Harry the hirer Productions Makes Large Robe iFORTE Investment

Leading Australian rental company Harry the hirer Productions (HtH) has invested in 80 Robe iFORTES, which have been added to its extensive lighting rental stock.

These fixtures will be used mainly for the company’s touring and event-based work and will travel between HtH’s three large branches in Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane. The fixtures were delivered via Robe ANZ, part of distributor LSC Control Systems, which is the new distribution setup for Robe in the ANZ area, headed by Darren McLanders.

Harry the hirer Productions’ General Manager Simon Finlayson explained that, as a business, they like to trailblaze trends but were also acutely aware of mature products in demand, particularly in the US, so they were keen to get a fixture that was being regularly specified on international riders, and therefore able to help generate its own demand.

They were also searching generally for a long throw profile fixture.

After considering all the options, iFORTE was identified as the best current option for brightness and longevity, confirmed Simon, adding that their calculations are based on at least three years of constant work to get the full ROI, going up to a lifespan of ideally six years for full value.

They knew from previous Robe purchases that the kit is built to last.

Versatility of a fixture is also considered when calculating ROI, which was another plus point for the iFORTE, as the fixture is equally applicable to both event and touring sectors.

Much of Harry the hirer Productions’ work involves supplying the international artists on the Australasian leg of their tour and they also service numerous large and high-profile business and major events.

“We put time and money into the research of our investments, and also consult our international connections, so we know what is happening in the US, the UK and Europe, which is where a lot of the touring specs tend to start. This is another good indicator of what we should be purchasing” stated Simon.

Eddie Welsh, General Manager of the New South Wales branch, adds that the iFORTE’s IP65 rating was important, given that a substantial amount of their concert and major event work is outdoors. He notes that not having to pressurise the unit is another big bonus, helping to reduce maintenance time and increasing the pace of the turnarounds, which they like to be fast-and-furious as well as thorough.

“The lumens-per-kilo ratio is another consideration,” stated Eddie, with roof weight loading often restricted in venues. Eddie thinks that the crisp iFORTE output over the long zoom ranges was impressive and great for both their rock ‘n’ roll and event/corporate work.

Harry the hirer Productions’ iFORTES have been out constantly since they were delivered by Robe ANZ, which is of course the ideal scenario.

Fifty iFORTES were recently used by lighting designer Ziggy Ziegler of ZZ Creative Australia on a project for a major Australian bank at the ICC Sydney, as part of a lighting rig comprising 250 static and moving LED lights, primarily rigged on overhead trusses.

The event combined an environmental technology expo with plenary sessions, breakout rooms and product demonstrations, played out in a contemporary theatrical setting. From the bushland of Australia and naturalistic feel of the plenary to the waterfall-inspired breakout room with transparent, mesh walls allowing guests to see into the room when it was in session, it was an event that combined theatrical display with technology-driven lighting and lots of internally lit free-standing walls and set pieces … for which the iFORTES were the main workhorses.

“It was simple to assign multiple tasks to the iFORTES,” explained Ziggy. Some were utilised for a specifically focused front light stage wash using the inbuilt shutter system with soft focus ability, and these same units double purposed as chair and fireside chat specials and speech spots, being repositioned and refocused throughout the day.

“The brightness was amazing – we mostly ran them at around 60 per cent – and they worked well juxtaposed against the projection surfaces in the room,” he added.

A large group of iFORTES were used to create effects, gobo washes, set lighting and shutter specials with light colour tints to suit each stand in the expo. One fixture was bright and flexible enough to create a wide zoned, focused gobo floor wash, and also tight focus onto signage, which made patching, system design and maintenance simple and straightforward.

Another group of the iFORTES were used as effects lights in the waterfall-themed breakout room, creating curiosity and magic in the space, together with low fog and water sound effects. The waterfall was created with projection, and Ziggy reports that the iFORTE colour temperature adjustment enabled accurate and even colour correction to match the waterfall. 

This was Ziggy’s first time using iFORTES: “I was delighted with the results, very much enjoyed using them and look forward to the next time.”

Simon and Eddie both feel that Robe is a solid brand that they can trust.

They appreciate the fact that the company is co-owned and headed up by Josef Valchar, who is an engineer and himself right at the heart of the product design.

“You can see that these lighting products are designed by a lighting engineer who is passionate about his products, who understands the fundamentals of lighting and who is tuned in to what lighting designers and rental companies want,” he concluded.