DUBAI, UAE — Informa Exhibitions turned to Production Technology (Protec) as its production partner to handle the lighting, video, sound and rigging for the Middle East Event Awards, held at the Madinat Jumeirah resort’s Joharah Ballroom on May 25. The gala honored Middle East-based event companies with 22 awards categories. It capped the two-day (May 24-25) Middle East Event Expo, held at the nearby Marriot Marquis in Dubai.
More details from Protec (www.productiontec.com):
“Working with Protec over the past eight months toward creating the largest, and most technically ambitious, edition of the Middle East Event Awards of the last nine years has been a real pleasure,” says Lauren McDermott, Informa Project Manager, Middle East Event Awards. “Not only did they deliver one of the most visually astounding shows we have ever seen, it was done seamlessly and without fault.”
Along with the behind-the-scenes technical support provided for the gala, Protec was also brought into the spotlight at the podium during the event itself. They were honored by the award’s judging panel with a new award, for “Best Use of Event Technology,” for the company’s use of robotics across multiple event disciplines.
“This award category was only introduced this year and is a very special one for us,” says company founder Steve Lakin. “The award is unique; making robots inhabit any presentation is a challenging task yet what we’ve done here is but one small example. The potential is only limited by your imagination and I’m proud to say the people and skills within Protec are up to whatever you throw at us.”
Protec was also an exhibitor at the ME Event Expo. Their booth at the show was designed as a studio around a boardroom type environment. “We installed a large video display, and equipped it with some of the creative tools we possess — 3D stage design, lighting design, video and sound,” says marketing manager Eddie Andradé, noting that the booth displays gave the company the opportunity to showcase “the amazing array of technologies in our inventory.” He added that, “assembled together in one place, these tools allowed the possibility of a virtual walkthrough experience.”
Protec were also asked to reprise their use of robotic baristas in 2015, which they duly did, but with an added twist. “Last year we were limited to using the reception lobby, as the robots weighed in at over a ton each,” says Lakin. “Now we have some much smaller, elevator friendly Kuka robots: each weighs just 250kgs. Basically, this is a robot with six axis of movement and you can – within weight limits (16kg) – put whatever you like at the end of it. As with the creative playground on our stand, the idea was to encourage people to think about their own ideas.”
Protec’s presence at each facet of the ME Event Expo and the Awards certainly impressed Informa. McDermott concludes, “The Protec team spent countless hours onsite working towards delivering the event and were willing to go to any level to make sure we (the client) were happy and comfortable with all branding and content. As part of an international partnership, Protec worked with U.K. based Drive Productions to create truly unique content that elevated the whole awards experience. This was a big year for the Middle East Event and the Awards; Protec were the catalyst in making it happen.”
