HSL At PLASA 2005

At PLASA 2005, UK lighting and audio sales and rental HSL Group Holdings is highlighting its diverse range of products and services. HSL services a host of entertainment areas including concerts, festivals and rock ‘n’ roll tours, theatre productions, corporate events and presentations, and public arts projects. The Blackburn-based company has three divisions: HSL Rental, HSL Rigging, and HSL Sales & Distribution. HSL will be showing several new custom-built products. These include the 500kg DMX mirror ball rotator, the DMX-controlled Snow Dropper, a range of Check-IT plugs and sockets, and its Portable Ballast system for stages and outdoor structures.

The recently launched Totem Tower 2T-V PA/delay tower system will also be on show. This strong tower is capable of lifting loads up to 2 tons, complete with a very neat footprint. It is ideal for city centers, green field sites, and any other location. The 2T-V tower is suitable for hanging all types of PA, either from a one- or two-point pick up. Video screens can be hung on a single point using a spreader. The 2T-V Tower is suitable for lighting equipment to be hung off the mast, as weight and distribution is dependent on the main payload weight.

HSL will be joined at its stand by key suppliers, including Rope Assemblies and Radical Lighting, and Openhouse.

The latest Rope Assembly theatrical rigging kit will be at the HSL stand, including steels, truss steels, rigging screws, shackles, and safety bonds. A full range of PPE accessories includes harnesses, safety helmets, lanyards and rigging gloves will also be available. For use when working with trussing, the Rope Assemblies Multitool includes a wing nut spanner with apertures to fit six different nut sizes, a truss pin pull tool, and bottle opening device. The Frog is an innovative alternative to a shackle, where a quick fix or one-handed operation is required.

Radical Lighting (developers of the RADlite) launch their new NG1 digital media server. The NG1 allows unprecedented use of video and 3D mapping, including advanced keystoning features. NG1 is specifically tailored to provide playback and for adding effects to stored and live video media sources.

Brought to the UK market place by Openhouse Products Limited, Lyteline™ flexible electroluminescent wire and cable has often been referred to as a light without a light-source. Theatre, stage, and event work can be enhanced beyond the normal flashing LED or spotlight systems, with Lyteline™ curtains, lines, or shapes. PLASA 2005 sees the launch of GLO-LYTE, the brightest Lyteline™ EL cable to date. With a diameter of 7mm this cable can be used in place of neon, where glass tubes would break, e.g. touring shows, outdoor events, set backdrops, and moving panels. The cable body doesn’t break even when driven over by vehicles. Waterproof and suitable for long-term underwater use, the GLO-LYTE is weatherproof and resistant to petrol, oil, and many other chemicals. Continuous lengths of 200m or more can be lit from a single small power source. Control can be manual, electronic, or DMX (with full fade or step modes and strobing). The cable can be supplied ready terminated (with IP-68 fittings) or in cut lengths.

Also on show at the HSL stand will be: Architainment’s X-Resolution Soft LED; Universal Printing Group’s range of flightcases and equipment labels for entertainment markets; a range of S.F.A.T.’s special effects and consumables plus a selection of its Snow, Foam, and Confetti canons. AD Systems are also showing their CLA2 Compact Line Array System, a passive two-way loudspeaker system loaded with a 10’’ low/mid Neodym loudspeaker and 2x1’’ Neodym compression drivers. The CLA2 system is flown on the new HSL Totem Tower system.

In addition to its own stand, HSL is also designing and building three stands for other PLASA exhibitors.