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Zero 88 Lighting has appointed Chris Clayton as R&D manager. Chris joins the company from Penny & Giles, the manufacturer of industrial joystick controllers and faders, where he designed and managed projects in aerospace and industrial applications. He is a Chartered Engineer and a member of the Institute of Engineering Designers and at Zero 88 will be responsible for a large team of people working on new fast-track developments for the iLight Group.

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Bob Dean has joined LGH Rigging Services as commercial manager. He returns to LGH Group plc, having held the post of branch manager of the Slough Lifting Gear Hire location for three years. He has worked as a project manager in Malaysia and as a contracts manager, working on such key contracts as Canary Wharf DS5. His appointment is a further step in the continuing development of the LGH Rigging Services business - a specialist in the field of rigging equipment hire, offering, in addition, comprehensive operator training capability.

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Stuart Cunningham has joined the Tannoy sales team to provide support for external sales engineers and customers, both overseas and in the UK. Cunningham will ensure that customers have a main point of contact to quickly answer any queries and provide a link to the sales staff when they are travelling. He has recently graduated from Strathclyde University with a degree in Marketing and Psychology and will be based in the Tannoy Pro sales office in Coatbridge.

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At Telex EVI Audio, Jürgen Meier has taken over the role of distribution manager for fixed installations from Claus Peter Sterling, who has retired from the post after nearly 27 years. Meier is responsible for all sales and marketing activities in the European electro-acoustics and movie theatre installations market (including Germany) as well as for Pro Sound in the domestic German market. For the past five years, Meier has worked in the cinema field as sales and project manager for projection and sound reinforcement installations.

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Sennheiser UK has announced a fundamental restructuring of its management team. The new structure sees equal prominence given to five areas of management responsibility with the appointment of key personnel to the newly-created positions of director of engineering, finance, marketing, operations and sales. Dave Hawker is appointed director of engineering with responsibility for all technical aspects of the company’s operations, including service, technical support and special projects. Lesley Alaway becomes director of finance, while Phil Massey is director of operations responsible for operations, systems and IT management.The greatest changes are to the previously integrated sales and marketing functions: John Steven joins Sennheiser from as director of marketing from KGa Press+Communications, the company’s PR agency, where he held the position of account manager for four y

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David Kirk, the former PR manager at Allen and Heath, has recently returned to take up a new role as New Media Manager. Kirk left the company in February 2000 to feed an interest in the opportunities created by the internet and electronic communication. He subsequently worked as content manager for LeisureHub.com, a business-to-business exchange for the leisure industry. Last month, he returned to the A&H fold after a new position arose allowing him to use his enhanced media skills in the pro audio industry.

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The team at Northern Light has been further strengthened with several new appointments. Craig Shaw joins the Special Projects department as sales engineer, with responsibility for developing the company's sound reinforcement products business. Formerly with EFX Audio, he left to freelance on sound system design and installation projects in clubs and bars throughout Scotland and for projects such as the Police Public Safety announcement system for Edinburgh’s Hogmanay street celebrations.

Gerry Corcoran is the latest addition to the sales team. Based in Glasgow, he'll be concentrating on expanding and supporting Northern Light's customer base in the West of Scotland and will augment the company's capacity to demonstrate equipment and provide customer training. Gerry was formerly chief electrician and technical tutor at RSAMD, and before that his career in stage management and elec

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A number of management changes have been announced within the Avesco group following the creation of their new Audio Visual Services Division, which will be headed up by former Creative Technology managing director, Graham Andrews. As a result, Andrews hands over the day-to-day running of CT to Mark Elliott, simultaneously assuming the role of chief executive, in order to oversee the strategic development of the company. CT’s new managing director has worked with the company for the last nine years, latterly as operations director. "I have a long history in the industry, extending back to 1982, and recent years have proved both exciting and rewarding," said Elliott. "My role will now be to further develop the management structure underpinning a high quality and specialist service business, while supporting the growth of Creative Technology within the full framework o

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Lightfactor’s sales team continues to expand with the addition of Scott Callis, who joins as product manager for the Italian-made SGM range of lighting equipment. Callis will initially be undertaking an intensive 14-week UK promotional tour for Lightfactor, highlighting and demonstrating the many advantages of the complete range of SGM products including the new Giotto 250 Spot. This method of product exposure enables direct communication with end-users to heighten product awareness and potential, and allows Lightfactor to continue developing and improving its after-sales and customer service. Callis’ road show will be targeting specially selected rental companies, theatres, AV specialists, installers and venues covering a broad cross-section of the leisure and entertainment industry.

Callis has worked in the moving light business for the past six years, including as a foun

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Bandit Lites has announced new additions to its staff at its world headquarters in Knoxville, Tennessee. Jim Guinn has been named director of computer resources globally at Bandit Lites. Guinn joins the company from Techmer PM where he was a team leader within the Information Services Department. Nathaniel Dawson has been named Shipping and Receiving Specialist. Prior to Bandit Lites, he specialized in theater at Las Vegas Academy.

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Ian Gordon, formerly with Westsun International Inc, has joined the team at Christie Lites in Vancouver. Gordon, a touring industry veteran, takes with him 15 years experience servicing the concert industry in North America and Europe. Established in 1985, Christie Lites is an owner-operated organization which focuses on the stage lighting market. With offices in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Dallas, and Orlando - it provides full service rentals to the concert, corporate, theatrical and educational sectors, as well as extensive sales support for manufacturers including Martin, MA, ETC, Robert Juliat and Spectrum Manufacturing.

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Richard Wear, formerly director and general manager of Celestion International Ltd, has announced his departure from the company, to pursue other professional and personal interests. At the company headquarters in Ipswich, Frank DiGirolamo takes over executive responsibility for the Professional Systems Division. He is currently Deputy CEO of KH Industries (UK) Ltd, and has extensive experience of both the consumer and professional audio business, as a senior executive at Harman International, and also chief operating officer of Intellisys Inc in the USA. DiGirolamo first became involved with Celestion as managing director of its sister company KEF, in the early nineties. His return to the UK just over two years ago signalled a change in the success of both the KEF and Celestion consumer brands. Speaking on behalf of Celestion, DiGirolamo said: "The company would like to thank Richa

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Malcolm Davis, Zero 88’s UK sales manager, has decided to leave the company for pastures new! In the two and a half years Davis has been with the company, he has become a familiar face to its UK dealers. Before joining Zero 88, he worked for a number of years developing overseas markets and has decided to put that knowledge to use in European markets, although he is staying within the lighting industry. Lorna Parsons will take over his responsibilities in the UK, with Graham Eales and Tim Burt providing back up.

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Moving from an office-based position at Lighting Technology’s headquarters at Park Royal, London, Jerry Merrifield has been appointed to take care of field sales for the South West of England. Field sales manager Rob Williamson said: "Jerry is a tremendous addition to the field sales team. With his knowledge, enthusiasm and drive, he is bound to develop new and existing business in the South West. He is a character well known to suppliers and customers alike." Jerry Merrifield commented: "After 10 years with LTG this is an opportunity and a challenge I needed. The growth during my time with the company has been staggering and the move gives me the opportunity to contribute to the future expansion of Lighting Technology’s business in the South West."

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The Christie Lites group of companies has announced the addition of Ian Gordon, formerly of Westsun International Inc, to the Christie Lites team. Gordon brings to Christie Lites 15 years’ experience servicing the concert industry in North America and Europe and will be working from the Christie Lites Vancouver office. "I’m extremely excited about the opportunity Christie Lites provides for myself and my family. The owner/operator business structure, combined with quality equipment and multiple offices throughout North America provide me with the desirable tools to service today’s concert marketplace. I have admired Christie Lites as competitors and look forward to being part of their team," says Gordon.

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MCL, the new AV staging services company set up by Avesco plc, has announced a major consolidation of its lighting department, which will enable it to offer sophisticated high-quality solutions on a par with investments already made in video, sound and staging. The highly experienced Nick Whitehead had been recruited to develop MCL London’s lighting inventory and create a support infrastructure. Nick was previously managing director of Lighting Unlimited, establishing the company on behalf of Gearhouse Group plc. His experience in lighting ranges from theatre work for the London Fringe, National Theatre and Orchard, to high-end design for corporate presentations. He said: "Alongside our established rental staging fleet, MCL’s investment in leading-edge equipment will enable us to meet a wide range of lighting requirements - from simple lamp kits for conference solutions

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AVW Controls has announced that Mark Brown, who joined the company as general manager in February 1999, has been appointed a director of the company. Born in Suffolk in 1964, Mark has worked in many engineering control disciplines including cranes and truck auto-electrics and in his new role will control the operations side of AVW, from the initial purchasing and manufacturing stage through to installation and commissioning, often to very tight schedules. Brown will also be responsible for the inspection and testing of equipment prior to delivery for a variety of projects, ranging from small pile wind hoists and revolves to much larger orchestra elevators, safety and house curtains and powered flying systems. "The projects we undertake at AVW are diverse, with recent projects I've worked on including the Thessalonika Concert Hall and Royal Theatre in Greece, as well as the Glyndebou

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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.

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Industry veteran Fred Bentham died on Thursday 10 May at the age of 90. Though his career was long and distinguished, he will probably be remembered most for his ground-breaking work on the Strand Light Console which he designed to run a light show at the 1932 Ideal Home Exhibition. Unlike the control desks of today, the desk was designed to be 'played' like a piano. The funeral will take place on Thursday 24th May.

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Steve Terry, president of the Fourth Phase Systems Group, will leave the company on May 25th. Terry, one of the original owners of Production Arts, which was acquired by PRG in June 1998, is departing to assume the role of vice-president of professional services at Electronic Theatre Controls (ETC). In that role, he will be able to utilize his skills and experience on a much more diverse range of projects and will work closely with Bill McGivern, director of systems, and Sarah Spencer, director of technical services, to further strengthen ETC's industry-leading position in those areas.

Industry veteran Bill Groener will become the Northeast Regional VP for the PRG companies and will assume responsibility for lighting and audio rentals, large format projection (rentals and sales) and all permanent installation projects. Groener has been with PRG since 1998 and brings extensive experien

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Al Ridella has joined automated lighting manufacturer High End Systems in the role of Northeast Region Sales Manager, and is now based in High End's New York City office. The industry veteran's resume includes years of experience at a number of familiar companies. Most recently he was production coordinator at Fourth Phase New Jersey. His career began straight out of college with Strand. From there he moved to Vanco as head of electronics, then to Bash Theatrical where he handled systems sales. That led to a rental coordinatorjob at Production Arts, then finally to PRG (whose name changed to Fourth Phase while he was there). "High End Systems is a good company," Ridella says. "They take care of their people and customers, and they make good products. I look forward to working with High End's authorized resellers in the Northeast territory."

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Bandit Lites Inc has promoted Ben Dickmann to the role of director of marketing. Dickmann joined Bandit Lites in June 2000 as a marketing associate and quickly developed the company’s marketing efforts. He is a graduate of Valparaiso University with a BSBA in Marketing.

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ETC Europe has announced today that Mike Lowe will be retiring from the position of managing director at the end of May. Lowe has been instrumental in the continuing expansion of ETC Europe and has been intimately involved in developing the European markets for ETC. As part of the ongoing international expansion of ETC, improvements to operations are taking place to further leverage the extensive resources available in its network of offices worldwide. Bill Gallinghouse, vice-president of business development, assumes responsibility for European sales, and Dick Titus, chief operating officer, assumes responsibility for leading ETC Europe operations. ETC's European offices will remain in London and the company will continue serving its clients with the support of its dealer and distributor network.

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Following the news of the recent death of Fred Bentham, we have been advised that his funeral will take place on Thursday 24 May at 2pm at Mortlake Crematorium, Mortlake Road, Richmond on Thames (nearest station Kew Gardens). All are welcome to attend the funeral, which was devised by Fred and has no religious content. A celebration of Fred's life and work is being planned for late June at a West End Theatre. Further details to follow.
  1. Walne Launches Website
  2. iLight Team Expands
  3. Changes at LeMark’s Hot Metal
  4. New Faces at Stage Electrics
  5. New Field Project Manager for ETC
  6. Hewitt Takes Early Retirement from Lighting Tech
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