State-of-the-art technology, which includes LED lighting and automation via DMX digital controls, is the trend that is gaining greater strength in the world of lighting for theaters.
By Santiago Jaramillo H.
Theatrical lighting is advancing by leaps and bounds in terms of technology and systematization, but the most considerable achievements, according to industry experts, are concentrated in motorized mechanization and the incorporation of LED light sources.
Likewise, this segment of the industry shows evident progress in terms of economic recovery, to such an extent that its balance sheets are so far very positive and stand as an important component within the growth prospects in the Latin American lighting market for 2010.
This sector is also a good source of development and brings greater challenges every day, because every time the scenographic and lighting assemblies are more demanding and require special attention, but the magnitude of these requirements have not been greater than the commitment of the industry, which has undoubtedly responded in an exceptional way, although in some cases there are still loopholes of disagreement.
Segment Progress
With the aim of knowing first-hand the latest advances in the industry in terms of lighting for theaters, we consulted David Alexánder, commercial director of Teletec de México S.A. de C.V., who spoke of the most representative innovations that have been presented in this segment.
Motorized mechanization, which was previously only for the big budgets of the show centers of Las Vegas (USA) ensures Alexander today is increasingly accessible and is very involved with this industry.
"We are reaching the point where all the mechanical elements of the theater can be automated and operated from the control console, this is the equivalent of the technological change that occurred in the lighting systems when moving from control via levers and rheostats to digital control via DMX, with the great advantage that unlike this slow change in lighting, that went hand in hand with advances in computing, computerized systems are very advanced today and motorized control applications come from industry, any industry extensively uses motor control for its processes, so while the elements were at hand, it wasn't until recently that these were 'packaged' into a presentation that makes them attractive to theaters of all sizes and needs." says Alexander.
The other relevant and perhaps the most important advance that has been presented in this segment of the industry is the use of LEDs, and this is what our guest shows when being investigated by the subject and recognizing that it is a fact that these devices are here to stay, despite their modest beginnings in which their performance left much to be desired: low light, a very poor CRI (color performance index) and terrible attenuation curve, today these defects have been corrected and are already the best option for the illumination of base light and cyclorama, with powers of more than 400 w and efficiencies of more than 100 lm / w.
"The idea is not to save energy as intended in architectural lighting, but to have total versatility in terms of color generation and beam control, the price is much higher than a classic S4-PAR, but when you consider that a single LED reflector replaces 4 or 5 traditional halogen units, including their respective connection, distribution, wiring of independent circuits and dimmer channels for each one, this is no longer so evident, "says the commercial director of Teletec de México S.A. de C.V.
On LED-based lighting our guest warns that his company works with three products: "Vari Lite from the United States, whose moving heads are undoubtedly the best product of its kind available; DTS from Italy, whose complete line of LED products can solve virtually any application; and finally Showco, a Mexico/Taiwanese company, which has a wide range of equipment and an unbeatable price-benefit ratio".
David Alexánder also maintains that many of the theatrical advisors in Latin America are delayed in the implementation of these new technologies, the old guard is reluctant to change, however it would be regrettable if a new cultural or entertainment center did not have the implementation of these systems, it is very important that they approach the venues that have recently adopted them (you will see that they are more than they believe), because just listening to the emotion of these users when operating their state-of-the-art systems will be enough to convince themselves that they are already indispensable."
According to the representative of Teletec, Mexico is one of the countries that has the highest demand for this type of equipment and is, at the same time, one of those that takes the baton in terms of their renewal, but also recognizes that Brazil and Colombia begin a very interesting renewal cycle.
As for the balance that 2010 has so far, Alexander assures that "it is very positive, new technologies are being implemented and giving real fruits to users".
Already in what has to do with the main challenge in the future, David Alexander indicates that this will have to do with increasing the quality of operators and training users. He also recognizes that another challenge will be "to develop and 'master' the new technology regionally, since users must trust more in the ability we have as Latinos to carry out the most challenging installations, and of course, suppliers must live up to this trust," he concludes.
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