STAGECO eNEWS WINTER 2009/2010
What a year! The success of 2009 has been underlined by the company being voted ‘Favourite Staging supplier’ at this February's TPi Awards. We would like to thank everybody who voted for us.

It was not only gratifying for all the team at Stageco to have their efforts and achievements acknowledged by their contemporaries, but also great to see many of our colleagues we’ve worked alongside on some truly great productions also receiving awards in their own categories. It highlights the incredible levels of talent and innovation across this fantastic industry.

For Stageco, the highlight of the year was certainly the phenomenal U2 tour, with 44 dates across Europe and the USA and more to come in 2010 when the 360° tour continues in the US before returning to Europe – a further 37 dates announced at present. The recent completion of our work for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver and AC/DC Black Ice tour continuing across New Zealand and Australia before its return to Europe means that 2010 will be a consistently busy year.

With this newsletter we are showcasing the different types of projects Stageco has been involved with over the last six months, from the summer’s festivals and major tours to one off events and bespoke structure builds by each office. Hopefully this will give you a taste of what we have been up to ...

Wishing you every success in 2010.

Stageco was contracted for the first time to create a bespoke stage for Coldplay covering the stadium leg of the band's Viva La Vida world tour with 17 dates.

Looking to create a unique live experience for their fans, Coldplay contracted international staging experts Stageco to design, manufacture and install the touring stage across Europe, including shows in Barcelona, Stockholm and London.

Project Director Hedwig de Meyer led in-depth consultation between Stageco’s in-house design and CAD engineers and the band’s management and production teams. An extensive creative process followed to finalise a design-led staging solution, following the concept of a giant eyelid, which was practical and safe to tour.

The finished design required some components to be specifically manufactured in-house at Stageco's Belgian fabrication facility, with the system being fully tested by the end of July at Werchter, ready for its first show in Denmark. Three systems were produced, each with a crew chief and 15 trained Stageco staging professionals to ensure the 12 trucks of steel stages were installed and de-rigged safely.

Beneath the gracefully curved roof that formed the eyelid of the stage, the back wall of the stage was entirely taken up by a huge LED video screen, the stage roof configuration having been designed to protect the video and the décor from the rain. Rather than "black box" walls as seen on many stages, a mixture of dark, transparent and red canvas were custom made for enhanced visual effect.

Standing at 20m high x 55m wide, the outdoor set varied significantly from the design used for the indoor shows to increase the audience experience in the larger stadium environments. Stageco integrated LED video and increased PA equipment into the stage set. Additional delay towers were also supplied to hold PA across the venues.

In December 2009, French designer Sonia Rykiel launched her new range with a fashion show in the heart of Paris and Stageco built the specialist structures required to create a stunning Parisian themed set.

The Grand Palais in Paris welcomed 2,350 guests when it was transformed into a fairytale village for the launch of one of France's biggest fashion icon’s new H&M range.

Stageco designed and built the structures for the show, working with the show's production manager beginning only one month before the show designing the custom built support structures.

The 26 strong Stageco team worked to a time and venue sensitive brief, building the set in three days ready for the international media, celebrities and special guests to watch the show.

Stageco designed the 400m² base upon which the replica version of the Eiffel Tower stood at 30m high. The base was a three tiered grandstand for seated spectators and press.

The VIP platform offered 300m² space and at 5m high, it allowed special guests unrestricted viewing of the show. The platform was integrated into the show’s scenery and housed different catering bars.

The 12m high Arc de Triomphe replica structure was engineered to allow the arch to theatrically split into two pieces during the show, operated by the Stageco team.

The challenge was the load in and out of the venue, for both access and time. The six truck loads of equipment had to be built in three days and we dismantled in 11 hours instead of 21 hours originally planned!

Stageco also built 14 scaffolding towers at 10m high to support PA, lighting and scenery across the venue.

Stageco used its engineering expertise to create the infrastructure for an ice skating rink and surrounding structures in Bruges.

As one of the oldest and most picturesque cities in Belgium, Bruges was the host to winter shopping and ice skating for locals and visitors to the city.

International staging company Stageco, famous for festival and touring stages was brought in for the seventh consecutive year to create the framework and infrastructure for the city centre attraction.

The Stageco team of four transported 80 tons of equipment to the site to build the 20m x 30m ice rink structure. Tom Bilsen, Project Manager for Stageco explained:

"The ice rink was a challenge due to the uneven ground level. Across the rink there was a difference of 1.5m in height which meant we had to design the structure to overcome this."

This year, Stageco also built 12 scaffolding towers surrounding the ice rink which were used for decoration; the entire build was realised in no more than 1½ days. Each 6m high tower was loaded with 2.4 tons counter weight to stabilise the steel cables tensioned on top, allowing decorations to hang over the ice rink.

In 2009, a prestigious German car manufacturer celebrated its centenary and Stageco created a bespoke stage for the brand's celebrations in Ingolstadt, Germany.

To mark 100 years production, a two day event was held for special guests with a showcase of the brand and two music performances. Stageco was commissioned to design and build the open air stage to meet the requirements for both days.

The challenge for Stageco was to create a stage that met the brand's design specifications but could also accommodate an orchestra’s and band's production on two separate days. The stage needed to be transformed overnight.

To achieve this, the design was complex and a Stageco 3-tower stage was built 16m high, 13m deep and more than 18m wide. The stage allowed for all technical fixtures such as lighting, sound and video to be incorporated and Stageco also built the essential constructions including the front of house mixer, lighting towers and podia for press and visitors.

When the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics took place in Berlin, Stageco was brought in to provide the temporary structures and stages required across the city.

Hosted by a different city each time, the bi-annual championships took over the Berlin Olympic Stadium for the nine day competition and saw more than 2,500 athletes competing.

Stageco was brought in to deliver the stadium's temporary structure requirements applying creativity and engineering expertise.

A scaffolding structure was built in-between the towers of the stadium's Marathon Gate to hold a 70 ton video wall used to relay the action to the spectators. The structure was branded and acted as the focal point of the stadium.

Stageco also built bespoke structures across the stadium including the 100m long access cable bridge with several passage routes going from the IBC Compound to the stadium, the bearing for the high jumpers contest, the cable bridges in the Olympic Park and a system to fly flags at the winner's ceremonies.

An athletes village was created in Berlin city centre in front of the Bradenburg Gate and Stageco built a micro-arch type 1 structure within it. The structure was 10 arches in length and hosted a 'Champions Lounge' for the tournaments winners at one end and a stage for bands to perform to spectators at the other end.

Stageco also worked with SEIKO, the official timekeeper for the IAAF World Championship in Athletics, to create a stunning marketing suite in the Olympic Square in Berlin city centre.

SEIKO's involvement with the international event spans more than two decades and brings over 40 engineers and sports timing experts to record over 12,000 times and distances.

To maximise brand awareness, SEIKO commissioned Stageco to build a temporary marketing structure that would reflect the brand and offer visitors the chance to see SEIKO's range of products.

Stageco worked to SEIKO's design requirements and created a cube-shaped structure that was covered with a doorway for the entrance and was completely branded on the outside. The structure trussing held lighting to add effect and a running track made of blue tartan acted as the entrance carpet to fit with the athletic theme.

Stageco's Netherlands office designed and built 11 stages for this year's Lowlands Festival at the end of Summer 2009 in Holland.

Stageco has been involved with Lowlands Festival since it began in 1993, supplying the staging and scaffolding requirements across the entire festival site. In 2009 Stageco built 11 stages at the festival under tented structures, as well as the scaffolding structures used across the site for decoration and signage.

In total, 4,676m² of Stageco flooring was used to build all the stages. The two main stages measured 28m wide x 15m deep, built with the Stageco Steel Tower system and the full ground-support needed to carry the large weight of the production lighting, PA and video screens. Stageco also used 256 ton ballast weights for the ground-support of all scaffolding structures and stages to ensure they were safely and securely weighed down.

As part of the Lowlands Festival project, Stageco also installs a bespoke temporary bridge structure that crosses a main road outside the site to connect the camping and car parking areas to the festival. The bridge is built and is put in place from May through to August each year, also being utilised for the same purpose at Opwekking festival earlier in the summer.

The MTV Video Music Awards took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in September 2009 and Stageco USA designed and built a bespoke scaffolding structure on a busy sidewalk in Manhattan.

Stageco's brief was to create an 'industrial' look with the scaffolding structure which was used to create the event’s talent stage and backdrop. The 6m wide and 3m deep stage was built with stairs onto the stage on each side and the 8m wide and 7m high scaffolding wall stood behind it. Adjustable decks were placed within the wall to accommodate the lighting fixtures for the huge MTV Video Music Awards logo.

Beside the feature structure, MTV's designers also requested free standing supports to hold lighting. Stageco worked closely with the engineers to make sure that all structures were properly braced whilst maintaining an open look.

The limited space to unload and store material throughout the build process coupled with the tight time frame working on the event made it a challenge. The Stageco team worked closely with the other event production teams to ensure it was completed to their highest standards.

Stageco USA was approached by video company GoVision to design, fabricate and install four permanent video screen support structures at the new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas.

The artistic concept behind the structure was to duplicate the stadium's truss style and integrate the new structure into it and as a permanent structure within the stadium, the engineering behind the design was very challenging and had to meet permanent building codes and regulations.

Primary designer from Stageco US, Michael Sheehan worked closely with the client and engineers to design the ideal solution. Throughout the design process there were changes and developments from the client which meant that the Stageco team had to continuously adapt to meet the client's creative requirements whilst ensuring the design remained safe, functional and aesthetically pleasing.

Four individual L-shaped structures flanked the stadium carrying four separate video screens. The structures were built from Stageco's truss material fitting perfectly alongside the stadium's exterior and took the team five days to construct.

To launch the new TUi Cruises "Mein Schiff" in Hamburg, Stageco Germany delivered the complete staging solution for the celebratory event.

Stageco created a transparent 20m wide roof stage at the Hamburg fish market, the location for the official launch event. The cruise ship named "Mein Schiff" was anchored in front of the stage ready for the ship launch later that evening.

The public event welcomed guests who wanted to come and listen to the music of Udo Lindenberg and German Hip Hop singer Jan Delay.

Two large screens were hung from the scaffolding structures on the stage left and right of 27 tonnes each side – 5ton screen and 22ton wing.

Stageco France worked with French pop icon Mylène Farmer on her outdoor stadium tour to build one of the largest possible stadium stage roofs at 1200m² for the petite popstar to perform under.

The outdoor stadium dates in Genève, Stade de France, and Brussels followed a successful three month indoor tour with Stageco supporting all dates from Nice to Moscow.

The Stageco Super Roof (33m by 22m) was customized by extending each side with 250m² in order to protect sounds, video and decoration. This resulted in the "Super Roof XXL" covered in all 1200m² on eight Stageco towers supporting almost 60 tonnes of materials.

On the massive Stageco stage, Mylène Farmer was surrounded by a huge video wall, dramatic scenery, fireworks and lasers. With 370 tonnes of material in total, the greatest challenge was building the huge stage in a very tight schedule and to the maximum size of the stadium.

Stageco's engineers designed a complex solution to increase the capacity of the Gelredome in Arnhem, Netherlands by 2,500 people for the dance event Qlimax.

Stageco worked with the stadium's engineers to design two large dance decks which could be built into the venue’s grandstands and meet all internal building regulations.

All the grandstand seats of the stadium had to be removed properly in order for Stageco to be able to start the build of the dance platforms. Each deck was 66m wide and 22m deep, and had a gradual design which meant they created new areas within the venue to host an increased capacity. Beneath the decks the additional space was used for bar and catering facilities.

Overall 200 tonnes of Stageco material was used, an equivalent of 8 trucks and the project comprised 175 man days of work from the design process through to completion.

Stageco designed and built the complex set for the performance of Kasimir and Karoline, a Belgian production directed by 2 Dutch producers (Johan Simons and Paul Koek) that toured six venues in 2009 and will be continuing in 2010 with visits to Cologne(DE), Amsterdam(NL) and Lorient(FR).

Stageco constructed the backdrop for the play which is set on a fairground and developed the structure to suit both indoor and outdoor venues. The brief was to create an industrial look with the set built and the Stageco designers used the Layher scaffolding system to create the different structures required.

The set was dominated by a modular galvanised steel scaffolding construction which stood at 20m high and 24m wide featuring a base and a tower. The lighting and scenery elements were worked into the structure which featured a huge ENJOY sign and neon lights to add to the industrial feel.

Each show build presented different challenges for the team, for the indoor shows Stageco had to develop special carts to transport all of the material inside.

For the series of eight outdoor shows, 30 tonnes of Stageco material was used and 20 crew members were required to build the structure. The weather conditions for the outdoor show in Avignon, South of France saw the Stageco team overcome the severe Mistral winds to build the set ready for show day.

The Japanese TV show, Hole in the Wall came to Europe, Stageco Netherlands built the floor structure to hold the swimming pool for the gameshow's activity.

A mechanically engineered 'wall' with people shaped holes for the contestants to climb through moves along the set floor and failure to climb through it results in the contestant being pushed into a swimming pool.

Stageco designed and built the floor structure which housed the pool and was beneath the moving wall. Working with the set designer who developed the mechanical wall, Stageco's floor structure had to overcome the weight and forces of the water and fit with the set's overall design.

A total of 25 tonnes of material was used for the structure and built in the Amsterdam TV studio.

Stageco Belgium supported the Belgian version of this popular show.