This year’s winners of the PLASA Awards for Innovation were announced Monday night at the PLASA Show at Olympia London. The Innovation Awards celebrate future-focused tech that improves safety, efficiency and performance through new methods and materials.
33 products were entered this year. Seven nominees scooped an Innovation Award, and a Gold Award and a Sustainability Award were also presented. This year’s judging team comprised of 12 independent technical specialists from a wide array of backgrounds, chaired once again by chartered engineer James Eade.
Eade, commented, “It has been great to see big names launching products at what is acknowledged to be the most independent industry awards. It is heartening to see creative engineers in the industry continuing to develop new and innovative products in such numbers.”
The winning products and judges’ comments are listed below:
Minuit Une – IVL Photon: The judges said that the multitude of dazzling effects from this laser light source will bring digital fireworks to productions.
Nicolaudie – Wolfmix W1: The judges said this product delivers a fresh and fun solution for the independent gigging band and DJ market.
PMI Gear – SMOKEGENIE: The judges said that this well-engineered product takes vaping technology and brings it to the stage. It provides three effects from one unit, including haze, low smoke and fog. The judges said that they had never seen a low smoke effect like that before especially out of such a small machine.
Robe Lighting – Robin iFORTE: The judges commented that this luminaire features genuine innovation to help reduce service intervals and to mitigate failure by introducing precise moisture control inside an IP65-rated fixture.
Sauca – Live Light: The judges said that this innovation takes control of your phone and provides the next creative chapter for audience participation.
Shure UK – KSM11: The judges felt this product draws on technology found in other sectors to alleviate common challenges faced by sound engineers, by providing an advanced suspension isolation system for ‘virtually zero handling noise’.
XM Automation – XMove: The judges felt that this product was deserving of an award for being the first controller to potentially bring industry-wide compatibility to automation.
Gold Award
Each year the judges also have the option to award a Gold Award in recognition outstanding innovation. This year they have decided to award one to…
Ayrton – Cobra: The judges felt this product demonstrates long-promised laser technology in a useable moving light fixture at a competitive price point, with good energy efficiency.
Sustainability Award
Each year the judges also have the option to award a Sustainability Award in recognition outstanding innovation. This year it was awarded to…
Artistic Licence – Micro-Scope upgrade kit: The judges remarked how this small assembly breathes new life into a product that dates back over 30 years. A simple user-upgrade enables old test equipment to be brought to current standards, owing to the foresight of the manufacturer when the product was conceived.
Commendations
In addition to the winners, the judges commended two additional products, which are:
Robe Lighting – TX1 PosiProfile: The judges say this is a novel hybrid of moving light and generic fixture which will have many varied uses, particularly in situations with restricted space.
ROXX – Cluster Blinder: The judges felt this product modernizes a classic fixture, featuring LED technology and well-engineered construction.
Learn more about the winning products, and about the nominated products in the PLASA Innovation Gallery: https://www.plasashow.com/innovation-gallery