Central Hall Westminster is a popular events venue for many reasons, one particular one is because it offers clients the best of both worlds: beautiful architecture coupled with the very latest AV technology. Working in buildings that were constructed over a hundred years ago can often raise certain challenges.
Our on-site Production Service Partner White Light have identified the top three challenges they’ve encountered when working in an historical venue and here are the solutions they have tried and tested at Central Hall Westminster.
Know the most effective way to get large pieces of equipment in and out of the building
Many historical buildings are within very close proximity to other historic buildings, offices and residences. These bring restrictions such as noise, this must be kept to a minimum at certain times of the day. Inner city venues also face parking restrictions all resulting in having limited access to the building.
SOLUTION: Know what the restrictions are when preparing for an event. This includes liaising with stakeholders, the local council and police in order to obtain any permits required. Similarly, ensure any load in/load out times are done outside of anti-social hours in order to maintain minimal disturbance.
Preserving the historical architecture
One of the reasons clients want to host their events in historical venues is due to the beautiful architecture. It can be challenging to make certain that the interior of the building remains preserved and undamaged when manoeuvring a great deal of equipment around and putting up large sets including lighting rigs.
SOLUTION: Ensure that all the crew working within a venue have full knowledge of its space, how to get around it and its infrastructure. It also helps to have permanent state-of-the-art AV installed including power and data caballing. This means there is a faster and more reliable wireless distribution network taking away the need for excessive, obtrusive cabling.
Using bespoke technology
More and more emphasis is placed in offering clients the very latest technology for their event. Whilst fulfilling their needs and expectations, it is also important to work with in-house production partners with the venues objectives, sustainability and CSR policies in mind.
SOLUTION: Ensure the venue’s production partner knows the policies and can look into innovative ideas such as eco-friendly fixtures. Not only will these use much less power, but they will not create heat and are therefore much safer.
