ESTA Announces the Technical Standards Program's Above & Beyond Award Recipients

The Entertainment Services and Technology Association's (ESTA's) Technical Standards Program (TSP) announces the 2020 recipients of the annual Above & Beyond Awards!

The TSP exists because hundreds of individuals from across the industry volunteer their expertise and significant amounts of time to write and improve standards that increase safety, provide interoperability between different manufacturers, solve problems, and make life easier. The awards are a chance for volunteers to celebrate those of their peers whom they feel have made a significant contribution to the advancement of the program.

The 2020 Above & Beyond Awards were presented to:

Ethan Gilson, Entertainment Rigging Services, LLC (Rigging Working Group). Gilson was praised for his expert knowledge of rigging and his unique approach to both analyzing rigging challenges and coming up with their answers. His method of evaluating the relevance of a subject and converting it into an ANSI accredited rigging standard is extraordinary. Gilson's enthusiasm about the TSP has also inspired many people to volunteer, which has helped the program flourish.

Wayne Howell, Artistic Licence (Control Protocols Working Group). A long-time consistent contributor to the CPWG, Howell was lauded for being a task group leader on the E1.20 Remote Device Management (RDM) revision project. Working late hours across international time zones, Howell has demonstrated exceptional leadership in guiding the task group and has exhibited an admirable determination to make certain that every voice is heard without bias with the goal of consensus in mind.

Reid Neslage, H&H Specialties (Rigging Working Group). Neslage was commended for the vast knowledge and wealth of experience he brought to the TSP. Further, he was applauded for being one of the "true gentlemen" in our industry because his immense dedication to the program was borne purely from passion, without agenda.

ESTA's Technical Standards Program is the only ANSI-accredited standards program dedicated to the needs of the entertainment technology industry. The standards created under the TSP are used directly or indirectly every day by almost every manufacturer, dealer, installer, production company, and end user. These standards prevent accidents, protect lives and property, save time and money, solve problems, inform the industry, and enhance creativity.

The TSP is comprised of over 350 volunteer experts who devote time and knowledge to drafting American National Standards for the benefit of the whole entertainment technology industry. The TSP is always interested in any new member who wishes to join the group (information at tsp.esta.org/getinvolved). Organizers are particularly interested in recruiting new members from dealer/rental companies and the lighting design community.

For more information on this award, please visit tsp.esta.org/aboveandbeyond.