Latest / Event Industry News Podcast / Inflating Event Spaces: Inside Evolution Dome's 15-Year Journey

Transcript

Inflating Event Spaces: Inside Evolution Dome's 15-Year Journey · Event Industry News Podcast

0:00
Hello, everybody, welcome along to the Event Industry News podcast with me, James Dixon,
0:10
wishing you all a very good morning, afternoon, or evening, whenever or wherever you tune
0:15
into today's podcast from.
0:16
And speaking of wherever you tune in today's podcast from, look at where I am, everybody.
0:23
Not sat at home at an upright piano with a laptop in front of me, I've still got a laptop
0:27
in front of me, but I'm in an actual place today rather than at home.
0:32
We're at Confex 2026 at Excel in London, and we're very fortunate that our good friends
0:38
at Evolution Dome have let us hijack one of their nice little structures on their exhibition
0:42
stand and record some of the podcasts here today.
0:46
And we've already done a couple of recordings where I've given them a name check, but this
0:49
is an opportunity to actually thank them in person because I'm joined on today's podcast
0:53
by my guest, Ash Austin, who's the founder, CEO, what's your job title nowadays?
0:59
Director.
1:00
Director, yeah, nothing too fancy, James.
1:03
Nothing too fancy, but...
1:04
Many hats.
1:05
Well, exactly.
1:06
Yeah, job titles can be a bit misleading sometimes because, you know, you're regularly reversing
1:10
vans up to places and setting these things up as well, aren't you?
1:14
Still hands on, still enjoy it.
1:16
Absolutely.
1:17
So, yeah, we're in one of their fabulous sort of little inflatable structures.
1:20
If you don't know what the guys at Evolution Dome do, please do go and check them out.
1:24
Just search for them, go to their website.
1:26
But effectively, you are specialists in the inflatable structure market, aren't you, Ash?
1:31
Yeah, that's it.
1:32
Yeah, celebrating 15 years in the industry, providing temporary inflatable structures
1:36
to all sorts, really, conferences, product launches, brand activations, exhibitions,
1:41
meetings, events.
1:43
Yeah.
1:44
And the beauty about them is, I suppose, they're so easy to deploy.
1:50
I've seen them in action, I've used them, right?
1:52
You get these, and I'm going to use the phrase bouncy car, so I know you hate it, but if
1:57
anybody's seen one go up, but we talk about that in seconds, aren't we?
2:00
You plug it in, you have the pump, and up they go.
2:04
So one of the key things about them is just how easily they are to deploy.
2:08
Yeah, rapid to set up, rapid to take down.
2:11
They pack down so small, so cost-effective and sustainable to transport, and many benefits.
2:16
They're soundproof, and because of the natural way they're designed and built, they've got
2:20
an air cavity, so they're effective to both heat and cool.
2:24
So a number of benefits over traditional options on the market.
2:28
Yeah, absolutely.
2:29
And they look great as well, don't they, for fairness?
2:30
They look really cool.
2:31
They've always looked really funky.
2:33
You might just see some of the pics on the screen, but have a look at some of their photos.
2:37
They look great, don't they?
2:38
Yeah.
2:39
So even in an exhibition environment, they are a feature area which gets sponsored and
2:44
things like that, because they are something different, they are eye-catching and unique.
2:47
And because they're white as well, again, I've got experience of doing this, you can
2:51
light them really effectively, you know, with basic LED uplighting, you can instantly transform
2:57
a space and give it some colour, because they are white.
2:59
Yeah, and they can instantly be on brand and on point for whatever that is.
3:04
And you said at the start, you're 15 years in this game now, you've done a lot of events,
3:09
you've learned a lot of things, you've got a lot of experience, you've worked with a
3:12
lot of people, and all of that has kind of come in some respects, I guess, full circle
3:18
to something that you've recently put a lot of work into and launched.
3:22
Tell us a little bit about the book that's now available.
3:24
Yeah, so we've just this week launched the Pink Book.
3:27
It's not a promotional piece, it's more an educational piece and something to try and
3:33
help organisers navigate the world of temporary inflatable structures.
3:39
Temporary inflatable structures have become a big part of infrastructure, a big part of
3:43
core, part of events now, that are a lot more popular.
3:46
And it was something really to...
3:49
The Pink Book was launched to help educate these organisers, the people to the benefits,
3:55
the pros, the cons, the build methodology, sustainability around them.
4:02
Yeah.
4:02
There's a lot of inconsistent advice.
4:04
There's a lot of people that, perhaps not so much in the UK now, the educational journey
4:09
for us as a business is we've probably done that.
4:12
People understand the benefits, they understand that as long as they're built right, the risk
4:16
is minimal.
4:17
It's no different to any other temporary structure built outside.
4:23
But there's...
4:24
It's just to try and understand...
4:25
It's different to...
4:27
Some of the guidance around traditional structure build is not applicable to this because you're
4:32
dealing with something that's much lighter in weight, so therefore it might be more susceptible
4:36
to certain things.
4:37
But also because it's much lighter weight, it's not relevant to other elements of structure
4:41
build guidance, is it?
4:42
Well, it's exactly what you just said there, though.
4:44
When you look at temporary structures, there's the Muta, there's loads of guidance out there
4:47
around it.
4:48
There's absolutely hardly anything, there's nothing for inflatables, whether that be a
4:52
temporary structure or an art installation, which we've all seen in the news, can go terribly
4:58
wrong because, yeah, they might look fantastic, but have they gone through the design and
5:04
the wind test and the anchoring and the things like that that they need to, to actually be
5:10
out there where they are?
5:12
And this is...
5:13
It's 20-odd documents put together that don't feature us as a business, they're looking
5:20
at how we can help improve the industry, really, and give someone something to refer back to.
5:25
Which, I guess, ultimately, the by-product of that is that it will help you, but because
5:32
by not assisting the wider industry in producing some guidance like this, other suppliers who
5:37
maybe don't do it as well as you guys, or don't do it with guidance, or maybe do dry
5:41
hire and it goes to production companies who don't have the experience of using it and
5:45
deploy them badly, ultimately, that's going to reflect badly on the inflatable structure
5:49
industry, which will have an impact on you.
5:51
So by having better operations on a wider scale, it comes back to you anyway, doesn't
5:57
it?
5:58
Exactly.
5:59
I mean, we've spent 15 years, personally, I've spent 15 years building the product within
6:03
the industry and making it recognised as a safe and unique, but safe space.
6:10
And you only need one person to have a bad experience, and that trust's gone, isn't it?
6:16
Whereas if we can help shape that safety factor in the industry and how things should
6:23
be done, then hopefully it's only going to grow, like you said, the inflatable product
6:28
industry.
6:29
Yeah.
6:30
Yeah.
6:31
Inflatable product.
6:32
Because you do see more and more of them, and I guess I've seen a lot of them in the
6:36
early days.
6:37
I mean, I've known you and known of eFolution Dome almost since you guys started in the
6:42
industry.
6:43
I mean, I think our paths have crossed through events, and you and I have known each other.
6:49
And I used to see them awful lot indoors, like we are today, we're at XL.
6:53
So for meeting pods, stuff like that, great.
6:56
They've got a certain amount of weight to them with a little bit of extra weight and
6:59
what have you.
7:00
Fairly easy to deploy inside, aren't they?
7:03
It's the outdoor market that really can be a bit of the Wild West.
7:06
100%.
7:07
But then there's, we'll go on to the outdoor market, but we'll come back to the indoor.
7:11
Because the outdoor market, obviously you've got wind, wind load, rain, snow.
7:15
So you've got all of them contend with, uplifts, slide, coefficient frictions, all them sort
7:20
of things to contend with.
7:23
And without overselling ourselves, we are the only product on the market which is inflatable
7:30
product that's wind rated to 55 miles an hour.
7:33
Right.
7:34
Generally, anything over that wind speed on an outdoor event, your events can be cancelled
7:38
anyway.
7:39
So you deal with the likes of a traditional marquee supplier, but there's a lot of products
7:44
out there that look similar that perhaps only 30 miles an hour.
7:48
And it's educating people that before you book, then calculations should be received
7:53
and form part of your wind management plan before you go and overcommit yourself.
7:58
Because normally, it's your reputation as an organizer or the brand to maintain that
8:04
element.
8:05
But going back to the indoor stuff.
8:07
While you haven't got them sort of things to rely on, if the power's to fail in an inflatable
8:13
product, it can come down quite quickly, whereas all of our enclosed products have got a sealed
8:18
air beam system, which means like this, for instance, last night, show power went off
8:22
last night, the product remained up, come in this morning, it's still here.
8:26
And there's that element of risk.
8:29
If they're not got this built in, then they need an aluminium truss or they need something
8:34
in there to offer that safety barrier.
8:36
And it's just educating people that use the product that that's what they should be doing.
8:41
And I guess when you look at photos of products in this marketplace, you could look at three
8:47
or four products that on the face of it look identical.
8:52
Oh, it's an eight metre dome with a doorway entrance into it.
8:57
One from this company, one from this, and oh, well, we'll choose the cheapest one.
9:01
I guess not all products are made equally.
9:03
So your wind rating, I was going to ask, you know, the 55 miles an hour, is that a
9:07
combination of the weight that you put on it?
9:09
And then also actually the quality of the things like the stitching in the actual structure
9:14
itself?
9:15
Yeah, so material warp and weft strengths, you know, seam strength, all of that will
9:19
be built in.
9:20
The actual pressure in the wall makes a massive difference, because an inflatable structure
9:25
in high winds is actually like a piece of jelly on a plate, it just wants to deflect.
9:28
As long as it's got the correct ballast, it's not going to move, it's just going to deflect.
9:32
And the pressure in the wall and the sealed air beams are what stops that deflection.
9:37
So if you took a traditional marquee in 45, 50 mile an hour winds, you quite often got
9:45
purlings chattering, it's a noisy space to be in, because inflatable, you've got none
9:48
of that.
9:49
So you've got a benefit.
9:50
And as long as that is managed right, it can be a better solution.
9:55
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
9:56
And we've all been in there, you know, wedding marquees, you know, and they get bad weather
10:00
and it's raining and you can hear clatter, clatter, clatter, all the little fixings
10:04
that I've got, you know, two or three mill are giving them, and they're clattering together
10:08
and you feel like the roof's about to come off it.
10:12
It's mad really.
10:13
And this thing about quality of products is really important, you know, because it's the
10:18
same with anything in the events industry, you know, take a speaker, for example, a PA
10:22
system speaker, it's a black box, you know, to a lot of people, it just looks like a black
10:26
box with a speaker that makes noise.
10:28
You know, you could put four or five in front of you, one's 200 quid, one's £1,000, one's
10:33
£2,000, one's £10,000 and they all, to certain people, they will all look like a box with
10:39
a speaker in it that makes noise.
10:40
And that is the same for probably, we could draw up a list of a dozen different things
10:45
in the industry that are like that.
10:46
And like anything like that, it comes to education, doesn't it?
10:49
It does, yeah.
10:50
There's a safety, there's a safety concern, which is mainly what the pink book's concentrated
10:55
on.
10:57
I think the organisers have got to compare apples with apples, you know, we've had three
11:01
people on the stand today that have talked about they've had and used an inflatable floor
11:05
but they couldn't believe how quiet this was, and I was like, how do you mean?
11:08
They had external blowers, like what Bouncy Castle would have, so they had a terrible
11:12
experience.
11:13
So, why I say we've, I think we've educated people, we probably still haven't.
11:18
Yeah.
11:19
And that's...
11:20
Well, and yeah, quality of that, I'm saying, what you can't see on camera is right by me
11:24
as a fan blowing, and I've been sat next to this all morning and it's...
11:28
You can't hear it.
11:29
I can't hear it.
11:30
You know, and again, I'm not here to sell the stuff, but I've used your stuff in real
11:35
world environments, I've used them as meeting pods, and I can't recall anybody's ever come
11:39
out of a meeting and gone, well, we couldn't hear ourselves thinking there because of a
11:42
noisy blower.
11:43
But we all know what the Bouncy Castle one at the funfair sounds like, and those structures
11:48
are out there because they're probably at a lower price point, aren't they?
11:51
Exactly that, it's a lower price point.
11:53
And it's, you know, the document, you know, the pink book wasn't put together as a sales
11:59
document because that's just not what it's about.
12:03
It's more about educating people and it's that safety factor.
12:06
There's going to be pros and cons to whatever supply you go with, whether that be price,
12:11
whether that be fan noise, delivery, all of them kind of things, but it was mainly to
12:18
highlight these are the things you should be considering and help them in that journey.
12:25
What about extremes of temperature?
12:28
How does that affect it?
12:29
So we've got stuff out in Dubai where, you know, you're 35, 40 degrees outside and you
12:33
cool it down to 18 degrees.
12:35
We've done some stuff with people that make fake snow, and we can actually, 20 degrees
12:41
outside, we can keep it minus three inside.
12:44
Because they're insulated with that air cavity, they're effective to both heat and cool.
12:48
Yeah, it's like a giant puffer jacket.
12:50
It is, in essence, and that's just in the nature of the design.
12:54
Yeah, I mean, one thing that I've always liked is I spend a lot of my time doing technical
13:00
production for people.
13:01
So inevitably there is audio involved, and I spend my life trying to get microphones
13:05
nice and clean so that audiences can hear a presenter at a lectern and stuff like that.
13:11
And I've done it so many times, I turn up, I remember a job last year that was a well-known
13:19
sports stadium in the north of England with a fabulous new hospitality suite, but there
13:25
was glass everywhere, and it just reflects everywhere.
13:30
And you know, they look fabulous and they look stunning, but then actually to do an
13:34
event in them from a technical point of view is a real challenge, lighting and sound.
13:39
And I would say to sort of any organiser, you know, as somebody who works on producing
13:44
events, something like this gives you so much flexibility.
13:47
And I know, you know, we were here today to sort of talk about other things, but the acoustic
13:51
side of things I've always found is a massive benefit of stuff like this, because you can
13:55
point a speaker and there's no reflective surfaces.
13:59
It's all uneven, it's fairly soft, there's some give to it, the pressure in the walls
14:02
is not too high, and it's great.
14:04
Just absorbs the sound.
14:07
It really, it makes the job of setting up and logistics and production so much easier.
14:13
I wanted to throw that in there today because I can testify to it.
14:16
Testimonial if you've ever heard one.
14:19
The book itself, have you printed copies, is it going to be a digital only document?
14:24
It's digital, it's completely free to download.
14:27
You can join the mailing list and get an article every two weeks sent to you for nothing, or
14:33
you can download the full PDF and just refer back to it when you want.
14:36
It's completely free.
14:37
And it's, like I say, it's not a promotional piece.
14:41
It's out there to help try and push the industry, inflatable structure industry, in the right
14:46
direction and educate people.
14:48
And we've got competitors, it's no bad thing.
14:51
And if we can help them from our 15 years experience, do you think something a little
14:56
bit better, then we've done the right thing for the industry.
14:59
Absolutely.
15:00
And as I said, ultimately it's going to come full circle.
15:03
You won't be the first company in the events industry to lead the way by doing something
15:06
that on the face of it is not a direct promotion for them.
15:09
But by being a thought leader, by being somebody who's leading the way in developing better
15:13
practices in the industry, ultimately that's got to benefit and that's got to come full
15:18
circle I think.
15:19
Fingers crossed.
15:20
Fingers crossed.
15:21
And for the record, whilst we're recording, thanks for letting us do this today.
15:25
It's great.
15:26
I feel like they've let me out.
15:29
They've let me out of the...
15:30
They give me day release.
15:32
This is actually the third thing to celebrate at Convex.
15:34
This is a brand new product, it's called the Nexus Pod.
15:37
So we've had meeting pods in the range for 15 years.
15:41
And from the mice industry, the request was something more private, something where the
15:45
conversation couldn't leave.
15:48
So this is complete with a glass door, an enclosed roof, and it's just, yeah.
15:53
Maybe we'll get a bit of B-roll footage and we'll just chop that into the edit here as
15:58
we're talking about that.
15:59
We'll show the little door because what you can't see at the moment is I'm looking straight
16:02
down the camera and behind the camera is the door that leads into it.
16:06
And we are fully sealed.
16:07
You might hear a bit of ambient noise, but to all intents and purposes, we're in a private
16:12
room here with a proper door at the end.
16:14
It's not a floaty, flexible little thing.
16:16
It's like a push bar fire door, effectively.
16:20
So yeah, great addition.
16:22
Great addition to the portfolio.
16:23
And thanks for letting us set up and do these today.
16:26
Just a reminder, we're on the Evolution Dome stand at Confex and Event Production Show
16:31
2026.
16:32
Thanks very much to my guest, Ash Austin, and to his team for looking after us and letting
16:37
us basically crash on the stand today and set up a few microphones and do this.
16:42
It's been great.
16:43
Don't forget that if you've listened to this on one of your audio podcast platforms, do
16:47
make sure that you go over to eventindustrynews.com where you can check out video versions of all
16:52
of the podcasts, as well as the A to Z supplier directory.
16:55
If you work in the industry and you're looking for a product or a service, the chances are
16:59
you'll find it on the A to Z supplier directory over on eventindustrynews.com, along with
17:03
the podcast.
17:04
You may have started your journey there today by watching the podcast.
17:08
Thanks very much for doing so, but please do make sure that you go in the opposite direction
17:11
and subscribe to the audio versions of the podcast, wherever you get them from.
17:15
That could be on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, all of those platforms.
17:19
So thanks very much for tuning in.
17:20
Thanks again to the team at Evolution Dome for having us today, and we'll see you on
17:23
the next edition.
17:24
Thanks, guys.