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Author Topic: Xenon struck with safety shell on Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 07-02-2003 12:40 PM                     I think the best bet is to send the bulb back to the manufacturer and have it analyzed to make sure it is safe to use. Any foreign object (such as finger prints, carbon deposites from plastic, etc.) should always be a cause for alarm.  |  IP: Logged Dustin Mitchell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1865 From: Mondovi, WI, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 07-03-2003 01:24 AM                     Greg- Many technicians won't change bulbs anyway because of liability issues. Phillipe- that seems a bit harsh. If you take Rick's word for it the guy is perfectly competent; this was just one of those 'oops' situations. It happens to the best of us.  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 07-03-2003 01:53 AM                        Philippe, Have you never made a mistake? Hopefully if you ever do make a mistake no one ever sais to "Junk You". ------ I do not appreciate it when people jump all over managers. There are some good managers and some bad managers just as thier are good and bad projectionists. I do not think it is fair for proffesionals on this forum to constantly make offensive comments about managers. EVERY ONE makes mistakes and if it is part of this persons job to change lamps then its his job. Wether it should be or not is another issue but it is not this persons fault its the company that requires him to do this. I have no doubt in my mind that if a projectionist had done this the comment would have been made that "...oh he must of been distracted by a manager" I think ever theatre should have projectionists but you can run a theatre without a projectionist you cant run a theatre without a manager. Lets lay off the managers please!  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 07-03-2003 03:16 AM                        Getting back to xenon bulbs, one of the first chiefs I worked for told of how his boss had left the 'condom' on an 8k bulb back in 1969. The resulting explosion blew the side panel off the lamphouse - quite a feat for a GK37 lamphouse, which are built like tanks - cracked the lens, the porthole glass and reduced the mirror virtually to powder. The innards of the lamphouse were basically a complete write-off. The cinema was in an area of North London with a large Irish community and many in the audience assumed that a terrorist attack had taken place! Dave explained that the lamps in those days operated under much higher pressure and were far more likely to blow up than the ones in use now - in those days running lamps past their guaranteed hours was unheard of. But the moral of the story was to have two people double-checking a mission critical job if at all possible.  |  IP: Logged John Spooner Expert Film Handler Posts: 186 From: South Australia, Australia Registered: Jan 2003 posted 07-03-2003 01:07 PM                     Dear Leo. Concur re the strength of the GK lamphouses. As a matter of interest, was the lamp a vertical or horizontal mount in the GK37 lamp? Back then I would assume vertical. Best regards. John Spooner.  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 07-03-2003 02:09 PM                        He didn't say (or if he did, I've forgotten), but I would have thought vertical. Most of the GK lamphouses still around have been converted to horizontal, but there are still one or two verticals about.  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-03-2003 04:28 PM                     "I do not appreciate it when people jump all over managers. There are some good managers and some bad managers just as thier are good and bad projectionists. I do not think it is fair for proffesionals on this forum to constantly make offensive comments about managers. EVERY ONE makes mistakes and if it is part of this persons job to change lamps then its his job. Wether it should be or not is another issue but it is not this persons fault its the company that requires him to do this. I have no doubt in my mind that if a projectionist had done this the comment would have been made that "...oh he must of been distracted by a manager" I think ever theatre should have projectionists but you can run a theatre without a projectionist you cant run a theatre without a manager. Lets lay off the managers please! " The bottom line if it is part of the job then you are responsible to do it right and that means if it is mission criticle then the cell phone should have been ignored Bottom line he installed it wrong and was responsible and there fore what ever the company's policy comes into effect As for theatres not running with managers I have know several that have 1 manager between multiple complexs and one projectionist at each Also many a time I have had to open the theatre because the manager didn't show up  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 07-03-2003 07:14 PM                        I agree Gordon that the cell phone probably should have been ignored. It comes down to a judgement call. Not everyone makes a correct judgement call all the time it comes down to bieng human. There are also other factors that we do not know does this person have a pregnant spouse? Does this person have a relative in the hospital? There may have been a very good reason for taking the call. Regardless a mistake was made it was a mistake that anyone could make I have never done it but I have made other mistakes its human. I think that there is just a tone of saying that he made the mistake because he was a manager when it should be he made the mistake because he is human. No business could operate without someone in a management/supervisory roll. Of course you can open and operate without a manager present but you cant stay in business. Imagine a theatre with just a projectionist and floorstaff with no one in charge... no one to cash out the draws... no one to order the supplies... no one to do the payroll... I dont think that theatre would last more than a day without someone having to be in charge.  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-03-2003 09:09 PM                     Not intended as an insult to managers but most theatres that seem to run smother are projectionist manager position not manager projectionist  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 07-03-2003 10:38 PM                        Gordon, I did not think that you were trying to be disrespectful at all. My origional comments were intended for other members. You brought up some very good points and I greatly respect your point of view. I have seen good and bad man-op situations, and good and bad manager and projectionist situations. I just do not like the implications that this person made this mistake because he was a manager... anyone could have done this. As a former Manager I take offense to it. It makes me think that people on here judge people on thier ability as an operator on wether or not they are a real projectionist or just a manager.  |  IP: Logged Phillip Seib Film Handler Posts: 7 From: Durham, NC, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 07-04-2003 04:16 AM                     Why did he notice the shell on screen when he focused the reflecting mirror after install?  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 07-04-2003 08:21 AM                        quote: Why did he notice the shell on screen when he focused the reflecting mirror after install? The shell would have begun to melt, burn, and smell immediately. quote: As the smell became very evident shortly after the show started, and smoke began emminating from the lamphouse, he shut down the equipment. This implies that the change was made on an emergency basis, perhaps between shows, with the lamp alignment intended "on the fly". A bad situation to begin with, turned into disaster by the cell phone distraction.  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-04-2003 09:14 AM                        Sean--I don't think that anyone is dumping on managers here. It's a difficult job that few people can do well and not one that I would want to do personally (unless it also involved booking the films). The real issue is that it is unfair for the theatre owner to put the manager in a position where he has so many responsibilities that he cannot do everything properly. That sounds like what happened here. I feel pretty strongly that no one should be expected to both manage a theatre and run the booth at the same time. That is just too much responsibility for one (probably underpaid) employee, and both customer service and presentation quality will likely suffer. If a manager wants to run the booth and has the skills and desire to do so properly, then he should do that on separate shifts when he has no regular management responsibility and can devote his full attention to presentation quality. It sounds like a trashed 6kw xenon was the price that this company had to pay for expecting too much from one employee. At least only the bulb got damaged and no one got hurt.  |  IP: Logged Ken Lackner Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1907 From: Atlanta, GA, USA Registered: Sep 2001 posted 07-04-2003 10:27 AM                     Whew! At least I'm not alone. I once did something similar to a 3K Osram. I was cleaning the lamphouse, and I figured I'd put the plastic shell on the bulb so I don't accidentally touch it. Well, for some reason when I was done cleaning I forgot to remove the shell. I wasn't present for the next show. They saved the bulb for me. I managed to pry off the plastic shell (it wasn't burnt too badly) and I saved it as a souvenir. From now on, I just make sure I'm extra careful to not touch the bulb; I leave the shell off.  |  IP: Logged

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