This year’s Monaco Grand Prix, held at the end of May, saw Michael Shumacher steer his Ferrari to yet another flawless finish for his fifth win in Monaco. This was Schumacher’s 48th career win, three short of the all-time record of 51 held by Frenchman Alain Prost, and puts him at the head of the Driver’s Championship and Ferrari first in the Constructors Championship.

The action was relayed on two Lighthouse screens, provided for the race for the 12th year in succession by French audiovisual company, Lumison, on behalf of Automobile Club de Monaco. The larger screen, 120 panels of LVP2056 in a 12 x 10 configuration and measuring a total of 150sq.m, was placed at Saint Devote - the first bend of the race and the most dangerous part of the Monaco Circuit - and a second screen of 30 panels was positioned on the roof of the temporary television building at the entrance to the pit lane. Brent Watson, Lighthouse’s technical manager, oversaw the installation. "The larger screen was supported by a specially made scaffold structure, built well in advance to allow for building regulations inspections," stated Watson. This screen gave racegoers at the tightly-packed circuit trackside TV footage from TCM, the official television company of Monaco, with graphics for placings and timings overlayed by Lumison. Lumison also provided three screens for the Barcelona Grand Prix, with footage provided by FOCA (Formula One Constructors Association), and earlier in the year for a variety of events including the Paris Fashion Show, as well as four screens for

The ABTT has confirmed that its ABTT Theatre Show 2002 will be held at the Royal Horticultural Halls on 19 and 20 June 2002. Further details of booking arrangements will be announced shortly. Any enquiries should be directed to the ABTT Office on 020 7403 3778.

PLASA has completed the first phase of its major industry research project, which will provide PLASA members with an invaluable insight into their industry. As well as being able to estimate the global market size for professional lighting, sound, staging and AV products and services, the research also gives a very detailed picture of the market in the UK. For the first time, PLASA has information about the value of the product sectors, how fast they are growing and the size and growth of the various vertical sectors into which its members sell. The findings enable the Association to say some very precise things about its members collectively and the nature of the industry as a whole.

PLASA plans to repeat the exercise every 12 months, enabling it to build up ever-more accurate trend information. A quick flick through the 119-page report reveals that it estimates the respective size by revenue of PLASA’s four main product sectors: light, sound, AV and staging; gives growth figures for this year and next across the four product sectors; breaks the sectors down into sales and rental; includes information on revenue from the provision of services such as installation, design and servicing; sizes the target market sectors and indicates which are the healthiest and the fastest growing; includes information on average company size by staff, investment in training, R&D and marketing.

Members who took part in the survey will shortly receive a free 22-page copy of the overview, together with the opportunity to buy the detailed sections. Members who didn’t take part w

Coe-tech Ltd has appointed FPD Savills to hold a two-day public auction/stock clearance sale to make way for the latest range of new Coe-tech products. The auction will take place at Coe-tech’s premises in Northampton on Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 July 2001. It will feature over 3000 lots of all types of professional sound, lighting, AV and special effects equipment. Viewing day is Tuesday 24 July 2001 from between 9am to 4pm. The diverse array of equipment for sale will include intelligent lighting; moving head luminaires; discothèque lighting; architectural colour changers; theatre lighting including followspots, profiles and fresnels; trussing; video equipment - cameras, switchers and video walls; sound processing equipment; loudspeakers; power distribution and cables. For Further Information and catalogues, please contact: FPD Savills, 4 St. Peter’s Gate, Nottingham, NG1 2JG, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 115 934 8100 Fax: +44 (0) 115 934 8003.

Screenco, well experienced at fielding their giant daylight displays on Formula 1’s Grand Prix circuit, made its first appearance at the famous Monaco Grand Prix recently. Monaco-based Action International rigged two Screenco set-ups - supplied by Screenco Holland BV - in different locations. These include, for the first time, a 4x4 15mm LED display, sited at the end of the first straight in front of the Hermès boutique on the Avenue de Monte Carlo. Here, 1000 VIP guests observed the race from a terrace owned by the Société des Bains de Mer, part of the famous Hotel de Paris. "Although this is a major terrace, until this year guests have not really been able to see the race," said Action’s project manager, Vincent Alloing. Further round the track a 28sq.m Jumbotron JTS-17 midi-mobile will again fulfil a specific need, according to Alloing. The truck-mounted Jumbotron will replace the traditional fixed screen in front of the Mirabeau Hotel - on both the qualifying and race days. The portable set-up is essential, says Alloing, due to the necessity for derigging after the Saturday practice session. "Because the screen is located in front of the hotel, on a road open to the public, the truck has to be parked overnight in a tunnel 800m away. At 6am on the Sunday morning it will move back into position in time for the first race at 9am."

Screenco MD, Dave Crump said: "Monaco has long eluded us as the jewel in the Formula 1 crown and we were naturally very pleased to have finally supplied equipment to every one of the European Grand Prixs

Two mighty projectors and the largest projection screens ever seen inside a marquee gave VJ management and live video production company, The Picture Works Ltd, all the scope they needed to produce some mind-altering images in the 6,000-capacity Radio 1 Presents Essential Twilo tent at the recent Homelands Festival in Winchester. Specialists in dance event visuals, The Picture Works have been contracted to provide the video content and reinforcement since the inception of Homelands and this year delivered the visual support in five of the six dance arenas. This time around they dry-hired a pair of Christie Digital X10 Roadies from trading partner AT communications in Sutton Coldfield, one of which was making its debut. As a result, said Robin Wealleans, director of The Picture Works, from early in the afternoon they were able to throw sharply defined images over the 20m distance onto the two giant 50ft x 20ft displays. "The fact that they are so incredibly bright is exactly what you need at a daytime festival," he said. "It means we can start the projection at any time."

By way of a 1.9kW Ushio Xenon short-arc illumination system and Christie Digital's long-established expertise with 3-chip DLP technology, the Roadie X10 - the world's first purpose-built projector for the rental staging community, delivers a staggering 10,000 ANSI lumens. Utilising 3-chip DLP technology, the Roadie X10 delivers brilliant XGA images with picture-perfect colour reproduction. Christie's ‘Intelligent Lens System’ (ILS) allows the projector to automatically reca

After a career spanning 15 years in publishing (latterly as advertisement manager of AV Magazine) Lucy Donovan has joined FrameSet as sales manager. The Hampshire-based conference staging specialists - whose expansion programme will be accompanied by a major rebranding exercise - sees the recruitment of Lucy as an integral part of their new marketing thrust. Lucy arrives following a short stint with Quantum Publishing’s Exhibitions Division. "I love the AV industry and this feels like coming home - it’s a challenge that I am relishing immensely." Lucy Donovan has a nationwide remit and will be reporting to managing director, Chris Lillywhite.

Performance Exhibitions Ltd has announced the launch of Performance 2001 - an exhibition including conferences, seminars and workshops aimed at the live performance industry. To be staged at the Newcastle Telewest Arena on 17-18 November 2001, the exhibition will bring together manufacturers, venues, producers and promoters, plus a complete range of associated services. Colin Rowell, director of ShowBlokes, whose vast portfolio includes production stage manager of The Tube, stage director for the MTV Awards and stage manager for the Brit Awards, recently returned to the North East, and is involved in live events in the area. He says: "I feel that this exhibition will offer companies a platform for exhibiting to a large audience. It will put the North East on the exhibition circuit where it belongs for this important segment of the industry." Over 1500sq.m of exhibition space will house exhibitors displaying the latest in lighting and sound equipment, staging, studio technology, special effects, transport, catering and support services.

This month, pyrotechnics specialist, Walk The Plank, are going from one extreme to the other. On 10th June they will bring the 600-year old Newark Castle to life as part of the Newark on Water Festival, and then hot-foot it to Singapore for their first international commission - three performances of the spectacular Tower of Light show as part of the Singapore Arts Festival, 22-24 June. The two shows are typical examples of the breadth of Walk The Plank's work. After their successful participation at the Newark on Water Festival last year, they have been asked to animate Newark Castle's impressive facade. This year, they will be using powerful Xenon projection equipment (the biggest in the country) and huge 25m fabric drops, as well as fireworks, lighting and music.

Singapore’s Tower of Light is a set-piece using performers, lighting, music, fireworks and special effects, based around a 15m steel ‘lighthouse’. The show has been seen at Arts Festivals across the country, but this is the first time Walk The Plank's talents have been taken aboard. A team of 10 will be leaving Manchester on 16th June. Most of the materials, including 14 tons of steel and all hazardous substances, have been shipped over. As well as three public shows, Walk The Plank will run a full dress rehearsal in front of the Singapore Army and Police Force.

The implementation has begun in Sweden of a major project featuring LED screens at Swedish Football League matches. Massteknik, one of Scandinavia’s leading corporate and live event production rental companies, has installed one permanent Lighthouse LVP25 (25mm pixel pitch) screen at the Swedish National Football Arena at Rasunda in Stockholm. Two Lighthouse mobile screens and three from other manufacturers will move around between various arenas in the Swedish Football League. Massteknik’s Kenneth Paterson said: "This is a very big contract for us with a total of 546 games in three years. There are seven games a week within the league, but no more than four mobile screens are required on any one day. Local OB companies are contracted to produce the footage, which is used both for the TV broadcast and our screens, and the goals and highlights of each match are transmitted back and forth between arenas."

Royal Caribbean International has recently introduced the first of its Radiance class of ships - Radiance of the Seas. This stunning vessel is the largest ship ever to have been built at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, and the first joint venture between a German shipyard and an American cruise line.

RCI has a tradition of delivering high quality onboard entertainment and Radiance is no exception. The Viking Crown is the trademark destination on-board Royal Caribbean ships, a spectacular space surrounded by a sweep of glazing, that wraps itself around the funnel at the highest point, providing panoramic views for the passengers. In the evening, the Viking Crown takes on a completely new persona and turns into a major entertainment complex and, in the case of the Radiance of the Seas, this includes a disco, a black-box theatre and bars of various hues.

The disco is called Starquest, and Wynne Willson Gottelier (WWG) has designed a spectacular lighting, sound and video system in the area to get the holidaymakers on their toes. One of the main features is a WWG-conceived Beamlight which has been used to create a cage of 78 sequencing, vertical beams around the dance area. Other effects contained in the feature dome above the dancefloor are Martin MAC 250+s, Roboscan Pro 918s and Acrobats, Clay Paky Miniscan HPEs, Diversitronics strobes and a bunch of neon controlled via Mode Digitrans inverters. All the automated lights listed are fitted with custom gobos. The overall lighting control is provided by a ShowCAD system linked to a Lynx button panel. Two Le Mai

Barco’s high-performance projection systems have been selected for the Italian Museum Cinema in Turin. This tall museum in Antonelli’s Mole covers 3200sq.m, and is full of cinema exhibits. Euphon, one of Italy’s leading specialists in broadcast, communication and AV integration, has installed 10 Barco 708 Series CRT and 2 Barco 6000 Series LCD projectors. They were chosen because of the unmatched image quality. The Museum of Cinema, an ancient Temple of the Jewish Community, is home to five levels of exhibitions with thousands of film posters, photographs, books, periodicals, paintings, prints and film equipment. A journey through the magic of film provides the visitors a course on the archeology of cinema and the various stages of film production to end in the spectacular and immense Temple Hall, the heart of the museum. In this area, visitors can relax, watch two Italian 35mm films and enjoy the extraordinary video and light show, which runs every 18 minutes. Surrounding this central hall, the audience can visit 10 chapels, dedicated to the history of cinema.

Euphon was chosen to work out the impressive audio-visual installation for the museum project. This leading Italian audio-visual integrator designed a tailor-made solution, based on the requirements for every specific zone of the building. On the first level, dedicated to pre-cinema, Barco’s 6000 Series LCD projection technology provides the visitors with very bright and sharp video images. In addition, each of the ‘chapels’ around the Temple Hall is equipped with a Barco 708 Ser

Europe’s largest outdoor advertising screen is sited on the C&A building in central Berlin’s famous Kurfurstendam, and is fully integrated into the architecture of the building. It features 100sq.m of Lighthouse LVP502 screen modules, measuring 10 panels wide by 8 high. The whole of this part of central Berlin has been substantially rebuilt in recent years and the new screen will be the eye-catching centrepiece for one of the city’s liveliest streets. Statistically, the site offers advertisers the opportunity for their commercials to be seen by more people than anywhere else in the city. Media! AG carried out the installation, and will operate the screen and its control system, while advertising sales and marketing are being handled by MIM in Hamburg.

Advertisers include blue chip companies, with the first to sign up being C&A themselves, and Media! AG anticipates the screen will be used mostly to display moving video (in the form of commercials), although it is equally capable of showing still video and computer graphics images. For further versatility, Media! AG has installed a satellite link and the screen can be remotely driven. Hans-Peter Mack, CEO of Media! AG, says: "This is the first of its kind anywhere in Germany, and is the first of a network of screens that will be located all around Germany and Central Europe."

Following a reorganisation of its business, Playlight is hosting a massive auction next Tuesday, where literally hundreds of items will come under the hammer. On the lighting side these include a collection of lighting desks and dimmers, and just about every type of lantern and moving light under the sun. For special effects, there are smoke machines, mirror balls, projectors and ultra-violet systems, whilst on the audio side, a large stockholding of speakers, amplifiers, mixing desks and microphones will be auctioned. Rigging and trussing will also feature, as will a range of office furniture and general equipment.

The auction takes place on Tuesday 22 May in London at 860 Coronation Road, Park Royal, London and begins at 11am. All items in the auction can be viewed on Monday 21 May from 9.30am to 4.30pm and on the day of sale.

For a catalogue call +44 0117 930 4020.

This year’s PLASA will see the future of automated lighting and the application of high-powered video projection, move a step forward with the launch of High End Systems’ new product, Catalyst. Developed for HES by English design company, Wynne Wilson Gottelier (WWG), the alpha version of Catalyst created a considerable stir at the Showtech Exhibition in Berlin where it was soft-launched earlier this month.

Mounted on the front of a Barco ELM R12, a 12,000 ANSI lumens output, triple-DMD video projector, Catalyst allows an image to be moved smoothly and positioned accurately, time after time, within a global envelope. As it is video-based, Catalyst allows truly unlimited colour mixing, with a selection of masks that act as framing shutters or overlays on video clips. The system is delivered with hundreds of gobo patterns, that can again be overlaid, including the entire DHA and High End libraries. All of these facilities are accessible from any DMX desk, and were demonstrated at Showtech from the Wholehog 2. The package, which consists of the dynamic hardware, a control rack, DMX system control software, and video processing software, is to be marketed by High End Systems to rental companies, who are already own suitable DLP projectors, as an add-on.

High End - Stand E64

Frances Thompson has announced that she is leaving the US-based production industry web venture, Shoptick.com. Launched last year, Shoptick.com offers ‘e-business for show business’ with production resources including online inventory tracking and project management, product and manufacturer listings and crew resources. Thompson, who previously worked for US truss manufacturer Tomcat, was responsible for marketing at Shoptick.com. She told PLASA Media that Shoptick.com was in the process of downsizing in order to concentrate heavily on product development. The company’s Kansas City staff will now handle marketing as well as continuing to provide the level of service already established.

The established relationship with British Airways, enjoyed by both the TOA Corporation and Unitek Displays, reached a pinnacle last month when the new Concorde Lounge opened at Heathrow’s Terminal 4.

Designed by Sir Terence Conran, in preparation for a resumption of supersonic services later this spring, the airline’s ambition is clear to see. In addition to employing top designers - including FutureBrand for the simultaneous development of their new First Class Lounge - they also invited spa specialists Molton Brown to create a shower room, steam room and massage area.

In the Molton Brown spa, a discrete TOA PC-5WL speaker can be found in each shower cubicle as well as the massage room, with local volume control independent of the overall level setting. The area is also serviced by a single TOA HB1 sub-bass unit.

However, the scheme in the new Executive Lounges has not been realised without some acoustic compromises. Since the architect requirement was for a completely flat ceiling, the 25 soft-dome, process-controlled TOA PC-121Cs have been utilised without their suspended spheres, designed to allow wide-dispersion soundwaves to be distributed coherently, and panned via TOA’s bespoke Sound Space Design spatializer. Although the sphere has been removed to facilitate total recess-mounting, using TOA’s AC-120 to provide dedicated system control, there is little evidence of cancellation or dead spots. This circular ceiling speaker is run in combination with TOA F-101 full-range speakers, which, like the 121s, house a 4" driver.

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