Shorter set-up and dismantling times for concerts & shows
Setting up and dismantling concerts and shows is often time-consuming and labour-intensive. That's why HOF from Mettingen developed a special truss: the MLT² (Moving Light Truss²). With this truss, expensive and sensitive lighting equipment can be set up and dismantled quickly and transported safely and in a space-saving manner.
Find out more about the innovation from Münsterland on this page.
H.O.F. Alutec Metallverarbeitungs GmbH & Co. KG, Mettingen
Challenge: Fast assembly and dismantling of lighting technology
Special lighting technology is essential for concerts and large events. Especially moving lights - devices that can position the light beam in different directions - play a major role in stage shows. The lighting technology is attached to a truss, a modular truss that can carry payloads. However, setting up and dismantling this lighting technology is not only time-consuming but also labour-intensive. The systems must also be easy and safe to transport. The corona pandemic exacerbates the problem, as assembly and dismantling times have been shortened and there is less staff available for assembly and dismantling due to the migration of skilled workers to other industries.
Solution: Special truss system, special transport trolley
© HOF
In close cooperation with customers and partner companies, HOF developed the Moving Light Truss² (MLT²). In this truss system, the moving lights remain fixed in the MLT² truss during transport, so they do not have to be dismantled individually. Thanks to impact-absorbing elements, the lighting technology remains protected. A special transport trolley also makes it possible for the MLT² to be set up easily by just one person.
The trolley, called a dolly, has telescopic legs and can be connected to the MLT² with two hands. In addition, the dolly is foldable. Several trolleys without contents can therefore be stacked on top of each other and are thus enormously space-saving. Another advantage of the MLT²: no additional parts are needed to build curved truss systems. The rotatable steel fork connectors can create vertical and horizontal arcs and thus create new possibilities for stage design and light shows.
Success: MLT² as an integral part of tour planning
With the developed Moving Light Truss² (MLT²), lighting technology (moving lights) can be transported safely and set up and dismantled much faster. Not only the truss technology was innovatively developed further, but also the associated transport system. At the end of the development process, thanks to the cooperation with customers and partners, HOF implemented 90 percent of their wishes.
In the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), the MLT² is now considered "state of the art" according to HOF and has become a fixed component in tour planning (tender texts). In Germany, HOF has become the market leader in the field of these trusses with the MLT² and it has become a bestseller for the company.
As a regional joint initiative, Enabling Networks Münsterland supports companies and universities in the Münsterland region in developing innovations, implementing them and finding the right partners for the project. In order to show how innovative and at the same time cooperative Münsterland already is, the project also went in search of innovative cooperation projects from the region. The results are presented on this page. The Enabling Networks Münsterland project is funded by the European Union and the NRW Ministry of Economics as part of the ERDF call "Regio.NRW".
