Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

HSL Makes Massive Technology Investment

18/05/2018

HSL Makes Massive Technology Investment posted: 17/05/2018

Photo shows some of HSL's crew (left to right) Jo Sunners, Joy Brown, Paige Stuart and Emma Turner with some of the new MegaPointes and Encores

Keeping up with a hectic workload being experienced across all companies, Blackburn based lighting and video rental specialist the HSL Group has again increased its investment spend to keep up to speed with the newest technologies.

This will help service ongoing and upcoming projects across all sectors - rental & staging, theatre, television, sporting events and concert touring.

The rapid pace at which the technology is changing and the fact we want to keep ahead of the game is driving this, together with an increase in demand. It's vital that we can continue offering our clients the very best options for all of their shows, events and creative projects, commented HSL's Simon Stuart.

Fixtures like the Robe MegaPointe and the Martin MAC Encore have really made their mark, together with products from GLP, SGM and Vari*lite. Other top brands on the recent HSL shopping list have included Claypaky and Solaris.

These choices have been influenced by specific LD requests as well as what the HSL management team considers are the best and most practical solutions for the company.

Martin purchases have included MAC Encore Performances, in both warm and cool white versions, which have been busy on a variety of theatre and performing arts shows, including Macbeth at the National Theatre. Many of these versatile luminaires also serviced multiple productions during HSL's bumper 2017-18 panto season, with 31 different shows up and down the country!

Simon stated, Even with all the recent changes in the Martin infrastructure, it's great to still receive excellent customer support and see first-hand that the products are still in high demand, which is exactly what you want to underline a serious investment like this .

In addition to the Encore Performances - with more on the cards soon - HSL has bought substantial quantities of MAC Quantum Washes, Axioms and Auras, and added a shed pile' of Rush PAR RGBW Zooms to the inventory for the first time.

Multifunctional is trending, and Robe's MegaPointe is very much the fixture of the moment, so it was a no-brainer' to invest in these which have been purchased across the HSL Group for immediate use by HSL out of Blackburn and Southampton based rental operation, GLS.

More Robe PixelPATTs have been sourced as they are a firm favourite among the television LDs with whom HSL regularly works, as well as for dance events and concert tours.

More Vari*Lite 6Ks have been bought - on top of the 100 plus that are out on Depeche Mode's Global Spirit' tour - for which HSL is the worldwide lighting contractor.

Also from Philips' Showline range, over 50 x SL LEDSPOT 300s join HSL's stock together with another 50 x SL HYDRUS 350s, which are another hybrid beam, spot and wash fixture which have been very well received.

From GLP, the numbers of Impression X4 Bar 10 and X4 Bar 20s have been boosted. These high performance batten fixtures have proved popular for a diversity of applications.

GLS have led the way with buying more JDC1 strobes, a unique unit with a traditional single tube element with a clear, bright white output combined with a full face surround of 1.320 RGB LEDs. And just not getting enough strobes HSL has added substantial quantities of Solaris Flare Q+s .to the stock in Blackburn.

With this - and another substantial investment in concert touring LED screen with all the necessary peripherals it's been a bumper few months!

HSL's new flightcase making company PackItRackItStackIt has had to up its ante to deal with the sheer volume of new kit arriving and needing to be made road-ready, so a new CNC machine has been installed to meet the demands for quality cases.

Commenting on this new company, Simon enthuses, It makes complete sense for us to have our own case company. We can produce cool, inventive and bespoke creations when needed as well as all the standard ranges. While they are full on right now with all our own projects, we are planning to broaden the scope and open up other commercial opportunities .

Simon is looking forward to a busy rest-of-the-year so we can watch this space for more exciting and interesting news from the HSL Group very soon.
LINK: https://www.live-production.tv/news/products/hsl-makes-massive-technol...
See more stories from liveproduction

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

04/11/2026

Cheddar Turns to Playbox Neo for Playout

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/11/2026

Rethink: SRT Is De Facto' Standard Among Open Internet Transport Protocols

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/11/2026

Bob Daniel Joins ASG as Storage and Workflow Solutions Ar...

Advanced Systems Group (ASG) has appointed Bob Daniel as Storage and Workflow Solutions Architect within the Enterprise Storage team. Daniel has over 30 years o...

03/11/2026

Grass Valley Wins Tender to Support France Tlvisions' Move to IP Production for Franceinfo

Grass Valley has announced that France T l visions has completed the first phase...

03/11/2026

WELT TV and SES Extend Satellite Distribution Agreement in Germany

SES and WELT TV have renewed their partnership under a new multi-year agreement for satellite distribution in Germany. The agreement runs into the next decade a...

03/11/2026

Eutelsat OneWeb to Provide LEO Connectivity for SES's Multi-Orbit Finnair Service

Eutelsat's OneWeb low Earth orbit (LEO) network will provide connectivity as...

03/11/2026

CONMEBOL Renews GRUP MEDIAPRO Partnership Through 2030

CONMEBOL has renewed its agreement with GRUP MEDIAPRO, which will continue to run the CONMEBOL Hub's end-to-end operation through 2030. The Hub handles prod...

03/11/2026

Aggreko Returns as Official Temporary Power Partner for 2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix

Aggreko has returned as Official Temporary Power Partner for the FORMULA 1 HEINE...

03/11/2026

Gravity Media Debuts IP-Based Nova 110 OB Truck in Belgium

Gravity Media has deployed its fully IP-based OB truck, Nova 110, in Belgium for the first time. It made its operational debut supporting a UEFA Europa League m...

03/11/2026

NFL and TMRW Sports Unveil Premier Flag, Professional Flag Football League Launching Summer 2027

The NFL and TMRW Sports have unveiled Premier Flag, the brand identity for a new...

03/11/2026

Stephen Arnold Music Creates Atlanta Hip-Hop-Influenced Sonic Branding for Gray Media's Hawks Broadcasts

Stephen Arnold Music has developed the original musical theme and sonic branding...

03/11/2026

Monumental Sports Network Rolls Out Monumental+ App Enhancements

Monumental Sports Network (MNMT), the local media rights holder for the NHL's Washington Capitals, NBA's Washington Wizards and WNBA's Washington My...

03/11/2026

Gravity Media SMARThead Robotic Cameras Make U.S. Debut at NYC Marathon via CP Communications

has brought its specialist SMARThead robotic camera technology to the United Sta...

03/11/2026

FOX LATAM Builds Mexico City Facility Into Roaring Production Hub for Latin America and FOX Deportes

In under two years, a seven-person startup has grown to more than 270 staffers, ...

03/11/2026

Youth Olympics in Dakar Make History, and Samsung Is There To Capture It

Olympics history is currently being made in Dakar. During the next two weeks, the Youth Olympic Games, which began on Oct. 31 and conclude on Nov. 13, are the f...

03/11/2026

Sinclair Broadcast Groups Paul Spinelli on the Impact of Upcoming C-Band Repack

There are many challenges in the sports-video-production industry that keep personnel up at night, and one that's currently on the minds of individuals in b...

03/11/2026

SVG Sit-Down: Telstras Amanda Leighton on Dynamic Connect and the Future of Managed Services

Telstra Broadcast Services may call Australia home but this year it continued to...

03/11/2026

Myburgh launch the M28

Employs German-made CK12 capsule Myburgh have announced that their long-awaited M28 microphone is now shipping. Said to be the ideal choice for engineers in...

03/11/2026

iZotope introduce Photon

New AI-powered denoise & stem separation tool announced iZotope have just released a new GPU-powered tool that pairs stem separation with a powerful selecti...

03/11/2026

Rohde & Schwarz to demonstrate technologies supporting Europe's sovereignty and security at Space Tech Expo Europe

Rohde & Schwarz to demonstrate technologies supporting Europe's sovereignty ...

03/11/2026

Nielsen launches CMI Journey in New Zealand, revealing what drives consumer decisions and the media that influence them

New path-to-purchase research solution connects 30 consumer categories and more ...

03/11/2026

Malaysia's festive advertising trends reveal opportunities for smarter media planning, latest Nielsen data shows

Latest Nielsen data reveals a surge in advertising investment during key festive...

03/11/2026

aconnic launches iSphir OT security family, focusing on secure field connectivity and industrial resilience

aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, announces the launch of the iSphir OT s...

03/11/2026

Utopai Studios Taps Former Disney AI Exec Hans Ku as New Chief Product Officer

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

CBS Stations Bring AR/VR Coverage to Midterms

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

AWARN: Request to Shut Off ATSC 3.0 Protection Is Inappropriate'

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Sinclair Taps Jennifer Lopez to Lead Boise, Idaho, Stations

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Jaime Eskridge Named GM of Gray's WLFI in Lafayette, Ind.

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

LPTV Advocates Continue to Push for Voluntary 1.0 Shutdown

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Gravity Media SMARThead Makes Its NYC Marathon Debut

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

PlayBox Neo Puts Playout for News Outlet Cheddar in the C...

PlayBox Neo has taken 24/7 playout for the news outlet Cheddar to the cloud. Powered by PlayBox Neo's own CDN and the full PlayBox Neo Suite media platform,...

03/11/2026

Blendkit for Unreal

Blendkit for Unreal Brie Clayton November 3, 2026 0 Comments Blendkit expands ecosystem with new Unreal Engine integration alongside 8th anniversary l...

03/11/2026

Blackmagic Design Announces New UltraStudio Express HD

Blackmagic Design Announces New UltraStudio Express HD Brie Clayton November 3, 2026 0 Comments New capture and playback solution with 3G-SDI, HDMI an...

03/11/2026

Berklee Artists Return for Performances at Bostons Snowport Holiday Market

Berklee Artists Return for Performances at Bostons Snowport Holiday Market Presented through a partnership between Snowport, Mohegan Sun, and Berklee, the wee...

03/11/2026

Grass Valley wins Public Tender to Support France Televis...

Grass Valley announced that France T l visions has completed the first phase of its Genesys production infrastructure renewal program for Franceinfo, moving the...

03/11/2026

Sony Opens New Creative Possibilities with XYN Spatial Capture Solution Updates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Disney AI Exec Hans Ku Joins Utopai Studios as Chief Product Officer

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Matthew Wallis Joins TBD Post as Head of Post and Operations

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Broadcasters Tap New Tech to Power Midterm Election Night Coverage

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

CBS Stations Brings AR/VR Coverage to Midterms

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

Nugen Audio Unveils VisLM 3 Loudness Metering

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

03/11/2026

SmallHD Launches Focus 504 Monitor with PageOS

SmallHD announced the launch of the new Focus 504 Monitor, featuring a low-profile form factor, die-cast aluminum construction, professional-grade I/O, and the ...

03/11/2026

Ryan Webb ICLS Lighting Dexter Resurrection with Astera

Gaffer Webb helped light the pivotal Kill Room scene with Astera QuikSpot...

03/11/2026

IllusionFX 1.1 is Out!

IllusionFX 1.1 is Out! Alex Perea November 2, 2026 0 Comments More tools, more creative freedom. Graph editor. Shape your animation curves with preci...

03/11/2026

Rowan University Explores Virtual Production Workflows

Rowan University Explores Virtual Production Workflows Brie Clayton November 2, 2026 0 Comments Students work across camera tracking, compositing and ...

03/11/2026

How to Hand Over an After Effects Project So the Next Person Can Open It

How to Hand Over an After Effects Project So the Next Person Can Open It Ozgur Gorgun November 2, 2026 0 Comments Most After Effects projects get open...

03/11/2026

The Fans Who Fought Back: Dont F*** with Fanscomes to Sky Documentaries on 21 November

Don't F*** with Fans comes to Sky Documentaries on 21 NovemberTuesday 3 Nove...

03/11/2026

A Little Less Conversation, a Little More Action: The plans that never make it out of the group chat

From The Ghoster to The Flake, new research reveals the characters, chaos and ca...

03/11/2026

For every stage of creation

For every stage of creation From first idea to finished song, Scarlett is there for whatever comes next. Start where you are Music-making rarely waits for t...