GEAR HEADS
ER PRODUCTIONS TYPHOON
ER Productions’ David Holmes, Technical Manager, talks to TPi’s Jacob Waite about the company’s Typhoon.
When did the development for the Typhoon begin? We started developing Typhoon in October 2018, when we were commissioned to deliver lasers and SFX for Ozzy Osbourne’s New Years Eve show at The LA Forum. Lighting Designer, Terry Cook, wanted to include an indoor snow blizzard into the show design, and it was down to ER to step up and make it happen. With the stage already being occupied by the tour rig we didn’t have any more room to place confetti cannons. We had a square audience truss to work with, so whatever happened, our solution had to fly, and we had to deliver lots of confetti from above, in less than two months.
transformers, ultimately with the aim to be the ‘go-to’ solution for any size event or World Tour. It was important to us that adjustable fan speed worked alongside an adjustable flow of product, meaning the machine could offer a small amount of product quickly, or a lot of product slowly. CO2 also generates a lot of noise so for the subtler confetti hits we wanted silent fans. Taking into consideration the trucking aspect, we required it to be stackable and manoeuvrable, making it easier for techs to get equipment on and off-site. Alongside all of these features, we wanted it to be wrapped into a frame that could roll on and off stage, fly both above and under trusses, and could go from a flutter to a blizzard in seconds, making Typhoon the most versatile confetti blower on the market.
What were the original goals in its development? Since we started the SFX side of our business at the beginning of 2017, we have found some creative and third-party reliability issues in using CO2. It’s also very expensive, heavy, awkward, and environmentally unfriendly. For ER, the Ozzy gig felt like the perfect opportunity to create a new product that could achieve what we wanted and more. Building a product that could hold a lot of confetti with controllable output was important to us. It also needed to work in different continents without having to use
What are the mechanics of the product? How does it allow for great control of confetti distribution? A rotary paddle delivery system controls the quantity of the confetti delivered into the air stream. The air stream is controlled by 4 high volume fans that deliver air movement of 3200cmh (cubic metres per hour) to 3560cmh. 84
