Hey again, well this weeks is going to be brief because I have not a thing to write about. Currently my work has been put to a stand still because of the winter, recession, etc. Who knows what is to blame. All I can say is that I am not able to do what I love and that is lighting.
NEW YORK — D3 LED, a digital display engineering and manufacturing company, got a tall order: Walgreens’ 325-foot tall wraparound LED sign at One Times Square, which is also home to the descending ball that accompanies the televised countdown to New Year’s Eve.
SUN VALLEY, CA — LA ProPoint, a stage and show systems design and engineering firm, has moved its headquarters to a larger facility. The new 27,000 square foot facility is nearly double the size of the company’s previous location, which had also been located in Sun Valley, Calif.
VAN NUYS, CA — The Joint Training Initiative of The ESTA Foundation and USITT have set Feb. 17 and 18 as the dates for training sessions on High End Systems’ Wholehog 3 console. The sessions will take place at the facility maintained here by High End Systems and the Media and Entertainment Division of Barco Lighting Systems, Inc.
MINSK, Belarus — The Scorpions performed before 7,000 people at the Sport Arena in Minsk as part of the German band’s Humanity World Tour, and moving lights from PR Lighting, supplied by local distributor FE Belimlight, gave LD Ranier Becker the speed and precision he was looking for to help the band make its point.
STOCKHOLM, Sweden — With campy set elements ranging from ersatz letters spelling E-L-T-O-N to a monstrous set of inflatable boobs, it’s unlikely that many people are paying much attention to the truss on Elton John’s Red Piano tour. But it’s also safe to say that the visuals for the show as a whole would not be the same without the truss and the 20-way Kinesys automation system provided by Summit Steel that moves set elements around.
NEW YORK — Conceptual artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s interactive lighting installation, Pulse Park, involved 200 theatrical spotlights activated by the heart rates of visitors to Madison Square Park. Their pulse rates sent a matrix of light across the park’s Oval Lawn. Scharff Weisberg installed the 750-watt ellipsoidal spotlights bordering two sides of the central lawn.
DUNEDIN, FL — Ocean Optics, Inc. has acquired Oerlikon Optics USA, a supplier of custom optical components and subassemblies. Under terms of the agreement, Oerlikon’s Golden, Colo.-based operation, including plant assets and customer and supplier relationships, will be integrated into Ocean Optics’ Largo, Fla.-based Thin Films Division.
GALATI and TECUCI, Romania — Daily life has changed for most of the residents of Galati and Tecuci, located near the border with Modavia and Ukraine, and so have the nights, with color-changing washes used on landmark buildings. The installation uses IP65-rated projectors from Clay Paky equipped with color diffusion filters, including 15 CP Color 150s and eight CP Color 575s.
A new version of Martin Professional’s ShowDesigner (MSD) lighting and set design software is now available. It includes a new 3D graphic engine with “near rendering quality” in real-time. Some updates include: fixture beams with true-life light distribution; animated smoke with adjustable density and evenness; camera animation with time-line control; new user interface with sidebar for quick access to all features; drag-drop of object and fixture onto 3D space; ISO camera view for easier manipulation of objects in 3D view. Five versions include: Gold, Live, Live-4, Silver and Live-LJ. They are available via the worldwide partner network or at www.martinshowdesigner.com.
KORTRIJK, Belgium — Barco’s plan to reduce its costs by 30 million euros, announced in July, was followed by staff reductions in September, and the company recently announced a second round of staff cuts which will trim the company’s global ranks by an additional 200 people. The company added that 130 of those people will be leaving the company this month.
WARSAW, IN — Da-Lite Screen Company and Joe Kane Productions have entered into a strategic partnership to design, develop and manufacture high definition projection screens for film production and other markets. Da-Lite is a leading manufacturer of projection screens and Joe Kane Productions (JKP) is an HD projection consultant.