CCPP Makes Big Robe Investment

CCPP is a busy - and fast growing - technical production and Rental Company based in the Maitland suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, headed by Clint Cawood – the CC of the name. They recently made a substantial investment in Robe moving lights for their ongoing production work and for general rental stock.

The latest purchase - for over 100 fixtures - included some of Robe’s newest technology … 24 x Spiiders, 24 x Spikies, 48 x LEDBeam 100s and 24 x CycFX 4s, which join the DLS, DLX and miniPointes already in the rental inventory.

The company was founded by Clint in 2000, then trading as ‘Clint Cawood Professional Productions’ and focusing on technical consultancy in the corporate presentation world.

Clint, with his flair for ideas, dedication to detail and doing things properly, was very successful. After 6 years with a still growing business and lots of potential, Clint decided to start buying kit, broaden the scope of his work and up the ante on all levels of service to his clients in providing full technical production – lighting, sound, video, rigging, etc. The name changed to CCPP.

The first Robe purchases were in 2012, and also delivered by Robe’s South African distributor DWR.

“We really want to help enrich the industry with this latest purchase” commented Clint, “Robe as a brand is very strong in South Africa, the after-sales service and support from DWR is fantastic and both these facts were integral in our decision to purchase.”

They also spoke to a few key South African LDs before finally cutting the deal with DWR. Everyone consulted said they could work better and smarter utilising these Robe products.

In addition to that, they thought the prices represented great value and with a decent amount of Robe kit available, they knew they would also be able to expand their business with dry hires.

All things considered, it was a ‘no brainer’ to make this considerable investment.

The new kit went directly on to the biennial Mediatech Africa expo in Johannesburg, where it was showcased in The Black Box, a new experimental / educational concept area with shows and presentations by two of SA’s leading lighting designers, Joshua Cutts and Chris Bolton of dynamic design practice, Collective Works.

“They illustrated the products and their capabilities really well,” confirms Clint … so much so that CCPP started getting calls about rentals even during Mediatech. “People are very keen to get their hands on them!” stated Clint.

Recent shows for the new Robe kit include a 50th anniversary concert by legendary SA funk / soul band The Rockets at the Grandwest Arena in Cape Town, designed by Hennie Pretorius, who is also CCPP’s technical director.

The show featured a number of original and newer Rockets band members, and Hennie used 24 x miniPointes, 16 x Spikies and 24 x LEDBeam 100s, combined with lights from the house rig, which itself contains Robe Pointes, LEDWash 600s and 1200s together with some older Robe ColorSpot and ColorWash 700E ATs which are still going strong!

Hennie is one of many CCPP crew who are delighted to have the new moving lights on-board. He first used Robe a few years ago in the UK and Europe, before returning to South Africa where the brand had also really taken off.

“Robe is definitely keeping up with the trends and consistently launching interesting and functional new products,” he observed.

The new CCPP fixtures will also be in action for the launch of a new Shoprite warehouse.

Clint thinks that the integration between the Spiider, the Spikie and LEDBeam 150 is a great asset – they all use the same lenses - and all fixtures combine nicely, offering plenty of creative scope.

The current 2000 square metre CCPP facility in Maitland is very well organised and run, with 36 full time staff now employed. They supply production to around one or two fair sized events during quieter months of the year and around four in that category alone during the season, plus a plethora of smaller shows.

There is an active policy of supporting premium brands, and others include MA Lighting for control and JBL, Soundcraft and DiGiCo on the audio side.

“Empowering the industry” is a strategy Clint actively started following around 5 years ago, and that has fuelled Robe investment and others in quality brands, together with those in a selection of more niche products.

Clint visited the Robe factory in Valašské Meziříčí earlier in the year and really enjoyed the energy and vibes, and appreciated the care and attention to detail. ”You can see the thoroughness at work first hand … “and that’s when you really start to understand why the products are so good and so reliable,” he concluded.

Clint and CCPP Team photo by Louise Stickland