Robe\’s high impact London themed stand
– complete with genuine vintage London bus – was right at the core of the 2016 PLASA
exhibition in London where it caught the eyes of visitors and provided a lively
and invigorating environment to showcase the latest technology from the Czech
lighting manufacturer.
The just launched Spiider LED wash beam luminaire was the visual centerpiece of the
stand, with 42 Spiiders arranged on a scenic ‘super-web’ web at the heart of a
spectacular lightshow that ran every hour.
Just launched globally on the internet
via the trending \’Spiiders all over the web\’ video three days before the show,
it was the hot product of the expo!
The super-web was neatly concealed
behind drapes that transformed the stand into a theatrical space to show off
Robe’s other highlighted products which included the new Halo pixel ring, the all-LED DL series and BMFL WashBeams from Robe’s
signature high-powered BMFL range.
The stand was constantly busy.
Robe’s CEO Josef Valchar commented, “I
was initially a little skeptical about how PLASA would ‘pan-out’ this year, I
even prepared our staff for the fact that this could be the last PLASA But any
doubts were turned on their head by the end of the first day!
“We have seen a diverse mix of visitors
from the UK and Europe, and most of our key European distributors also attended
and were busy with customers throughout. The move back to west London has been
hugely popular, and I think it’s really given the expo the ‘bounce’ it needs to
re-energize”.
The interest in Spiider just after the
launch was also significant for Robe, bringing hundreds of people to the stand
to see “the next BIG thing’ in LED wash lighting technology.
Mick Hannaford, MD of Robe UK commented
that the overall quality of the visitors was \”extremely good” and “high
value” and echoed Josef’s remarks about the advantages of the re-location to
Olympia. “For this show and with the sociability of the industry and the way
business is done, west London is an ideal place.”
Assisting the Robe UK sales team on the
stand were four technical theatre and lighting students from the University of
South Wales and Central School of Speech & Drama. This is an ongoing Robe work
scheme now in its sixth year, designed to assist in broadening their industry
experience, networking and communication skills.
Upstairs on the mezzanine floor in the ‘Exploratorium’
– a curated experimental space dedicated to art, technical and scientific
projects utilizing sound and visual technology, techniques, elements and
concepts – were three interactive experiments using Robe equipment. These were
developed by student and artist Luke Rolls in conjunction with Robe’s NRG (Next
Robe Generation) initiative.
Josef concludes with great enthusiasm,
“The stand rocked! We all enjoyed a great buzz and many positive dynamics from
the exhibition. It was good to have new elements like the Exploratorium happening
as well as the main show floor activities and we all look forward to being
back in the same spot next year!”
