PLASA Awards for Innovation 2026 winners announced

The winners of the 2026 PLASA Awards for Innovation were announced last night at PLASA Show, currently taking place at Olympia, London.

Organised in association with LSi, the PLASA Awards for Innovation are among the industry’s most respected accolades, shining a spotlight on pioneering technology that advances safety, efficiency and performance through fresh approaches, inventive engineering, and sustainable design.

This year, 43 products were put forward, with the judges ultimately recognising eight innovations. The panel also decided to present the Gold Award, which recognises a product that is a true game-changer for the industry.

The winning products and judges’ comments are listed below:

Singularity – Sig-Net  

The judges commended the extensive collaborative effort behind Sig-Net, predicting it will become a cornerstone of cybersecurity in the lighting industry. Early adoption by numerous manufacturers, many of whom contributed to its development, helps prepare the sector for the upcoming EU Cyber Resilience Act.

Sig-Net serves as a vital platform for industry dialogue regarding the mandatory compliance requirements arriving in 2027. Finally, the judges highlighted its sustainable impact, noting that it extends the lifespan of existing protocols and significantly reduces product obsolescence.

SoundBase – SoundBase 

The judges appreciated the well-designed manufacturer-agnostic workflow in an increasingly hostile RF environment. The collaborative cross-sharing of data has the potential to transform information exchanges across multiple RF users to help improve practical management of on-site frequency co-ordination.

ROE Visual – Vanish Air Rental (VAR) 

The innovative engineering of placing the drive electronics in the perimeter of the panel makes this the first product to be a tourable, transparent screen without a central spine, thereby contributing to a cleaner aesthetic.

Event Lifting Limited – ELL Smart Chain hoist 

By collating much of the chain hoist’s data into a centrally accessible database, ELL has enabled simple access to real-time and historical information of a hoist over a network. The capability to test brakes individually without removing covers was particularly notable, as was the facility allowing users to check maintenance and compliance history at the scan of a QR code or NFC chip. It is hoped that these innovations will support safer and more efficient working practices.

Doughty Engineering – Pre-Rig Quick Trigger Clamp 

Innovation comes in many forms, sometimes a simple change can make a significant difference. The judges enjoyed the clamp’s straight-forward design and ability to solve many practical yet obvious issues. Rather than drive square pegs into round holes or round pegs into square ones, this product allows the user to secure either safely.

LaserAnimation Sollinger – Unreal 120 

A high level of attention to detail in the manufacturing process has led to a genuine step-change in terms of output power density for a given beam size in a considerably smaller, lighter and more cost-effective format. The judges noted the sophisticated white colour balance management, the promised reliability and high degree of beam accuracy.

Chauvet Professional – unrival App  

A free app that makes addressing and managing a lighting rig easier on site and in the warehouse, with multiple users able to access the same information in real-time. Although working best with Chauvet’s products using its proprietary NFC chips, the app still allows for users to integrate any other fixture helping to improve communication and workflow with the novel use of self-generated QR codes.

The winner of the Gold Award is: 

Powersoft – SpeakerMATE  

The judges were truly impressed with the bi-directional communication and real-time ability to monitor passive speaker systems using existing speaker cables. The inclusion of a microphone and inclinometer opens up new verification opportunities in a wide variety of sound reinforcement applications including PAVA, touring and more.

Easily retrofitted or included in new products, the judges expect this to be widely adopted in the future with additional features developed and incorporated as it gains traction within the industry.

In addition to the winners, the judges also chose to commend four products, which are:  

Disguise – Mapping Matters 

In a year that has seen increased use of AI, the judges commended Disguise for its practical, focused and responsible use of AI in its products, building on the company’s previous PLASA Award for the technology. The judges felt that integration of AI into the workflow was appropriate and represents a genuinely useful and potentially time-saving suite of features, without compromising individual designer intellectual property.

d&b audiotechnik – U-Series  

The judges felt that the U-Series represented a highly flexible approach to speaker deployment. However, it was the networked cabinets that particularly caught the judges’ attention, demonstrating an advanced use of Power over Ethernet to a level that can be considered suitable for a wide range of professional applications. The N-version shows the potential for PoE powered systems to compete with other more traditional speakers.

Polar – Areal Upmix Engine 

Commended for providing a brand-agnostic interface for low-latency spatial audio, it affords users a stepping-stone into the world of immersive sound that is both easy and intuitive to use. It potentially allows a wider range of immersive options from standard stereo sources.

Robe – GLINT and AERIS (as in GigaPointe) 

By careful attention to the detrimental impact of potential contaminants within a head of a moving light, Robe has developed multiple mechanisms to maintain a cleaner internal environment within a fixture, thereby potentially reducing maintenance intervals and costs as well as prolonging the optimum performance. The judges highlighted AERIS alongside the previous innovations that will be adopted across the product range contributing to long-term reliability.

Congratulations to all of this year’s winners! 

Applications for the 2027 PLASA Awards for Innovation will open in Summer 2027.