DWR Distribution recently took to the road with the latest product offerings from Robe Lighting, fresh off the showroom floor at PLASA in the UK and LDI in Las Vegas. The Robe Roadshow visited Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg, offering users across the country a rare opportunity to get their hands on some of the most advanced lighting technology available on the international market.

Accompanying DWR managing director Duncan Riley and his dynamic team on the week-long tour were Robe CEO and co-founder Josef Valchar and international sales director, Harry von den Stemmen, who travelled from the Czech Republic to be part of the event.

Speaking to ETECH during the final leg of the Robe Roadshow in Johannesburg, von den Stemmen pointed out that attendance at this year’s iteration of the roadshow was outstanding, especially in Cape Town and Durban. “South Africa remains a very special market for Robe. We try to visit the country in the latter part of each year, to ensure that our South African customers have the same opportunity to access our new product range as those who have access to the big international shows.

“We are very pleased to see a wide range of customers – both old and new – attending DWR’s Robe Roadshow,” von den Stemmen said. “The event offers a great opportunity for those in the market to have a hands-on experience with Robe’s product line, and to hear about the technology from Josef in person.”

Valchar did not disappoint on the technology front, adding a number of innovative lighting technologies to the Robe range at this year’s Robe Roadshow. Attendees had the opportunity to see the brand-new Robe T1 Profile moving light in action, as well as the iParfect, RoboSpot, SuperSpikie and Tarrantula. One of the most popularly received innovations was the Robe RoboSpot Follow Spot system, a device that allows follow spot operators to control up to 12 Robe fixtures, remotely and simultaneously.

Using the RoboSpot, operators can safely control multiple Robe fixtures, such as the BMFL range of products, T1 Profile, DL4S, DL7S, MegaPointe and Pointe from any location within the venue, reducing set-up times and operating costs. The Robe RoboSpot system features a Base Station with a large 15.6-inch HD touch screen for the operator to observe the performance from a first-person viewpoint and a full range of hand controls for operating the fixtures such as pan, tilt, intensity, focus, faders and many others, all of which are fully customisable for the operator’s benefit.

The RoboSpot screen receives the live video feed from the RoboSpot MotionCamera or the fixture-mounted RoboSpot camera, and the operator’s commands are instantly transferred to the luminaires via DMX control with no lag for perfect motion tracking across the stage. Extra controls are available through the touchscreen display as well as four programmable jog-wheels with an additional ten fully-configurable buttons for a truly customised user experience. The remote lighting desk still retains control of the internal features of the fixtures such as light intensity and colour. All these features combine to make RoboSpot a truly innovative follow spot system.

Also featured on the Robe Roadshow was the T1 LED Profile. Specifically designed for theatre, television and touring, the T1 is one of the most versatile fixtures that Robe has brought to market, and is receiving a stream of positive reviews following its launch earlier this year. In Von den Stemmen’s words: “The T1 is a particularly good fit for the South African market because the fixture is both very bright and extremely versatile and can be used for theatre, in television work and for the rental market.”

For more information on Robe’s full range of lighting solutions for the professional market, visit http://dwrdistribution.co.za.