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JP Leisure Animate NHM Dinosaurs with Antari Low-Level Fog
The lifelike animatronics effects in the Natural History Museum’s Dinosaur Gallery have been given a new realism with the addition of low-lying fog, triggered by the prehistoric animal’s computer.
The Museum’s contractors, North Devon-based JP Leisure, evolved the solution based on products from Antari, distributed in the UK by Lighting Effects Distribution.
Jon Powell’s company have been main dealers for the full Antari range of fog, smoke, snow, bubble and haze machines for some time, and he maintains that Antari business has increased 20-fold. “Their reliability is good, as is their service and spares, and we are now shifting between 300-400 Antari items per year, which represents a huge growth.”
Much of that is attributable to their Internet site which Jon says is now opening up huge business for them and has taken them from being a well established local company to a major UK player.
“That is how the Natural History Museum found us,” he reports. However, because of Health & Safety and extended duty cycle issues the Museum was reluctant to use conventional CO2 Dry Ice and so JP Leisure recommended the upgraded DNG-100 Fog Cooler, working in conjunction with the Antari Z1200 DMX Fogger (featuring the new Unicore heating design).
Jon explains: “The refrigeration plant chills the ambient air to below zero, and used with Gravity Max Low Level Fog Fluid, the Z-1200 produces a low-level smoke; when it hits room temperature it atomises and dissipates.”
He adds that the 3kW chiller unit is triggered via motion detectors as people approach the dinosaur. By using this method the Natural History Museum has been able to economise on smoke fuel — which seems to be the perfect solution.
With major local themed attractions (such as the Eden Project) taking Antari effects, and the special effects market peaking during the Autumn (Hallowe’en and Bonfire Night quickly followed by Christmas) JP Leisure remain confident of continued growth. Whether it’s Antari bubble machines at Legoland, snow machines for the Christmas market or ICE 100 Dry Ice/Low Level Fog effects for the following panto season Jon Powell knows he is onto a winner.
1st November 2005
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