Projectors are only half the picture...

In the drive for efficiency, cinemas often think only of the projector. As Geoff Newitt explains, it’s wise not to ignore a new screen’s benefits.

ENERGY COSTS HAVE risen over the past year, as we all know. The impact on your cinema’s running costs is clear —but there is a relatively simple way that you can reduce the power consumption at your site. Clearly the biggest change you can make is to replace your projector and install a new power-friendly laserbased projector — but we do understand that this is not an option for every one of our customers. So why not look at the difference that a change in screen can deliver to your electricity bill?

Over time your screens’ surfaces will deteriorate, dust, and other airborne contaminants will reduce the efficiency, even vandalism has an impact, with fizzy drinks and sweets being common items that the screen surface is damaged by. During the years that the screen is installed, the projector will be calibrated by your service engineer to maintain the correct brightness, increasing the light output and the electricity consumption of your projection system.

IF YOU PLAN TO keep your current projector, then you could consider a cost-effective update of your screen surface. Depending on how long your screen has been installed, you could see a considerable increase in efficiency allowing you to reduce your light output from your projector, which in turn will reduce electricity consumption, and in some cases, reduce the lamp size introducing a purchase cost benefit with a longer lamp life further decreasing your expenditure. In most cases you will find that the screen pays for itself very quickly. One such venue to have recently replaced its screens is the Mallard Cinema, in Guernsey. An independently owned four-screen, the Mallard provides the island with it’s only big screen entertainment — and thanks to the help of Omnex engineers is now delivering a brighter image to cinemagoers.

IF YOU KNOW THE size and type of screen surface you need, let us know and we can order a replacement for you, but if you need help with the size you need to order, let us advise you on the perforation type, the screen gain, and other considerations such as whether the screen is installed in a traditional frame with masking, or a wraparound frame. Our engineers can help, we can survey the installation and talk through the options available.

The Mallard Cinema, Guernsey