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UK - SGM Light has named Matrix as its new distributor for Denmark.
The news follows the recent appointment of Architainment Lighting as the brand’s architectural distributor in the UK.
Peter Johansen, CEO, SGM Light comments: “With Matrix as our new distributor here in Denmark, our customers will experience easier access to SGM’s products, and in general get all the benefits of Matrix’s service package. Our day-to-day focus is definitely targeted the big export markets. However, we also want to accommodate our home market, which will now be able to enjoy SGM demonstrations on several occasions.”
Thomas Christensen, CEO of Matrix, adds: “With the water and dust-resistant products, SGM has a unique market placement, and we are thri

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Italy - GLP has appointed Mods Art as its new Italian distributor. The move has been announced by GLP sales executive Sven Heindl and the Italian company’s chairman Dr. Giacomo Laria.
Mods Art’s Alessandro Righi will be a technical representative for the German brand.
Heindl comments: “Mods Art is a dynamic and positive young company and I could see the mood and ambition from the number of visitors attending the booth at MIR. “We look forward to a long and successful future working together with them.”
Laria adds: “We are working to introduce GLP at the top level, which is quite a challenge with so many high-profile lighting manufacturers in Italy.”
Initial reaction, following open days and a presence Music Inside Rimini has been 100% positive, he adds: “The feedback has been excellent and we are highly optimistic.”
Mods Art recently

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South Africa - The Gearhouse Group, a network of companies, branches and divisions that service the event industries, has recently added Showcom to its ranks.
Johannesburg-based Showcom (Pty) Ltd is headed up by Nickolas Chapman and specialises in supplying communication solutions to the events industry, offering a range of wireless, wired or two-way radio communication systems.
The company’s official launch was marked on 1 August. Showcom is based at 18 Lang Street, Bezuidenhout Valley.
(Jim Evans)

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UK - Cambridge-based conference technology provider Brähler ICS UK has rebranded as BUK Solutions.
The change comes as the company marks 30 years of trading and enters a new phase that incorporates new distribution partnerships and a more diverse range of suppliers. The company is also offering enhanced complementary event services as part of its rental portfolio including consultancy, interpretation and translation. Launched in the late 1980s, Brähler ICS UK operated alongside German parent company Brähler ICS Konferenztechnik AG until 2012. It then became independent but remained a member of the global Brähler ICS Network until recently.
Simon Sainsbury, managing director of BUK Solutions, comments: “The success of our expanded portfolio, which now includes several new non-Brähler products and services, prompted us to redefine our identity in the marketpl

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UK - SGM Light has bolstered its relationship with Architainment Lighting by making the High Wycombe company the official architectural distributor for the Danish brand in the UK.
The deal means Architeinment Lighting will represent SGM Light's IP66-rated POI (Permanent Outdoor Installations) luminaires.
Ian Kirby, MD at SGM UK, comments: “SGM is a forerunner in launching new technology in Entertainment lighting and is focused on high-quality IP65/66-rated LED luminaires. SGM have also been developing an Architectural version of its luminaire range and we have been in discussion with Architainment for some time with a view to Nic and his team including the architectural range in their portfolio.”
Peter Johansen, CEO, SGM Light, adds: “I am pleased to announce that our discussions have been successful and Architainment have now been appointed our exclusive di

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UK - Virtual reality (VR) specialist MelodyVR is working with the NEC Group Arenas to offer virtual access to live events in its venues.
Concertgoers will be able to access a selection of live events held at the Genting Arena and Arena Birmingham venues, using the power of virtual reality technology, including performances from chart toppers Royal Blood, The Script and UB40 Feat. Ali, Astro & Mickey.
Over the coming months, MelodyVR will also live stream real-time concerts via VR and offer virtual tickets to sold-out shows with the biggest artists, enabling an unlimited number of fans to attend in-demand concerts around the globe.
The concerts, as well as virtual tickets, will be available to purchase via the MelodyVR app, on Oculus Go or Samsung Gear VR virtual reality headsets (with more platforms coming soon). Information on upcoming shows will also be p

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Turkey - Clair Brothers has named Elit Light / Sound Technologies as its distributor in Turkey.
The Istanbul company will sell and distribute the kiTCurve and C-Series loudspeakers as well as other Clair Brothers products such as the 1AM and 1.5AM Series stage monitors, the stackable S2 PA System, and more.
Elit MD Emre Defne comments: “We’re so proud to now be the Turkish partner of Clair Brothers because they give us a renewed ability to build on our mission to be the best live event brand in Turkey.”
Josh Sadd, Clair Brothers chief engineer, adds: “We are happy to have Elit on board with us and look forward to making more contributions to Turkey’s vibrant culture of interesting venues and events. The Elit team brings experience and enthusiasm that will certainly make the future of Clair Brothers in Turkey bright.”
Defne continues: “With Cl

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Germany - The Ehrlich Brothers have become among the best-known magicians and illusionists in the world. Their trademarks include trucks weighing several tons emerging from nowhere, trees growing in a matter of seconds, and almost everything disappearing from the stage during the course of a show - and then reappearing, as if by magic.
In mid-July, the two brothers added further superlatives when they guested for three days in the Stuttgart Porsche Arena. First of all, there was the Showdown of the World's Best Magicians, with selected guests appearing on the first two evenings, presented by RTL. Finally, on the third evening, the Ehrlich Brothers presented their new show Magic Worlds.
Working alongside Ehrlich Entertainment GmbH, were the Production Resource Group (PRG), who provided rigging, lighting, video and media technology, Schiffer & Faber for

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Spatial Audio - The Audio Engineering Society (AES) is set to stage the second International Conference on Audio for Virtual and Augmented Reality on 20-22 August at the DigiPen Institute of Technology, Redmond, WA. The conference and exhibition will bring together a community of influential research scientists, engineers, VR and AR developers, and content creators.
The three-day conference and expo will focus on the dissemination of top-level research in the field of spatial audio for virtual and augmented reality, with demonstrations and discussions focused on technical solutions and recommended practices. Leading researchers, practitioners and industry luminaries will offer panel discussions, tutorials, and workshops on new and forthcoming technologies.
The keynote presenters are Jean-Marc Jot, distinguished fellow, Magic Leap; Ivan Tashev, partner architect, Micr

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UK - The Knight of Illumination Awards (KOI), which celebrate international video and lighting designers for their creative work in the UK, has revealed the Theatre shortlist for 2018.
An expert panel of judges, all of whom have years of experience reviewing theatre, opera and dance, have watched countless productions over the last year and distilled the best of the best into the shortlist. The panel is made up of The Dancing Times critic, Zoë Anderson; The Guardian's leading theatre critic, Michael Billington; opera critic for The Stage and Opera Magazine George Hall; chief dance critic for The Stage, Neil Norman; co-founder of Exeunt, Natasha Tripney; and opera editor for Whatsonstage, Mark Valencia; led by broadcaster David Benedict, chair of the Theatre judging panel.

KOI Awards 2018 Theatre Shortlist

P

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UK - The Association of Lighting Designers’ annual Michael Northen Awards launched this week. The awards are an opportunity for students just leaving their college or university course to gain practical skills and experience in creating a portfolio which sells their design ideas.
Entry is now open, and all submissions must be received before midnight on the closing date: Wednesday 31 October.
Johanna Town, chair of the ALD, comments: “What better accolade with which to enter the industry than with a lighting design award? The Michael Northen Bursary scheme (MNB) is a great aide to developing a lighting designer’s abilities in communication. To be able to sell your ideas and passions for a design to other industry leaders, is as important a skill, maybe even more so, as the design itself. For this reason, this particular award entry is so important to a designer

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USA - ESTA and USITT have announced that the second New World Rigging Symposium is taking place 19-20 March 2019 in conjunction with the USITT Conference and Stage Expo 2019 in Louisville.
Symposium attendees will receive free show floor passes to the USITT Stage Expo opening on 21 March as well as a discount on the conference registration.
The event will provide an opportunity for riggers and those interested in the live entertainment rigging industry to network, discuss current issues and new technologies, and help shape the future of the industry.
In 10 sessions over two days, participants will be given a range of opportunities to further their technical knowledge, keep up to date with codes and standards, increase their understanding of structural issues, and learn about the challenges of working as a rigger in other segments of the entertainment industry. T

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Korea - Martin Audio has appointed Seoul-based Sama Sound as its new Korean distributor.
Established in 1969, Sama Sound represents many major pro audio brands in the region, including Allen & Heath, Genelec, HK Audio and Shure.
Sama Sound president, Jason Inn, comments: “Having looked carefully for opportunities to expand our product portfolio, we believe that with the addition of Martin Audio, we can now comprehensively service the market and grow together, increasing market share by developing synergy with our current partners. We are extremely excited about the new journey.”
Martin Audio’s APAC account manager, Andy Duffield, adds: “Sama Sound has enjoyed great success over many years in the Korean market, both in rental / touring and the wider installation market. With Martin Audio’s proactive product strategy generating above indust

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Brazil - Brazilian AV company Maxi has purchased DiGiCo's SD12 desk. The company’s association with the digital mixing desk manufacturer dates back to 2012 and the purchase of the SD10.
“In 2012, DiGiCo was already dominant in the world market, but still had very few users in Brazil,” says Maxi’s executive director, José Augusto Martins. “We believed the brand had the same innovative and modern appeal that we have and intend to maintain, which is why we made the original investment. We’ve now added the SD12 because it’s a console that has all the great features from the previous DiGiCo consoles, but in a more compact package. I thought this was a brilliant combination.”
And for Maxi, size definitely matters. “We can use the SD12 anywhere from corporate events to concerts, you name it,” José continues. The quality is excellent, it’s quick and e

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UK - Technical entertainment charity Backup collected a record amount of donations at its annual karting challenge held in July.
Kart-Fest 2018 raised £23,500 in donations - the biggest total for any Backup fund-raising event yet, and £2,500 more than in 2017.
Held during the first Wimbledon fortnight, Kart-Fest 2018 was themed around the tennis tournament and saw racers from 33 teams don big hair, sweatbands, tennis skirts and dubious prosthetics.
Backup trustee and event organiser Lee Dennison says: "It can be hard getting everyone together in this industry, as we’re all so constantly busy. But on the day, it felt effortless, and we were so pleased that 33 teams representing all areas participated. Rivalries stayed on the track and a common shared 'want' to support our charity and help our family out became the focus of the day."
In first pl

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South Africa - DWR Distribution will host a grandMA2 training course this month.
Presented by Jannie de Jager from DWR Distribution, the grandMA2 Advanced Training will be held on 16-17 August from 9am to 5pm in DWR’s Johannesburg office. The cost is R2,550 per person and includes lunch and refreshments. Delegates are requested to supply their own grandMA2 console and laptop for the MA 3D Visualiser.
After completing the training, participants should be able to programme and operate mid to large-scale productions using advanced techniques including building macros, timecode programming, advanced effects, XYZ programming, moving data between shows and building custom fixtures.
The training takes place at DWR Distribution, Block C, Unit 1, Kimbult Industrial Park, 9 Zeiss Road, LaserPark, Honeydew.
To book your place, please visit the DWR Distribution web

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Malaysia - CAST BlackTrax has appointed Acoustic & Lighting System (A&L) as its South East Asia distributor.
A&L serves the local market as well as Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand through a network of nine offices and 200+ staff. It already represents Avolites, Claypaky, disguise and Luminex among others.
Andrew Gordon, BlackTrax director of business development, comments: “BlackTrax has already executed over 9,000 events around the world, but we continue to look for strategic opportunities to grow the business, and the South East Asia market represents a considerable market potential. A&L is the ideal team to help us establish a strong presence in the region. Their extensive experience, technical expertise and commitment to customer support represent what we strive for in a partnership.”
Eugene Yeo, general manager of Acoustic & Lighti

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Off Air - The broadcasting regulator Ofcom has scrapped the roll-out of further local TV channels across the UK. More than 30 local TV stations have been set up since 2013, but some have faced financial difficulties and have struggled to attract an audience. Ofcom has now halted plans to seek people to run new channels in 13 areas.
The regulator said it had taken the decision in light of "the significant financial challenges that the local TV sector is facing". Continuing with the plans for the new channels would, Ofcom says, "have an adverse impact on the economic viability of the local TV sector."
Licences will now not be advertised for Bangor (Wales), Barnstaple, Bromsgrove, Derry Londonderry, Forth Valley, Gloucester, Inverness, Kidderminster, Limavady, Luton, Plymouth, Stoke-on-Trent and Stratford-upon-Avon. Local TV was launched in the UK under a plan laid out in

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South Africa - DWR Distribution has announced details for its annual Vectorworks Training presented by Francois van der Merwe in September at DWR Distribution in Johannesburg.
Basic training will be held on 17 September and will cover the fundamentals of Vectorworks, Layouts, Palettes, Basic Tools, Classes and Layers. The cost for this one-day training session is R850.
Intermediate Training will be held on 18 & 19 September, with a focus Preferences, Basic Spotlight, Basic Renderworks and Intermediate Tools. The cost is R1 700.00.
Advanced Users are invited for training on the 20-21 September. The course will cover Working Planes, Advanced Modelling and Advanced Renderworks. The cost is R1 700.
Training will be held every day from 9am to 5pm and will be hosted at DWR Distribution, Block C, Unit1, Kimbult Industrial Park, 9 Zeiss Road, Laserpark, Honeyd

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Greece - Martin Audio has appointed RM Audio as its new distributor in Greece.
RM Audio / Ressou Bros Co is a specialist provider of sound, lighting, video and staging equipment founded by Marinos and Michalis Ressos in 2006. The duo runs the business, based in Moschato, Athens, with Giannikos Pavlos and Giorgos Kapolas.
Speaking of the new brand acquisition, Kapolas says: “It is well known that Martin Audio is one of the world's leading manufacturers of speakers. Unfortunately, in recent times the brand has been missing from the Greek market and so we contacted them, setting out our vision of Martin Audio to [EMEA sales manager] Brad Watson, and the opportunities that exist in Greece to get Martin Audio back as first choice of sound professionals again.”
He continues: “Whether we are dealing with concert coverage via MLA or installing CDD5s, as we have re

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USA - Trussing and staging equipment specialist Prolyte Group has opened North American headquarters in Pearland, Texas.
The company is well established across Europe and Asia and its expansion to the USA follows five years of successful operations in Canada.
Ralph Stockley, Prolyte’s chief commercial officer, comments: “Texas was an attractive selection for Prolyte’s North American headquarters. We already had an existing partnership with a company in Pearland. Other factors, such as tax benefits, the strength of the Texas economy and the proximity to the Port of Houston finalised our decision.”
Prolyte is also planning to introduce its Prolyte Campus initiative in North America, through which the company has been offering hands-on training events across the globe.
Lambert Bouwmeester, Prolyte’s chief executive officer, adds: “The opening of o

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USA - ESTA has posted three documents for public review on its website. Two of the documents are reaffirmations of existing standards and one is a proposed new standard. The reviews run through 24 September.
The documents are:
ANSI E1.5, Theatrical Fog Made with Aqueous Solutions of Di- and Trihydric Alcohols
ANSI E1.5 - 2009, last reaffirmed in 2014, is being considered for reaffirmation. This standard describes the composition of theatrical fogs or artificial mists that are not likely to be harmful to healthy performers, technicians, or audience members of normal working age. It is limited to those fogs and mists made from a solution of water and one or more dihydric or trihydric alcohols, and is intended to be applied in theatres, arenas, an

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USA - Atlona has announced that D&H Distributing Company has become its first manufacturer’s representative to focus exclusively on IT professionals tasked with managing AV systems over the network. Based in Harrisburg, PA, D&H Distributing Company will represent Atlona on a national basis, with an emphasis on marketing Atlona’s AV over IP solutions to its small-to-medium-size business (SMB) customers.
Pete Hurley, sales director for D&H Distributing Company’s SMB PROAV Division, comments, “Atlona’s inclusion in the projects calling for Cisco, Intel, commercial displays, integration projectors, screens and mounts provide an important differentiator from competitive IT distributors that lack a strong AV over IP partner.
“Cat 6 cable drives virtually everything today across the AV ecosystem, and IT resellers are the first professionals working beh

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UK - The Knight of Illumination Awards (KOI) has revealed the 2018 Concert Touring & Events shortlist.
This year's judging panel is led by chair Jess Allan, and comprises LSi editor Claire Beeson, TPi editor Kelly Murray, director of 18 Degrees architectural lighting Christopher Knowlton, head of lighting design at creative agency Imagination, Jonny Milmer, and account manager at Coloursound Experiment Jo Bierne.

Concert Touring & Events Shortlist

Award for Arena, sponsored by GLP German Light Products
Cate Carter for Elbow
Tim Routledge for Sam Smith
Rob Sinclair for Queen + Adam Lambert
Award for Stage, sponsored by Avolites
Bruno Poet and Matt Daw for Sigur Rós
Rob Sinclair for David Byrne
Samuel Tozer for Wilkinson
Award for Club, sponsored by MA Lighting
Tom
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