INDIANAPOLIS — Members of the Event Safety Alliance, including founding members John Brown of Brown United, Inc. and Jim Digby, production manager for Linkin Park, met April 23 with Indiana governor Mitch Daniels and state safety officials to discuss ways for the entertainment industry and government to work together in the interest of life safety. The meeting included officials from the NFPA, IATSE, IDHS, IOSHA and Daniels’ staff.
The formation of the Event Safety Alliance, announced earlier this year, was prompted by tragedies at multiple entertainment events in 2011, including the Aug. 13 2011 staging collapse of the main stage at the Indiana State Fair here, that killed seven and injured 40.
The group, which now includes more than 65 members, includes staging and temporary structure manufacturers and engineers, event safety and security directors, artist production managers, private meteorological services, equipment manufacturers, industry safety training directors, the IATSE, venue managers, industry standards writers, industry insurance underwriters and industry attorneys.
The ESA’s stated mission is to:
- Gather into one resource the broad-reaching, existing body of best practices already in circulation
- Provide a clear concise body of best practice guidelines for the event production industry. This resource would evolve with time as improved measures are created
- Collaborate with government and industry to find the best strategies for inspection practices and confirmation that events are being produced with life safety as priority one
- Aid in creating the working & steering groups of industry professionals for the purpose of refining the body of work
- Aid in creating task specific training and certification programs for all levels of individuals involved in risk management
- Have this body of work become the GLOBAL standard of best practices
- Reinforce “life safety first” as the priority of the industry
It is currently led by the following industry members:
- Ken Barber, Clair Brothers Audio
- Keith Bohn, Tomcat USA
- John Brown, Brown United Staging
- James Chippendale, Doodson Insurance Brokerage
- Benny Collins, Production Manager
- Jim Digby, Production Manager
- Mary Lou Figley, Stageco
- Tim Franklin, Structural Engineer
- Charlie Hernandez, Production Director
- Hadden Hippsley, Production Manager
- Dave Lester, Clair Global
- Steve MacFadyen, Pollstar
- Stuart Ross, Red Light Management
- Karl Ruling, PLASA
- Roger Sandau, Doodson Insurance Brokerage
- Ron Stern, Production Manager
For more information, please visit www.eventsafetyalliance.org.
