Business

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Ukraine - Kiev-based visualisation specialist LC product has adopted a new trading name - L8 LLC - following ownership changes at the organisation.
The company is now fully owned by the development team, with Dmitriy Giventar, the product developer, acting as a founding director. Existing Lightconverse users will continue to receive direct support from L8, which will exclusively develop, support and sell LC product.
The company says in a statement: “We have made this significant step in LC’s development to improve our support and supply the most technologically advanced product in visualisation world. We will continue to provide our customers and dealers with support and sales worldwide from our new offices.”
Lightconverse (LC) integrates and visualizes multiple show-related disciplines including lighting, video, laser, pyrotechnics, and moving object.

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UK - Martin by Harman and UK distributor Sound Technology will be at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) on 20 November for a showcase of the latest Martin products, including the award-winning MAC Encore Performance, MAC Encore Wash and new JEM Glaciator Dynamic.
Demos will begin at 11am, 2pm and 4pm in LIPA's Art School Studio Theatre.
This will also be an opportunity to discover details of the recently announced MAC Allure Profile LED moving head and ELP LED Ellipsoid Series.
(Jim Evans)

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UK - Production Services Ireland (PSI) capped a busy Halloween period by supplying technical infrastructure and support for Belfast City Council's Halloween Monster Mash and Samhain Live Halloween TV special, which was filmed in Derry/Londonderry.
PSI specialises in lighting, rigging, audio and video - for sale and hire. In the build-up to Halloween, the company also supplied riggers for the visiting U2 and ELO productions at Belfast’s SSE Arena, and full technical production for Harlem Gospel Choir at the Ulster Hall and a major public event in Lisburn.
Monster Mash afforded PSI an opportunity to deploy its Adamson PA inventory, which the company acquired in April when it became a certified reseller and rental partner. It also supplied lighting, video, rigging and staging for the themed event that welcomed thousands of people to the Titanic Slipways.
Sound re

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Italy - Powersoft has chosen Audiosales Entertainment Solutions to distribute its networked multimedia system Deva in Italy.
Audiosales has been distributing Powersoft amplifiers in Italy since 2015 and has spoken of its immense pride in bringing what it calls “one of the most innovative Powersoft solutions” to the Italian market.
"There’s an increasing number of system integrators and installers who need to bring true innovations to their customers,” comments Stefano Rocchi, managing director of Audiosales. “We are sure that these companies will immediately appreciate the enormous possibilities of such an innovative and, in many ways, revolutionary tool."
He adds: "Personally, I am thrilled by the idea of presenting our customers with a solution that is already recognised all over the world and appreciated for its versatility. We know all about the q

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Spain - Adamson Systems Engineering and its Spanish distributor SeeSound have welcomed SBA Radical Sound as the latest E-Series rental partner in the country.
SBA CEO Ramón Fernández comments: “We decided to invest in Adamson’s E-Series ahead of a very busy festival season. We needed a system that sounds great, rigs easily, and will satisfy the rider requirements of the biggest touring acts, no questions asked. The E-Series checked every box, and having Adamson and SeeSound behind us for support means we can confidently service even the most demanding applications.”
SBA Radical Sound’s new E-Series system is comprised of 24 E15 three-way, true line source enclosures along with a complement of 16 E219 subwoofers, and the company didn’t waste any time getting it out for some major events.
SBA Radical Sound, with support from COBRA sound light and ZL Pro

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USA - Four board members have been elected to the EST board of directors following an election that ended on 30 October (Tuesday).
Steve Surratt of Texas Scenic Company will fill the office of treasurer.
Steve Roudebush of BMI Supply will return as the dealer and distributor director.
Steve Terry of ETC was elected as manufacturer director.
Mike Garl of Mike Garl Consulting will serve a second term as professional services director.
All will begin their three-year term of office on 1 January 2019.
(Jim Evans)

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UK - Following a collaboration at the recently completed White Rose leisure extension in Leeds, Studiotech was approached by tensile fabric specialists, Base Structures, to assist with the multi-million pound transformation of the NEC in Birmingham.
Included in this transformation was the facelift of the façade. The new design included patterned coloured panels and 37 tensile fabric pyramids, designed by Base Structures. Each translucent pyramid was to be backlit to create a more attractive and engaging environment for all stakeholders.
Studiotech assisted Base Structures by providing the detailed design, supply, installation and programming of the feature lighting. They chose to use Traxon Washer Allegro RGB LED luminaires to wash gracefully behind the pyramids.
The complex façade design meant that a number of trades were involved in completing this facelif

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UK - Star Events has released a video highlighting the company’s work for British Summer Time Hyde Park (BST) as the festival stretched to accommodate Roger Waters’ Us+Them performance (read the production report in LSi September 2018), the first of its six sell-out shows this summer.
With Waters’ production requiring more than 1,000m of LED screen, 110 tons of production and no performance box, Star redesigned the entire Great Oak sub-structure and super-structure, increasing the width of the stage by 20m.
Shot by video production and promotion company In The Bag, this look behind the scenes focuses on the Star team building the Great Oak, panning across the Vista hospitality structure, the Barclaycard St

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USA - The recent AES New York 2018 Convention saw over 300 brands of audio equipment manufacturers and service providers showcased alongside a wealth of free events.
Held on 17-20 October at the Javits Centre in New York City, the education and peer networking event once again proved an invaluable resource for audio engineers, producers, students and other audio professionals. Meyer Sound co-founder John Meyer was the Richard C. Heyser distinguished lecturer.
John Monitto, Meyer Sound's director of business development and sales manager, Northeast, says: “This past AES convention drew some of the top audio professionals who we value as a manufacturer. The convention was well attended by those professionals who visited the exhibit booths, demo rooms and the workshop sessions. Meyer Sound featured a two-channel and 5.1 listening room with our newly patented Bluehorn S

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UK - Hawthorn has invested in Eaton’ Zero 88 FLX and FLX S series consoles.
The decision partly customer led, as Adrian Searle, Hawthorn’s asset operations director, explains: “[It was] partly due to the fact that we can all clearly see the benefits of the FLX feature set and appreciate the fact that Zero 88 hardware and software has a history of making complex programming tasks exceptionally straightforward.”
The new batch of FLXs is replacing some of those older consoles which have served well for many years but are now not ideal for controlling the proliferation of LED based fixtures on the market. Searle adds that FLX is great for its corporate events work which involves a lot of LED light sources where the operator/designer needs to be creative, often with precious little time to programme and integrate them into a show. He says: “FLX is perfect for thi

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USA - Mountain Productions has acquired full-service event production company ROC-OFF Productions.
As part of the transition, ROC-OFF has relocated from its Davie office to Mountain Productions’ facility in Palm Beach, Florida. Core staff, including founder Jose Roche, will remain at the company.
Ricky Rose, CEO Mountain Productions, comments: “Over the past two years, Mountain Productions has been expanding our network both domestically and internationally through the addition of three new offices in Los Angeles, Dublin, Ireland and Palm Beach. With our combined expertise and industry knowledge, ROC-OFF is a natural addition to the Mountain Productions’ suite of brands and a key component to our expansion into Latin America, while enhancing our service base across Florida and the South.”
Roche adds: “Since 1998, ROC-OFF has been an industry leader and

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Europe - There are three days left for the entertainment lighting industry to respond to the EU Commission’s revised version of the Ecodesign regulation.
The consultation period ends on 9 November (Friday) and the draft is open for one last review before the final parliamentary vote. Those who wish to respond should follow this link or visit plasa.org for instructions.
Whilst the outcome overall has been positive, European entertainment industry bodies have proposed four ‘small but essential’ amendments ahead of key talks in December.
The European Entertainment Ecodesign Coalition (EEEC) -

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Record Breakers - Harry Styles, Ed Sheeran and Dua Lipa, are among the artists who helped propel British music to a record year in 2017, according to a new report. Export revenues grew by 7% to a new high of £2.6bn, UK Music's Measuring Music report said.
For the second year running the number of successful records by British artists bucked the trend for annually declining music sales - which had slumped to £610m in 2015.
Festivals and live events, including world tours by Coldplay, The Rolling Stones and Sir Paul McCartney, also accounted for £1bn of revenue - with the report confirming the O2 in London was the world's most popular arena.
Overall, the UK music industry contributed a record £4.5bn to the UK economy last year - up £100m on 2016. The report said more people were employed in the music industry than ever before, with almost 146,000 jobs.

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UK - A performance by final year BA (Hons) Acting and BA (Hons) Actor Musicianship students from Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance has raised over £550 for the Mayor of Bexley’s charity appeal.
The College annually donates proceeds from box office sales and audience donations from one of their public performances to the Mayor of Bexley’s chosen charities. This year a record amount of £586 was raised to support those in the borough who suffer daily with mental health issues and children with Autism.
The performance of Blue Stockings by Jessica Swale on Thursday 1 November, also gave an opportunity for students from the Colleges’ School of Design, Management and Technical Arts to showcase their talents. Designer Kelli-Mae Crossman, lighting designer Adam Richardson and sound designer Rachel Goldberg transformed the Rose Theatre into 19th Cent

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Spain - EXE Technology has announced SeeSound as its exclusive distributor in Spain, effective 5 November.
The EXE Technology brand identifies a range of fixed and variable speed electric chain hoists, motorised trolleys and relevant tracking systems, loads cell interfaces and hoist controllers for the entertainment and exhibition industries. Their products have been engineered to safely manoeuvre stage equipment, scenery, video walls and other related structures, before, during and after performances.
Established in 2004, and led by Nacho Alberdi, SeeSound boasts an experienced commercial department, avant-garde project and engineering department, and a solid administration and logistics department.
Specializing in “integral solutions”, SeeSound participates in the development and supply of a diverse range of projects for theatres, hotels, sport pavilions,

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UK - The UK entertainment technology industry is valued at £1.28bn in 2017/18 and its value is predicted to grow over the next five years, according to a new research report by PLASA.
The study - said by PLASA to be 'the most comprehensive study of the entire entertainment technology industry in many years' - is available to download from plasa.org. It delves into each market sector’s performance and also looks at the effects of macro-environment trends and employment.
According to the findings, all sectors have experienced growth, particularly AV and audio, which represent 38% and 27% of the market share respectively. AV is currently valued at £490m and has an increasing presence in many sectors including architectural and retail. Audio is valued at £340m due to its

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USA - Audio-Technica has agreed with RF Venue to distribute its antennas, RF signal distribution systems and spectrum analysis tools in North America, effective 1 November.
As part of the contract, A-T will offer RF Venue’s Diversity Fin Antenna and DISTRO4 antenna distributor as primary accessories for the 3000 and 5000 Series wireless systems. Current RF Venue dealers may continue to source products directly from RF Venue, says the company.
Chris Regan, RF Venue president comments: “We are excited to bring RF Venue products directly to Audio-Technica customers in North America. The Diversity Fin antenna, DISTRO4, and other RF accessories are the perfect match for the new 3000 and 5000 series wireless microphone systems from Audio-Technica. This agreement allows us to service and grow our existing authorised dealers, as well as introduce RF Venue products to Audio

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Singapore - Loud Technologies Asia (LTA) took the lead in organising a rigging safety awareness seminar in their new showroom and training facility in Singapore.
The seminar was organised in conjunction with Prolyte Asia Pacific (PAP) and was conducted by technical manager Jasper van der Sluis.
Colin Quek, owner and managing director of LTA, comments: “Although we are the Prolyft Service Point for Singapore and dedicated dealer for Prolyte, Doughty and Protos load measuring systems, we believe it’s important to show as many aspects of safe rigging in general regardless of the brand or country of origin.
“Among other demonstrations, it was demonstrated by using load cells how loads can react on a truss which is suspended from three chain hoists and by moving the load over the truss.”
(Jim Evans)

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USA - Sensaphonics recently held a Gold Circle Seminar to train audiologists in meeting the specialised needs of artists, sound engineers, and other music professionals. The two-day seminar features personal instruction from Sensaphonics president, Dr. Michael Santucci, and audio engineering consultant Joe ‘Sound Guy’ Tessone. Four audiologists gained Gold Circle certification through a series of classroom modules and a hands-on demo session with a live band using in-ear monitors for the first time.
Topics included advanced hearing loss prevention techniques, concert sound system basics, monitoring technology overview, product information, and backstage etiquette, all with a focus on how the music industry differs from other work environments. Classroom instruction is held at Sensaphonics headquarters in downtown Chicago and includes a tour of the company’s IEM manufac

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Canada - Adamson Systems Engineering hosted the largest-ever gathering of its global network at its Canadian head office and manufacturing facility in Port Perry, at the end of September.
Over 120 partners from around the world took part in two full days of programming, including previews of upcoming products, innovations, and collaborations, all with the goal of better supporting end-users with world-class training and service.
“We’ve welcomed a significant number of new partners to the Adamson global network over the past few years amidst a period of strong year-over-year growth,” says James Oliver, Adamson’s director of sales and marketing. “We’re very proud of the way our international team has supported these partners to date, but recognised an opportunity to bring everyone together, offer a preview of upcoming product releases, and leverage ideas and

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Spain - K-array has appointed Media-Sys as its exclusive distributor in Spain.
Established in 1991, Media-Sys has evolved from a standard distribution channel to a full-service company providing project design, installation setup, marketing and sales support and post-sales services on every project.
“Our main product focus is based on professional audio brands with outstanding quality and this commitment always pushes us to find new solutions for our customers,” comments Josep M. Foguet, CEO Media-Sys. “K-array gives a real answer to this focus and represents a new approach to installation thanks to its unique product design."
(Jim Evans)

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Columbia - DirectOut has expanded its worldwide business network with the appointment of VCR as its sole distributor for the Colombia market.
Based in Bogota, VCR will handle distribution of the full DirectOut product portfolio and provide technical and sales support.
Hernan Suescun, VCR’s CEO comments: “As a company, we aim to offer our clients the most advanced technologies available to the AV world, especially now that new IP technologies are rapidly developing. DirectOut has the best solutions in terms of audio networking, routing and conversion along with a well-known quality and reliability.”
Lorenzo Sassi, business developer at DirectOut, adds: “A few months after we met with VCR for the first time it was quite clear to us that both companies had a common interest in developing their business together. VCR not only has skills and a deep knowledge o

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UK - NEC Group Arenas has taken two electrical apprentices on a three-year placement with the Group’s Arenas ElectriX team.
Liam Dyde, 21, and Mohammed Waseem, 28, will receive mentoring as they bid to complete their NVQ Level 3 in electrics.
Throughout their apprenticeship, Dyde and Waseem will gain theoretical and practical knowledge and be involved in testing, inspection and delivery of the electrical supplies. One day per week in term time will also be spent at Solihull College & University Centre for additional practical and theory lessons.
NEC Group Arenas chief electrician and mentor Peter Hammond comments: “There is a noticeable skills gap in the arenas electrical industry, something that we too have noticed with our in-house team. As skilled individuals retire, there’s be a decline in numbers of those able to step into their positions. With d

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Argentina/USA - Over $10m worth of equipment has been seized from a black market organisation in Buenos Aires following a two-year undercover operation.
The equipment was retrieved on 13 September in a joint operation between Argentinian police forces, the NYPD major crimes squad, the FBI and the US embassy. The authorities said 10 raids had been carried out, with the kit believed to have been stolen from the USA and rented out to film and TV production companies on the black market in Argentina.
ESTA’s Production Equipment Rental Group (PERG) worked closely with the police to coordinate the identification of the recovered items via its searchable online database for missing equipment, Rental Guard.
Martin Pastor, NYPD major case squad detective, comments: “We have recovered over $10m in stolen equipment thanks to Rental Guard. I urge anyone who suffers a th
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