CEG is a UK-based, leading, independent equipment rental provider to all sectors of the technical entertainment industry in music, theatre, film, TV and corporate settings. CEG concentrates solely on delivering a dependable, cost-effective and sustainable equipment rental service which keeps its customers coming back again and again.
In March CEG made the first of a number of investments in Ayrton with a consignment of Diablo LED profile fixtures, purchased from Ayrton’s exclusive UK distributor, Ambersphere Solutions.
“We chose Diablo because it is the trifecta of what you want a product to be: cost-effective, feature-full and very popular with our clients”, says CEG’s Ben Bowles. Vitally, Bowles sees Diablo as cost-effective fixture with no compromise on features:
Our business is about giving our customers good value, and ultimately we wouldn’t buy a product that was compromised in terms of its feature set. Diablo is a good value product in that it’s priced attractively, yet gives 85%-90% of what you would get on a fixture that cost much more. From my perspective, they are up against fixtures that cost at least 50% more, which not only allows us to provide a product that creates a sustainable return for our business, but provides the customer with a compelling creative solution.
“In making up a concert or theatre show, there are areas where you need sheer volume to create a look. If you can use 600 fixtures that cost 50% less with very little loss of quality or impact, you are adding amazing value to the process. Add to that the requirement of a specific feature or two, and Ayrton is ticking all the boxes - achieving all a designer wants with very little, if any, compromise, and also being economically viable as a rental product”, explains Bowles.
CEG’s business ethos focuses majorly on sustainability in both business and ecological terms, and aims to reach net zero carbon by 2030.
“Sustainability in a business and environmental sense are two major drivers these days and Ayrton seems to tick those two boxes nicely for us: materials and processes, packaging, shipping, (not sending boxes half way round the world with air in them, which is a huge carbon footprint.) We are careful to make sure everybody is sustainable in the eco-supply chain from where a product is built to where it is being used, and that there is enough money to support everybody profitably".
However, it’s difficult to get manufacturers to declare how much carbon they use to build a light, which is the answer I really want – building and buying new kit is probably the biggest carbon footprint. In other sectors, we have a good idea of how much carbon it takes to produce our mobile phones, laptops, our cars, etc, and the pressure is on now for our industry to follow suit. Designers are going to be held accountable for their carbon footprint, especially in film, television and corporate fields, and that will start to determine what they buy.
Ayrton appear to be way ahead of their contemporaries in addressing this issue, taking active measures and stating their current position whilst working to further improve it.
“This works well for us. The closer a brand gets to its customers, the better it is for the customer, and Ayrton are doing it extremely well. In the UK there is a good connection with the Ambersphere team who have done a great job to cement Ayrton products in the market. They keep Ayrton competitively priced which makes a huge difference, especially while companies are recovering after the pandemic, and have a good ethos which goes way beyond that. Glyn, Rob and Briony worked hard to make sure we are well looked after and the team understand the different breed they are dealing with. This is the start of a good relationship", concludes Bowles.
