left to right: Nhlanhla Nkabinde (Gearhouse), Pierre Huskisson (Gearhouse), Jannie de Jager (DWR), Peter Abrahamse (Gearhouse)
Gearhouse South Africa (GHSA) became the latest rental company in the country to invest in Astera wireless LED products since leading sales company DWR Distribution was announced as the distributor in June, with the purchase of 48 x Astera AX3 ‘Lightdrops’.
Gearhouse SA’s then sales manager, Bill Lawford, lost no time in placing their order with Duncan Riley and his team for the Astera fixtures … which were needed for a series of high profile weddings in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Johannesburg headquartered GHSA supplied the full technical production for these events in conjunction with, and working for, Israel-based event producer Tali Yacobi.
In total, there were nine events related to three different weddings spanning a five-week period, for which it was decided to source all the kit from SA.
One of the specific needs was table centre lighting for the banqueting / reception elements of the weddings, staged in the brand-new event venue Fête Parfaite and also in the ballroom of the Pullman Hotel, both in central Kinshasa.
This is an application for which the AX3 is perfect with its brightness, small dimensions, fabulous colour range, reliability, controllability and long battery life.
Bill and the team looked at the logistics of purchasing certain items of kit for the events and this was one of them. “We researched the options, gathered quotes and decided on Astera after some great recommendations and also the spec which met all our requirements” he stated.
The 48 x AX3 fixtures were delivered complete with charging cases and including all those nifty Astera rigging / mounting bits … and diffusers.
The whole exercise – from order to delivery – was completed in a few days which also impressed Bill.
For various reasons, by the time the decision to purchase was green-lighted, time was exceptionally tight. The shipment arrived from Astera factory in Shenzhen, China to Johannesburg’s OR Tambo Airport where it was cleared through customs, collected by Gearhouse and taken to their warehouse in Bez Valley.
DWR’s tech support specialist Jannie de Jager was on hand to give a crash course in the set-up and operation of the fixtures – which is extremely quick and straightforward using the Astera App! Then they were all checked, re-packed into flightcases and returned to the airport to catch the cargo flight to Kinshasa.
At the event, everyone loved the AX3s which added colour and lots of fun to the room with a range of twinkling and other effects that helped ramp up the excitement and atmosphere.
“They are a fantastic all-round light” declared Bill, “The magnetic base is super-practical and they can be rigged in so many different places and provide an ideal solution for almost any scenario.”
DWR has already made several major sales for Astera. “There is a real appetite for this technology here,” says Duncan Riley, adding that Astera’s have also been used on some major shows and events including the final of The Voice South Africa 2019.
