Particle Wave Creative

Writing an RFP for Technical Services

2010-12-05T10:05:00.000-08:00

Writing an RFP for Technical Services

An RFP is a Request for Proposal. Simply stated it should give the particulars about an event. It should include the venue name and address, date and time that the venue becomes available for load in and set up, what time you expect guests to arrive, what time the event will end, and what will happen during the program ( this does not have to be a play by play of the event but should include basic information such as PowerPoint, dvd/video rolls, panel discussions, musical performance etc.) It should also include what time production has to be completely out of the venue, trucks loaded and gone away.

You should also talk about the event in your RFP. Is this an annual event? Is it a gathering for a celebration or an annual corporate event.

It is not necessary to list out all of the equipment you will need as it’s up to the Production vendor to decide what equipment that they can provide to achieve your goal. It should however list what you want. For example, do you want two large screens, a large stage (dimensions are always helpful when determining the proper amount of lighting that will need to be used, the correct measurements for pipe and drape or set pieces etc).

Do you need an audio system or are you going to use the house system? Are you looking for hard-wired microphones or will you need wireless? If you’re going to have a band or show a video having a PA system brought it is a good idea. If you know who the band is and they have a technical rider that should be sent along as an attachment to your RFP.

Do you need additional lighting for décor? Do you want to create a festive exciting atmosphere? Will there be a cocktail reception prior to the event that would require lighting or additional production support? Is there a theme to the event that could be carried into the event space using lighting?

Are there sponsors that need to be recognized?

It is also very helpful to provide a budget. Some people don’t want to share that information in fear that you’ll spend every single dime. There are many different ways to do an event and your production vendors know what substitutions can be made to best achieve your goal and stay with in your budget with out sacrificing quality.

Providing these details among others, will help you get a similar response from all the vendors that you’ve sent it out to. As I said before, there are many ways to do an event and providing this information will allow you to compare apples to apples once you’ve received all the responses from each vendor and make an educate decision.

Most of all, be honest and responsive to questions and responses. Someone has put a lot of time and energy into conceptualizing your vision for the event and put it to paper and probably consulted design and technical members of their team to respond to you accurately. Be sure to call all of the vendors that you have engaged and let them know your decision.

March 2010 PLSN Article about Low-Ball Prices!

2010-03-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

Click here to read a great article about pricing

Session One Question and Answers about lighting an event

2010-03-02T12:22:00.000-08:00

I recently came across some questions on a bridal website regarding lighting.
I thought it would be fun to address the questions on my blog so that my clients and potential clients could benefit from the answers:

Brides Question:
“Ok so we are going to have an outdoor wedding (trying to have a "green" wedding). It will be in June in Mississippi. During the summer it doesn't get dark until like 9 - 9:30 p.m. If the ceremony were to start at say 2 p.m. and the reception at 3 p.m., surely the reception would end by the time sunset got here. What do you guys think? Do you think we need lighting? I was thinking about getting paper lanterns (couldn't really think of an eco-friendly lighting choice).”

PWC Answer:
There is a green alternative to lighting! It’s called LED Lighting, if you read some of my other blog posting you’ll hear me rant and rave about their efficiency, how they pack up small, they’re easy to set up and operate and they can change color. The don’t take a lot of power , this is really important if you’re having an outdoor wedding and don’t have a lot of “juice” so to speak.
You will certainly need a little bit of lighting. Be it lots of candles or simple Bee Lights (Christmas Light) to create some sort of ambient light. I would not recommend using tiki torches, they can easily cause a fire and the fuel for them will make it smell really bad.

Perhaps some LED tea lights in white paper bags. Either way, you’re going to need some sort of lighting for the vendors servicing your wedding so they can work.
Paper lanterns are fun but think about it, how are you going to install them if you don’t hire someone to do it? There is no place to hang them from safely unless of course you are a professional and can rig them safely and understand how you’re going to get electrical power to them with out it looking like a total mess.
You can check the internet, Goggle sunset and sunrise times and plug in your date and location and you’ll have an exact time that the sun is going to set.

Brides Question :
I've rented a hall that doesn't allow candles or anything hanging from ceiling. I would like to change the brightness of the room. I'd like it dimmed down a bit. Or change the tone. I was thinking releasing a lot of balloons on the ceiling to block out some light? Any ideas?

PWC Answer:
Can I just say……. Unless it’s a kids party…… I hate balloons!
An easy fix to this would be to use lekos (a type of lighting fixture) with a break up pattern gobo shooting the ceiling. I’ve done this before with as little as 6 lekos and it’s just lovely (see image below)
Another easy fix it to buy some lighting gel and gel the existing fixtures. You’ll need to test it out, or better yet asking your Lighting vendor about it, to make sure they won’t instantly melt.

Well that is it for now. I think I am going to try and post a Q and A blog every week.

Green Weddings Showcase Images

2010-02-27T16:48:00.001-08:00

How Much Is that Pink Elephant in the Room?

2010-02-14T17:49:00.000-08:00

With every new potential client there are certain questions that I ask that serve many purposes. Be it venue location, event dates, event type, event theme, colors, etc. There are many things that I can tell from the answers to these questions. But often there is one question that no one likes to answer and that is the big pink elephant in the room, that question is, What is you budget?

There are many reasons for an event professional to know what the budget for an event is. A lot of people think that if they tell their event professional what their budget is that I will spend every dime of it and leave them with a poorly run and no-so- great looking event. In a way they are correct, I will spend every dime, keeping the budget in mind, using my professional vendor relationships to give them the best event I possibly can for that budgeted amount! Often times when a client is asking me for the world but knows they can’t afford it I simply add a “suggested enhancements” section to my proposals.

This way get they accurate pricing on the items they need and an idea of what the “extras” that they like but don’t know if they can afford costs.

Another reason is that if a Bride only has $3,000 budgeted for lighting for her wedding, I am not going to present ideas that she will fall in love, that cost $25,000 with only to find out once she gets my proposal that she can’t afford any of it!

There certainly are many ways to “light” an event. We’ve done events with $2,000 lighting budgets and I’ve done events with $100,000 lighting budgets. Knowing what the budget is from the start ensures that you will get the very best for your event dollars and you’re valuable time is not wasted wait for me to draft up a few more versions of the quote.

PWC to Sponsor & Exhibit at the Mid-Atlantic Green Weddings Showcase

2010-01-20T11:01:00.000-08:00

http://www.greenweddingshowcase.com/

Come see us on Feb 21! Click on the link for more info

Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation | Video on TED.com

2010-01-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation | Video on TED.com

This is a time of year when the events industry is typically pretty slow. Many folks move about this time for year and the industry get re-organized in a sense. There much change in the air. Grab a hold of it and make it a great day doing whatever it is that you love to do!!
Click the link about to see a video about motivation and reward.

What Green Means to Me & PWC

2009-12-03T08:54:00.000-08:00

Wikipedia defines Green Conventions or Green Meetings as conventions or events which are conducted in ways which minimize the environmental burdens imposed by such activities. But how does this translate in to what PWC is doing?
I was first introduced to “green events” by an educational session at an ISES (International Special Event Society) meeting in 2007. I wasn’t really sure how I could apply it to the events I was producing when I was working for someone else other than recycling water bottles and trying to use less paper in the office.
In October of 2009 I was invited to attend the Chesapeake Sustainable Business Alliance, www.csballiance.org , monthly meeting in my neighborhood by a friend of mine who is a successful Event Planner and is passionate about this cause. I was amazed at all the different types of businesses represented in this organization. There was a florist who used only locally grown flowers in her arrangements that she sold, a caterer that used only locally grown ingredients in his culinary creations, and a holistic veterinarian. This event really gave me insight as to what attempting to run a green business was about.

Since then PWC has adopted these principles and philosophies in many ways. The first being transportation. Since we have clients from Boston to DC it does not make “green sense” for us to transport equipment for an event in Boston all the way from Baltimore where our main office is located. So we rely on our contacts all up and down the east coast for equipment. This also mean we do not have to have a warehouse using fuel for heat and electricity.

Additionally, using energy efficient LED lighting for our client events uses less electricity and since they pack up small they use a lot less truck space. I once did an event in NYC for my old boss’ wife’s birthday using LED Lighting that was amazing; the entire lighting rig packed up into a suitcase and fit in the back of my two-door car. Another benefit of using LED Lighting is that they can change colors. This mean there is no need for an additional set of lights (taking more power) or lighting gels made from a heat resistant polyester, which can not recycle.
Below is an image of that event.

At Home and in the Office
When I was growing up my father and I spent countless hours in the garden together. I got such satisfaction out of growing my own fresh veggies and herbs. Living in the city doesn’t allow for me to have a garden. But I do my best and attempt to grow things in pots out in the “backyard”. Growing things in pots requires A LOT of watering. One thing I do to conserve water is catch the water from the faucet when I am bring the water to temperature before I take a shower. I catch the water in large watering can then I use this to water my city garden.

I also use stainless steel water bottles instead of single serving plastic water bottles. I have a 2 gallon jug of water on the counter that I use to refill the stainless steel bottle. Seems to me that the stainless steel keeps the water cooler longer. Eventually I want to purchase stainless steel water bottles with the PWC logo on them to hand out to staff and client at events.

Aside from bottle, cans, and paper boxes in the kitchen, I also recycle all the junk mail we get. I think the state of Maryland makes money off of selling your newly registered business name to solicitors, since I’ve registered the business there has been a huge increase in junk mail with the business name on it. Between that and all the catalogs we get on a daily basis, especially around the holidays, we collect about 1 paper bag worth every two weeks of junk mail. I am very careful about what goes in to that recycling box. I have a shredder in the office and shred anything that has a name or address on it. I even shred receipts from the grocery store. Call me paranoid I guess but I’d rather not have someone picking through my trash finding out info about what I eat, what medications I take and where I shop etc. I collect all the shredded paper and recycle that too. I have several places in the house that I have recycle bins to make it easy to do.

Another thing I do is use cloth napkins and kitchen towels in lieu of using paper towels. Paper towels account for 3,000 tons of landfill waste EVERYDAY! Yeah, that’s right- EVERDAY! Get with the program and get some pretty all-natural cloth napkins and some nice kitchen towels. I have all white kitchen towels that I got for about $8.00 for a 5 pack. Once they get a little too stained I cut them up and use them for rags for cleaning.

Most Commonly Used Lighting for Social Events

2009-11-17T09:27:00.000-08:00

Lighting creates a mood and helps bring the theme of an event to life. These are some basics terms for lighting most often used for a social event that you need to know to help you determine what lighting is the best for your event and what fits your budget.

Pin spot -A focused beam of light that shines directly onto an object, like a centerpiece or wedding cake. I often use pin spots to light bars and buffet tables, illuminating them to enhance the look of the lovely food your caterer worked so hard to create for you.

Perimeter Up Lighting- This is just what it says. Up Lighting the perimeter of the room.
For lesser budgets simple par cans on floor bases can be used. The cans are gelled in a color that best fits your theme and venue. You can only use ONE color for the entire evening.
Energy saving LED lighting is the favored among many designers and lighting technicians. For my company I try very hard to steer my clients towards using LED as they are very “green” and pack up small so there is less truck space needed, less labor less power, less cables. LED lights are place around the perimeter of the room, using less cables (making it less labor intensive, saving you a few bucks). One HUGE benefit of using LED’s is that these colors can change, unlike a par cans. The opening look for your event can be a warm amber or a cool blue. As the evening progresses and the festivities go from formal to casual the entire perimeter of the room can change colors from slow to fast to strobe like and enhance the environment.

Gobos Steel or glass stencils that are put in a lighting fixture to project a design or pattern. Popular gobo designs are monograms, dates, or any other wedding motifs. The complexity of the design will affect the gobo's cost -- a simple stencil can be stamped out of steel, while a more intricate design must be laser etched out of stainless steel or a glass that can withstand high heat (costing much more than a stamped stencil)
One thing I really love to do for my clients is to design a gobo with their names that uses the same font as their invitations. This really ties things together. This image is cast either on the dance floor (only if there is the correct ceiling height and a place to stage the light, other wise if it is not at the proper angle keystoning will occur distorting the image) or elsewhere on a flat surface in the room.

Band/DJ Lighting – Lighting a band and dance floor is a very important element of your event and there are many ways to do it. We like to use small moving lights and the LED lighting around the room to create a total atmospheric experience!
Here are some of the ways we at PWC like to do it:

For the most part DJ and “local band” lighting is simple and is set to a mode to move with the music, it’s on auto-pilot that is referred to in the business as “flash and trash”, is just a lot of movement and color. This is fine except when it interferes with the atmosphere that your lighting designer has spent all this time creating for you.

That’s why I usually tell my bride to “tell the band or DJ to leave their lighting at home and let me take care of it”! Unless of course you have an “A” level act that has a Lighting Director so this can be a coordinated effort with your event Lighting Designer.