ILDA Accredited Professional Lasershow Company

ILDA is developing a number of accreditation and certification programs. One of these programs, "ILDA Professional" (short for "ILDA Accredited Professional Lasershow Company"), is for companies, organizations and individuals doing laser shows and displays. The ILDA Professional program identifies those who have experience in doing shows, who have a knowledge of laser safety, and who are active participants in the industry.

A company does NOT have to be an ILDA Member, in order to receive IAPLC accreditation -- this is for any company, organization or individual that produces laser light show displays.

There are two main parts to this page: background about how ILDA Professional works, and instructions on how to apply.
 

How ILDA Professional (IAPLC) works

Points system

ILDA Professional applicants gain points for various activities such as doing laser shows or attending industry conferences. For each activity, there is a minimum number of points which must be earned. When the minimum has been earned in all activities, then the applicant can apply for accreditation. (The categories and point amounts were developed by ILDA's Professional Status Committee, and are subject to change at any time.)

Supporting documentation is required. It is not enough to state that a company did 15 laser shows; the shows must be listed along with some proof that the company did the show. The supporting documentation is mailed to ILDA for review and is kept on file at our office.

Activity areas

The activity areas are:

• Professional Performance: Shows and awards
• Professional Experience: Years in business, letters of reference, association memberships
• Volunteer Service: To ILDA, entertainment industry, laser industry, and community
• Education and Professional Development: Educational history, participation and attendance in industry conferences
• Safety: Laser Safety Officer and other safety courses, safety permits and variances held, service in laser safety groups, teaching about safety
• Statement of Affirmation: Understanding and agreeing to safe laser practices

Keep in mind the goal is to accredit a company, organization or individual as being competent to do shows. This accreditation is not supposed to be too easy or too hard to achieve. It should fairly reflect what a professional laser show producer should have achieved.

The Accreditation Form (spreadsheet)

To make it easy to enter and review the required information, ILDA has developed an automated Excel spreadsheet. It has a Main Worksheet (shown at right; click to enlarge), plus 16 supporting color-coded worksheets where the applicant lists details about shows, awards, safety courses, and other activities.

Cells start out as red to show that not enough points have been reached. As information is entered on the supporting worksheet, points are updated.

When enough points have been reached in an activity, a cell turns green on both the supporting worksheet and on the Main Worksheet.

When all cells in all activity areas have turned green, then the applicant can submit the form. As noted above, the applicant also must submit separate documentation for most items as proof that the activity was done.

Minimum requirements

Not all companies may be immediately eligible for ILDA Professional accreditation. Companies may have much experience in some areas, but less experience in others. Part of the accreditation process is that a company have minimum experience in areas that the Professional Status Committee determined are important  for ILDA and the laser show industry.

Minimum requirements at this time are as follows. A company must:

• Have done at least 15 shows. Also, the shows must have a minimum level of technical complexity.
• Have won at least one award (Honorable Mention or better) OR have entered at least two entries into awards competitions (the entries do not have to have won).
• Have been doing shows for at least two years.
• Have three letters of reference from clients
• Have been in industry trade associations at least four years
• Participate in the industry and community via volunteer service
• Have a certain number of education points (e.g., high school, college, etc.)
• Participate and attend industry conferences
• Have at least one employee who passed a Laser Safety Officer course
• Have additional laser safety activities
• Affirm their commitment to basic laser show safety principles

How to apply

Who may apply: Any company, organization or individual who produces laser light show displays may apply. You do not have to be an ILDA Member, although Members receive discounts on the application and other fees.
     The accreditation process is intended primarily for companies, but if an individual or a non-profit organization produces shows then they may apply as well.

Fill out the form: It is free for anyone to download and fill out the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet Accreditation Form. You should do this in order to find out the areas where you might need more work.

Gather needed documentation: The Accreditation Form lists the documentation that you must submit along with the Form. The documentation must be printed, so that it can be kept in file folders. Do NOT submit electronic documents, files, etc.

Pay the Application Fee: Once you have your completed Accreditation Form and your documentation, submit this to ILDA for processing. The Application Fee is $395 if you are a current ILDA Member, and $595 if you are not a current ILDA Member.

ILDA Review: After the Application Fee has been paid and documents submitted, your application will be reviewed by ILDA. If there is any problem such as incomplete documentation or not completing a requirement, you have up to one year in which to resolve the problem. (If the problem resolution takes more than a year, then a new Application Fee must be paid.)

Pay the Acceptance and Marketing Fee after the application has been approved. The A&M Fee is used to support costs of developing and maintaining the ILDA Professional program, to market ILDA Accredited companies, and for ILDA general support. In addition, being willing to go through the process and being able to pay the fees for the program are ways to help differentiate serious "professional" companies from others who are not willing to apply or to pay for ILDA Accreditation.
     There are two ways to pay the A&M Fee:

• A one-time lump sum of $1000 for current ILDA Members (on top of dues) or $1800 for non-members. The fee covers the four years that IAPLC accreditation is valid.
• Four yearly installments of $300 for ILDA Members or $500/year for non-members. If an installment is not paid when due, the company loses IAPLC accreditation until any and all back payments are received.

Note: The Acceptance and Marketing Fee rates shown above are valid during 2010 and may be increased in 2011 or later, so it is best to apply early.

Accreditation benefits: Once your application has been approved and your A&M Fee has been paid, you will be awarded with a trophy-like display. You may use the ILDA Accredited Professional Laser Company logo on your website and other marketing materials. ILDA Professional companies will be given special marketing emphasis in ILDA's directory and outreach efforts.

Re-accreditation: Accreditation is valid for four calendar years from the approval date of the previous accreditation. A company needs to reapply using the Re-Accreditation Form, to meet minimum requirements for activities during the previous four years. A Re-Application Fee must be paid, and after approval, a new Acceptance and Marketing Fee must be paid which covers the next four years.
        To avoid expiration, a company should reapply at least two months before accreditation expires. Note: As of mid-2010, ILDA has not yet developed the Re-Accreditation Form or determined the Re-Application Fee.

Revocation: ILDA may revoke accreditation for clear and significant violations of professional conduct, including:

• Serious misrepresentation of information on the Accreditation Form and supporting documentation

• Laser safety violations or incidents which bring disrepute onto laser shows and displays

• Other gross misconduct which is unprofessional and would tarnish the image of laser shows

In case of questions, disputes, etc: All ILDA certification and accreditation programs must address required elements such as autonomy, authority, rigorousness, due process, etc. These are discussed on a separate page.

List of changes to the IAPLC form and program

The first draft, version 0.90, was released Jan. 6 2009. Version 0.96 dated March 22 2010 made the following changes since 0.90:

• Awards requirement relaxed. Previously, a company had to have won at least one Honorable Mention. Now, it is sufficient to have entered at least twice into an awards competition.

• Letters of Reference requirement relaxed: Previously, five Letters of Reference were required. Now, three are sufficient.

• Added a page "About ILDA, Accreditation and this form". This can be accessed from the second paragraph of the main form. The new page gives additional background information which may be useful to those filling out the form.

Version 1.0 dated July 9 2010 has a few wording changes and clarifications, but no substantive changes.

In August 2010, the term "ILDA Professional" was introduced as a shorter, easier-to-say alternative to identify the ILDA Accredited Professional Lasershow Company program.