We’ve learned that logistics is basically move products from point A to point B. By such definition we are aware that logistics is a part of our every day life and not only a process in business or industry.

So, I was going through some old pictures at the same time and ran into some old ones from a trip to New York and my visit to Broadway to watch The Phantom of the Opera and remember the final scene with the huge chandelier and suddenly wonder, how do the manage to move that thing!?

Well, I just found out that apparently its pretty easy (although expensive) if you have the correct equipment and the right crew.  “The chandelier slides into a rolling cart with sides to protect the crystals,” says Juenker at NETworks Presentations, whose production of Phantom has been touring for about three years, “While the chandelier’s size makes it awkward for a truck, it does fit, with straps and padding to keep it from harm while on the move”.

And so, the principal thing to have in mind is to get the best suppliers available. NETworks work alongside Clark Transfers, which are a theatric trucking company. They are used to move all kinds of props: customers, sceneries and even flooring. Everything is built and put together out of the final site so imagine the risks! The show’s head carpenter works with the trucking company to coordinate deliveries to each theater. Items are packed into trailers in a way that allows the crew to unload them in the order needed, we could say ‘First Out Last In’.

The trucks works as warehousing while on touring and on short breaks and this is taken into consideration when making everything. The company makes sure of use the right measurements so the job of moving things around can be made a little bit easier. For the long rests NETworks has a formal warehousing.

It takes a 2-day lead time to deliver everything to each new location, and about 12 hours to put it all on stage. That makes the prospect of weather delays a particular hazard. Usually everything works out and stuff gets deliver in time, but if it doesn’t… the show won’t go on…

Anyway, what kind of Phantom would it be without the chandelier?