Your adivce sought

[dogcop]

Morning Blue room,

Please first of all forgive my ignorance on this subject as I am a rigging virgin and some of the language / abbreviations I've read through mean little or nothing. If you are kind enough to reply can you use non technical terms as far as poss - thanks.

 

Ok here goes.

 

We are about to purchase some trilite truss http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...7533086795&rd=1

 

dimesions are 5x7 metre with 3 metre legs

 

the load we will hang are as follows

 

8 moving heads + generics - total weight not in excess of 250 kg.

 

we are to do this in our church hall.

 

The idea is to remove the legs from the truss and attach the remaining rectangular truss to motors to lift it into the roof space ( we keep the legs for flexibility to use outside or in different areas of the church or to hire out etc )

 

What I need to know is

 

1/ what motors do you suggest for this project

2/ How much are they

3/ where can I get them from

4/ rigging points in the ceiling what do I have to bear in mind

5/ If there are for example 6 motors lifting the laden truss - do they run from 1 controller.

6/ Anything else you may suggest

 

Yes we need the motors as this rig needs to be assembled and dismantled each sunday due to the high possibility that the lights will get trashed if they are not taken down.

Bearing that in mind - fixed bars are not an option either because blokes will up and down ladders for ever and of course the inherent dangers that will bring as well

 

over to you guys

I await with bated breath........................sort of

 

thanks

Andy

[mac.calder]

I am going to nip this right in the bud. You NEED to talk to a company that specialises in professionally installing rigging systems. Your building will need to be examined by a structural engineer, and the rigging company will give you suggestions as far as equiptment goes. They will recomend the correct truss for the job, the correct rigging system and (hopefully) train you in the correct use of the system.

 

You cannot just go and fly some truss from the roof.

 

So in order:

 

1. Not answering. Talk to someone about it. Job dependant.

2. It will not be cheap.

3. Not answering. Talk to someone about it. Job dependant.

4. The motors generally ARE the rigging points, installed in the ceiling, so it all depends on the building.

5. Yes. It would be damn useless if you needed to press six buttons at once to lower the truss evenly.

7. TALK TO AN INSTALLER - GET THEM TO GIVE YOU A QUOTE AFTER EXAMINING THE BUILDING

 

To the mod's - maybe this forum needs a warning like the Electrical & Power and the Safety forums

[Nick Evans]

You need to talk to a rigging company who will be more than happy to advise you. As Mac points out there is very little point in using motors to lift a ground support rig, the weight of the legs would be very little, why not delete them all together and just fly the rig (if the roof will support it).

 

Get in touch with a rigging company who will propose a solution for you, and get it checked out by a structural engineer (the rigging company will be able to recommend one with entertainment industry experience).

 

How do you know what condition the truss is in?

 

I believe disclaimers on websites are generally their to protect the website, not to prohibit knowless persons from doing something dangerous.

[slim_mcslim]

In answer to your questions :-

 

1. 272kg Prostar (personal choice) http://www.askpcm.com/pcm.htm

2. http://www.aclighting.com/prices/pdf_prices/Lodestar.pdf

3. AC Lighting (personal choice)

4. That they can take the weight you intend to put on them, that they are suitable and load bearing, that you are happy suspending a truss above peoples heads from these points.

5. yes if you get a multi channel motor controller although 4 motors would be sufficient to lift 250kg on a 5m x 7m truss

6. you will need an electricity supply for your motors, especially if you go for three phase motors, if you don't know what you are doing approach a rigging/lighting company to supply you a solution rather than a pile of parts.

 

 

 

slim...

[paulears]

small point - it's litestructures atralite - not trilite, which is a different product. Only important if you are intending adding it to exisiting truss, or have some other items in mind.

 

Also - the photos show clearly Astralite, but the individual component pictures have very different tube ends to astralite products. The 3 holes in the ali end plate are missing? All seems a little 'odd'

[Jivemaster]

The truss on ebay may have sparked ideas but dont buy it. Dont buy truss til you are certain that your authorities Church and Local civil will permit truss being added and that your structure will take the applied load inc overload risk and safety factors. Think about power and control for the motors and power and control and cable management for the slung luminaires.

 

Think also about the responsibility under LOLER for inspection of truss and all the lifting gear on an annual basis. Think whether buying used truss unseen is realistic as it will have to be inspected to LOLER prior to use. If it fails you've just bought some alloy scrap!

 

Draw a fag packet design and send it to some theatre installers and ask for their input and quotes to survey install and test.

 

Lastly please think about some continuing tech skill for the venue, should you leave the area the church will want to know who will succede you as tech the HSE will not want untrained/skilled people rigging a truss over people's heads.

 

All three tube truss is called tri-lite in the vernacular but most of it isn't It may be Astralite but only a detailed inspection will show this.

 

PPS Have you thought of the liability aspect of hiring truss, someone overloads it topples it and hurts people who's insurance.......

[paul the paranoid lampy]

I would not buy truss of ebay.

go to a proper rigging company ie.

 

unusual rigging

lgh

vertigo

outback

lift turn move

 

ac lighting have a projects department

 

if you hire out the truss, it will get damaged, not deliberately, but it does

also then you need competent people to rig the truss again, not 4 volunteers who don't know 1 end of a podger to the other

 

hope this helps

[Chris Higgs]

As far as I can see it's Eurolite, not Astralite or Trilite.