SLOC GUIDELINES - Created July 2005

Chairpersons. Technical Operations

Report to:  Vice-President, Technical Operations

Chairperson - Costumes Chairperson - Hair and Wigs Chairperson - Lighting Chairperson - Make-up Chairperson - Properties Chairperson - Sets and Tools Chairperson - Sound

The Chairpersons are appointed by the Vice-President(s) of Technical Operations and report directly to the Vice-President(s) of Technical Operations and should keep him/her informed of all activities. The term of appointment is one year.

Budget & Expenditures

The Budget, given to the Vice-President of Technical Operations by the Board of Directors at the beginning of the season (June 1), is divided among the various departments. The Vice-President of Technical Operations should hold a meeting at the beginning of the season to plan the budget for the whole department, seeking inputs from each of the Chairpersons.

All purchases must be pre-approved by the Vice-President of Technical Operations. SLOC has a preferred list of Vendors with whom it has accounts where materials and supplies may be purchased and directly billed to the Company. At the time of purchase please identify to the Vendor that they should list phraseology on the Invoice to reflect the nature of the purchase; e.g., "Tech Ops - SOUND" or "Tech Ops - MAKE-UP." This is important because the Treasurer needs to know which department to expense the item to, and this information makes it clear and separate from any expenses incurred by a specific Show Production. Should the Chairperson need to purchase, or advise a purchase, of specific items that are to be budgeted to a particular Production, the Invoice should reflect the nature of the purchase, e.g. "Nun-Nuggets - SOUND."

Should the Chairperson need to purchase materials and supplies outside of SLOC's Vendor list, the Chairperson will have to arrange for payment by either expensing his/her own money, or by requesting a cash advance from the VP of Technical Operations. The Chairperson MUST submit receipts to the VP of Technical Operations in order to get reimbursed. The VP of Technical Operations will submit the information to the Treasurer of the Company, and the Treasurer will issue a check for reimbursement within 60 days of receipt.

Responsibilities of the Chairpersons:

Generally, the responsibilities of the Chairpersons include:

(a) Train/advise/meet with each of the Show's Designer and their teams as necessary to assure they understand how to properly operate and maintain any: specific item. As for example, the Chairperson of Sound should meet with the Sound Designer of the Show "Nun-Nuggets" to assure they understand the various nuances of operating the sound system, to explain where the various components are stored, where wires trace to through the theater; likewise the Chairperson of Costumes should describe SLOC's inventory of costumes, advise on where to purchase materials, where to rent various pieces, etc.

(b) Maintain/repair the properties associated with the department.

(c) Maintain organization of the various properties; create/maintain a database that lists the various properties available for use.

(d) Suggest upgrades/purchases/improvements.

(e) Report/discuss issues that may arise.

(f) At the conclusion of the term of office, the Chairperson should provide continuity and a smooth transition by meeting with the newly appointed Chairperson.

(g) Loaning of SLOC's Property - If a specific piece of property is to be loaned to another organization, the Chairperson is to make sure that the piece is used in a responsible manner, is responsible for the condition of the property when it returns and is to make sure it is returned in a timely fashion. ALL loans must be short-term (not more than a few months). Complete a "Property Loan Record" sheet to track the loan (copies are kept in the Box Office). Prior to loaning out specific property, however, the Chairperson must check with any of the Shows that are "in-rehearsal" or "in-production" to make sure there won't be a conflict on usage. Obviously, SLOC has priority on usage of its properties. Generally, SLOC has loaned out costumes, set pieces, props, and some limited specialty i equipment such as the paint sprayer, fog machine, drops, and footlights to responsible parties. But any control equipment specific to SLOC's operations will NOT be loaned out; not microphones, body packs, mixers, amplifiers, speakers, the lighting board, nor the follow spot; not tools such as drills, jigsaws, circular saws, ladders, the Genie, and general-use lighting instruments.

(h) Receipt of Donations - SLOC occasionally receives, through the generosity of our friends in the community, donations of property. This can be in the form of paints (we only accept and use FLAT LATEX paints), tools, costumes, items useful as potential props, and the like. If the donation is something substantial, SLOC will send a Thank You note to the individual. Please keep the VP informed so SLOC can follow through on this. Monetary donations should be directed to the Treasurer of the Company.

(i) The Chairperson should try to attend Production meetings as scheduled by the Producers of the various Shows to establish rapport with any persons new to SLOC's operations. Usually the Vice-President of Technical Operations attends these meetings and makes available to the Show team a Contact List of the current Chairpersons of Technical Operations.

(j) The Chairperson should attend the Strikes for the various Shows throughout ths season, to assure a smooth clean-up and transition.

Specific responsibilities of each of the Chairpersons are as follows:

Chairperson - Costumes

1.  Maintain the costume storage facility.

2.   Be available to assist a Show's Costumer to gain access to the facility.

3.   Maintain any equipment associated with the department - steamers, sewing machines, irons, etc.

4.   Keep costume inventory clean and in repair.

5.   Discard any costumes which have exceeded their useful life.

Chairperson - Hair and Wigs

1.   Maintain in good useable condition any hairpieces and wigs.

2.   Maintain a database list of the various hairpieces and wigs.

3.   Assure that the pieces are stored properly.

Chairperson - Lighting

1.   Maintain an inventory of lighting supplies, such as lamps of various sizes needed to equip the various lighting instruments, gels and gel frames, gaffer tape, glow tape, etc. These are purchased through the Technical Operations Budget. Gobos may be purchased through the department if they have general utility (e.g. tree breakup patterns); any specialty gobos that can be considered a one-time use should be expensed through a particular Show Production budget. (An example: for the show GYPSY, a set of 3 gobos that would project the word "Gypsy" in several configurations was special ordered. The utility of these gobos is obviously limited and was charged to the Gypsy budget.)

2.    Assure cables are in working order, that the cable itself it not frayed, that the connectors are soundly connected; making any necessary repairs.

3.   Train necessary personnel on the safe use of the ladders and the Genie when hanging instruments, making sure they understand the need and use of safety cables on the instruments.

4.   Train necessary personnel on the use of the Lighting Board.

5.   Assure the Lighting Booth is clean and organized before and after a Production.

6.   Assure that any lighting equipment struck at Strike (at the desire of the next show's Lighting Designer) is returned to storage.

Chairperson - Make-up

1.    Maintain an inventory of fresh make-up.

2.   Maintain an inventory of make-up supplies such as wipes, cold cream, sponges, make-up trays, etc. Such supplies are expensed through the Tech Ops budget; however, tissues are normally supplied by the Company.

3.   Discard any make-up which has exceeded its useful life.

Chairperson - Properties

1.   Keep the Prop Room organized and neat.

2.   Discard any properties that may have exceeded their useful lives.

3.   Enter into the database any new properties that may have been purchased or acquired.

Chairperson - Sets and Tools

1.    Keep the Set Shop organized; discard any set pieces which may have exceeded their useful lives.

2.    Maintain tool boxes and assure power tools are in working order.

3.    Keep paints organized and discard any paints or supplies that have exceeded their useful lives.

4.    Assure ladders are in good working order.

5.    Assure safe practices are followed during set constructions. Generally, this means that set construction personnel should wear protective gear that includes: (a) hardhats, (b) steel toe shoes, (c) safety glasses, and (d) hearing protection when appropriate. SLOC will maintain a supply of ANSI approved safety glasses and disposable hearing protection plugs in the Tool Room at the side of the stage.

Chairperson - Sound

1.   Maintain an inventory of fresh batteries for the body mics. Partially used batteries can be used for rehearsals.

2.   Assure the body mics and packs are in good working order.

3.  Repair/maintain the sound equipment - mixers, computer, amplifiers, transmitters, speakers, monitors, floor mics, etc.

4.   Train necessary personnel on the use of the sound equipment.

5.   Assure that the operations area is neat and organized before and after a Production.