7 September 2012:  MELBOURNE

Specialty Group Pty Ltd is proud to announce that its Specialty Cinema division has been achieving outstanding results with its proprietary cinema screen cleaning method.  Using the latest luminance measurement equipment, Specialty Cinema was able to record an average improvement of 4.4 foot-lamberts across a number of different screens.  Typically this meant taking a screen that was below the level of luminance recommended by leading screen manufacturers like Harkness, to a reading that is above the recommended level of luminance.

Foot-lamberts is named after its inventor, Swiss mathematician Johann Heinrich Lambert.  A foot-lambert is measure of luminance and within the cinema industry it is used to measure the luminance of images on a projection screen.  The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) recommends that commercial movie theatres should have screen luminance of 16 foot-lamberts.

After years of use, cinema screens can become dirty, dust-covered and discoloured –all of which can dramatically affect the brightness and clarity of the projected image.  Consequently the overall experience of the paying cinema patron is diminished.  In the past the only real solution was costly screen replacement.  Now, cinema screen cleaning offers cinema operators a viable alternative to replacement.        

The Specialty Cinema screen cleaning process involves a 7-step process and uses proprietary cleaning and brightening agents.  As cinema screens are extremely delicate and expensive to replace, the process can only be undertaken by a trained cinema technician wearing the appropriate personal protection equipment.

“This terrific service has already been extremely popular with our customers” said George Aleksiunas, Cinema Sales Executive at Specialty Cinema.  “At a time when many operators are struggling to pay for digital cinema conversion, a service like this can breathe new life into cinema screens, at a fraction of the cost of a cinema screen replacement”, Aleksiunas continued.

After recently cleaning a screen at the landmark Palace Cinemas Balwyn, the venue owners were overwhelmed with the result. “The viewing experience in cinema 3 at Balwyn has improved 10 fold by having the screen cleaned by Specialty Cinema- Thank you Specialty” said Warren Reese, National Technical Manager for Palace Cinemas.

About Specialty Group Pty Ltd: Since 1969, Specialty Group has been providing theatre, stage and cinema equipment and services to the performing arts and cinema exhibition industries in Australia, New Zealand and 28 countries around the world. Specialty Group operates under the Specialty Theatre (http://www.specialtytheatre.com) and Specialty Cinema (http://specialtycinema.com) brand names.