Tag Archive: Jason Larcombe

1. White Light Supplies EMEA Trading Conference for 11th Year Running

   12 April 2019 12:25 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light recently supplied the complete technical solutions for the EMEA Trading Conference at Old Billingsgate. This marks the 11^th consecutive year in which the company has been asked to work on the event.

   The EMEA Trading Conference is one of Europe’s largest one-day electronic trading events. It covers the most pressing issues facing the institutional trading community and provides a neutral platform for attendees to share ideas on how their community can continue to collaborate. It is organised by FIX Trading Community who have a close working relationship with WL.

   WL’s Project Manager Jason Larcombe comments: “We have worked with FIX Trading Community for over a decade now, having been able to deliver their technical requirements year on year. Having developed a close working relationship, we have an understanding as to what they need to achieve and ensure our technical support makes this happen. As an organisation which annually invests £3million in new equipment, this means that FIX Trading Community are able to draw on our extensive resources; which they did this year.

   

   Jason adds: “We met with the client three months prior to the event to discuss their vision and how we can bring this to life. It’s our role to design the exact technical system they need and to manage this throughout the conference; giving them complete peace of mind”.

   The Conference featured exhibitions, presentations and key note speakers spread across the main plenary, exhibition hall and three breakout spaces. Similar to last year, WL provided the audio, lighting, staging and video. This included drawing on the company’s new d&b E8 loudspeakers alongside its Shure Axient stock. Due to the sheer number of presentations, WL had to utilise 36 ways of radio microphones, with the company’s dpa microphones proving to be the perfect solution. WL also supplied the powerful Christie Boxer 4K30 Projectors for the main presentations, alongside over 25 screens which relayed content throughout the venue.

   Alongside this, WL also managed the exhibition services which included power, screens and even laptops. Jason comments: “For many conferences, managing exhibition services is not something expected from a technical supplier. However, as we have the resources to offer this and have done so on other events, it made sense to do it once again on this occasion”.

   

   As the EMEA Trading Conference is a one-day event, this meant that WL also had only one day to install the technical set-up, as well as one evening to de-rig everything.

   Jason concludes: “The EMEA Trading Conference is a great example of what we are able to offer as a company. Firstly, it highlights our ability to collaborate closely with a high-profile client over a sustained period and constantly delivered what they require. Secondly, it shows how we can deliver a large-scale conference in a bespoke location with limited set-up time. Both of these are due to our expert staff, wide range of resources and technical knowledge”.

   Photos courtesy of Elli Dean Photography.

2. White Light Appointed Production Partner at Illuminate

   22 November 2018 11:30 Leave a Comment

   

   Situated on Levels 4 and 5 of the Science Museum, Illuminate is a progressive new venue designed to both anticipate and surpass the needs of the ever-evolving events industry. The venue will couple state-of-the-art technology with flexible spaces and stunning views of the City, offering both a unique and productive experience for all clients. Due to its long-standing relationship with the Science Museum, along with its reputation for managing similar venues across London, White Light was appointed Production Partner at Illuminate and has designed and installed the technical system within the space.

   The installation was overseen by WL’s Project Manager Jason Larcombe. He explains: “We were approached by the Science Museum who came to us with their vision for the space and what they wanted to achieve. They wanted both an intuitive and user-friendly system that can reach the demands of any client; covering everything from the biggest conferences to more intimate events. It was our task to draw on our experience of managing other venues, alongside our technical knowledge, to select a range of products that were bespoke to Illuminate and could fulfil the Science Museum’s vision”.

   This included d&b V-series speakers and D series amplifiers, whose portability means they can be moved around the space and offer a solution bespoke to each event. Yamaha QL1 Series desks were chosen for their reliability, portable control and the fact that they are the go-to desk for the majority of technicians and operators. These are run on the Dante network, allowing additional resources to be easily integrated to suit a client’s requirements.

   Shure receivers have been chosen due to the fact they are an industry leader in radio microphone transmission. Shure radio microphones were called upon for their extraordinary audio clarity alongside the fact they also sit on the DANTE network. JBL has been used for ceiling speakers, ensuring a basic audio coverage across the space that can be zoned to suit varying room formats.

   Four 13K Christie projectors were chosen due to the incredible projection they provide, along with the fact that they are incredibly quiet and compact. Panasonic screens offer superior picture quality along with robustness and reliability; something which is vital when they are used on multiple events. Crestron NVX controls all of the lighting and AV set-ups, allowing the space to be managed by one integrated system.

   Jason comments: “Everything we’ve chosen for Illuminate is industry-recognised and the type of product you would expect to find in a premium events venue. We also wanted to draw on equipment that would be completely reliable and offer maximum impact. Ultimately, if you draw on products from leading manufacturers, you are guaranteed a certain level of quality – something we want all clients using Illuminate to experience”.

   A lot of the equipment used within the space is also a continuation of WL’s relationships with the manufacturers and the company’s commitment to investing in the very latest technology. Jason explains: “A lot of the products match those we already have in our extensive hire inventory, meaning clients will be able to resource an entire production internally; a system which has proved extremely useful for our other managed venues. It also allows Illuminate to remain competitive as a venue as it is completely flexible and can change quite significantly; dependent on the client’s needs”.

   Illuminate will open on 1^st February 2019 and there has already been significant interest in this game-changing events space. There will also be show-rounds from 4^th December for clients to get a sneak peak of the venue. To book your Illuminate show-round, contact the team on [email protected] or telephone 020 7942 4340.

   Ben Lheureux, Head of Catering and Events at the Science Museum Group, comments: “Knowing first-hand of WL’s impressive record of delivering innovative and creative technical solutions in a range of venues, we knew they were the perfect production partner for Illuminate. We are delighted with the technical set-up they have designed and know it will offer our clients an events package that simply isn’t available anywhere else.”

   WL Director Richard Wilson adds: “We are very proud of our long-standing relationship with the Science Museum. As two technology-focused organisations, we felt we could very much add value to Illuminate for their incoming venue clients and cannot wait to showcase this brilliant space following the official launch in January 2019”.

   Jason concludes: “Illuminate is a prime example of how we are truly able to offer a partnership to venues. We don’t want to simply supply equipment but also our expertise and on-going support to work closely with the client to ensure we provide an exact solution which fulfils their vision. The result is a truly unique package and, as we continue to expand our managed venues portfolio, we look forward to working with a range of venues to offer the production support bespoke to their needs”.

3. White Light Oversees Lighting Installation for Making the Modern World

   22 May 2018 11:24 Leave a Comment

   As one of the Science Museum’s flagship galleries, Making the Modern World features some of the museum’s most remarkable objects and is a one-of-a-kind setting for events, allowing clients access to artefacts from our history such as the Apollo 10 command module and the first Apple computer. Following a competitive tender, White Light was chosen to oversee a brand-new lighting installation in the Making the Modern World gallery.

   The project was designed by WL’s in-house lighting designer Jason Larcombe, who comments: “This project offered two main challenges. The first was to light the exhibits in a sympathetic manor, and the second was to provide a long term solution for lighting events driven by gallery improvements on the first floor.  We worked through a range of solutions with the museum which resulted in the new scheme”.

   The brief given to WL was to design and deliver a new lighting system that would allow the Gallery to maintain its existing look and feel during the day yet by night could be transformed for events. To fulfil such a brief, WL drew on their experience from another recent project. Jason states: “We installed a similar system at the Natural History Museum for the lighting within the Earth Halls. As a result, we knew exactly what technology to look at when approaching the Making the Modern World gallery”.

   WL wanted to introduce two specific elements to the gallery: a system of automated lights to add a degree of flexibility to the scheme, along with replacements for the gallery’s existing exhibit spotlighting.  All of this had to work within the realms of the Science Museum’s budget. Jason explains: “We knew an entirely new infrastructure would be extremely costly. As a result, we conceived a scheme that made use of existing lighting tracks and wiring, and relied upon wireless technology for data transfer, thus allowing us to maximise the spend on actual fixtures and avoid costly changes to infrastructure”.

   The fixtures WL drew on included the GLP impression X4 S. Jason comments: “We needed automated fixtures which were small and compact, light (due to weight restrictions) along with aesthetically discreet. The X4 S offered this”. For the Lower Level, WL drew on the SGM R2s which are a full colour-changing, compact exhibition spotlight. The track adaptors on the fittings were also modified by SGM to fit the Gallery’s existing infrastructure.

   For ease of use, the entire gallery now runs via Wireless Solutions Wireless DMX. There are four transmitters throughout the space and each automated fixture is paired with a micro-receiver, while the SGM fittings are fitted with wireless receivers as standard. Jason explains: “Due to the complex nature of the space, we realised that we needed to have clear coverage – something we could achieve with four transmitters. By ensuring that all spotlights had micro-receivers, this immediately reduced the need for any extra data cable and made it much easier to retro fit fittings”.

   The system runs from an Interactive Technologies Cue Server 2 that allows the space to be as versatile as possible. WL programmed the system so that it runs scenes by day, specifically for the exhibitions on show. WL also supplied an iPad that features pre-recorded scenes, colours and light different sections of the building’s architecture as well as provide facility for stage lighting and highlighting of food stations and bars.

   Jason explains: “What this means is that the Sales Team can use their iPads to show clients around the space and physically demonstrate its potential. No other similar museum we believe has this facility and it allows the Team to begin discussions with their clients at the very initial stages and close sales faster”.

   Due to the Gallery being in constant use, this meant that WL had to complete the installation over the course of a month. As part of the installation, WL will also provide a member of our venue services team to assist production companies when the gallery is used.

   Jason concludes: “Ultimately, we were able to fulfil the Science Museum’s procurement plan, listen closely to their exact requirements and create a model to make this happen; something we are in the unique position to offer as a company.  The museum now has a rich and highly flexible system that offers new sales potential”.

   Photos courtesy of James Mackenzie.