London is delighted to have secured some of the most informative and interesting speakers it has ever had for this year's show. Particular highlights include Britannia Row's sessions, which take a close look at education and industry in this fast maturing sector and the keynote presentation from Pixar Director of Photography Danielle Feinberg and Adobe's Niels Stevens showing off the very latest developments in their Creative Cloud content creation tools and services.

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14 March 2016

First, Formula E chose Acorn to supply a range of temporary infrastructure at the inaugural London E Prix, which took place in Battersea Park. The layout of the London park, and in particular the tree-lined avenues that made up the circuit, led the organiser to choose tiered viewing platforms instead of traditional grandstand seating. Acorn provided 50 viewing platforms, totaling over 4,000m2 and providing enhanced viewing positions for 12,000 spectators.

To allow spectators across the track and into the infield, Acorn supplied six pedestrian bridges at strategic points around the circuit. Utilising the Layher Bridging System, each bridge had a unique configuration, the largest of which spanned ov

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14 March 2016

"To be honest I can't work without it," said Kyle Nel, owner of AVS Hire. "The flight cases are getting bigger and heavier, I guess that's just the aim of the game."

AVS Hire chose the foldable ramp for ease of storage and manageability. This is particularly useful when a crew member is alone at the office at irregular hours for load in or strike.

"My ramp serves a second purpose," explains Kyle. "When required, it can be used as a wheelchair ramp for 400 - 600mm high stages, albeit a bit steep on the higher stages. Guests in wheelchairs and their assistances love it because it's

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14 March 2016

Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald are making their way across Europe on a 51 date tour; their first as a three-piece band. Renowned for their impressive production - think Progress Tour's OM Robot - the 2015 tour is no different, with a myriad of standout moments to make the crowd go 'wow'.

One of these is the moment when the 'under-the-sea' scene is revealed to the audience, complete with psychedelic jellyfish.

Looking for a way to keep the scene change hidden from the audience, Take That's production team - led by Chris Vaughan - contacted Blackout. The company's in-house fabrications department manufactured two 38m wide by 17m drop white poly-lined drapes.

On a curved truss, the dr

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14 March 2016

"Asking 'What do women want?' was key to the success," said Dirty Rigger designer Jess Morris. "It had been apparent for a while that the colour pink was by many deemed as stereotypical or even sexist, especially in such a male dominated industry. Another common issue of the traditionally bright ladies rigger gloves was their indiscreet nature, often standing out when working backstage where the idea is, of course, to be as unseen as possible during a performance. These issues meant many women were resorting to wearing men's gloves, often too long and too wide in the finger even in smaller sizes. These areas were all something we neede

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14 March 2016

Mark Chorley said, "Little did we know when we launched the Modular Rigging System last autumn, just how popular it was going to be. We thought orders may decrease as time went by but on the contrary our workers have never been busier as word spreads and lighting designers realise just how innovative these drop arms and h frames allow them to be."

The TIG welding lathe is used to TIG Weld 'round components' made from aluminium. At Doughty specifically, the machine welds all items within the Modular Rigging range as well as the company's boom arms. Elimin

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14 March 2016

MGR Fluid Power ensured that the RSC's performance of Othello went off without any last minute glitches after it sourced 14 custom-designed hydraulic cylinders for the main stage, in a matter of days before opening night. The company was called in at the last minute to ensure that the stage hydraulics were capable of moving the stage in the way that the performance dictated.

Far from being a simple task, the brief for MGR Fluid Power was to source and supply cylinder components to exact specifications, and to ensure the hydraulics operated smoothly. The rams for the cylinders were flanged with stainless rods, operating under v

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14 March 2016

The Rigging Services-branded load shackles are 3.25t capacity and feature bespoke multiple wireless load cell controller (SW-MWLC) software. They are installed on 12 overhead cranes, which travel on gantries and I-beams that cover the entire floorspace.

The load shackle installation represents a landmark project for both Rigging Services and Straightpoint. The Bob and Tamar Manoukian Production Workshop is a state-of-the-art, purpose-built facility and home to scenic painters, carpenters a

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14 March 2016

Set in its own fantasy festival town, Boomtown boasts nine different districts with winding streets and a host of bespoke entertainment venues, including a casino, hotel, hairdressers and roller disco. BoomTown Fair is now in its seventh year and this year will witness performances from Mungos Hi-fi, John Butler Trio, Dreadzone and a host of other artists across 22 main stages.

Kevin Thorborn, Mojo Barriers' UK manager commented: "

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14 March 2016

A co-production of Dundee Rep, Graeae Theatre Company and Derby Theatre, the production toured at the beginning of the year. Renowned for the ability to lay flat almost instantly from the roll and just as easy to roll up for storage, Harmony Gloss made an ideal touring performance floor.

"We were very pleasantly surprised how well the floor stood up to the heavy use as we expected a high gloss floor like that to start showing signs of wear and tear much more," says Nils Den Hertog, head of production, Dundee Rep Theatre. "As it was, with regular cleaning, it lasted right through till the end of the run."

(Jim E

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14 March 2016

"I joined Triple E at a very exciting time," says Alex. "Last year, the company celebrated three decades of innovation in design and things are far from slowing down. In fact we are working on a wealth of new products and upgrades to existing track and motor designs, as well as ModTruss, which is now ready for action in the UK. We're looking firmly to the future."

David Edelstein comments: "We're thrilled to have Alex on board. He brings an enormous amount of knowledge and passion for design to Triple E, which is already proving invaluable. Together with Alex, we look forward to bringing more of the innovative track and motor so

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14 March 2016

Dave, a 20+ year veteran of the industry, passed away in July after suffering a massive stroke in late June. His employer, Stuart Gibbons of Le Mark, said: "To say that Dave will be sorely missed by many would be an understatement.

"His career in the entertainment industry had encompassed many skills and experiences from his early days with Stage Electrics through to his time at Lighting Technology, before joining Le Mark in 2010.

"Dave had enjoyed many successes during his career. To become a part of the London 2012 Olympics Openi

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14 March 2016

Unusual Rigging is confirmed as the conference's Platinum sponsor for the third consecutive year, while Outback Rigging makes a welcome return as Gold sponsor.

"Rigging is an essential aspect of almost every event but, as productions increase in scale, size and complexity, so do the consequences of getting it wrong," says Alan Jacobi, managing director at Unusual Rigging. "Unusual Rigging wholeheartedly supports conferences such as this. It's imperative that we, as an industry, keep the debate fresh in order t

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14 March 2016

Control Protocols Working Group

BSR E1.31 - 20xx, Entertainment Technology - Lightweight streaming protocol for transport of DMX512 using ACN

This standard describes a mechanism to transfer DMX512-A packets over a TCP/IP network using a subset of the ACN protocol suite. It covers data format, data protocol, data addressing, and network management It also outlines a synchronization method to help ensure that multiple sinks can process this data concurrently w

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14 March 2016

HFL:CDM was established in July 2015 as a direct response to customer demand for CDM consultancy for event and festival projects but has already been selected to provide these for major events sectors such as steam rally events and corporate parties.

HFL:CDM's director, Barry Hird, commented, "Following the changes to the CDM regulations in 2015, and the resultant increasing demand for CDM advice and services within the event sector, HFL-CDM was set up not only for general construction and process engineering clients but also for those organising medium and large scale events - a niche field requiring construction, engineering, H&S, exp

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14 March 2016

While the majority of J&C Joel's clients can be found in the world of entertainment - from West End productions to TV shows, right through to school productions - the company can also turn its hand to projects in community spaces such as sports halls and conference centres, installing drapes and tracks for varied uses.

Most recently J&C Joel's expertise has been applied to Serco Leisure's Lilleshall National Sports and Conferencing Centre (Lilleshall NSC) in Shropshire and Queens Sports Club in Halifax.

Lilleshall NSC is a residential training centre often used by the Great British Gymnastics team. The centre, which offers a range of sporting facilities for hire, is used by both professionals and the general public.

To enable the main sports hal

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14 March 2016

In light of the above and after 17 years as PLASA's chief executive officer, Matthew Griffiths has decided that now is the right time to step aside which would help kick start and facilitate a fresh set of ideas and approaches needed for the next chapter in PLASA's dev

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14 March 2016

To ensure everything possible was done to guarantee the safety of the structure, Colin Luke,senior project manager at Oswestry-based Load Cell Rental, was asked to supply a way of monitoring the stage weights during the build.

Following conversations with the event organisers, Load Cell Rental supplied a 20 cell BroadWeigh system. Colin said, "Following a spate of high profile events where temporary stages have collapsed, it was vital to leave no stone unturned in order to ensure the concert made the headlines for only the right reasons. No respectable concert organiser can afford to ignore the loadings on temporary structures and the BroadWeigh system is the perfect tool for the job."

The BroadWeigh load monitor

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14 March 2016

"Rigging Team has outgrown our current locations and it's now time to gather together under one roof," says operations manager Claire Gilligan, who has the task of coordinating the move. "It's not often companies get the luxury of a blank slate when it comes to organising warehouse space, the Stevenage office and warehouse has come at just the right time for us."

Director Adam Searle comments, "Our new premises will allow us to better serve our clients with increased storage and prep areas as well as dedicated test & inspection facilities. The location has excellent road and rail links giving easy access into London and around the UK."

The new address is: Unit 16 Gunne

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14 March 2016

VDC Trading supplied the Van Damme cabling which was used throughout the facility with all speaker lines running on Van Damme Star Quad multicore cable to minimise interference from the lighting system and power. In addition the Van Damme stage box connected at three points around the room used Van Damme Blue Series multicore and all cable stock used Van Damme Classic Mic Cable.

Justin Spier said, "We specified Van Damme cable, as we always do. Van Dam

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14 March 2016

Now, more than a year after the Games took place, J&C Joel has received an official certificate from the Russian Prime Minister, Dimitry Medvedev, expressing the gratitude of the Government of the Russian Federation for the 'large contribution in the preparation and staging of the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympics Winter Games of 2014 in Sochi'.

On the back of successful projects for other major international sporting and cultural events, J&C Joel was asked to create two scenic elements for the Sochi opening ceremony, both of which incorporated a large amount of engineering and drapery. They produced f

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14 March 2016

This award is to highlight an individual within any role of the Automation Department. The individuals nominated for this award are people that have made an outstanding contribution and effort to a show/event or in general over the years. This person should be renowned for their dedication and effort to this discipline and respected among the technical theatre community. The nominees for 2015 are David Greatex, The Twins FX, Richard Willcox and Musa Halimeh.

"We are delighted to be sponsoring the award again this year." says Rigging Team director, Adam Searle. "Everyone behind the scenes works tirelessly to realise the ideas of the 'creatives' and in the pas

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14 March 2016

PLASA Show 2015 takes place at London's ExCel from 4th - 6th October. From 1st September to 3rd October visitors can pre-register for £10, meaning doing so before the end of the free period can make a significant saving. On site entry will cost £25.

"The show will feature over 300 brands, covering all production di

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14 March 2016

The move reflects the growth and success of both companies over the last year which has seen an expansion in the company, the product range and business generally which meant that they outgrew their previous site. The new workspace boasts a 10,000sq.ft building, along with extensive yard space.

Tony Dickson, director of Hoist UK & Truss UK comments, "Our new Moreton facility consists of ample office space for an ever growing sales / admin team, substantial customer meeting areas, plus extensive warehousing with a lifting equipment testing bay, that should sup