Municipal broadcaster K23 TV (Keizer City Television) has deployed PTZ cameras from Telycam to upgrade the visual quality of their live meeting coverage. As the government access broadcaster for the City of Keizer, OR, K23 TV plays an important role in connecting city officials with the community’s citizens. Broadcasting and streaming from council chambers in the Keizer City Hall, the channel (operated by Ambition Pictures) provides live coverage of city council and other municipal activities including planning commission, transportation and parks advisory board sessions.

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In the summer of 2025, KeizerTV set out to replace and improve upon its aging, first-generation NDI PTZ cameras. Per Phillip Wade, producer at KeizerTV, the existing cameras were starting to have issues such as focus drift, but there was also a desire to improve the overall quality.

Wade’s quality goals included increasing the visual fidelity captured by the cameras. “The resolution of our existing cameras was 1920x1080 HD, but we wanted better color reproduction, exposure and sharpness,” he explained. “Being able to get better color and exposure in our council chambers improves the overall production quality.”

Other key goals for the upgrade included increasing the number of cameras for more comprehensive coverage, and greater optical zoom range to allow better close-ups across the council chamber space.

On the recommendation of reseller Mid-Valley Media, Wade evaluated Telycam’s Vision+ N3 cameras with 30x optical zoom, and found that they delivered everything the station wanted. The city purchased and deployed four of the cameras, going live with them in late August 2025.

The city council chambers feature a forward-facing curved dais at the front of the room seating seven participants, with smaller offshoots at each side seating additional participants. Two Telycam cameras at the back of the room capture close-up and wide shots of people on the main dais, while the other two cameras are positioned at the sides of the room to capture people seated on the offshoot wings. The side cameras also cover the area where members of the public present or speak during city meetings.

The cameras are connected to a Vizrt TriCaster TC1 Pro production switcher in an IP-based workflow using the NDI HX3 connectivity standard. In addition to being broadcast on television via Comcast, the output of the TriCaster is also streamed live on the city’s Facebook and YouTube channels in both English and Spanish. The Spanish streams are created by sending the NDI feed of the TriCaster’s program output to another room where it is translated by interpreters, with the Spanish audio translation mixed in with a TriCaster Mini.

KeizerTV initially controlled the pan, tilt and zoom of the Telycam cameras through the TriCaster TC1, but found it cumbersome to do so through the same control surface they were using for switching. “The TriCaster control surface has an integrated joystick, but it’s not positioned ergonomically for camera control,” Wade explained. “You have to reach across all the other buttons on the panel to get to the joystick, and press two buttons on the other side of the panel to activate which camera you want. It was awkward, which delayed getting the subject into frame.”

Preferring to instead use a separate, dedicated controller just for camera selection and movement, Wade added a Telycam V-Joy+ AT controller to their installation. “It’s important for us to be able to quickly select a camera and move it, and the Telycam controller lets us do that efficiently.”

The Vision+ N3 cameras have met all of KeizerTV’s objectives and expectations. “We’re very happy with the quality of the video they produce,” said Wade. “I also appreciate being able to manually set the aperture of the camera. That gives us some control of the depth of field, which makes the footage look and feel higher end.”

Phillip also praised the speed and precision of the Telycam cameras’ auto-focusing. “The cameras adjust very quickly,” he explained. “When I move the camera position, it’s already in focus by the time I’m ready to cut to that camera.

“We’re very pleased with the Telycam cameras,” Phillip concluded. “They do a fantastic job.”

Back in 2020, California's Orange County Sheriff’s Department launched its Technology Division. The goal: Bring together a diverse range of resources to develop a consistent plan for how the department would advance technologically.

The division employs around 150 team members that oversee public safety dispatch and communications, infrastructure, IT, and security. As a primary facility within the organization, the Orange County Real Time Operations Center (RTOC) was charged with providing emergency response teams and law enforcement with the control and visualization tools that would enable them to manage critical events.

This mandated the need for technology that allowed for efficient collaboration across a multitude of sources and systems. After assessing the tools available, the department settled on RGB Spectrum's XtendPoint. The multi-user networked KVM over IP system provides unified control of multiple applications, information sharing, integration with video walls and remote operators, and remote monitoring and response for authorized users.

Dave Fontneau, chief information officer in the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Technology Division, explained that his organization sought out partners that would contribute to driving tech innovation at the RTOC—and solutions that would improve public safety and law enforcement operations. “XtendPoint gives us the flexibility to push and pull content anywhere across the county, ensuring seamless communication and rapid response during emergencies,” he said.

At Datapath, Mark Bohs, director of sales, Americas, noted that the variety of video sources feeding today’s command and control facilities—including IP cameras, news feeds, internet sources, and internal communications—drives the need for high-resolution displays. He also highlighted the demand for AV over IP distribution, as well as 10G networking that can accommodate the volume of data that’s being processed.

“[A] distributed solution of disparate content sources all being brought into [the] networked environment also requires technology that can keep track of all of the endpoints and centralize them within an interface that allows operators to access any and all appropriate sources, [and] lay out files [and] templates,” he explained.

Deciding on Displays

Over the last five years or so, LED displays have decreased in price, making them more accessible to a wider range of command and control rooms. Bohs argued that unlike video monitor walls, LED displays are bezel free, which makes them easier to watch. “This makes multiple content and bespoke templates and layouts easy to create, as well as providing a clearer viewing experience,” he said. Monitor cabinet sizes limit their orientation options in a space, whereas LED panels offer more flexibility when it comes to placement and positioning, he added.

Stephen McNeil, account manager at Solutionz, has observed that a growing number of police departments are rolling out ROTCs thanks to what he calls a relatively low barrier to entry. For these spaces, the primary goal is to provide a video “canvas” that can display sources such as security dispatch and management dashboards linked with the IP cameras that are in the field, capturing images in different zones of a city, county, or region.

In this scenario, multiview is a key feature. “You can get this infinite control of the canvas over how small or large [you want] these individual windows to be,” McNeil said.

Matt Rinehart, VP of federal strategic accounts at AVI-SPL, noted that by bringing more data to a large-scale, centralized dvLED display, command and control centers can decrease the amount of gear required at operator workstations. “Where they used to have four, five, or more PCs or clients under their desk, in a best-case scenario all of that is virtualized now,” he explained.

This also results in quieter, cooler facilities. “I can have an HVAC zone right beneath that dvLED wall and draw that heat out of the room, [instead of] having all that heat flowing over the humans,” Rinehart added.

A Place for Projectors?

For certain command and control applications, projection-driven displays remain a good option. McNeil points to larger emergency operations centers (EOCs) or 911 centers as examples. Due to their size, these spaces tend to have fewer sightline issues in relation to projector hangs than, for example, smaller ROTCs with lower ceilings. Also, projectors may turn out to be more cost-effective than a dvLED that needs to be big enough to be seen by 100-150 viewers.

However, McNeil conceded that projectors are becoming less common, even in these environments. “They tend to be loud; they tend to put out a lot of heat,” he said.

There are also concerns related to projector failure. Bohs noted that it's relatively simple to swap out a faulty LED panel within a video wall. “Should the projector fail," he warned, "the facility is faced with a blank display rather than a dead pixel.” He also added that LED displays—which, in command and control centers, are usually running on a 24/7 basis—are more energy efficient, especially when they incorporate dimming systems that reduce their output during non-peak times.

That’s not to say that projection is on its way out for all command and control applications. Spaces featuring unique geometries are good candidates for these systems, according to Rinehart. Mobile facilities—such as those deployed for natural disaster response—still benefit from this technology, Rinehart noted. In these tough environments, data can be projected onto walls or even sheets or tarps. “There are still some great applications for projectors,” he said.

Eyes Everywhere

KVM interfaces offer a more ergonomic solution for operators who are tasked with accessing, managing, and monitoring multiple sources. “From a control room operator’s standpoint, an easily managed console is high on the list of priorities,” Bohs said. “KVM solutions give operators control of numerous displays and applications from a single mouse, ensuring smoother operations, saving important time, and reducing desk clutter.”

In their basic form, KVM systems can be used to control multiple computers situated on one desk. On an IP network, administrators may grant KVM permissions to authorized personnel only, which keeps sensitive data secure.

McNeil noted that operators can leverage KVM beyond their own workstations to the central video display. “I can take my mouse across that whole wall, click on a window, and now I’m controlling that space,” he explained. This functionality also applies to other workstations within the room. “It’s really taking KVM to the next level.”

There has been some element of videoconferencing capability in the majority of command and control center projects McNeil has been involved with. Sometimes it’s pretty basic—a soft codec, one camera, a microphone—but in other environments it’s integrated throughout the entire building. “It really varies case by case, but it’s there and it’s prevalent,” he said.

For McNeil, the evolution of command and control center technology has enabled organizations to more easily share information with those who need it—and fast. He cited policing as an example: In a standoff situation, drone camera footage that’s being viewed in an RTOC can also be fed to an officer sitting in his squad car, better equipping him to deal with the event.

“They can get eyes everywhere,” he said. “Before they even ask the witness that first question, they already have a huge amount of information because of these systems.”

Brattleboro Community TV (BCTV), the public access media center serving almost a dozen towns in southern Windham County, VT, has successfully implemented MediaScribe, an AI-powered captioning and transcription solution that helps cities meet WCAG 2.1 AA and ADA standards for government meetings across all delivery channels to enhance in-room accessibility for their board meeting coverage.

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After evaluating multiple options, Johnny Gifford, executive director of the Public, Education, and Government (PEG) station, landed on the MediaScribe solution, noting that other systems felt too cobbled together or too expensive. “MediaScribe hit the sweet spot: purpose-built, easy to implement, and ready for real-world use,” he added.

“We had everything up and running in less than a day,” recalled Van Wile, content manager and primary operator of MedaScribe at BCTV. “We were able to test it out at the next board meeting and it worked great. We’ve gotten positive feedback from not just the board, but from people in the audience.”

When fiscal constraints made ongoing ASL interpretation unsustainable for Brattleboro’s bimonthly Selectboard meetings, town officials turned to BCTV to find a scalable solution that fit within new budget realities. MediaScribe’s straightforward setup and simplified workflow allowed BCTV staff to easily integrate real-time captions into both in-room displays and mobile devices without technical headaches.

“Brattleboro has always been pretty proactive with providing accessibility in a variety of ways,” Gifford said. “MediaScribe was exactly the service we needed—it’s user-friendly, accurate, and actually digestible for a small PEG facility like ours. It gave us a way to continue expanding access, even with limited resources.”

MediaScribe combines a hardware interface with cloud-based automatic speech recognition (ASR) technology to cost-effectively create speech-to-text transcriptions for real-time open captions, closed captions, mobile captions, and translations. (Attendees can access the captions on their personal mobile devices using a QR code.) Its SDI outputs make it easy to integrate with existing AV and broadcast infrastructure, enabling captions to appear on both in-room displays and live or recorded streams. Non-technical staff can operate the system via a simple user interface and presets, while a custom vocabulary feature increases accuracy by allowing users to add the names of local public figures and locales, such as “Brattleboro,” which other transcription systems have struggled to recognize.

According to Wile, MediaScribe receives the meeting feed via SDI and sends real-time captions to the room display through an HDMI conversion. “The fact that it’s SDI native was huge for us,” Wile said. “It dropped right into our control room without major rewiring.”

The in-room captions have benefitted all meeting attendees, not just those with hearing loss, especially when agenda items require financial talk. “During budget discussions, it was so helpful to have the numbers show up and stay on screen. It improved clarity for everyone in the room—not just for accessibility,” Wile explained.

BCTV keeps operations simple by using a single preset tailored to the Selectboard meetings, but it intends to scale MediaScribe for broader use across departments.

For example, while in-room captions were the priority, BCTV is also considering MediaScribe for closed captions for its cable broadcasts, which are available on two channels on Comcast Cable. Plus, the station is planning to start exporting transcripts for use by municipal clerks. “Our admin now uses the transcript file to prep minutes before the video even posts,” Gifford added. “That’s a huge time saver.”

Beyond compliance, BCTV sees MediaScribe as a tool for inclusive civic engagement. The station is already exploring mobile translation features to support Brattleboro’s immigrant community, and intends to expand captioning to additional meetings and remote events, such as large town hall gatherings.

“We have a pretty decent-sized immigrant population,” Gifford said. “If there’s an issue that comes up where you might have a large audience of non-English speakers at the meeting, I want to make sure that we’re ready to provide accessible options for them.”

Wen Portland International Airport (PDX) needed to upgrade flight information displays in the latest phase of a $2 billion “PDX Next” update and expansion to its main terminal, it was seeking a technology partner that could deliver on several critical requirements: enhanced traveler convenience, reduced installation and operational complexity, strengthened network security, and lower investment costs.

The goal of PDX Next was to streamline Portland International Airport’s main terminal check-in process, provide travelers with more room to roam, and make buildings more earthquake resilient. Anticipating a growth in footfall to 35 million travelers a year, PDX set out to expand the concourses, make ground transportation more convenient, and upgrade the main terminal, optimizing the space for sustainability, accessibility, and passenger wellbeing—with new technology, and particularly displays, at the heart of the renovation.

“Providing accurate, easy-to-read flight information is essential for making the traveler and employee experience at PDX great,” Scott Shepler, manager of Aviation Information Technology at PDX said. “So, when we needed to replace our aging flight displays in the existing terminal and install new displays in the terminal expansion, we consulted with SITA, a global leader in air transport technology and our current FIDS provider. They helped us to rearchitect our display solution, eliminating the need for separate players and video transceivers, and driving content over Ethernet from our servers directly to the new displays. Key to the success of this architecture change was selecting a new display capable of safely and securely presenting web-based content over the network.”

“The extensive range of secure, easy-to-maintain, all-in-one LCD display units from global innovator LG Electronics provided the optimal solution,” Shepler said. “Powered by the webOS system-on-chip (SoC) CMS platform and LG ConnectedCare, a robust cloud-based solution for remote monitoring and control of digital signage, these displays are helping PDX to continue to provide passengers with the most convenient, hassle-free travel experience possible.”

A web-based, multipurpose platform that supports a variety of solutions, webOS has high-performance SoC capabilities that enable multitasking and smooth content playback, enhancing user convenience through an intuitive user interface and simple app development tools. LG ConnectedCare is a cloud-based Software-as-a-Service system that operates securely over the internet, eliminating the need for physical installation and making it an ideal complement to webOS.

Simple, Secure Solutions

Shepler said the webOS and ConnectedCare systems enabled PDX to efficiently manage and maintain 378 newly installed LG LCD displays—ranging from 43 inches to 98 inches—while enhancing security from external security breaches.

“We prioritize network security, and webOS and ConnectedCare secured the devices,” he added. “It allowed us to standardize the configuration, with all security settings predefined. We needed to prevent unauthorized access to the displays remotely, as well as block any potential misuse of USB ports or IR sensors within the airport. LG’s systems help reduce these risks.”

​​The ConnectedCare system monitors all webOS displays within the airport locally, without the need for external computers. Each display and its content can be managed remotely.

“PDX wanted something simple and secure, and that’s what we delivered with our webOS system,” Daniel Verbsky, transportation account manager at LG Electronics USA said. “Every display has a system-on-chip, managed through our remote management system, ConnectedCare. It’s our own operating system—our own security.”

“Each screen is its own computer,” he explained. “Think of it as a large cell phone, but with enhanced security. You can’t just download an app from an app store; display engine content platforms integrate via local URL or LG-partnered developer applications. This setup eliminates the need for additional licensing or capital expenditures.”

“Our systems addressed the security concerns that PDX had,” Verbsky continued. “When a security breach impacted 90 percent of U.S. airports, this wasn’t an issue with our webOS because we’re independent of that system. Portland’s display system was unaffected by the breach, and they’re very pleased."

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A Partnership Years in the Making

Verbsky worked closely with Chris Darling, product manager of Information Display Systems at SITA, on the project. They commissioned a comprehensive on-site survey and developed a 30-page report, which included scaled renderings of all specified LG LCD displays throughout the facility. SITA, an LG collaborator and official signage developer, had already been discussing with PDX stakeholders the replacement of all media players and leveraging its own application platform, making it a natural progression to specify LG displays, webOS, and ConnectedCare.

“The project with PDX began many years ago with the new terminal build,” Darling said. “Their goal was to simplify their solution by eliminating the need for content players. They wanted displays that reduced hardware requirements and moved to a URL-based solution, allowing them to show the same content used on previous hardware.”

SITA has been developing its own webOS-based display engine for many years with LG’s support and has worked with PDX for over six years on demos and solutions, ensuring that everything functioned “as it should,” according to Darling. But he said it wasn’t just LG’s technology and solutions, nor their collaborative relationship with the manufacturer, that convinced him LG was ideal for this installation; it was also the after-sales support.

“One of the things we really value in our vendors is their support after sales, and LG has always been very strong in this area,” Darling explained. “From what I’ve heard from the teams involved, it’s been a smooth experience."

Air-Tight Content Control

SITA developed the display engine platform and set it up for PDX, while airport stakeholders managed the installation and configuration of all 378 LG LCD displays. SITA’s platform enhanced the benefits of the webOS system, preserving the security features inherent in webOS and ConnectedCare.

“The webOS network is virtually impregnable from outside threats, with a built-in security mechanism that blocks anything trying to access PDX’s displays,” John Rutirasiri, senior technical product manager at LG Electronics USA said. LG webOS has a built-in security system that blocks external intrusions, preventing unintended content from appearing on screens, and is specifically designed to connect to a single server. It operates via URL but is completely on site and non-internet based.

“Each screen functions as its own web page with a unique security URL, which bad actors can’t alter to redirect to other sites like YouTube,” Rutirasiri said. “The URL is sent over the network to the display, and any changes require a screen reboot, alerting the backend. The operating system is fully optimized for the system-on-chip embedded in each display and is signed to that specific SoC.”

Passing with Flying Colors

Everyone involved seemed impressed with LG’s support network, and Shepler was particularly appreciative when the ConnectedCare developers addressed early issues.

“We encountered a few things that didn’t work initially as expected with our custom CMS,” he said. “Luckily, we were able to meet in person with some of the ConnectedCare developers from LG, allowing us to share our needs directly. Their development team responded quickly to our feedback and resolved our issues.”

“That level of responsiveness was greatly appreciated,” Shepler continued. “When we find partners and vendors who listen and respond, it makes a big difference, and it was wonderful to experience that with ConnectedCare.”

Considered the state-level equivalent of C-SPAN, TVW is Washington State's public affairs network, providing gavel-to-gavel coverage of all three branches of state government as well as meetings or hearings by other state boards and commissions. TVW also produces original documentaries, programs with in-depth interviews, and educational content about Washington public policy. With the sheer volume of coverage overall, TVW needed to overhaul its existing live and file-based playout workflow for a more customized and flexible approach.

[Historic Style, Modern Tech]

“Anything occurring at the state level, we cover,” explained Marc Gerchak, VP/director of engineering, TVW. “It’s an incredible volume of content. There are a lot of moving parts and varied programming types. We wanted a reliable system that could accommodate a constantly changing playlist, update graphics on the fly, and allow us to edit material as it is ingested. It’s a complicated list of requirements for one system.”

TVW turned to Keycode Media to design a workflow that would address everything on its wish list. The new playout system features master and redundant PlayBox Neo AirBox Neo systems with 12 channels that interface directly with TVW’s third-party trafficking system, plus a TitleBox Neo interactive CG, ListBox for schedule creation and editing, Live Ingest, and the Multi-Backup Manager (MBM) for multi-channel redundancy.

The system runs on the PlayBox Neo Suite, a platform that offers centralized control, monitoring, and administration of an optimized multimedia workflow. PlayBox Neo solutions are solutions based on modular products that can be customized to provide the exact capability needed for any scale of channel playout management, from ingest and scheduling to transmission.

“TVW needed the flexibility of changing their playlist at a moment’s notice, as well as scheduling programming in advance, and they didn’t want to wait until a session ended in eight hours to edit a feed,” explained Mark Siegel, VP of business development, Keycode Media. “And playout needed to interface seamlessly with their trafficking system. With a tight timeframe and a lot of multi-vendor communication required, it was a big ask. Thankfully, we’ve got a long history of collaboration with PlayBox Neo and were confident they could provide exactly what TVW was looking for under such a short deadline.”

The PlayBox Neo complement replaced TVW’s existing automation and server set up in master control. The new workflow utilizes the AirBox Neo servers for playout. The PlayBox system also controls the network’s NVision 9000 router.

AirBox Neo can easily mix a variety of media files and live inputs in one playlist. Changes to the playlist are possible—and media can be trimmed, edited, or repositioned—while on-air. Live productions are streamlined to allow the insertion of live streams into the playlist. And for automated playout, AirBox Neo enables playlist scheduling weeks ahead of time.

“The design of this workflow really shows the flexibility of our platform,” said Van Duke, director of U.S. operations, PlayBox Neo. “We’re particularly proud of the seamless way we can communicate with all the tools in master control."

Ampetronic has completed the installation of Auri, powered by Ampetronic and Listen Technologies, at Bristol Temple Meads Station in Bristol, England. This installation is the first public integration of Auri in a transport environment.

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Connected Places Catapult selected Ampetronic to test Auri in Bristol Temple Meads Station as part of the Station Innovation Zone program. Developed in partnership with Network Rail with support from Innovate UK, the program aims to reduce barriers to innovation and serves as a showcase where rail technology innovators, buyers, and investors can collaborate to shape the stations of tomorrow.

Ampetronic recently installed 10 Auri transmitters in the station to cover high-traffic zones, including Platforms 9-12, the pedestrian subway area, and Ticket Hall. Ampetronic also performed live system testing that validated consistent coverage and performance across designated areas.

Passengers in these areas of the station with Auracast-enabled devices, such as hearing aids, earbuds, headphones, and smartphones, can access live audio broadcasts from the station’s public address system, including safety announcements, service updates, and travel information.

Auracast broadcasts enable people to hear information directly in their ears, which can improve speech intelligibility. This installation is expected to benefit passengers with hearing loss who use Auracast-compatible hearing aids, cochlear implants, or earbuds. It also benefits neurodivergent individuals and anyone who finds noisy environments challenging. Additionally, Auri is helpful for passengers whose first language is not English or who are infrequent rail users and require clear, more personalized information to navigate the station.

Ampetronic has commissioned RNID (Royal National Institute for Deaf People) to conduct in-depth user trials at Bristol Temple Meads Station to assess the efficacy of the Auri system, the type of information the system should broadcast, and what improvements could be made to access the technology. Ampetronic will also evaluate the interoperability of Auri with existing systems.

“Early reactions from passengers who have tried the Auri system at Bristol Temple Meads Station have been extremely encouraging,” said Jonathon Hoskin, business development manager at Ampetronic. “We’re eager for more passengers to experience Auri and hope they find it helpful as they navigate the station. We want everyone to be able to access clear audio, so they have a pleasant and safe commute.”

Hoskin added that assessment has always been an important component of this project: “The feedback and insights we gather in this trial of Auri at Bristol Temple Meads Station can help improve accessibility, the passenger experience, and operational efficiencies here in Bristol and within the broader public transportation industry.”

An urban police station in Perth, Australia, was facing acoustical challenges in the station’s custodial desk area and holding cells, spaces dominated by reverberating surfaces including concrete, glass, and steel. Installed by AV integrator Integrate Perth, the Biamp Tesira digital signal processing platform was successfully deployed to address these issues.

[AVoIP and KVM in the Control Room]

The installation includes Tesira SERVER-IO processors, a TesiraFORTÉ AVB VT audio server, EX-MOD modular expanders, and TEC-1i wall-mounted controllers. Together, these components form a high-performance audio infrastructure that ensures critical conversations and events are captured with clarity, even in environments plagued by harsh reverberation and background noise.

“In our initial tests we simply ran some CCTV footage with associated audio through Tesira AEC processing and had a listen on a little powered speaker. Our jaws dropped,” said Andrew Anderson-King, sales director at Integrate Perth. “Environmental noise, such as holding cell doors slamming or yelling in the background, along with the harsh reverberation of the space, had all but disappeared. What resulted were intelligible spoken words. We instantly knew we were onto something.”

With approximately 100 microphones in place across the facility, the audio enhancement dramatically improves the usefulness of high-resolution CCTV footage, delivering a powerful tool for investigations, officer safety, and staff development.

“It’s a big leap forward. The Tesira AEC improves everyone’s safety and is now useful for staff training,” added Anderson-King. “I can see other applications where mission-critical audio is important, but the acoustic conditions are hostile. For example, Customs and the Border Force could benefit, as could warehousing, and the Port Authority. They could all benefit from Tesira AEC cleaning up recorded speech.”

“In high-pressure environments like police stations, reliable audio isn’t just a convenience—it’s essential,” said Joe Andrulis, EVP of Corporate Development, Biamp. “By deploying Tesira, the Perth facility has turned a once challenging space into one where every word can be heard clearly and preserved accurately. It’s a powerful example of how technology can directly support safety, accountability, and operational excellence.”

In the heart of Waxahachie, TX, the Ellis County Courthouse is an emblem of architectural heritage and civic service. Completed in 1897, offers a glimpse into the craftsmanship of Romanesque Revival architecture. Ellis County Courthouse’s recent restoration efforts brought new life to the facility, addressing deteriorating stonework, enhancing accessibility and correcting interior alterations that strayed from its historic roots with the help of Visionary AV over IP solutions.

[AVoIP and KVM in the Control Room]

Within the courthouse’s restored walls, outdated audiovisual infrastructure posed a major challenge. The county judges, court reporters, attorneys and other courtroom participants were relying on a system that had already outlived its lifespan. A longtime partner to Ellis County, Infinity had installed the original system and remained a trusted integrator for ongoing service. When the opportunity came to bring the AV system into the modern age, the team partnered with the county to deliver a complete overhaul across four identical courtrooms, including a new sub-courthouse and an administrative courts building to support its growing population. Infinity’s approach honored the original layout by keeping input locations at the judge’s bench, prosecution bench and defense bench, but replaced the outdated system with AV over IP technology from Visionary.

“At this point, Visionary has become our go-to video system provider,” explained Noah Mast, CTS, sales consultant for Infinity Sound. “The flexibility and simplicity they offer with the PacketAV Matrix Series are unmatched. I really appreciate the DUET 2 devices because they support both HDMI and USB-C, which makes them compatible with virtually any computer, especially helpful as more devices transition to USB-C.”

A new endpoint was added at the witness stand to ensure video evidence could be viewed with greater clarity, a critical component in courthouse settings, and routing capabilities were significantly enhanced. Beyond the hardware, the system was designed with seamless usability in mind.

[Historic Style, Modern Tech]

“Our setups are engineered to be easy to configure. We use NETGEAR switches, so the entire system is straightforward from a deployment standpoint,” Mast added. “Visionary’s decoders are a standout, with built-in RS-232 that let us control displays and projection screens directly from the device. It’s a streamlined, all-in-one solution.”

Even though the courthouse currently uses existing all-in-one displays for conferencing, the infrastructure is designed to support expanded capabilities in the future. “They’ve recently invested in the desktop collaboration and conferencing units, so they’re holding off on a broader video conferencing rollout for now,” said Mast. “But the system is ready whenever they are.”

Having serviced the courthouse for many years, Infinity takes pride in the partnership and the reliability of the technology they’ve implemented. “We now use Visionary’s PacketAV Matrix Series on nearly every video system project,” said Mast. “From procurement to backend support, they’ve been awesome to work with. Honestly, the fact that we rarely need support says everything—it just works.”

Now, courtroom participants can easily manage video feeds and route content directly to their monitors with precision and confidence. The upgrade replaced aging technology and transformed the system into a scalable, flexible, and future-proof solution.

Based in Middletown, CT, The Connection offers programs that address complex community problems such as homelessness, mental illness, substance abuse and community justice rehabilitation. The organization received a grant from Connecticut Office of Policy and Management’s Non-Profit Grant Program to upgrade the training room at their Middletown main office, turning to Metinteractive for the installation.

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Metinteractive provided project management and engineering for a design/build upgrade to the ’s training rooms. Operations manager Jesse Alford served as project executive for this job, secured the project for Metinteractive.

“We wanted to upgrade our in-person and hybrid training space with better resources; it’s been on our wish list for a while,” noted Christina Liuzzo, The Connection’s director of IT. “This grant funding enabled us to upgrade all the networking equipment at our different sites, get a lot of new computers and upgrade the training rooms. The new displays and audio are a major improvement from the monitors mounted on rolling carts we used before.”

The large space that was renovated is divisible into three rooms with foldable partitions configuring the space as needed. They are equipped for local, remote and hybrid presentations and training using common owner-furnished software, including PowerPoint, MS Teams, and Zoom. The rooms are in frequent use with new hire orientations scheduled every two weeks.

When the rooms are divided, content is displayed on a flat panel permanently mounted in each room. When the rooms are combined, any source may be selected for display on one or multiple monitors as desired. Video calls utilizing OFE conferencing software use the microphones, cameras and speakers in the room. Ceiling-mounted microphone arrays (one per room) use advanced technology to track the location of the speaker in the room to isolate their voice and substantially reduce background noise and echo. The technology also guides the selection and positioning of the camera. Optical detection in the cameras frames the presenter to optimize the image shown to the far end.

Presentation sources in each room include an OFE PC (located in the server room) with a wireless keyboard and mouse for use by the presenter; a wall-plate HDMI connection for laptops and other portable devices; and a wireless presentation system for tablets and other devices with a Wi-Fi connection. The wall-plate also has a USB3.0 connection to connect the room’s AV system to a video conference call hosted on the laptop.

A wall-mounted touch panel in each room provides presenters and staff with an easy-to-use GUI to select the source to be displayed on screen, the audio volume level in the room and the ability to combine rooms when the foldable partitions are opened.

When the space is divided into three rooms, the end room includes a ceiling-mounted projector and projection screen. The end and middle rooms have wall-mounted 86-inch flat panel displays, which replace smaller displays and smartboards. The smallest room is outfitted with a 75-inch flat panel. Mersive Solstice systems provide Wi-Fi connectivity.

The rooms feature wall-mounted Q-SYS sound bars under the displays for program audio playback. Sonance ceiling-mounted speakers reinforce program audio as well as far-end audio; Shure beam-forming ceiling mic arrays pick up speech for transmission to the far end.

Q-SYS video cameras at the front and rear of the rooms deliver a view of the instructor's presentations. An additional camera in the end room captures a view of the presenter when the room is in combined mode, and the orientation is along the long axis of the room. Touch screen control is also via Q-SYS.

“We tried to use as much Q-SYS equipment as possible since we have seen how solid it can be from cameras to sound bars to network video endpoints,” said Metinteractive project supervisor Scott Tunkel. “It was definitely able to meet our expectations and work effectively for the client.”

Metinteractive has provided excellent support and customer service throughout the process, including opportunities to properly train The Connection’s staff on the new equipment. “This project reflects our commitment to innovation and excellence in service delivery. With these new tools, we’re better equipped to train, collaborate, and grow—ultimately improving outcomes for the individuals and families we support,” said The Connection’s CEO, Lisa DeMatteis-Lepore. “Metinteractive brought not only technical expertise but also a deep understanding of our values. Their team worked alongside ours with care and precision, and the result is a space that truly supports our work.”

When the Modesto Irrigation District (MID) set out to modernize its Public Meeting Chambers, the goal wasn’t just upgrading equipment—it was about creating a lasting communications platform for the future. MID, which provides irrigation, drinking water, and electricity throughout Stanislaus County, CA, recognized that in today’s world, transparency and accessibility are vital public responsibilities.

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The commitment had already been demonstrated years earlier during a high-stakes water rights battle. Instead of relying on news coverage, MID commissioned an independent, full-length documentary led by Sam Kneiss of Final Cut Media. It was an unprecedented move for a regional agency. The documentary gained recognition at film festivals, influenced public opinion, and won California’s highest award for public advocacy media, an honor typically reserved for high-profile coastal organizations.

That success story laid the groundwork for what came next: a complete reimagining of MID’s Meeting Chambers. Under California’s rigorous open meeting laws and rising demand for hybrid participation, MID required a system that could seamlessly integrate with Zoom, stream and record meetings with professional quality, provide robust security appropriate for a public utility, scale and adapt to future needs without major overhauls, and remain user-friendly for non-technical staff.

"This felt more like a federal-level integration than a local government job," Kneiss recalled. "Security, flexibility, and ease of use were non-negotiable."

To tackle the project, Final Cut Media partnered with Carl Pride of Pride Haus, an expert at building customized media systems often under tight budgets and high expectations. "The mentality was never maybe it's possible," said Pride. "It was everything is possible. We just had to figure out how."

Instead of presenting MID with a catalog of products, Final Cut Media and Pride Haus began by assembling the right team. They brought in networking specialist Michael Hernandez, who has spent more than 15 years delivering IP communications. A crucial discovery phase followed. Rather than replicating a standard RFP from another city, Pride asked MID’s leadership key questions to pinpoint their actual needs and eliminate unnecessary features.

For example, the previous system included a $25,000 control interface solely to turn two TVs on and off remotely. Pride proposed removing it in favor of simple remotes and reallocating the funds to improve video quality and system reliability. That practical approach paid off. The project expanded from four to 10 PTZ cameras, delivering full visual coverage of the chamber.

A Broadcast Pix GX Hybrid production switcher is at the heart of the system, paired with 10 RoboPix 4K PTZ cameras. Entirely IP-based and scalable, the setup is already future-ready for 4K without requiring a full system overhaul.

Pride evaluated multiple production systems, but ultimately chose Broadcast Pix for several key reasons. First, it offered expandability and programmability, which was ideal for a growing public agency. It also offered real human technical support and delivered professional-grade features at a government-friendly price. Having worked with Broadcast Pix since the early 2000s, Pride was confident the system would deliver high-end results with minimal operational complexity.

Its custom Commander interface allows MID staff to manage cameras, audio, and streams with minimal training, bringing professional polish to every meeting without increasing the staffing burden. The GX Hybrid system also features IP-based audio via Dante, integrated Zoom and Granicus streaming, Shure Microflex microphone management for intelligent speaker tracking, real-time captioning via Broadcast Pix VoCaption, and automated recording.

“The built-in recording feature is a huge win,” Pride added. “The OpTechs love it because the files are clean, easy to transfer, and consistently high-quality.”

[AV for Broadcast]

Pride also proposed a thoughtful enhancement: on-air lights inside and outside the room, automatically triggered by the Broadcast Pix system to indicate live recording or broadcasting. “It’s a familiar feature in professional studios,” Pride noted, “but integrating it seamlessly into a government meeting system was unique.”

Today, MID’s meetings aren’t just legally compliant—they’re a model for professional, ADA-accessible, and transparent government communication. The system is secure, scalable, and easy enough for non-technical staff to operate every day. “This project wasn’t just about installing new gear,” said Kneiss. “It was about building a better way for public agencies to connect with their communities. Broadcast Pix made that possible, and MID embraced the opportunity.”

Completed in Fall 2024, the Maury County Judicial Center in Columbia, TN, is a newly constructed, 58,000-square-foot facility designed to accommodate a growing region while modernizing court proceedings at the same time. Nashville, TN-based architect Workshop oversaw planning and building design, while S&L Integrated, headquartered in Thomasville, GA, deployed the courtroom AV systems.

[Here's How AI Poses Ethical, Legal Issues to Content Producers]

two-story building, the new courthouse houses six courtrooms, three on each floor. Upstairs, one jury courtroom features a traditional layout, with the jury box to the side of the bench and attorney tables. The other two incorporate the Virginia Revival Model (VRM), which puts the jury in front of the judge’s bench. Four associated enclosed spaces are assigned to each courtroom, providing attorneys and their clients with somewhere to meet privately.

For architect Workshop, one design goal was to incorporate elements referencing Maury County’s historic courthouse building a few blocks away in Columbia’s downtown core. For example, the pews positioned throughout the public hallways were extracted from the historic building and refurbished for the Judicial Center. The thin film coverings on the private conference room windows, featuring images depicting Maury County’s history, are another element.

“Recognizing that they were moving from the historic courthouse was very important to them,” James Kennon, principal architect at architect Workshop, explained in a video produced by S&L Integrated. “We worked with the county archives to develop a series of photos that told the history of the county.”

Digital Evidence Support

From a technological perspective, Maury County needed courtroom AV systems that could support digital evidence such as body and dashcam footage as well as surveillance videos, explained Stan Mobley, senior account executive for state, local, and corporate clients at S&L Integrated. This need is prevalent among the courthouses his firm works with in Georgia and Tennessee, as is the integration of reliable videoconferencing capabilities and user-friendly control.

To address this, S&L Integrated developed a courtroom AV package that can be tailored to meet specific client requirements. In general, it includes Crestron DM NVX AV over IP distribution, Q-SYS control, QSC ceiling speakers, Marshall POV cameras, LG displays, a combination of Audix microphones and Sennheiser wireless systems, and WolfVision whiteboard and annotation tools (when requested).

At the Maury County Judicial Center, the primary goal was to provide a good user experience for everyone working in the courtroom, including the judge, attorneys, court clerk, court reporter, and other staff. To achieve this, it’s necessary to understand how each judge runs his or her courtroom, explained Nathan Tomberlin, account executive at S&L Integrated. For example, do they want the ability to approve digital evidence before attorneys share it wirelessly to courtroom displays? If so, their touchpanel must be equipped with “preview” and “approve” commands.

“This is putting protections in place to follow the due process of how the judge wants to manage the court proceeding,” Tomberlin said. “It puts all of the power back on the judge.”

Control Flexibility

It can also allow for flexibility. During particularly intense proceedings, a judge may give the court clerk authorization to run the technology from their own touchpanel, so the judge can keep their focus on witness testimony. Good control programming can also simplify things for the court reporter, who may access and modify mic volumes through their touchscreen.

“They don’t have to go through their software with their mouse to click on the microphone levels to get them right,” Tomberlin said. “Instead, we give them a touchpanel and they can make any adjustments right there on the screen.”

While each courthouse is different, they all share common requirements, which is why S&L Integrated offers a courtroom AV package. As Mobley explained, this promotes standardization across courthouses, which facilitates service and support for the AV integrator. Perhaps more importantly, it provides a smoother user experience.

“Within a circuit, there may be three judges and six courts,” Mobley added. “The courtrooms may look different—some may be modern while others are historic. But when we standardize the systems, a judge coming from County A to County C doesn’t have to spend time learning a system that’s unfamiliar to him. He has a touchpanel that looks exactly like the one in his home court.”

Court-Appointed Audio Capture

Part of the AV package that S&L Integrated proposes to its courthouse clients includes a combination of Audix conferencing microphones, such as the MG18 and MG18HC gooseneck condenser mics mounted in the ATS1 tabletop base, as well as ADX60 boundary mics to capture speech from those who aren’t equipped with a dedicated microphone.

“From an audio perspective, the most important person in the room is the witness,” said Gage Helton, director of operations at S&L Integrated. “The second most important is the judge. Then, obviously, you need to be able to hear the jury. Many contractors that do general purpose installations don’t make things audible enough when they do courtrooms, or there’s feedback because they didn’t EQ the room. For this reason, we tend to use column array speakers, tune them, then the MG18 mics in most places. But for positions closer to the arrays, we’ll opt for the MG18HC, which is essentially the same mic with a hypercardioid pickup pattern.”

Witness and jury foreman mics are usually shock-mounted, with everything else mounted on the ATS1 bases. The ADX60s are placed on prosecution and defense attorneys’ tables to capture sidebar discussions.

Helton noted that the ATS1 base’s physical button is easier for non-technical operators to use, versus bases that incorporate either a touchscreen or capacitive button. “We’ve found that users can get confused by those—especially when you factor in the stress that comes with being in court—and either fail to trigger them when it’s their turn to speak or accidentally turn them on when it’s not,” he explained.

[Unheavenly Acoustics]

he unit’s detachable cable also makes for smoother installs. “A lot of gooseneck bases for conferencing have an attached cable, so you need to figure out how to dress it and route it in an unobtrusive way. With the ATS1, we can just run our own cable and terminate, which makes the install so much cleaner,” he said.

While this may seem like a lot of microphones, there is a need to take all courtroom participants into account. “One reason is, in many installs we send multitrack audio to the court reporter so they can produce the most accurate transcript possible,” Helton said. “Another is that we like to have a press feed plate for higher-profile cases, so reporters can just plug in and get a clean audio mix. For larger courtrooms, we’ll also do a mix-minus through small speakers at various locations, so the participants can hear everyone else clearly but not have echo of themselves.”

Portland International Airport's (PXD) latest modernization project, part of the ambitious PDX Next initiative—a comprehensive, multi-phase effort to expand and modernize the airport—is reimagining the airport experience, blending innovative technology with eye-catching architectural design. Central to this transformation is the installation of Renkus-Heinz’s Iconyx Compact ICC12/3 loudspeakers.

[An Airport Renaissance: How Newark Airport Achieved Crystal-Clear Audio]

The main terminal’s overhaul serves as the centerpiece of this vision. Designed with an emphasis on openness and natural elements, the new terminal features soaring wooden ceilings, abundant daylight, and locally sourced materials, all reflecting Oregon’s outdoor ethos.

However, the open-concept design presented significant challenges for audio design. Without conventional walls or ceilings to house traditional sound systems, the project team had to think innovatively to meet the airport’s stringent requirements for coverage, clarity, and aesthetic integration. PAE—a firm involved in the project since 2013—collaborated with the global engineering consultancy Arup to address these challenges. Together, they selected Renkus-Heinz’s Iconyx Compact Series ICC12/3 loudspeakers as the ideal solution for delivering premium audio performance in this unique environment.

“The biggest challenge was the lack of walls or ceilings to mount equipment,” explained Ryan Lalum, senior associate at PAE. “The open design of the terminal was intended to mimic the outdoors, with no traditional infrastructure to conceal speakers. This required us to develop an innovative solution: the Integrated Technology Poles.”

The Integrated Technology Poles, custom-designed for the project, are modular structures housing multiple technologies. In addition to the Renkus-Heinz loudspeakers, the poles incorporate fire alarm coverage, cameras, lighting, Wi-Fi access points, and more. Each pole was manufactured from 100% metal and designed to be rotatable for precise alignment. “Every access point and coverage area was modelled in the design phase to ensure seamless installation on-site,” Lalum noted.

Pre-fabricated off-site, the poles were delivered fully assembled, allowing for efficient installation with minimal disruption. “The modular design not only supports current needs but also offers flexibility for future expansions or reconfigurations,” added Lalum. The decision to use Renkus-Heinz Iconyx Compact loudspeakers was driven by the brand’s reputation for reliability, advanced beam-steering technology, and superior audio quality.

“Renkus-Heinz’s beam-steering arrays provided the large coverage patterns and tight dispersion we needed,” said Lalum. “This allowed us to direct sound precisely where it was required, minimizing interference and ensuring intelligibility.”

Prior to installation, the team conducted extensive testing, including a full-scale mock-up of the poles in an airplane hangar. “We invited the airport’s client team to experience the system firsthand,” Lalum recalled. “Everyone was blown away by the clarity and performance. It sealed the decision to go with Renkus-Heinz.”

The Iconyx Compact ICC12/3 loudspeakers were chosen for their advanced capabilities, including beam-steering technology, which ensures precise sound dispersion for clear, focused audio in passenger flow areas while minimizing spillover into operational zones. Their Dante Connectivity simplifies integration with the airport’s digital infrastructure, enabling individually addressable speakers and streamlined maintenance. Additionally, their compact, narrow design allows seamless installation within the Integrated Technology Poles, maintaining the terminal’s aesthetic integrity.

The system provides 100% coverage throughout the terminal, delivering crisp, intelligible audio for paging announcements, wayfinding, and general communications.

The TCORE project required an extraordinary level of collaboration between stakeholders. “Renkus-Heinz played a key role in the project’s success,” Lalum emphasized. “From providing demo units and EASE files to supporting design and commissioning, their team was incredibly responsive and collaborative. The same can be said for Arup, the contractor, and the Port of Portland. This level of teamwork is rare and was essential for such a complex project.”

The installation was completed in August 2024 as part of the project’s first phase. Despite ongoing construction in other areas, the system’s performance has already received praise. “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” Lalum reported. “Passengers and staff alike have noted the clarity of the announcements. Even in a bustling, open terminal, every message is crisp and intelligible. That’s a testament to the precision of the beam-steering technology.”

The modernization of PDX is far from complete. Additional Integrated Technology Poles and Renkus-Heinz speakers will be installed as the project progresses, ensuring seamless audio coverage across the entire terminal. Meanwhile, the airport’s new design – including its striking wooden roof, constructed off-site and installed using mega-movers – continues to attract attention for its architectural ingenuity.

“The Integrated Technology Poles are a perfect embodiment of the project’s ethos,” Lalum concluded. “They’re innovative, functional, and beautifully designed – just like the terminal itself. And the Renkus-Heinz speakers are a vital part of that success.”

LaGuardia Gateway Partners (LGP) is the manager and developer of the new Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport, Queens, New York City. LGP comprises Vantage Airport Group and Meridiam for development and equity investment, with Vantage Airport Group leading the terminal management. The company aims to foster a culture of continuous learning and collaboration among its employees, and its suite of meeting and training rooms are invaluable tools in this process.

However, in 2022, the company realized its existing meeting room technology was a roadblock to achieving these goals. The existing AV system presented significant challenges, particularly when it came to facilitating remote participation in meetings and training sessions. This unreliability not only hindered staff productivity but also impeded overall employee engagement in meetings and training sessions. This combination of factors negatively impacted both LGP's ability to conduct productive training sessions or meetings, and, ultimately, overall business efficiency.

In search of a solution to completely overhaul its meeting and training room experience, LGP partnered with IT provider CDW. After a thorough evaluation process, the company opted to deploy Avocor G Series interactive displays across its suite of rooms. These premium displays boast several key features that directly addressed LGP's challenges.

[Avocor Acquired by AUO]

The 4K UHD display delivers a crisp and clear picture, and the interactive touchscreen features 20-point InGlass touch technology to allow multiple users to interact with the screen simultaneously. The sleek, bezel-less design, while being stylish, also minimizes the frame around the display, creating a more immersive viewing experience. Furthermore, the integrated high-quality speakers provide clear audio for video conferencing, presentations, and meetings. With its size, high resolution, and interactive features, the G Series is ideal for collaborative meetings and brainstorming.

User Friendly and Interactive

All the Avocor displays at LGP feature a user-friendly, interactive interface that simplifies collaboration and streamlines the meeting setup process—an important new benefit for LGP. There is now no need for any complex configurations, allowing employees to focus on the content and interaction at hand. For example, joining remote sessions is now a seamless experience: Users can effortlessly initiate remote sessions with a single click or touch on a calendar invite. This new feature has ensured smooth participation for both in-person and remote attendees and has really kickstarted a more inclusive and collaborative environment.

Avocor has built a reputation as a leader in innovation for display technology. Its team of engineers is consistently pushing the boundaries of what's possible by developing cutting-edge display solutions that meet the evolving needs of today's businesses and institutions. For example, with features such as intuitive touchscreens, first-class image quality, and seamless collaboration possibilities, Avocor prioritizes user experience. The company also understands the need for in-built versatility, so its displays integrate seamlessly with the software and hardware ecosystems used in different workspaces. Also, it stays at the forefront of display technology by incorporating technology advances that ensure unmatched reliability, strong return on investment, and a long product life cycle.

The Avocor displays have received enthusiastic feedback from LGP employees, and time previously wasted on wrestling with technology is now productively spent on other work. The improved meeting room experience has led to a surge in requests to utilize these spaces. This demonstrates a clear shift in employee sentiment towards collaboration and highlights the positive impact the Avocor displays have had on employee engagement.

“Everyone at LGP is really pleased that we have moved to Avocor displays,” Mo Jean-Louis, head of IT at LGP said. “The interactive screen, whiteboarding functions, and other features are a real step up from our previous system. It was a great move to go with a premium display like the L Series and we’ve not looked back since making the switch.”

LGP's success story with the Avocor displays extends beyond their initial deployment. Recognizing the significant positive impact on collaboration, LGP has since installed another Avocor display in its Queens headquarters. This further underscores LGP's commitment to a collaborative and dynamic work environment, where information sharing and innovation can thrive.

With the goal of improving customers’ travel experiences, airports are increasingly relying upon curved video walls to convey immersive entertainment and information. “It creates an immersive experience when walking into the space,” Alex Wade, project manager at Ford AV said. “Enveloped by the imagery, it captures the visitor’s attention immediately, highlighting the content and messaging simply because it surrounds you.”

And it’s not just happening at the country’s busiest commercial airline hubs; cargo facilities like Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport are getting in on the trend. Perot Field is home to a variety of aviation clients, including the U.S. military, FedEx, Amazon, and several private charters. And though cargo is its main purpose, it still sees a lot of visitors each year.

“Pilots will go out of their way to stop here because Fort Worth is such a popular destination,” Wade said. “The goal of this project was to create an upper-level, amenity-based pit stop, and also a destination. There are theater rooms, fully stocked refrigerators, and conference rooms. It’s a place to come and relax. Also, if you want to come for your flight early, it’s a place to hang out.”

The project includes four video walls. The main wall comprises a 7-by-6 configuration with 1.58mm-pixel-pitch Absen Acclaim Plus LED cabinets. There’s also an Absen N Plus series curved LED display showing basic flight information (wind, temperature, et cetera), and two more niche displays set in custom millwork.

Any time you’re dealing with an LED video wall, precision and accuracy are imperative. All trades involved in the project—data, electrical, millwork, drywall, wooden backing—need to be within 1/16th of an inch, and often less. Adding to the complexity of the Perot Field project, two of the walls were curved, and at different radiuses. That meant the mounting structures needed to allow for finite adjustments to meet the unique millwork at each location.

[Roadmap 2024: Draper]

“The Draper mounts came with tons of adjustability—left-right, up-down, and Z—and that was really what we needed,” Wade said. “The number of times you get a perfectly uniform radius on a wall—well I’ve never had a project where that happened. The Draper product we used was extremely easy to install and gave us the adjustment we needed. This project definitely benefited from Draper’s innovation.”

Initially, Draper was not part of the specification. However, the Pro AV rep firm Mizzen Marketing recommended they be brought onto the project. “We turned to Draper not only because of their manufacturing capability but additionally their level of communication and collaboration with Absen,” Lisa Peveler, president of Mizzen Marketing said. “Careful planning and engineering would be required to bring the design to fruition, and we knew Draper was up for the task.”

“This project is a perfect example of our strength as a manufacturing partner,” Grant Wylie, director of Product Management for Draper AV Mounts and Structures said. “We have a breadth of custom design and manufacturing capabilities not available at many of our competitors, and that allows us to be very cost-effective while maintaining an extremely high level of quality. We also have a depth of resources that allows us to deliver a solution on time and when it’s needed.”

Wade agreed, saying Draper is his first call for any and all custom curved display mounts. “I’ve been on job sites where you just can’t get this last display to line up,” Wade said. “You’ve done all you can. You go and shim behind it. You add washers. You’re there until 6:00 or 7:00 p.m. and you don’t know when you’re going home. By using custom products like these Draper mounts, it was really as simple as adjusting the screws. From an install mindset, I want my guys working with Draper every time.”

In an effort to better serve its growing U.S. government business, AVI Systems today announced the creation of its new Federal Markets team. The team includes four veteran business leaders with expertise in serving U.S. governmental agencies including all military branches, the Department of Defense, and civilian agencies. 

[Pro AV Labor Pains]

In addition, the Federal Markets team will lead relationships with approved government contractors including Boeing, General Dynamics, NGC, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and others. The launch of the team comes as AVI Systems expands its office locations in Washington, D.C., as well as other key geographies.

“Demand from federal agencies in the United States continues to grow in size and scope,” said Don Mastro, chief revenue officer at AVI Systems. “AVI has expanded its delivery and support capabilities to ensure we can meet the specific requirements of government agencies. The new Federal Markets team will enhance these important relationships and ensure every government customer has full access to our AV and UC capabilities.”

The new team is led by Jeremy Button, director of federal markets. Prior to joining the AV industry, Button served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army. Previously, he worked at Crestron Electronics for 12 years in various government sales roles. 

Chuck Westphal, business development manager for the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Space Force, joins the Federal Markets team after serving in similar sales roles at Crestron, Poly, BT Group, and FedStore. He is based in AVI’s Boise, ID, branch office. 

Robert Birch, business development manager for U.S. Army, Air Force, and DOD, brings more than 20 years of experience serving federal agencies to AVI Systems. He most recently worked at Crestron and has previously held sales roles at Poly, Microsoft, and TeleworX. Birch is based in Washington, D.C. 

[New Managed Services for Microsoft Teams Rooms from AVI Systems]

Jonathan Kim has joined AVI Systems as business development manager, civilian agencies. Kim has more than 30 years of sales experience including six years at Crestron, where he served as regional sales manager, government agencies. 

“This Federal Markets team is a proven group that not only understands U.S. federal government agencies, but also contract vehicles and how to work effectively with approved federal contractors,” said Button. “With the tremendous growth AVI Systems has experienced in recent years, I’m confident we’ll be able to secure and grow the company’s relevance in the federal sector.”

Airport AV is complicated. The sheer amount of mission-critical communications required in this environment can lead to some intricate technology designs. But while the systems themselves may be complex, some argue that centralizing airport AV leads to a better experience for passengers, as well as the airport staff responsible for managing the audiovisual technology.

[Ready for Takeoff]

Ron Birkla is president of Red Envelope Consulting, a firm that provides design and consultation services to facility owners, manufacturers, and AV integration companies. An AV industry veteran, Birkla has spent much of his career designing systems for theme parks, casinos, and museums.

In 2022, he and his team began focusing on the transportation industry, including airport AV. One of the first things he noticed: Unlike the markets he was accustomed to working with—where audiovisual systems were operated, monitored, and managed from a centralized location—in airports, each AV system was designed to run on its own.

For example, there are approximately 8-10 AV subsystems in an airport environment. This usually includes passenger information displays, public address system, wayfinding, digital signage, concession AV, ADA compliance systems (such as assistive listening and visual paging), conference rooms, command-and-control center, and an emergency operations center. “In any other project—a casino or a theme park, for example—these systems would all be interconnected,” Birkla said.

Dangers of Disconnection

When AV systems are disconnected, any number of issues arise, especially in an airport, where passengers need easy access to critical flight information at all times. Birkla cited airport concessions as a prime problem area: “When John’s Sports Bar plays a game really loud, it conflicts with the passenger information from the PA in the concourse or adjacent gate,” he explained. “The bar turns up its audio, the airline requests audio at the gate to be louder to compensate, so the bar turns up its sound even more.” In the end, it’s all noise and passengers can’t hear important announcements.

[Editorial: Is Your Digital Signage as Good as DFW's Restroom?]

This is particularly problematic in an airport, since those they serve are, quite literally, from all over the world. Vlada Shchepynska, an experienced AV project coordinator and Ukraine native, cited herself as an example.

“I am not a native English speaker, and [in an English-speaking country] for me it would not be possible to understand what they’re talking about when the gates are so close together, and the sound from the bars, restaurants, and newsstands are conflicting with the paging system,” she offered. “I think that confusion is the biggest problem [in airports].”

Based on this, Birkla and his team began working with airport clients on what he calls a “unified approach” to AV. This model applies the same methodology the firm uses with its themed entertainment clients to simplify the airport’s AV ecosystem. “We look at every subsystem that touches AV and design a solution that unifies them into a single pane of glass for control and monitoring,” he said.

Concession audio, for example, is connected to and controlled by the facility-wide public address system. Birkla argued this not only prevents separate systems from competing against one another, but also "provides a slick solution for connecting assistive listening that can play back passenger info or IPTV in the concessions.” He said these relatively simple modifications significantly improve the passenger experience.

Opportunities and Challenges

For airport AV/IT staff, a unified approach to AV offers the convenience of remote monitoring and troubleshooting. According to Birkla, this enables staff—who are too busy to dispatch personnel to check up on equipment—quickly identify system failures, decreasing the number of unused (and useless) displays, speakers, paging stations, and amplifiers throughout the facility.

“We design an overarching monitoring system where they get automated reports of failures, whether it’s IPTV, paging, mass notification, or even conference room equipment or command and control centers,” Birkla explained. “When it comes back to a central station, it puts one person in a seat, in charge of monitoring and then dispatching service calls.”

There is also the opportunity for airports to generate added revenue by applying an AV-as-a-Service model to its concession clients. Concessions already lease internet and cable TV from airports; Birkla said services such as passenger information, public address, and assistive listening and visual paging services could be added to this package.

While a unified approach to airport AV may solve many problems, Birkla conceded that one of the main challenges with the model is the relationship between AV and IT. “The keystone technology that makes the unified AV solution possible is networking infrastructure,” he explained.

[What We Learned at the 2023 AV/IT Summit]

This means airport IT departments must be open to AV being on the network. “In transportation, that can be difficult because the AV systems might only be partially funded by IT—the budgets come from a wide variety of [departments] including operations, passenger experience, public relations, tenant relations, marketing, and the airlines themselves,” he noted. Getting all these different stakeholders to understand the benefits of this design model can be difficult.

Reducing Congestion

Radiant Technology Group, an AV design and integration firm headquartered in Lewis Center, OH, has been focused on building smarter airports since 2010, when the John Glen Columbus International Airport solicited the firm to centralize its digital signage management systems. Since then, the company has done work for the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and several others, according to Doug Freutel, vice president and visionary.

Aside from simplifying digital signage management, Freutel explained that Radiant Technology is working with airports to limit congestion at key points, such as the gates where passengers wait to board their flights. He said part of this solution involves enhancing traditional flight boards that are positioned throughout amenity areas with regular updates on things like gate changes or passenger alerts. Wayfinding and public information screens may also display data on wait times in nearby restaurants, or occupancy levels in the restrooms—important information that helps passengers plan their time at the airport.

Freutel also noted that Radiant recently worked with Omnivex, a digital signage content management software developer based in Concord, Ontario, to enhance the mobile passenger experience. By scanning a QR code at their gate, passengers may receive up-to-the-minute information about their flight as they are visiting other areas of the airport.

“The challenge with flight apps is there can be a delay of as long as 20 minutes between [the information they deliver] and what’s actually showing at the gate,” he said. “You may be at the Sky Lounge with your [flight app] up and it’s showing, ‘my flight’s taking off in 20 minutes, I’d better get to my gate.’ When you get to the gate, you find out your flight’s been delayed an hour.”

[Louisville Muhammad Ali Airport Strives to Be ‘The Greatest’ with AtlasIED]

By delivering actual gate data, Freutel said airports can decrease the congestion that often manifests around boarding areas. This same information is also translated into text messaging that can be delivered to the displays positioned throughout the airport for ADA compliance. "We’re really looking at how to use digital signage to optimize flow throughout the airport to make people feel more comfortable, take advantage of the amenities at the airport, and feel less tethered to the actual gates,” he added.

A Better Experience

Ryan Biziorek, associate principal and acoustics and audiovisual expert at Arup, a global sustainable development consultancy, noted that airlines themselves are paying increasing attention to customer experience from the moment passengers purchase a ticket, all the way through to the conclusion of their trip.

“The hospitality experience is end-to-end, [and] the airport terminal has really become a hospitality experience,” he offered. “With that, we’re seeing more investment in audiovisual technologies integrated in the architecture to create this experience.” These experiences may come in the form of large LED video wall systems for digital art, design elements that convey the fabric of the community in which the airport is located, or even performance spaces, theaters, or small museums sponsored by local institutions.

[Realmotion Delivers Immersive, 'Selfie-Ready' Experience at Orlando Airport]

For Shchepynska, providing a great passenger experience is essential if airports—and airlines—want people to have a positive opinion of their brands. “People tend to remember bad experiences, and even if my trip was absolutely perfect but I had a bad experience in the airport, I will remember it and I will tell everybody about it,” she said. “It is really important for passengers to have a good experience.”

Better Acoustics = Better Airport

Ryan Biziorek, associate principal at Arup, noted that one of the primary challenges in communicating an acoustic design to clients is that acoustics aren’t something that one can see, touch, or feel. For this reason, Arup consultants invite clients to the company’s Sound Lab, a virtual listening space that recreates acoustic environments in three dimensions.

“You can think of it like a visual rendering but for sound, which we call an auralization,” Biziorek explained.

This enables clients to experience and evaluate different acoustic scenarios based on a facility’s architecture, use case, and how things like occupancy levels affect sound. Arup recently applied this approach to the Portland International Airport in Oregon, as part of its Terminal Core Redevelopment project.

“We were looking at the passenger journey and simulating how that was going to sound, with different design options from right when you got to drop-off all the way through up to your boarding gate,” Biziorek said.

Opened on Feb. 28, the new terminal at Kansas City International Airport (KCI) is gaining rave reviews. Part of what makes this terminal so futuristic is a Nanolumens Nixel Series dvLED video wall with 2.5mm pixel pitch that spans the airport check-in counter area. With more than 18 million pixels, the backwall includes 15 separate displays in seven different sizes to make up one large digital canvas.

[Nanolumens, PSNI Global Alliance Partner with Focus on LED Applications]

The backwall provides check-in and drop-off agents with the ability to boldly display airline logos, lane queuing, and flight information data, plus update any other vital information as needed. A smaller Nanolumens Nixel Series 1.5mm dvLED video display, which measures almost 15 feet long and more than 5 feet tall, is positioned in the Arrivals area at the information desk.

“The architect and interior design teams were clear in their desire to have the backwall displays be a very specific size in order to fit their ticket counter plans and aesthetic,” said Geoff Berkeley, South Central regional sales manager, Nanolumens. “They were looking to have these displays fit flush to the wall but also into a particular size opening. A standard LED cabinet solution was not going to be able to meet their needs. Our Nanolumens Nixel Series can be completely customized to fit specific size requirements to provide for the design team’s intentions.”

Meanwhile, curbside arrival signage was provided by Nanolumens in partnership with Sign Resource. Ten 5.9mm Performance Series double-sided displays, measuring almost 6 feet wide and more than 3 feet tall, were also installed on posts to direct travelers to the correct airline’s check-in location.

All interior displays were installed by Dimensional Innovations of Overland Park, KS. In addition to the Nanolumens displays, the company provided three tvONE Green Hippo Boreal+ MK2 media servers to drive video content to both internal areas. The primary server delivers content to the ticket backwalls and Arrivals info desk displays. A second system is on standby as a backup to the primary server for the backwall, while a third is on backup for the info desk.

Flexible Approach

To put it mildly, the ticketing area's backwall signage is big, spanning the entire length of the ticketing counters of the airport terminal. The backwall is physically broken into seven sections by vertical pillars in the ticketing counter area, although electronically they function as a single, 102-foot display. This requires the Green Hippo Boreal+ MK2 server to serve specific areas of the video wall with different "status messages" (content) all at the same time.

[Why dvLED Is Gaining Market Share]

“The content shown is a mix of airline branding as well as customizable banners to denote the different functions of ticketing stations," explained Chris Riebschlager, director of creative technology with Dimensional Innovations. "We used the TouchDesigner plugin to render these status messages as a web page, which is then sliced up with tvONE’s Hippotizer VideoMapper and placed in each mix.”

The airline ticket counter staff can also trigger different presets in Hippotizer’s content management system. "A locally hosted web service relays these content management system changes to Hippotizer over the REST API interface, which we are taking full advantage of,” Riebschlager added.

Dimensional Innovations’ selection of integrated, computer-driven digital signs, rather than separate monitors provisioned by each individual airline, was made to provide KCI with the most flexible signage solution possible. “In an effort to make this space functional and customizable, an LED wall solution was chosen to future-proof this area and enable it to be updated and modified as necessary,” said Riebschlager.

The choice of dvLED video walls for this space was also very deliberate. “Direct-view LED was specified to fit architectural parameters of the facility and provide current tech/longevity for their new terminal,” said Scott Kehoe, tvONE’s regional manager.

“What we’re seeing here is the use of direct-view LED technology as a dynamic material finish in an environment designed and built around the need for dynamic messaging capability, as opposed to the more typical scenario where display technologies are added after the primary design is complete,” said Dan Rossborough, director of strategic projects, Nanolumens Special Projects Group. “The outcome can be witnessed as an intentional and aesthetically flawless agglomeration of static and dynamic surfaces.”

A desire for content flexibility drove the decision to use tvONE media servers and software. “The Green Hippo servers provide the playback of pre-rendered content as well as compositing the customizable banners above the video content,” Riebschlager explained. “The Green Hippo provides four 4K outputs, which are routed with the Nanolumens video hardware to the appropriate screen segments.”

“The three Boreal+ MK2 servers are providing playback of content being triggered by airport staff,” noted Kehoe. “Each Boreal+ MK2 server comes standard with two 10Gb NICs [network interface controllers]. An additional 10Gb NIC card was added to each server for additional data transfer. "Also, the bundled Hippotizer software incorporates TouchDesigner, which allows content to be overlaid on the screens. The Green Hippo server configuration for this application is quite capable of delivering additional performance as the demand for visual content becomes more sophisticated.”

Minimal Challenges

By its sheer scale, the KCI digital signage project would seem to be daunting by nature. However, the actual installation was far less challenging than one might have expected.

“Initially, airport data integration and content requirements were two unknowns, as not much information was defined,” Kehoe said. “But as the project came to fruition, the flexibility and capability of the Hippotizer software enabled the integration team to adapt gracefully. Feedback about the system has been nothing short of fantastic.”

“This was our first Green Hippo installation, so there was a slight learning curve,” added Riebschlager. “But with some help from the Green Hippo team, we were able to quickly ramp up the system and have it perform precisely how we needed it to.”

[Louisville Muhammad Ali Airport Strives to Be ‘The Greatest’ with AtlasIED]

It helps that Nanolumens knows the airport market very well. “We understand the high level of coordination and critical nature of these environments in which our displays need to perform,” said Todd Alan Green, global manager of airports and transportation, Nanolumens. “We provided a very high level of experience to the project team, which helped to minimize the risk involved in bringing these critical facilities to completion. At the end of the day, our goal is to help our clients deliver the best customer experience."

Today, the digital signage system is on duty 24/7 at the new terminal and working as planned, which is important because "it's such a crucial element to travelers coming through KCI,” Riebschlager said. “The integration with a content management system we created allows the airport to change messaging on the fly, offering much-needed flexibility with delivery and customization.” 

To bring a single screen online at WEC Energy Group, Daktronics collaborated with integrator ACP CreativIT / Camera Corner Connecting Point (CCCP) and fabrication group Advance Mounting & Design (AMD) to design an aesthetic and functional solution required for the application. The installation was completed late in 2022 at WEC Energy Group’s control room in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, near Green Bay.

Wisconsin Public Service, a subsidiary of WEC Energy Group, now uses the curved screen for the tracking of background systems and live data while also analyzing open media sources to ensure their personnel are informed of critical information as they check and adjust the power grid and related systems accordingly. This includes the ability to show current grid status, webcams, active data readings, presentations, upcoming weather events, open sources and any feeds from individual monitors cast onto one screen for all to see and ingest simultaneously.

[Ask the Experts: 18 AV/IT Industry Thought Leaders On Displays] 

“We enjoyed working with WEC Energy Group in the design phase and bringing manufacturers together with a unique end result that met the specific needs of WEC Energy Group,” said Mike Mader, senior account manager with CCCP. “This is exactly what Daktronics and AMD were able to provide for us with the custom-designed, large, curved video wall and cabinet space to house all of our equipment.”

The display features Integrated Matrix Device (IMD) LED technology consisting of red, green and blue pixels mounted in a 2x2 array to achieve extremely close pixel spacing. In this instance, a 1.2-millimeter pixel spacing brings the nearly 7-foot-high by 44-foot-wide display to life on a custom curved floor stand.

[How a Massive Curved dvLED Video Wall Captivates Sports Bettors]

“We’re fortunate to work with great partners and integrators to bring this project into reality for WEC Energy Group,” said Derek Dorow, Daktronics project manager. “The customization for this project was top-notch and the collaboration between all parties to design and build a feasible solution at the desired curvature was nothing short of fantastic. The result is an amazing screen that brings all the critical information into one place for those that need it.”

Like Earth, museums are in a constant state of change. Attracting new visitors and inspiring repeat visits requires attention-grabbing exhibits and regular updates to existing installations. With this in mind, the Japanese National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan) in Tokyo launched its spherical earth installation Geo-Cosmos in 2001, which it’s since renovated three times. The latest iteration of Geo-Cosmos elevates the museumgoer experience with 1,500 nit display brightness, exquisite high dynamic range (HDR), wide color gamut (WCG), and high frame rate (HFR) visuals. More than 70 experts through a joint venture from Miraikan, Dentsu, Mitsubishi Electric, GK Tech, and Go and Partners collaborated on the project, which involved the replacement of 10,362 LED display device panels and the development of a new audio, video, graphics, and control system. The team built the solution with AJA technology at its core to ensure rich colors, extended luminance, and smooth video.

The new Geo-Cosmos paints the planet in a more realistic light than previous exhibit iterations, with vibrant imagery and video that instantly capture the attention of patrons. Its goal is to shed light on modern environmental challenges, such as climate change concerns, and help museumgoers better understand their impacts. New to the exhibit are vivid cloud images powered by weather satellite photo data that visualize Earth’s ever-changing appearance. A division of base map background imagery illustrates seasonal color changes, including polar ice and vegetation fluctuations.

[Why Go Wide with dvLED Displays?]

“Geo-Cosmos is a project with purpose and uniquely marries art with science,” shared Go and Partners executive producer and chief technical producer Tsuyoshi Go Hotta. “Between abnormal weather caused by global warming and ecosystem interference, Earth is reaching a breaking point, and the new Geo-Cosmos depicts these changes in a way that’s easy to comprehend. Naturally, we were thrilled to be a part of the initial installation and subsequent upgrades, and our AJA gear proved key in creating a wow effect.”

Miraikan knew the renovation would require a deep understanding of the latest video specifications for content production and systems integration. With a rich technical knowledge base and a team that excels at out-of-the-box thinking, Go and Partners proved a perfect fit for the job. “In talking with the Miraikan team, we knew that conventional SDR technology wouldn’t cut it for a project like this. Accurately depicting the clouds that hover above Earth, the ice fields that blanket the Arctic and Antarctic, and fluctuating cloud luminance would require high dynamic range,” Go Hotta explained. “Yet, working with HDR can be challenging because content often doesn’t look as expected due to differences in creator intent and the production environment. The technology behind it is complex, and very few products perform as we expected, which is why we looked to AJA gear for assistance.”

[AV and IT: It's Complicated] 

 AJA FS-HDR proved essential in allowing artists to make subtle corrections to the content in the projection environment. The creative team leveraged its fine correction and preset functions to switch out images for content and adjust imagery as needed depending upon ambient brightness variations in the museum environment. “FS-HDR and our other AJA equipment suited our project specifications while also giving us the stability and reliability required for the job, plus the developer SDK is great," Go Hotta added. "It helped save us time.”

An impressive technical feat, the new Geo-Cosmos supports 8K playback of video files output from an 8K recorder/player. Content is produced as OpenEXR still image files in 6,204 x 3,102 resolution, HDR (HLG or PQ), Rec 2020, 59.94 Hz. The system’s HP workstation converts still images into a Geo-Cosmos panel layout with 8K resolution and transforms them into HEVC (H.265) .mp4 8K video. Using computer application software, audio is then added to the HEVC (H.265) .mp4 file, which is transferred to an 8K recorder-player developed with ASTRODESIGN. The sphere plays back the upper half of the 8K image, and two 4K single-link SDI [2 Sample Interleave (2SI)] outputs run through an AJA KUMO 1616-12G router.

The two KUMO outputs are input to two AJA FS-HDR HDR/WCG converters equipped with SFP modules (HDBNC-2TX-12G), which output four Quad Link 3G-SDI signals. The SDI embedded audio signal is output from a separate KUMO channel and sent to a de-multiplexer. The 4K UHD monitors connected to the KUMO are used for video quality control. Eight 3G-SDI signal outputs from the FS-HDRs are converted to fiber, sent into the sphere via optical fiber, and finally displayed on the LED panel.

[SCN Top 50 Systems Integrators 2022] 

Geo-Cosmos also supports real-time video playback from external connections, such as a high spec laptop PC. For this use case, an external PC HDMI signal is output in 4K UHD (59.94 Hz or 29.97 Hz) with a 10-bit, 4:2:2, Rec 2020, HDR (display peak brightness 1500 nits), map projection equidistant cylindrical projection. HDMI signals from an external PC are input to an AJA KONA HDMI capture card on an HP workstation, converted to panel placement within the workstation, and output via an AJA KONA 5 I/O card on two 4K SDI (2SI) channels, which are then input to the KUMO.

“The world is rapidly changing, and installations with cutting-edge technology like Geo-Cosmos will soon be commonplace in museums worldwide," Go Hotta concluded. "However, working with these tools to take the museumgoer experience to new heights requires the ultimate agility and flexibility, which AJA solutions provide.”

Artel Video Systems and launch service provider United Launch Alliance (ULA) are teaming up for taker off. ULA has selected Artel's FiberLink media-transport devices to support several years' worth of missions for its new Vulcan rocket. Vulcan is the latest in a series of ULA vehicles that launch spacecraft into orbit for the U.S. Space Force, NASA, and commercial customers.

"Artel's products have demonstrated to be of the highest quality for the best value and longest life," said Sheryl Platte, supply chain director at ULA. "They have been deployed in the past for similar applications and environments, so we were sure that they would do the job and eliminate any uncertainty about performance. They also met our requirements for modularity since the environment isn't suitable for rack-based equipment."

[SCN Installation Showcase 2022] 

As ULA's most powerful rocket to date, Vulcan promises to be the nation's new workhorse in space launch. Right now Vulcan is set to deploy 60% of the country's national security payloads for the U.S. military through 2027. Also, Amazon has contracted Vulcan for Project Kuiper, an initiative to increase global broadband access through a constellation of 3,236 advanced satellites in low Earth orbit. Vulcan will handle 38 launches—the majority of the Project Kuiper satellite constellation.

With every launch mission, Vulcan will make its way from the integration facility to the launch pad. ULA must monitor and support the health of both the transport system and the launch vehicle during the journey to the launch pad and during the countdown. The task requires devices that are powerful enough to move 4K/UHD video up to a mile over single-mode fiber; flexible enough to transport IRIG time code in multiple standards over either single-mode or multimode fiber; and able to carry audio, data, and control signals.

[AV and IT: It's Complicated] 

ULA will install the following Artel products in multiple Vulcan-specific trailers that contain rocket and payload support electronics:

• FiberLink 3514/3515 4K/UHD transmitter and receiver pairs—Low-profile, four-port devices that transport 4K/UHD video over single-mode fiber with enough power to reach up to 50 kilometers, so distance will not be a concern.
• FiberLink XA-/RA-1900 IRIG transmitter and receiver pairs—Fiber-optic systems that transmit IRIG time-code formats A through H over standard multimode or single-mode fiber at 850 nanometers or 1310 nanometers, meeting the requirement for flexibility and accommodating the range of IRIG standards mandated by ULA's customer.
• FiberLink 3390/3391 audio and data transmitter and receiver pairs—Devices that carry audio of the facilities ULA monitors, along with telemetry data and control.

From within the trailers, the Artel products will transmit signals from the launch pad area to the various ground segments in the complex (mission control, remote terminals, etc.) so that ULA technicians can ensure everything is going as planned and can support the mission as needed. ULA will use the information to analyze launch performance and, most importantly, to monitor in the event of failure.

[AV Network's top stories, product news, and expert insights] 

ULA will install the Artel gear in the monitoring trailers in the fall, with the first Vulcan launch planned for early 2023.

"With Artel FiberLink devices, ULA can keep a close eye on the rocket and transport vehicles and support their operation from transfer to blast-off," said Randy Sheets, national accounts manager at Artel. "ULA is the national leader in building and operating rockets that take spacecrafts into orbit, and it's gratifying to be able to help such an esteemed organization doing important scientific work. ULA can count on Artel to provide reliable monitoring support for years to come."

Established in 1946, the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution,(NASM), in Washington, D.C., has been undergoing a variety of renovations. 

NASM’s transformation includes the reimagining of 23 galleries, brand-new exhibits, and updated presentation halls. To accurately transform the user experience, the NASM chose to install a custom K-array sound system that would create a deeply immersive and sonically impressive environment—a truly "out-of-this-world" experience for visitors to the exhibit. 

[SCN Installation Showcase 2022] 

To achieve all required audio needs and maintain museum aesthetics, K-array provided the following to power the exhibits: 

• 74 KP52, three KAN200+8, four KK52, two KV52 speakers, and four KY52 speakers
• Seven KTR26 and two KU44 subwoofers 
• Eighty-three KA02, two KA14, two KA34, and one KA104 amplifiers

The new Lt. Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum in West Sayville, NY, is unlike any other military museum in America. Named for a SEAL Medal of Honor recipient killed in action during Operation Red Wings on June 28, 2005, the 8,000-square-foot museum welcomes visitors to experience the history of Naval Special Warfare, through immersive digital experiences including projection mapping, touchscreen exhibits and even 3D holograms of equipment. 

According to former Navy SEAL Christopher Wyllie, owner of New York-based custom electronics integration firm SEAL Solutions, the high-tech museum experience relies on a wide range of networking, AV, security and power protection products from Snap One.

[How Snap One Surveillance and Networking Solutions Keep a Winery Secure]

“The new Lt. Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum has reimagined the idea of museums by incorporating interactive exhibits where guests can dive deeper into topics, as well as exhibits that create an engaging atmosphere by surrounding visitors with videos and sounds that deliver a visceral, memorable experience,” Wyllie said. “Delivering this experience required thoughtful planning, lots of research and the help of Snap One to recommend and provide optimal solutions for each need, from networking equipment to security cameras.”

The guest experience kicks off with an engrossing exhibit on D-Day, the invasion of Normandy in World War II. Using projection mapping technology, BenQ projectors and DragonFly screens, the exhibit displays a variety of still images and video clips in small formats with black spaces between them, eventually growing to project a full-wall video. The steady growth of visual and audio content draws viewers in until the full video crescendos, exciting guests of all ages.

In an exhibit on the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, three vertically-mounted digital displays form an ultra-tall video wall where the entire height of the towers can be presented to show videos interspersed with facts and info about the attacks and the aftermath. Another projection exhibit presents a nearly 360-degree experience where a projection screen extends from the floor to the ceiling and then wraps over visitors' heads and around their sides, so they can see a forest in front of them while a helicopter hovers overhead, and a rope drops down from the helicopter to their side. 

[Here's How Snap One Helps Instantly Control 40 TVs and a 24-Foot Video Wall]

These exhibits, and many others through the museum, require sophisticated audio and video routing that is achieved with a media-over-IP solution from Binary. This simplified and reduced the cost of the media infrastructure, since long runs can be achieved with affordable Cat6 cable, instead of using expensive HDMI throughout. The use of MoIP for AV distribution requires an unimpeachable network, which Wyllie noted is one of the most important systems in the entire building.

Using enterprise-grade Access Networks wireless access points and power-over-ethernet switches ensures that all exhibits have constant connection to the network, in addition to providing distinct WLANs for employees’ and guests’ mobile devices.

“Most of the systems inside the museum are controlled through IP functions, including audio, video, automation and remote monitoring, so the network from Access Networks is one of the most critical pieces of infrastructure,” Wyllie explained. 

“Working through the COVID crunch of the last two years resulted in some delays and re-designs, and Snap One provided design assistance and recommendations for replacement products if an item was out of stock.”

Because of the relatively small footprint of the museum and its outdoor grounds, exhibits that might traditionally require entire rooms, like showing a helicopter or tank, are achieved using small hologram devices from DSee.Lab that project three-dimensional images of the gear, which can either be designed to rotate, or allow the guests to move around the hologram. The holograms are also connected to the network.

Another area pays respect to the 317 Navy SEALs killed in action since World War II. “The Cost of Freedom" area includes an Actual Wood wall with images on it and in front of the wall there is a bench to sit and reflect. Behind the bench is a table display with a “Virtual Book” that’s projected in front of the exhibit, allowing guests to use gesture controls to flip through the book to read about each soldier’s story. 

“In addition to projection mapping and video displays, professional-quality audio helps complete the immersive ambiance of many exhibits, with 70-volt Episode pendant speakers located throughout the museum,” Wyllie added. “There are even all-weather speakers in the outdoor garden area, where visitors can walk amongst military equipment. It’s all powered from equipment racks using Episode amplifiers.”

[AVoIP Standards: The Fight to Get It Right] 

Wyllie also installed a variety of microphone systems, including wireless Sense microphones and ClearOne USB speakerphones, which are used for internal staff purposes and to allow amplified presentations and speeches for private events or future guided exhibits.

In order to provide peace of mind for the museum’s operators, they installed a 30-camera Luma and Clare surveillance system that provides real-time views of the entire interior and exterior, so if any vandalism or accidents occur, they have video evidence. All of the electronic equipment is also protected from power surges and outages through WattBox power conditioners and surge protectors equipped with the OvrC platform, which provides Wyllie with remote access to monitor and adjust equipment.

“There is a lot of expensive electronic equipment used in the museum, and it all has to be protected to ensure reliable operations and protect against business interruptions or catastrophic damage from power surges,” Wyllie said. “Plus, the OvrC system gives me visibility into the gear’s operation no matter where I am, so minor troubleshooting can be done instantly without me having to physically go to the museum. It’s a time and money saver that is basically essential for a project of this size.”

[AV Network's top stories, product news, and expert insights]

Wyllie said that having insight to the operations is crucial because the museum is largely staffed by volunteers, and there isn’t generally an AV or IT professional on-site to manage daily issues. He also noted that working almost exclusively with Snap One products helped ensure that all disparate systems and components were compatible and could be easily integrated.

The museum is funded entirely through donations and fundraising events and opened on June 28, 2022, the anniversary of Operation Red Wings, a 2005 mission in Afghanistan that was dramatized in the Hollywood blockbuster Lone Survivor.

Visitors to The Air Force Museum of New Zealand are seeing its collection of vintage planes in a whole new light, thanks to a new LED rig and Strand control solution from Vari-Lite, the originators of the modern moving head and Signify entertainment lighting brand.

The museum took the opportunity during a rearrangement of the main Aircraft Hall display area to replace the existing lighting system to the LED rig to dramatically reduce power consumption and provide a more flexible, long-lasting, and dynamic solution. More than 100 powerful, honeycomb-lens SL Punchlite 220 fixtures are now installed, beaming rich, blended and saturated colors onto classic airplanes such as a Spitfire, Hudson and Avenger, and washing the space with hues.

To control the luminaires in the Aircraft Hall, and for multiroom control of six other spaces including further display areas, lecture theaters, restrooms, and the main atrium, the technical team invested in a Neo Compact 10 Console. A Vision.Net architectural control system has also been installed for a seamless, integrated lighting control experience across all the sites to help the team manage looks, power lighting scenes, and simplify management.

[How Vari-Lite and Strand Shine New Light on Dallas' AT&T Performing Arts Center]

“We needed a replacement control system that would be able to manage a large number of fixtures, run multiple cue lists, accept inputs from a variety of sources, and run time-based events,” said David Nicholson from the museum, who oversaw the project. “The Neo and Vision.Net combination offers this solution and we are now using the C10 for programming the lighting states in the Aircraft Hall with great success. There were many benefits, including the C10’s compact size enabling us to easily move around the museum doing programming as we moved from plane to plane.”

In addition to the lighting, the Neo C10 and Vision.Net duo are also being used to run timeclock-based events such as audio announcements, video playback via screens around the venue, as well as building start-up and closedown each day. The museum’s technical team is using the full-featured Neo operating system software on a PC to control more than 500 desk channels, with regular events activated by its internal timeclock scheduler. 

“Vision.Net screens provide all the human interface requirements around the complex,” Nicholson explained. “There are touchscreens in five locations, and three physical button panels. The panels allow local control of some features, as well as more general functionality such as turning full complex on or off, putting the system into Event Mode to disable or play announcements and activating on-demand display features.”

[AV Network's top stories, product news, and expert insights] 

The Vision.Net system’s preset commands are all monitored by Neo, which in turn runs shortcuts to turn on and off required cuelists. Commands that Neo initiates are run back through the Vision.Net system to keep all Vision.Net screens in sync with the real-world system status. The Vision.Net system also facilitates the customization of each screen depending on its location, as well as password-locked and hidden screens for additional setup and maintenance options. 

The new rig was designed by Nicholson in collaboration with lighting designer Joe Hayes, as well as Grant Robertson from Christchurch-based Vari-Lite supplier The Light Site, who also managed the initial design concepts of the Vision.Net and Neo setup. Glenn Stewart from Kenderdine Electrical supplied the Neo and Vision.Net hardware and conducted all the Vision.Net programming. Darren McKane from The Light Site did all the Neo cue and integration programming.

Integrators are discovering renewed interest in local government projects either directly or indirectly impacted by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). With $350 million in federal funding released in May 2022, it's worth checking on previously cancelled local government projects that can be revived due to reallocated budgets. ARPA funding can be used directly for public health digital signage projects or upgrading command and control systems for municipality water and sewer systems.

[The 2022 Integration Guide to Education]

For education, the vast majority of the $186 billion Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) has yet to be allocated. The deadline for the second set of funds is Sept. 30, 2023. The third set of funding (and the largest) must be obligated by Sept. 30, 2024. There is still time to connect with local schools to help with system set ups that address the long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic through educational technology.

The team at Legrand | AV is ready to assist efforts of those in the Pro AV industry. A pair of eMagazines on government and vducation have extensive details on how the AV industry is positioned to give local organizations the tools to achieve their goals.

Click below to access the guides.

• Technology That Moves Our Government & Communities Forward
• Connecting Instructors and Students from Anywhere
  
  

RGB Spectrum has announced enhancements to its data visualization platform to maximize situational awareness for public safety organizations. The company’s core video processing technology allows public safety personnel to collect data from multiple sources, view that data on a single or dual-screen monitor setup and share that intelligence, throughout a facility or to a tactical workforce.

“For the past 30 years, we have been a trusted leader in the data visualization market. Today, we continue to invest in innovative technologies that demonstrate our ongoing commitment to solving public safety’s most complex problems,” said Bob Marcus, president, RGB Spectrum. “The expertise and recognition we have built in this segment help us deliver the solutions that bring a wide range of benefits to these mission-critical environments.” 

[RGB Spectrum Debuts Multi-Domain AV Solutions for Enterprise Collaboration]

Rapid response and effective communication can make a significant difference when lives are at stake. In complex and fast-moving environments, such as emergency communications and operations centers, how information is presented is critical. RGB Spectrum’s unified platform provides effective video walls, integrated desk displays, AV-over-IP and KVM solutions, and a new mobile app to address the mobile workforce. It’s all about enabling better decisions, faster.

• RGB Spectrum’s multiwindow, single-screen KVM appliance—the QuadView UHDx KVM—offers the ability to control independent video sources using a single keyboard and mouse. The QuadView allows users to seamlessly interact with four computer screens in scalable windows on a single 4K 60Hz monitor. Each operator who uses that desk can save unique presets to re-arrange the location of windows, resize them, or select a different resource from a total of six available inputs.
• Our XtendPoint KVM system offers up to eight video sources, replacing an array of multiple monitors with just two large multiwindow high resolution displays. XtendPoint is based on an IP distribution architecture that can access signals over a LAN or a WAN using XtendPoint encoders and decoders. It is a truly versatile system. Visual data can be routed to multiple locations simultaneously, allowing real-time sharing with supervisors and colleagues. Benefits include ongoing training, interactive supervision, and real-time decision support.
• Bringing technology on the go is possible with RGB Spectrum’s Zio Video-over-IP Mobile App. Deployed on a smartphone or other mobile device, Zio allows video sources to be “pushed” by the 911 dispatcher to remote force members, individually or in groups, or “pulled” from the center by a remote team member. Any data the operator can access—photos, videos, building schematics, and more—can be shared to provide a common operating picture in real time.

Public Safety organizations around the country are experiencing how RGB Spectrum’s technologies help improve decision making through greater awareness around incidents. 

Located at the intersection of France, Germany, and Switzerland, the Basel Train Station (Basel SBB) in Basel, Switzerland is a primary hub for travel throughout Europe and is often regarded as Europe’s busiest international train station. With high background and travel noise compounded with highly reflective ceiling and walls, announcements were hard to understand, resulting in traveler confusion, missed trains and unnecessary congestion throughout the station. To combat the acoustic challenges Basel SBB faced, Renkus-Heinz Iconyx Compact loudspeakers were installed to aid in delivering intelligible announcements for passengers and staff.

Travelers are inundated with a wide range of sights and sounds as they pass through any busy transportation hub: arrival, boarding and departure announcements, safety and security information, marketing and services messaging, and the droning murmur of fellow travelers moving from point A to point B—it’s a flood of input for the senses at every step. Transportation managers are challenged with the need to cut through clutter, capture attention and deliver actionable and perhaps critical safety information to a widespread, quickly moving public. For Basel SBB, the initial sound system and loudspeakers installed were not up to the acoustic challenges of the space.

[Renkus-Heinz, Salvation Army Reimagine a Hollywood Golden Age Theater Together]

Chris Steiger, CEO of Zurich-based pro audio distribution firm promedias AG, was brought in by Basel SBB managers to upgrade the sound quality of one of the station’s larger halls. The hall houses two large waiting areas, a café, a few small convenience and service stands, Steiger explained.

“Station managers needed to drastically improve the coverage and quality of sound for announcements within the train station,” said Steiger. “The hall is so busy, noisy and acoustically alive that it was difficult for passengers to hear and understand announcements. Further, managers were worried that the audio would be inadequate when critical safety or evacuation announcements needed to be made.”

After modeling the hall's acoustics with software, it became apparent that the new sound system would need to generate a high-enough SPL level to be heard over the background noise. The audio would also need to be tightly controlled with beam steering technology to move the sound away from the reflective surfaces and direct it toward the travelers. 

Ultimately the promedias AG team specified a set of four Iconyx Compact Series beam steering arrays from Renkus-Heinz; two ICC36/3-RN and two ICC48/3-RN arrays with custom color finishing to blend into the décor of the hall. By significantly reducing the reflections by keeping the audio focused on the travelers, the installed Iconyx Compact Series delivers the audio coverage, clarity and intelligibility station managers could rely on.

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The compact footprint and custom paint match of the Iconyx Compact were also important as many areas of the station are designated national heritage sites. With the Iconyx Compact’s small footprint, the new sound solution doesn’t disrupt the aesthetics of the space while still providing high intelligibility.

“Basel SBB was a challenging project requiring excellent sound quality and installation flexibility to be successful; the Iconyx Compact Series arrays offer the power, specifications, and the small footprint needed to fit the unique installation requirements,” said Michal Poplawski, European technical sales manager, Renkus-Heinz.

Steiger explained that the Renkus-Heinz system was seamlessly integrated with the station’s existing, automated safety and evacuation system, and the compact arrays have delivered the sound quality and intelligibility SBB management needed.

“Renkus-Heinz provides excellent, state-of-the-art systems; they are a great partner and easy to work with. The team was very helpful in creating the custom color finish for us and in helping with specifying an appropriately sized system for the hall," added Steiger. "The sound performance of the arrays has been flawless, and we’re now working with management to bring Renkus-Heinz sound solutions into other halls and waiting areas within the station.”

The Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields completely reimagined its indoor courtyard during a recent renovation. With the help of AVI Systems, Blockhouse Studios, and Neoti, the indoor courtyard was brought to life with stunning visuals from a dvLED display and Neoti UHD Series panels. 

[SCN Top 50 Systems Integrators 2021]

The Challenge: Engaging and connecting throughout the museum

Known for encouraging and embracing new media and techniques, the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields administrators were looking for new ways to engage a wider audience and create a multiuse gathering point that connects with the rest of the museum.  

The area needed to feel as if it was intentionally part of the museum that would connect the other art galleries collectively while also serving as an attractive venue for other applications.

[Tried-and-True Wins the AV Heart and Business] 

The Solution: Neoti support and UHD panels

The museum engaged in discussions with integrator AVI Systems and Blockhouse Studios. The unique space had some difficult technical challenges. 

Through months of concepts and testing, it was determined that typical projection mapping was not the right technology for what they wanted to accomplish. The image quality wouldn’t match their expectations or vision.   

[Captain's Log: FlexGlass Projection Screen Powers Starship Console in ‘Star Trek: Picard’] 

To get the brightness, color accuracy, and durability expected for a long-term installation, direct view LED was the right choice. Neoti was brought in as a consultative partner to determine the appropriate pixel pitch and infrastructure of the suspending video ceiling. With LED industry expertise and partnerships, Neoti provided engineering support so that a special truss system could be designed to suspend the LED panels safely above visitors. 

“Working with Neoti was great; Neoti worked closely with us every step of the way to create a one-of-a-kind screen that far surpassed our and the clients’ expectations," said Kevin Winkler, Blockhouse Studios.

A scaffolding was constructed with a false floor so teams could easily work on both sides of the ceiling panels. Over 500 panels were connected and calibrated in a three-week period. The truss system holds over 11,000 pounds of 2.5mm Neoti UHD panels.

A media server and remote-control system was installed to handle media playout. Blockhouse created a stunning 60-minute artistic video loop featuring backlit gels, foils and liquids, mixed with a variety of drone aerials around the Newfields grounds. 

Clowes Pavilion “Reimagined” opened to rave reviews as an outstanding example of the blending of art, design and technology. The easily adjustable content and open-air feeling of the space makes it a versatile and unique attraction for museum patrons and rental event customers for years to come. 

“The first time I was able to come into the courtyard and see the ceiling was just remarkable," said Tascha Horowitz, Newfields director of interpretation, media and publishing. "I was really struck by the way the light and the subtle color bathed the architecture of the courtyard, and the quality was so sharp and so clear, it was just really, really stunning. Beyond any of my expectations.”

Once considered a novelty, digital signage in airports, bus stations, and rail terminals have become an essential source of guidance, information, and entertainment for the travelers who use them. These systems have also become valuable promotional platforms and advertising revenue streams for the transportation hubs that host them, as well as a profitable sales opportunity for systems contractors and AV manufacturers who respond to the latest market trends.

[Maximize Digital Signage with Content Planning, Management]

What are transportation hubs seeking that can help drive sales in this area? “Clients want commercial-grade, bright digital signage displays that can be used for COVID messaging, wayfinding, emergency announcements, and people counting,” said Ben Hardy, product manager for Sharp NEC Display Solutions. “Clients are also looking for accessibility to these displays via network connectivity to ensure that the displays are on and working properly.”

Advanced Imagery

Transportation hubs also want the visually appealing digital signage to engage passersby and keep them watching longer. “LED displays are all the rage,” explained Michael Callahan, product marketing manager for RGB Spectrum. “So are new hybrid video processors with higher bandwidth Gen 3 backplanes that provide ultra-high performance video and data processing at 4K 60p, plus full support for AV-over-IP content, and dynamic multi-window, multi-image display capabilities.”

The very best visuals are key to attracting the eyeballs of transportation hub users, noted John Garmendi, senior manager of sales support engineering and consultant relations for Sony. “This fact is driving an increased adoption of direct view LED video walls in these locations as a way of creating spectacular branding opportunities,” he said. “Advanced video display adoption is really elevating what was a utilitarian environment into an attraction.”

[Privacy and Digital Signage]

Behind the visuals, however, is a system that drives the content. “In a typical transportation hub digital signage system, there is a PC running one or multiple display ‘banks’ that provides content to each of these screens,” said Hardy. “This PC is controlled via a network connection to a central hub and separate network connections, usually via a switch, that go directly into each display for monitoring/controlling the units.”

“The behind-the-scenes infrastructure for a digital signage network is the content management server and Ethernet network,” Farkas added. “The content management server manages your content, provides workflows, approval processes, manages players, and so forth. It’s the brains of the network.”

Everything for Everyone

As the annual public obsession with Super Bowl commercials proves, people will gladly sit through all kinds of content as long as it is interesting, innovative, and enjoyable to watch. This is why the most successful transportation hub digital signage offers content that people want to see, with standards of production and playout that rival those of network/streaming TV.

[Digital Signage: The Future Is Bright]

“Travelers expect the same or better user experience from digital signage as they get from their favorite mobile app,” said Eric Farkas, product manager, Black Box. “But that’s not all: The current trend is for a more personalized viewing experience that is also quite detailed. Travel information, weather conditions, capacity information, safety policies, maps and wayfinding, contact information, club or member-only facilities information, nearby venue information, nearby hotel/shuttle information, ride app pickup points and other ground transportation options, Wi-Fi information, and food/shopping information are standard wants from travelers of all experience types.”

In meeting mulitple user demands, Garmendi said the transportation hub digital signage is “morphing into a hybrid content environment, where travel information is really being blended with retail and entertainment. There's also an increase in the utilization of IoT [Internet of Things] technology to meet travelers’ demands for more personalized experiences.”

[Digital Signage Wins Big at Route 66 Casino]

A word of caution: No matter how compelling the content mix, transportation hub digital signage systems need to “go easy” on the ads to keep people watching, Callahan said. What advertising there is needs to “be relevant and resonate with the customers within that location in order to succeed,” Garmendi added.

This same care should be applied when inserting COVID-19 content into the mix. “COVID messaging for social distancing and mask protocols, wayfinding, and announcements should be intertwined with the critical information that needs to be passed along to customers with regards to flight/bus/train statuses and other changes that could disrupt their travel,” Hardy said. “If possible, content distribution can be re-imagined so that one existing display in each ‘bank' can be allocated for PPE or COVID messaging or advertising, while the rest of the displays are used for other informational signage. This approach allows for all pertinent information to be shared simultaneously.”

Writing Successful Bids

From time to time, transportation hubs solicit bids for upgrades to their existing digital signage systems or for new systems altogether. Before preparing bids for these prospects, systems contractors need to ask a wide range of questions—because the answers will maximize the chances of their bids being accepted and delivering the desired results.

“I typically start with the application,” said Farkas. “I ask the prospect, ‘What do you want your customers to see, interact with, or do with the digital signage system?’ Accomplishing this goal for them should be the top priority in any bid.”

Farkas then considers the proposed digital signage system’s power and infrastructure needs. “This seems like a small detail until you realize you need hundreds of plugs and network drops installed before your digital signage can go live,” he said. “Next, and this may sound ridiculous, some digital signage vendors will help you design your system, but they don’t sell displays and mounts. These are often expensive items that are left off of the Bill of Materials and outside the budget.”

Given the complexity of modern digital signage systems, Farkas is not a fan of in-house installations. “I tell clients to use a recommended integrator,” he explained. “Hanging displays might sound simple, but it can be more complicated than you realize. You not only want your displays to look good and stay attached, but you want them to function properly and be placed where consumers can use and view them.”

To ensure client satisfaction after the installation is done, Farkas quizzes them about their “content plan” beforehand, namely the visuals that the transportation hub intends to run on their digital signage system. “Who is designing it? Where is it coming from? Are you selling space on your signage to others?” he said. “Without a content plan, you could end up with displays that have stale content that people won’t watch.”

Finally, Farkas asks the client how they intend to properly manage the completed system over time. “Monitoring and maintenance should be a consideration if you have remote sites with limited to no staff,” he noted. “Who is going to report a screen outage if you have no monitoring?”

At ACI Europe's RACE 2022, Black Box will showcase its global IT solutions and integration services for airports, which can help streamline operations, improve productivity, generate revenue, and reduce costs. 

[2022 NAB: Black Box to Showcase KVM-Over-IP Solutions]

Airports around the globe partner with Black Box to design, install, and maintain truly resilient network infrastructures and reliable connected buildings—without the need for multiple providers. Airports face challenges unlike any other industry, from stricter regulations and limited resources to increased passenger connectivity expectations. Black Box understands the important role smart technology and high-performance networks play in accelerating digital transformation and providing predictable user experiences for employees, airport tenants, and passengers.

Black Box Highlights at RACE 2022

IT Managed and Professional Services for Airports
Technology solutions and services from Black Box can dramatically improve airport communications. Black Box's deep experience and understanding of airport business functions optimize IT infrastructure and operations, helping airport IT administrators to manage mission-critical systems while implementing the latest technologies. 

The company's professional managed services include voice and data networks; on-site structured cabling system management; NOC, SOC, and security management; on-site or remote Tier 1-3 service desk support; private LTE/5G/DAS provisioning; Smart Airport control and management; and programming, engineering, and system design services. Black Box solutions are built on well-defined service management plans, expandable templates and standardized, repeatable processes for maximum efficiency. Black Box can also provide competitive financing for airport technology projects by allowing airports to save valuable CAPEX and convert budgets into monthly OPEX. This helps airports to recover and build in this re-generating period.

[Black Box Launches Velocity Partner Program]

Building on a longstanding relationship with ACI-NA, Black Box recently became a World Business Partner of ACI Europe, which represents over 500 airports in 55 countries. As a World Business Partner, Black Box is available to consult with a global network of airport executives on IT and communications, cybersecurity, and consulting and management. 

To transform the pedestrian bridges over the Rock River area of Janesville, WI, into a vibrant and welcoming public space, Bluechip Labs deployed a range of dynamic and durable HARMAN Professional audio and lighting solutions.

Centered around Resilience, a sculpture designed by artist Deedee Morrison at the center of the new Heritage Pedestrian Bridge, the installation includes dynamic lighting and sound for three bridges and two new parks that give Janesville a much-needed recreational area and outdoor city center.

Private revitalization group ARISEnow commissioned the installation as part of an urban revitalization campaign to showcase Janesville’s history and natural beauty, reinvigorate the community, and engage with visitors. Due to the Rock River’s fluctuating water levels and Wisconsin’s intense seasons, the city wanted a budget-friendly lighting and audio system that could withstand harsh outdoor conditions. To meet the requirements, AV integrator Bluechip Labs utilized solutions from Martin, JBL Professional, Crown, and BSS.

[Paju City Civic Center Upgrades, Adds Flexibility with Harman Professional Solutions]

“I was approached because ARISEnow was looking to install lighting for the city, but were faced with many technical challenges within a fixed budget,” explained Stephen Phillips, founder and lead engineer, Bluechip Labs. “I looked at the top companies that could provide the best lighting at the right price, and the choice was Martin. Also, Janesville gets 90 to 100 degrees in the summer and then heavy snow and high winds in the winter, and the bridge is on a fast-moving river that tends to flood. So, I knew I had to put up some really tough fixtures that could survive the weather and possibly debris coming down the river.”

The lighting system includes more than 200 Martin Pixline 20 linear LED fixtures, which feature full-spectrum color programming and wide-coverage diffusion for strong and eye-catching visuals. Rather than use the fixtures to cast striking beams of light outward from the structure, Phillips instead turned the fixtures around and aimed them toward each bridge face using custom-made mounts. The result is a striking wash that covers the entire structure with no hot spots or gaps, transforming the bridges into iconic vistas.

“The goal was to make the bridges look like they were illuminated from the inside or like it was painted, and I couldn’t figure out any way to do it with a normal round light,” Phillips said. “But with the Martin Pixlines, I was able to find the right placement and amount of light density to hit the bridge just right. They gave me the flexibility I needed to paint the bridge in a way that didn't look like it was externally illuminated.”

Martin Exterior Wash 200 fixtures also illuminate the areas underneath the bridges. While other designs aimed to place up to eight wash lights per pier on the bridges, Phillips found that just one Exterior Wash 200 with a diffuser lens produced a 50-foot wide beam that provided more than sufficient coverage for the bridges’ inner walls. Crucially, the Exterior Wash 200 also features an IP66-rated enclosure, making it well-equipped to withstand weather conditions and the Rock River’s fast-moving waters.

For the art sculpture above the Heritage pedestrian bridge, with metal arches meant to resemble branches and nine-foot leaves made of glass, 24 Martin HP Exterior Dots with clear lenses add additional color and shading to the structure at night. Capable of a variety of colors and effects, the IP66-rated fixtures allow city staff to easily switch between clear lights, color blends, and even a strobe effect that mimics rustling leaves in the wind. Finally, the Martin P3-050 system controller offers simple and responsive programming for the entire system, and several Martin PowerPort 1000 power supplies deliver signals to fixtures in harder-to-reach areas.

[Harman Pro Solutions Get the Outdoor Party Started at Australia's Cali Beach Club]

“I was initially just going to do white lights for the sculpture,” recalled Phillips. “But then I thought with the Dots, you can get white light and, if the city decides to add color to the sculpture two or three years from now, that feature will be ready to go.”

For the audio component, Phillips installed JBL AWC62 weatherproof compact speakers powered by Crown CDi 4|600 amplifiers and a BSS BLU-100 processor on the pedestrian bridge and surrounding area for discreet background music. He is currently working on software that will allow for both the audio and light systems to be controlled from one source, which will enable city staff to easily program the lights and sound on the bridge for special events.

City officials have praised the new system for making the bridges welcoming communal spaces, which have already begun to attract locals and visitors alike. Phillips added that he looks forward to seeing how the bridges transform Janesville for the better.

“I was always the last one on site while working out there, and I had many people come up to me and tell me how this was giving Janesville a new town center––something it has never really had before,” said Phillips. “As I continued working, more and more people were out there. Now, you’ve got hundreds of people strolling around on the weekends. There’s a fire pit, two pavilions, plenty of seating, and a weekend farmer’s market. It’s completely changed the feel of the area. It was pretty powerful to see.”

To create a lively and engaging space for visitors to the Paju City Civic Center, TechDataPS Co. Ltd. installed a powerful audio system featuring Harman Professional Solutions.

[Case Study: CMET Creates Versatile Auditorium with HARMAN Professional Solutions]

Established in 1994, South Korea's Paju City Civic Center is a public facility owned by the Paju City Facility Management Corporation, with five floors above ground and five basement floors. The public corporation utilizes the Center to promote the arts, host sporting events and improve the quality of life for Paju residents. However, the venue's existing audio system presented major challenges, including inconsistent electrical work and a lack of output from the speaker amplifier, prompting organizers to commission a complete system overhaul.

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Additionally, the Center is an old building that isn't structurally equipped to handle modern audio systems without additional support. After conducting a structural safety diagnosis, TechDataPS Co. Ltd. overcame these challenges by designing and installing a new audio system using flexible piping and versatile JBL Professional, Crown and Soundcraft audio solutions.

The installation team utilized JBL VTX V20 professional loudspeakers and S25 compact high-output line array subwoofers to deliver full dynamics, wide coverage and crystal-clear sound throughout the venue. Additionally, JBL SRX712 stage monitors provide equally clear and distortion-free sound for onstage performers. Crown I-Tech 4x3500HD amplifiers with OMNIDRIVE HD Processing and the LevelMAX Limiter Suite efficiently power the speakers, and the Soundcraft Vi2000 digital audio console and Vi Stagebox offer outstanding mixing power and input flexibility.

[UNLV Uses Harman Professional Solutions for Hospitality Hall]

Organizers for the Paju City Civic Center noted how the venue's age presented a unique challenge, but a new system with best-in-class technology was nonetheless a priority. They commended the TechDataPS team for their technical skills and achieving a satisfying final setup.

[Kota Kinabalu Marriott Uses Harman Professional Solutions]

"For a facility like Paju City Civic Center that hosts a wide range of events, a versatile audio system that creates immaculate guest experiences is a must," said Amar Subash, Director, Channel Management and Audio Solutions, Harman Professional Solutions, APAC. "We thank our partner TechData PS for their expertise and dedication to executing the project to perfection and trusting Harman's solutions to achieve a great audio experience."

After experiencing the performance of Brightline Flex-T lights within the Executive Committee Press Room at the previous Prince George’s County Council building in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, county officials wanted the same setup when they moved into their new digs in Largo.

The lighting installation grew in scope beyond the Flex-T lighting. 

Let There Be MORE Light

Colin Sandy, of Sandy Audio Visual in Laurel, MD, led the design and build of the county’s new Hearing Room/Legislative Chambers, Press Room and Committee Room at the new building in Largo. Each room has 22 Flex-T broadcast-quality lights, with some serving as flood lights and others providing spot beam directional lighting. In addition, each council member and their staff have ZELo desktop lights, for a total of 50 ZELo’s at the new headquarters office.

Ease of install, physical appearance, and performance of the lights are what make them so well regarded at Prince George’s County Council. “Their [Flex-T lights] performance is phenomenal. They create a nice, even wash that looks great on video,” Sandy said. “The lighting is nicely diffused, so there are not a lot of shadows or fall off from light to dark. It’s just a very even lighting pattern, even over as large an area as we have.”

[ Brightline Promotes Erin Nath to U.S. Manager of AV Solutions ]

The versatile Flex-T lights can be installed in any type of ceiling. The patented articulation feature makes them the only fixtures that can be rotated into a desired position during use and returned flush to the ceiling between sessions or for general task lighting. “We put the Brightline lights into the existing ceiling grid. There’s no custom furniture fixture, attachments or mounts that you need,” Sandy said. “The fixtures integrate seamlessly with the ceiling grip. The 2x2-inch speakers look like return vents, and because it’s all flush with the ceiling grid, it doesn’t look like a theatre.”

Previously, the County used a more traditional theatrical lighting approach. “They used Tungsten lighting, which in comparison to what the county has now, uneven lighting,” Sandy explained. “The Council members really liked the lighting we did in the County Executive Press Room in 2020. We used nine Flex-T fixtures in that room. So, we did a very similar but much larger set up in the new building’s Committee Room, Press Room, and Hearing Room.”

The County Offices in Prince George’s are well equipped for local and national media, as well as internal communication. In addition to the 66 Flex-T and 50 ZELo lights, PTZ cameras in the Press Room are connected to a switcher and used for live streaming and a feed sent to a local news channel. Lights are positioned over a retractable green screen curtain. A Crestron control system with a Brightline interface controls the Flex-T lights individually or as a group. In the Committee Room where more informal meetings are held, Brightline fixtures illuminate Council members and guests seated in a board room-type set up. Four PTZ cameras in this room, along with the lights, are also controlled by a Crestron system.

[ Brightline Partners with ANC on Miami Central Transit & Retail Center ]

The ZELo personal video light has gotten rave reviews from Council members and staff who use it for daily videoconferencing. It has soft and adjustable lighting that can be tilted for the most flattering angle. Built-in manual controls make it easy to change brightness and color temperature, but users can also make adjustments using Brightline’s free app for iOS and Android portable devices. ZELo also supports voice control through Alexa and Google Assistant devices.

Christie high-brightness 3DLP laser projectors are employed for a projection mapping showcase on the newly inaugurated Statue of Equality, which commemorates the 11th-century Bhakti Saint Sri Ramanujacharya.

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The amazing spectacle, which highlights the life journey and teaching of Sri Ramanujacharya, is accomplished using eight Crimson Series laser projectors and four Griffyn 4K32-RGB pure laser projectors. They were installed and commissioned by Christie's longstanding partner, Tricolor India Schauspiel, a renowned systems integrator in India specializing in architectural 3D projection mapping and son et lumière. The Crimson Series projectors were installed within two towers to deliver bright and intensely colorful images on the statue's surface, while the Griffyn 4K32-RGB projectors were used to display captivating imagery on the gates and walls surrounding the statue.

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Located in Hyderabad, the capital city of Telangana state in south-central India, the 216-foot-tall Statue of Equality is one of the world's tallest metallic statues in sitting position. It is mounted on a 54-foot-high base building named "Bhadra Vedi," which houses a digital library and research center, a theatre, as well as an educational gallery detailing many works of Sri Ramanujacharya. The majestic structure was officially inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during an elaborate ceremony on February 5.

[Christie Laser Projectors in Starring Role at Huayi Brothers Movie Town]

"This is a landmark project and we've spared no effort in bringing this highly anticipated projection mapping showcase to fruition using a very capable and dependable projection system that can withstand inclement weather conditions," said Himanshu Sabharwal, creative director, Tricolor India Schauspiel. "The Christie Crimson Series is our preferred choice due to its excellent track record in India, particularly in terms of performance, reliability and service support. We are also delighted to deploy Christie's Griffyn 4K32-RGB projectors for detailed projections on various structures overlooking the Statue of Equality."

Rishubh Nayar, sales director for India, Enterprise, Christie, commented, "We're deeply honored that our 3DLP and RGB pure laser projectors have been chosen to illuminate the Statue of Equality, which symbolizes Sri Ramanujacharya's ideals of equality in all aspects of living and driving home the message of equality for all. Our heartfelt congratulations to the Tricolor India Schauspiel team for putting together a spectacular show that aptly demonstrates the capabilities of our high-brightness laser projection systems, which has built a solid reputation for delivering numerous large-scale projection mapping projects in India."

Engineered to withstand the rigors of demanding, high-usage applications, the Christie Crimson Series projectors are built tough and feature an IP5X-sealed, solid-state laser light source providing years of reliable, low-cost and virtually maintenance-free operation. Equipped with 31,500 lumens and?Christie BoldColor Technology, these high-brightness laser projectors produce bright and stunningly colorful images. Along with the ultra-fast processing of Christie TruLife electronics and built-in warp and blend capabilities of Christie Twist, they offer installation flexibility and amazing visual experiences. In India, the Crimson Series has been used in major projects such as the Statue of Unity and Victoria Memorial light and sound show.

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Ready to illuminate any surface with 34,000 lumens while operating at less than 46dBA at full brightness, the award-winning Griffyn 4K32-RGB is designed for demanding large venue applications, rental and staging, sports venues and theme parks. It produces an exceptionally wide color gamut, achieving more than 96 percent of the Rec. 2020 color space--more than twice the color of Rec. 709 and 50 percent more than DCI-P3-capable projectors-for an enhanced audience experience. The Griffyn 4K32-RGB also includes the new electronic color convergence (ECC) capability, which allows users to adjust convergence via remote control for easy, picture-perfect color alignment.

It's been more than 30 years since the Hubble Space Telescope was launched into space to study the origins of the universe. When it was announced that the James Webb Space Telescope was taking its place, history was about to be made again. Launched into space on December 25, 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope was sent into orbit by the European Space Agency in collaboration with NASA and the Canadian Space Agency. A replacement for the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful space telescope ever built, designed to greatly enhance our ability to observe galaxies, planets, stars and even nebulae to help unravel the secrets of the Universe.

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Built by NASA, the James Webb Space Telescope was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket, a contribution by the European Space Agency, which oversaw the rocket and launch site. Réaltra Space Systems, based in Dublin, Ireland, designed and developed the video camera telemetry system for the European Space Agency and selected two Marshall Electronics miniature HD cameras to be installed in the launch bay that beamed back the iconic images to a worldwide audience, eager to observe the telescope as it was released into orbit. The cameras were supplied and supported by Marcam Europe, Marshall Electronics' European distributor.

[Marshall Electronics Launches USB Broadcast POV Camera]

"Marshall has a history of camera and lens integration onboard rockets, satellites and space vehicles, so when it came time to select the right equipment to capture the launch, Réaltra selected the perfect partner," says Tod Musgrave, director of cameras, Marshall Electronics. "We are honored to be selected for such an historic event and proud that our cameras are onboard to share the launch with observers all over the world."

The small, discreet yet powerful miniature cameras proved to be the right fit to provide crystal clear images during the powerful nature of the historic launch. The Marshall miniature cameras are built around next generation sensors and processors and deliver ultra-crisp, clear video. The Marshall mini-cameras are designed to capture detailed shots with accurate color while maintaining a discreet lightweight, miniature point-of-view without sacrificing versatility and convenience.

[Marshall Electronics Addresses New Production Workflows With Four IP Cameras]

The James Webb Space Telescope reached its (unknown) destination, nearly one million miles from Earth, in mid-January. It's reported that the telescope's first target is to reach the Big Dipper in the coming months.

California’s Contra Costa County has opened a new Emergency Operations Center (EOC) featuring a Situation Room equipped with the latest real-time visualization technology. With 13 conference rooms, 22 offices, and a press briefing auditorium, the EOC serves as a command center from which officials can direct the mobilization of municipal, county, and private resources in the event of a crisis or natural disaster. The Situation Room is equipped with a combination of RGB Spectrum’s Galileo display processor coupled with its Zio AV-over-IP platform. 

Contra Costa County selected the RGB Spectrum solutions for their 24/7 reliability, support for diverse signal sources, ability to disseminate information to local and remote locations simultaneously, and 4K image quality. Rosendin Electric, a highly experienced AV integrator based in San Jose, CA, was commissioned to design and deploy the EOC’s visualization system.

At the core of the Situation Room is a 32x13.5-foot video wall, comprised of 48 55-inch Planar Clarity Matrix G3 LCD video wall displays, flanked by four 86-inch auxiliary displays interspersed throughout the room. The Galileo processor consolidates critical visuals and data to provide a centralized, correlated view of the tactical situation.

Individual visuals, portions of the video wall, or the entire video wall image can be shared throughout the facility and with remote locations—allowing officials to collaboratively view this information for assessment and analysis. Communications are bi-directional, with conference rooms and remote locations able to send visuals for display on the EOC’s video wall.

[SCN 2021 Installs of the Year]

Source signals are displayed in windows of any size. Operators can easily switch and route inputs, choose customizable, preset display layouts, and pan and zoom around items of interest. A third-party touch screen controller allows operators to quickly change display layouts and route signals. 

“It is extremely important for EOC personnel to be able to investigate an incident and make decisions on deploying resources, explained Rick Kovar, emergency services manager for the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office. “One of the things we learned from previous disasters is that we need to maximize situational awareness. The video wall is key for achieving this. In a wildfire situation, for example, we have access to fire cameras across the county. We have GIS maps that display hotspots. There’s data available from a variety of sources. RGB Spectrum’s systems allow for their efficient transmission and display to all decision makers. This improves the common operating picture throughout the facility.”

A critical requirement was to share visuals and data both throughout the EOC and with off-site agencies. Critical information is simultaneously displayed on the video wall and shared with remote facilities via IP video streams on LAN and WAN networks, with a VPN for added security. To share visuals with remote locations, the Zio platform supports both baseband inputs and IP streams at up to 4K/60p resolution, including maps, news feeds, TV broadcasts, interagency communications, Internet data, traffic management systems, surveillance cameras, and the Galileo video wall itself.

All video, audio, and control data are converted to IP packets that are switched and routed to any location on the network via a LAN/VPN. Zio encoders ingest baseband inputs and encode them into H.264 streams that are fed to recipients inside and outside the facility. The Galileo processor and Zio decoders display IP streams from Zio encoders as well as third-party IP cameras and other H.264 devices.

Green Bay area IT/AV systems design and integration firm Camera Corner Connecting Point has deployed the AxisTV Signage Suite content management platform from Visix, Inc. to provide consistent, engaging visitor information and wayfinding experiences spanning three different government buildings in nearby Door County, Wisconsin.

Visix-powered digital signage greets visitors near the lobby entrances to Door County's administrative building, its library, and its police station and jail. Visix HDs media players feed Sharp AQUOS BOARD interactive displays. The 40-inch screens, configured in portrait mode on Chief mounts, provide interactive wayfinding functionality as well as displaying welcome messaging and location-specific information such as hours of operation, public notices and event listings. Door County's digital signage also leverages the Visix software's dynamic data widgets to pull in third-party content such as directory listings, meeting agendas and event calendars.

Gary Huebner, CTS, AV and security senior account manager at Camera Corner Connecting Point, explains that Door County's new digital signage systems supplement the in-person assistance that visitors receive upon entering each building. "The Visix signage solution helps them quickly figure out where they need to be if, for example, they're coming in to get a permit, submit paperwork, or meet with county staff," he said. "It provides wayfinding not only within the facility, but also essential information about the county overall. And if they're meeting with someone, it gives them something interesting to engage with while they wait."

Supplied with Door County's logos and graphics, the Visix creative services team designed custom content templates for the installation to ensure a consistent visual experience across all three sites and to reinforce the county's branding. "Visix's rock-solid digital signage platform and the artistry of their creative designers bring a unified experience to those visiting these different facilities, with branding that is more cohesive," said Huebner. "I encourage other counties and municipalities to do the same. It provides a much more streamlined experience for the people these agencies are serving."

The administrators of a new 62,000-square-foot YMCA in Urbana, Maryland, had more than the recreation center’s current communications needs in mind when they contacted Audio-Video Group to design and deploy an IP-based audio system throughout the massive, state-of-the-art facility. “One of their main objectives was having a high-quality communications system that would serve all their needs now but could be easily expanded over time to connect with an older YMCA location across town, as well as with the school district’s middle and high schools that sit directly behind the property,” says Audio-Video Group sales director John Pierce.

For Pierce, and the rest of the AV integration team, AtlasIED’s enterprise-class GLOBALCOM.IP system was the obvious choice, given its installation and configuration flexibility. Audio-Video Group paired the customizable communications platform with a combination of roughly 100 AtlasIED speakers and IPX Series endpoints to ensure that guests and employees--whether on the basketball court or in the swimming pool, taking an outdoor yoga class or running on the track--can hear and see routine and emergency notifications. 

An AtlasIED dealer for 21 years, Audio-Video Group has installed numerous GLOBALCOM.IP and IPX Series products in many schools, healthcare facilities, and houses of worship throughout Southern Maryland. Needless to say, the technology was familiar territory, and one that Audio-Video Group knew would stand the test of time as the YMCA’s communications needs changed. 

Addressing the Challenges

That’s not to say this project was devoid of challenges. “Unlike most projects where we design a communications system for a specific space, for the YMCA we needed to design a system to serve many different types of spaces but within the same enormous facility,” Pierce says. Within the structure are an aquatics center, health and wellness center, a running track, several fitness studios and gymnasiums, meeting rooms, outdoor exercise spaces, and more, each with its own unique acoustical and communications requirements. Through the GLOBALCOM.IP GCK software, Audio-Video Group was able to customize messages, alerts, announcements and music for each of the YMCA’s 15 audio zones; for example, broadcasting pre-scheduled, pre-recorded daily reminders only in certain zones, while playing music in other zon

Live announcements issued from the microphone of AtlasIED GLOBALCOM.IP Digital Communications Stations are also distributed to whichever zones employees select via the station’s built-in touchscreen. This minimizes unnecessary distractions yet affords staff the flexibility to page facility-wide when necessary.

The GLOBALCOM.IP IP-100 Announcement Control System handles emergency alerts with similar smarts. Each zone is equipped with a panic button, which when pressed, triggers the GLOBALCOM.IP processor to transmit a pre-recorded notification to preset zones. “This highly customized method of communication ensures that the right people receive the alert,” Pierce explains. For example, if there’s an emergency on the pool deck, the alert goes exclusively to the central office and offices of the aquatic staff. However, for campus-wide concerns like a fire, everyone throughout the entire facility is alerted. When the YMCA’s fire alarm system trips, the GLOBALCOM.IP system automatically sends an audible alert to all AtlasIED pendant, surface-mount, and analog speakers, as well as red-colored text notifications to the built-in LCDs of AtlasIED IPX endpoints. 

Tackling the Acoustics

Getting the right information, in the right format, to the right places was only part of Audio-Video Group’s punch list. They would also need to carefully calibrate the audio to deal with the YMCA’s challenging acoustics. Huge expanses of glass, hard rubber flooring, and high ceilings could have made audio intelligible if it weren’t for the many DSP tools available via the five DPA804 AtlasIED amplifiers on the GLOBALCOM.IP network. After analyzing the acoustical characteristics of each audio zone, Audio-Video Group set the level, EQ, and high/low filter of each amplifier to work around the acoustic obstacles.

As plans for the new YMCA rolled out, Audio-Video Group was there every step of the way. “We had eight design meetings with the YMCA team at different stages of the project, reviewing the facility room by room, space by space,” Pierce says. This provided Audio-Video Group and the YMCA with a clear vision of how the communications system would operate, and AtlasIED had a solution that suited every square inch of the cutting-edge recreation center.

“AtlasIED’s GLOBALCOM.IP communications system and IPX Series endpoints bring a unique blend of form and function to the YMCA,” says Pierce. The integrated clocks on the IP endpoints and the stylish speakers complement the structure’s modern aesthetic, while the GLOBALCOM.IP system meets every communication need now and in the future.” 

After a complete renovation of its headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Governors Association (NGA) now offers staff and visitors comfortable, modern workspaces that include a dozen new LG digital signage displays and nearly 100 LG UltraWide computer monitors that enable new messaging and remote collaboration capabilities.

From the lobby to the cafe to conference rooms, the new digital signage network from LG Business Solutions enhances the NGA’s flexibility and provides simple bring-your-own-device (BYOD) meeting spaces that deliver a variety of benefits for workers.

According to CTSI, the integration firm responsible for upgrading the NGA’s networking, data, and audiovisual systems, the new digital displays and systems at the organization’s headquarters provide the communications and collaboration tools needed to succeed in the variable work environment of the post-COVID world.

“After 12 years without upgrades, the existing conference room technologies had fallen so far behind that they were only used rarely, if at all,” said CTSI AV design expert Andy Bukowski. “Now the NGA headquarters is a beacon of modernity that allows visiting governors and their staffs to continue the hard work of governing their states while visiting the nation’s capital. As the organization returns to the office following the pandemic, the new desktop and digital signage displays will be crucial to meet the expectations of NGA staff and external colleagues alike.”

[ Georgetown University Reimagines Learning with AV Tech ]

The redesigned conference rooms enable simple plug-and-play setup for conference calls or presentations on LG 4K Ultra HD displays ranging from 55 to 98 inches diagonal, with most offering bring-your-own-device simplicity that includes HDMI connections and Airmedia wireless casting.

With the ability to display custom interactive content as well as PC feeds or cable TV, an 86-inch LG touchscreen display in the lobby welcomes governors with style and sophistication, while offering a preview of the upgrades that await them inside. When they need to get work done, visitors can use the Visiting Governors’ Office, which features a 49-inch LG 4K display with simple laptop and tablet connections.

With 90 employees, the NGA also has plenty of its own daily work to complete, which is now aided by two conference rooms with 75-inch LG 4K displays and two more with LG 55-inch 4K displays. In the largest, most popular space, the Capitol View Conference Room overlooking the U.S. Capitol, the city’s grandeur is complemented by a huge 98-inch LG 4K display. All of the displays feature LG’s advanced IPS panels, which are also used in the office’s new LG 34-inch UltraWide desktop monitors.

“The NGA has scores of employees, and most of them expressed a desire for dual-monitor workstations to accommodate complex workflows and multitasking,” Bukowski explained. “By using LG’s UltraWide 32:9 aspect ratio monitors instead of dual-monitor setups, we were able to deliver the larger digital canvas they needed while simplifying system design and connections, resulting in a cleaner appearance and smoother operation.”

[ LaGuardia Airport Outfits New Terminal with Specialized LG Signage ]

Perhaps the most unique aspect of the NGA’s new technology infrastructure is that the audiovisual systems can be easily upgraded, thanks to CTSI’s Subscription Service that allows the NGA to request replacement technologies as new displays or features are introduced in the coming years. By replacing a large upfront cost with a monthly subscription fee, the NGA gains enormous flexibility and helps assure that its offices won’t become obsolete as technology progresses.

“Like any organization, the NGA wants to maximize the value of its investment and ensure long-term capabilities, so LG display technology coupled with CTSI’s subscription hardware and software service represented the ideal solution,” said Shantia Puckett, the NGA’s associate director of information technology. “Our clientele includes some of the most powerful people in the country, so it’s paramount that the technologies and spaces we offer them work flawlessly and deliver fast, simple means to get their work done.”

In addition to the lobby, conference room and desktop displays, CTSI installed 49-inch 4K displays in the cafe to welcome guests, provide updates and show news broadcasts. Another 55-inch LG 4K model mounted on a rolling cart enables any space to host presentations or videoconferences.

“During the presidential inauguration in January there were a number of governors using our offices and conference rooms, and when they needed to launch a Zoom meeting, we were ready,” Puckett said. “Before the renovation, our capabilities were limited, and now we have governors remarking how easy our technology is to use and how great everything looks. It’s a completely different experience, thanks to LG and CTSI.”

The NGA is the premier resource not only for governors, but also for their cabinet members, state policy experts and businesses, as well as members of Congress and staff. The NGA offers an array of services to help states collaboratively tell their stories. Thanks to decades of broad expertise, NGA teams are able to work side-by-side with state leaders to identify challenges, help governors stay ahead of the curve and offer solutions before challenges become problems.

CTSI’s Recent News

CTSI Acquires Collaborative Technology Solutions (June 25, 2021) • Collaborative Technology Solutions is a provider of audiovisual, security, and other highly engineered low-voltage solutions. CTSI's acquisition strategy will continue to focus on acquiring leading communication, collaboration, life safety, and security solution providers with complementary employee-focused cultures and a trusted commitment to customers.

CTSI Acquires DavEd Fire Systems (May 26, 2021) • DavEd Fire Systems is a provider of fire alarm and security system design, integration, maintenance, and managed services. DavEd represents the second acquisition for CTSI since partnering with Wind Point in June 2020.

Wind Point Partners Acquires CTSI (June 24, 2020) • Private equity firm Wind Point Partners has acquired Corbett Technology Solutions Inc. (CTSI), , which celebrated its 50th year in business in 2019.

RGB Spectrum has announced the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force have selected the company’s new Zio 2 solution for networked video. Zio 2 is the company’s next generation of products within the Zio Enterprise AV-over-IP platform, developed for government and civilian applications. The U.S. Navy selected Zio 2 for shipboard networked video applications, the Air Force for advanced fighter simulation applications. Commercial release is set for this month.

Zio 2 joins the Zio AV-over-IP platform, an enterprise solution offering video distribution over LANs, WANs, and mobile devices. The Zio platform combines scalable video distribution with multi-image display on individual monitors or across video walls. It includes an array of IP devices, including encoders, decoders, multiviewers, and video wall processors, all managed through a user interface with video thumbnail previews and drag-and-drop functionality. The Zio platform supports open standards to integrate video from third-party cameras and other devices.

[RGB Spectrum Debuts New Zio Recording and Streaming Media Server]

The new Zio 2 delivers both H.264 and H.265 encoding and decoding. Moreover, a single input can be encoded at different bit rates. This enables a single device to encode video up to 4K60 to local decoders while simultaneously transmitting lower resolution, lower bandwidth streams to remote locations across a campus or the internet. An open system, Zio 2 supports industry standard H.264/265 video from third-party cameras and other devices. 

The Zio 2 is available in multichannel configurations, with two- and four-channel encoders or decoders in a single compact unit. This offers the advantage of accommodating multiheaded or independent computer video signals, simplifying network design, and offering substantial space and per channel cost savings. 

Also available is a new content server for control of video recording and playback. 

“Zio 2 is a new and different approach to enterprise AV-over-IP,” said Bob Marcus, CEO of RGB Spectrum. “By supporting multichannel codecs, industry-standard H.264 and H.265 compression techniques, and sophisticated multiview displays, Zio 2 increases the reach of video distribution while simplifying its design. It is no wonder that in prerelease it was chosen by the U.S. Navy for shipboard networked video and by the Air Force for the latest generation of advanced simulators.”

Command and control center personnel haven’t had an easy time of it during the pandemic year, and efforts to mitigate virus transmission—the very threat they are attempting to manage—have made their job even more difficult. The threat strikes at the core of their purpose. 

An organization’s mission-critical personnel gather in command and control centers to access to the real-time data they need to monitor and control situations ranging from normal day-to-day operations to emergencies. But when people must remain distanced from each other because of pandemic precautions, forcing many to work remotely, how can command and control stay relevant?

Command and control centers have been busier than ever during the pandemic, according to Heather Conover, director of global business development at Constant Technologies. In addition to applications including managing corporate logistics, running E-911 services, and monitoring statuses for utilities, some are now overseeing COVID-19 monitoring, tracking vaccine shipments and organizing food deliveries to homes.

“Like any industry, command and control has had to pivot throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Conover. “If anything, these centers have become even more crucial during the pandemic, as everything from public safety to increased cybersecurity risks have been pushed to the forefront. Ultimately these rooms deal with risk management, and the COVID-19 pandemic has been the largest-scale risk management response in recent history.”

While the need for command and control is settled science, the pandemic response has challenged how these centers operate. Social distancing protocols reduced the number of people who could work in these centers simultaneously—in some cases, down to 10 percent of their usual capacity, said John Hickey, senior director of R&D and KVM systems at Black Box—causing organizations to pivot quickly to allow staff to work remotely. This trend of de-densification is accomplished in 24/7 centers by rotating personnel between the office and home. COVID-related health safeguards include constructing acrylic partitions between workstations and having operators wear masks. 

Meanwhile, security measures governing the inflow and outflow of information from command and control rooms are following an opposite trend; the risk of cyberthreats increases as the number of locations increases.

“Working from a home site added the need for extra layers of security, as typically the home was not defined as part of the security infrastructure for the control room,” said Hickey. “VPNs and other technologies were added to allow secure access to the normal site, allowing an operator to work securely from home.”

[3 Ways to Increase Productivity in the Control Room]

Naturally, AV over IP technology is playing a big role in this transition by facilitating remote sharing, so a person working from home or a satellite campus sees the same information as an operator at the command and control center.

“We’re seeing multiple-site setups where people are working from home or at another location, but everything from that central command and control location is shared among everyone,” said Mark Bohs, director of sales for the Americas at Datapath. “With the proliferation of AV over IP technology, we’re seeing more data requirements for the command and control centers, and this allows us to push content to other places outside of the command and control center.”

KVM technology solutions are helping solve related issues of remote access. For example, adding a KVM switch to the control room can eliminate the need for multiple keyboards and peripherals by allowing a single keyboard and mouse to control all the computers.

“With high-performance KVM over IP systems, the computers can be hundreds or thousands of miles away,” said Hickey. “The user simply selects the target computer from an on-screen menu, which may have hundreds of different targets. Over the last few years, KVM systems were enhanced to allow these to be virtual machines as well as physical machines. The key trend has been to move these systems—KVM and AV included—to operate over IP networks.”

[The Integration Guide to AVoIP]

Ongoing AV/IT convergence is the backbone that enables it all, bringing the benefit of real-time collaboration with other operators in the room and with other locations, Conover noted. “While not completely new to the market, technologies like streaming and videoconferencing are seeing growth in the command and control environment, particularly after this last year,” she said. “The real trend that we are looking at is not necessarily exciting new technology so much as ensuring that the fundamental platforms used in these mission-critical systems are deployed with the highest levels of security and functionality.”

The pandemic-related disruption of work practices and control room build-outs and retrofits over the last year gives AV integrators an opportunity to enter or strengthen their presence in the command and control room market, Hickey said.

“There will be an increasing move to high-performance KVM over IP and AV over IP solutions, with traditional matrix systems moving into the legacy category,” Hickey predicted. “AV integrators with good IP networking skills will be able to find new ways to design and scale systems for customers. The addition of remote working adds the need for enhanced, secure remote access and data control design to keep data secure.”

Bohs added that the overall market has held up well during the COVID-19 pandemic, and integrators who were perhaps more focused on traditional digital signage before the pandemic are seeing the opportunities with command and control.

[The Integration Guide to AV in a Post-COVID-19 World]

“A lot of the key components that they’re used to—hanging screens, running cables, putting together video walls—a lot of that still applies to command and control; it just brings some other disciplines into the mix,” said Bohs. “Most of the command and control room environments today need to be dynamic and they have to be able to change. There’s lot of collaboration going on, too. A lot of that [uses] skills they’re already using.”

Still, integrators who want to move into the market have other factors to consider. Downtime isn’t an option in command and control, said Conover, and integrations require highly specific expertise. It’s a space where literal life and death decisions are made every day, and it takes skill and a thorough understanding of available and emerging (but proven) technologies to successfully serve the market.

“The last year has really highlighted the importance of remote collaboration and the need to share rapidly changing data with key decision makers,” said Conover, “[but] it’s added another layer of complexity to an environment that’s already known for challenging and demanding requirements. The solutions needed for a command and control center are beyond the capabilities of do-it-yourself. The challenges of the last year have, if anything, made the need to have a highly functioning command center more important—and partnerships with skilled integrators are needed to make that happen.

“COVID-19 put reaction time and efficiency to the test,” Conover added. “Moving forward, it is clear that organizations with highly functional command and control rooms are best positioned to deal with the unexpected.” 

Click here to read more stories from the May 2021 issue of SCN.

Command and control rooms are managing and distributing more information than ever, with a need to seamlessly integrate a diverse range of systems. What challenges are emerging and what might command and control rooms look like in a post-pandemic future?

“In many ways, COVID-19 only exacerbated or accelerated what was already going on in performance media in control rooms. Highly proprietary, local-only control room solutions did not make the grade. Organizations that had begun the steady migration to performance media over IP—and that understood ways to leverage that within facilities as well as how to securely engage resources outside given physical locations—were much more adaptive during the pandemic,” explained Samuel Recine, Matrox’s vice president of sales, AV/IT Group, Americas and Asia Pacific. “At present, customers are ultimately best served by software-defined workflows, so the market continues to be pushed toward standards-based and interoperable hardware and software products. Edge devices need to be well behaved ingredients on AV over IP networks. Hardware and software products also need to be platforms so they can play nice with other things needed in control room operations.”

Software-only or software-dominant products are already center stage in unified communications and control rooms, stated Recine. The market is also fusing products from multiple areas to serve the needs of their control room operations, including IT, pro AV, broadcast and more, he noted.

“It is now possible to assemble capabilities in numerous different ways. The market is maturing and the discussion has drifted away from proving that the highest levels of performance media can be achieved on IP and now onto increased usefulness and capabilities of new, emerging AV/IT hybrid infrastructures.”

While Recine said that getting any data to and from decision-makers in command and control is mostly a problem solved, he believes the next challenge for command and control rooms will be the amount of information being processed.

AI Enabled-Future

“Distributed control rooms in multiple physical locations can now share assets, and high-performance media is supportable on an unprecedented number of nodes and at global distances. The next bottleneck is information overload. AI possesses exceptional potential as a human decision-making enhancement. In the not too distant future, AI-assisted control room decision-making will become a top-shelf topic,” said Recine.

AI is already being explored in the defense space for coordinating complex military and human networks, as well as transportation for air traffic control rooms. But Recine believes the use of AI in this way will go mainstream over the next decade. For instance, in 911 dispatch centers.

“Natural language processing will evolve enough to allow AI to help 911 call-takers. Based on what the panicked callers are saying, AI will spit out relevant questions for the human 911 dispatchers to ask to maximize the precious few seconds they have on the phone. The gains in efficiency and quality of information will [transfer] directly into better public safety response,” he added.

While some sectors may be slow to adopt machine learning and AI, command and control rooms seem to be embracing the potential benefits to operation and efficiency.

“The use of these technologies has at least two areas of impact on control rooms: one, on the types and volume of data that can be visualized in the control room, and two, in the way that responses and actions to visual data are increasingly directed or escalated by software algorithms,” said Steve Seminario, vice president of product development at Planar.

[Planar Expands U.S. Government Division]

There is now more data to visualize in different ways, and there is greater ability for software to analyze and recognize patterns in visual data that can be acted on directly or by escalation to human decision-makers, noted Seminario. “The software content and analytical horsepower in any control room has increased dramatically in recent years and makes visual content even more vital to important decisions.”

RGB Spectrum vice president of marketing Andy Thompson is also witnessing a growing interest in AI. “We’re seeing AI, machine learning, and big data typically presented in the control room from dedicated host computer systems that need to share complex visualizations without adding additional software to the host. This is driving the deployment of devices like XtendPoint KVM over IP that enable remote keyboard video and mouse control with no changes to the host software.”

Robust Distribution

Another trend, and perhaps a more obvious one, is the move toward AV over IP. “We are increasingly seeing deployment of IP networks in command and control rooms, for both KVM over IP extension inside the control room and for extending situational awareness beyond the walls of the control room with enterprise-class AV over IP. The goal being improved situation awareness, better decision-making, and faster response,” Thompson added.

[The Integration Guide to AVoIP]

“Inside the control room, we’re seeing XtendPoint KVM over IP extenders used to provide operators with control of remote servers at their desktop, and using the same solution to share information with decision-makers on the front-of-room video wall. Zio Enterprise Class AV over IP enables control room sources to be shared across WANs to other control rooms, as well as mobile devices,” shared Thompson.

The need for seamless data sharing and flexible display capability has also become paramount, said Jon Litt, senior manager at Christie’s U.S. government solutions division.

“Smaller groups within emergency operation centers (EOCs) often need their own collection points for data, separate from the main screen, to allow them to work on their own respective challenges. It is also important that these groups can instantly share information with the wider team—and the primary display—when necessary,” Litt said.

“This is where effective processing and switching comes in, allowing users to view and interact with AV sources, as well as collaborate. Being able to manipulate displays to show relevant sources and data in a digestible format is key,” he added. ”An effective system is one that the average user can quickly learn how to use. Control rooms now need a robust distribution solution allowing signals to be distributed to any on-site display with low latency. More organizations are using AV over IP solutions over conventional switching systems for handling the transportation and processing of virtually uncompressed, zero-frame latency, artifact-free video content.”

Power and Flexibility

For integrators thinking about choosing the right displays for an EOC or control room, visual acuity is hugely important.

“The ability for a person to intelligibly read data essentially boils down to mathematics: the size of the display and the distance from which the display is going to be viewed,” said Litt. “Exactly what content or source is being viewed has a lot to do with that. If a person is at the end of that control room, can they look at that display and understand what it is they are reading? If you’re looking at a power grid or a transit authority, the ability to look at the big picture and still read the content for that particular symbol is exceptionally important. Therefore, you’re going to need to blow up the image larger to allow the individual to read it at that distance. A 1080p resolution can be suitable for many control rooms and EOC displays, but there are applications where 4K, and potentially 8K in the future, will be more prevalent and necessary.”

Command and control room personnel are increasingly looking for flexible solutions that allow them to change the layout or size of content being displayed.

“Video wall solutions that offer front serviceability and simplified maintenance are gaining popularity as customers look for products that are easy to use and maintain, and can reduce downtime often associated with teardowns or repairs—especially in mission-critical environments where downtime is not an option. This is also fueling demand for displays designed for 24/7 use and engineered with built-in redundant power supplies to ensure operations are failsafe and continuous,” said Seminario.

In the future, control rooms will require reliable and high-performing solutions that optimize decision-making and can manage the level of data they need in these critical environments. Even with leaps in technology, some things never change.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, nearly 2.8 million passengers flew into and out of U.S. airports every day in 2019. Like the commute to work that can be done practically blindfolded, most business travelers move quickly through terminal labyrinths to get to gates and baggage claim.

But the U.S. Travel Association states that 80 percent of domestic trips are for leisure purposes. That’s more than 2.2 million people every day in 2019 fumbling to remove forgotten liquids from carry-on bags, figuring out how to get the car seat onto the belt and through the scanner, then stopping once they get through the TSA line to gather the kids, look for their gate, look for food, and listen for P.A. announcements regarding flight delays or gate changes. And on the other side, they want to quickly find their bags and ground transportation to begin their vacation.

Airports are prioritizing just that, installing technology that will help move travelers through airport terminals as quickly as possible.

Recent events, unfortunately, are drastically reducing the number of people who travel by air (and sea) for both work and pleasure, though those who do find themselves in a transportation hub no doubt appreciate being able to see and hear important announcements and safety messaging, as well as being able to find their way smoothly and efficiently.

Getting to the Decision Maker

Identifying and working with key stakeholders in different vertical markets has its share of nuances, but the transportation market might be among the most nuanced. “The biggest challenge we see is getting the right information to the airport executives, and past the purchasing departments,” said David Weibel, senior division sales, Ford Audio-Video. “Most times, large capital projects require multiple RFPs, bids, and solicitations.”

The process often starts with current system operators, who may or may not be up to speed on the latest technologies and design. “They are asked, ‘What do you think we need?’ and then consultants may be brought into the mix,” said Weibel. “Many consultants are experts and major contributors to our profession.” Once a specification is offered, the level of the specification will determine the costs, and the level of quality. “Then the final question: Does the low bid win? I bet it does,” he opined.

Getting from Point A to Point B

The easer information is to obtain, the smoother things run for everyone.

At a high level, the solutions are simple. “Large, visible signage with excellent software, a large enough font to be seen at a distance, and great content in multiple locations are key,” said Weibel.

The architectural design trend that’s creating challenges in remodels and new construction of corporate buildings—bright and open—is only exacerbated in airport terminals. “Many new areas are bright with lots of windows, which can make it difficult for users to read typical electronic displays,” said Weibel. 

Builders can tame the light, shaping it for their purposes, when they pay close attention to screen placement, install displays that are bright enough, and use fonts, colors, and design that will stand up to the harsh glare of the sun.

Speech intelligibility is as important as visual information to ensure passengers arrive at the correct gate and on time. Massive windows not only make display choice and placement a challenge, they can render a P.A. system useless. “P.A. systems must be intelligible,” said Weibel. “In this age of large rooms with glass and hard surfaces everywhere, audio intelligibility can be very difficult and expensive to achieve, let alone keep aesthetically pleasing.” If you don’t have acoustical expertise in-house, it is important to team up with acoustical consultants that can work with project architects, engineers, and your team to ensure success.

“Digital communications allow for many more design opportunities regarding audio and video in large spaces,” said Weibel. “This allows for easier physical wiring and provision in large spaces, and almost infinite design and configuration possibilities.”

Revenue Boost

When it comes to generating new revenue at Cenero, Frank Milesky, Southeast area director, said, “We’ve gotten creative about how and what we position from a digital canvas and audiovisual perspective.” Transportation hubs and centers are actively looking for new ways to design static areas of their facilities with either revenue-generating or experiential opportunities, and Cenero has created some turnkey solutions.

“For experiential spaces, we are no longer just the ‘AV team’ that just does the ‘medium’ or the ‘technology,’” said Milesky. Cenero works closely with local digital retail ad firms, recruiting them to become affiliates so they can provide a cohesive package. “We’ve partnered and aligned with three digital content shops who help us provide the client with storyboards of how we may be able to use these spaces to provide a different experience,” he said. Including the content teams right from the beginning ensures the technology medium matches the intent of the space. “We use our partners to help comment on which technologies may best deliver the requested experience,” said Milesky.

[Taking a Chance with AV Art Installations in Transportation Hubs Pays Off]

“We’ve heavily leveraged AVaaS and leasing to provide opex [operational expenditure] models that mirror cash out-flows for the equipment outlay, as well as cash in-flows with advertisers,” said Milesky. “We’re able to reduce the need for a client to come up with significant capital to purchase these solutions. Via leasing or AVaaS, we’re able to get them the technology they want and finance the payment over time.”

Integrating audio and visual communications solutions enhances the effectiveness of wayfinding, paging, emergency notification, and evacuation information. “Integrators who may have only offered audio-based communications can boost revenue by layering in visual messaging solutions such as digital signage,” said John Massaro, vice president engineering and operations at MKJ Communications.

MKJ is doing exactly this by adding digital signage to a Dante-compliant GLOBALCOM.IP audio communications network. Massaro added, “MKJ was able to implement innovative visual messaging solutions that complement audio broadcasts. For example, to help travelers with hearing impairments, digital signage automatically displays messages being broadcast audibly.” This same signage can be used for wayfinding applications, such as directing people to the nearest exit during an emergency.

Further Streamlining

Airports and other transportation facilities don’t have the luxury of closing while undergoing renovation; since they must remain operational, changes are implemented in phases. “One airport terminal might receive a facelift, while the remaining terminals go untouched,” said Massaro. “Consequently, newly added communications systems must be able to interface with the older, existing communications networks. Products like Dante-CobraNet interfaces can facilitate this link between old and new technologies,” he said.

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Systems with automation features help streamline the boarding process. For example, gate agents need press only one button on an automated communications station to activate prerecorded boarding information. “The boarding sequence, through parameters programmed into the communications system software, can be timed perfectly for the type of aircraft at the gate,” said Benny Ameti, senior engineer at MKJ. “The system knows how long it takes to board each group of passengers specifically for the type of aircraft at the gate. The entire process is streamlined significantly.”

Near Future

Digital signage for wayfinding has been deployed for more than a decade. It’s the transition to mobile wayfinding and information-gathering that Ford AV’s Weibel sees as the next frontier. “Mobile wayfinding will someday become generally available; however, the airport administration’s expectation that all users will be comfortable with downloading apps specific to particular airports, configuring apps, creating accounts, managing passwords, and dealing with connectivity issues may be a bit too far on the future’s edge,” said Weibel. “Until then, the simple, tried-and-true information distribution via Multi-User Flight Information Display Systems [MUFIDS] and other visual alerts, combined with high-intelligibility P.A. systems, are key for keeping passengers informed.”   •

When MKJ Communications started engineering and installing critical communications systems in large public transportation hubs such as LaGuardia Airport, the most current audio distribution solution utilized CobraNet technology to deliver audio and video signals over IP networks. For many of these projects, MKJ relied on AtlasIED’s extensive portfolio of CobraNet-compliant communications products.

“AtlasIED GLOBALCOM.IP mass communications ecosystem provides us with a full range of CobraNet-compliant products that meet the stringent paging, messaging, and emergency notification demands of public transportation facilities,” says John Massaro, vice president engineering and operations at MKJ Communications.

Airport Renovation Opens the Door for Dante

While MKJ’s affinity for AtlasIED GLOBALCOM.IP communications solutions hasn’t changed, today, the company’s choice audio-over-IP mass communications system follows the newer Dante protocol. “Not that there’s anything wrong with CobraNet,” says Massaro. Many of MKJ’s large transportation projects still function admirably via the CobraNet-based communications platform. But when airports and other transportation facilities update or add new terminals, it’s the ideal time to migrate to a new and more modern audio-over-IP standard like Dante. “The technology has strong backing of more than 2,000 products from more than 400 manufacturers, including AtlasIED, and any new products developed in the future are likely to adhere to Dante,” Massaro says. Moreover, the transition to Dante as the de facto audio-over-IP standard may eventually leave systems integrators with fewer and fewer CobraNet options.

CobraNet Keeps Communicating at Existing Terminals

Still, CobraNet has its place—and that place currently is throughout many of the existing terminals at LaGuardia Airport in New York City, continuing to seamlessly connect microphone stations, processors, amplifiers, and speakers for efficient multichannel distribution of digital audio. “In the few existing terminals left at the airport, CobraNet continues to facilitate distribution of critical communications for boarding, paging, and emergency notification,” says Massaro. “In transportation facilities like LaGuardia, where upgrades happen infrequently and systems are used for 20 years before they get replaced, CobraNet is still relatively popular. But when areas of the airport do undergo a major renovation, it makes sense to install that latest technology, which today is Dante.”

Uniting Legacy and Leading-Edge Audio-over-IP Platforms

Fortunately, the two protocols can be easily integrated via a network bridge, which MKJ deployed in its $4 million-plus overhaul of terminals B, C and D. Equipment comprising the new gate paging and flight announcement systems installed in these terminals are all Dante-compliant, and from AtlasIED’s GLOBALCOM.IP portfolio. Thanks to the networking bridge, the Dante systems can interoperate with the CobraNet equipment used in the other existing terminals and concourses, creating one unified communications network.

“To airport personnel, the only noticeable difference between the two systems is the lower latency of the Dante network and the intuitiveness of the Dante controller’s graphic user interface,” says Massaro. “Digital audio signals traveling from microphone to speaker happens with near-zero latency and airport staff are able to master the communications controls faster.”

Innovative Airport Messaging

Dante also provided MKJ with the opportunity to provide audible messaging for the hearing impaired. In the upgraded terminals, MKJ installed inductive hearing loops, which interface directly with the Dante communications system and AtlasIED’s GCK 3.0 notification software.

The GCK 3.0 software also supports customization and automation of messages. “Through the software we can steer announcements to certain amplifiers, play back recorded messages in any language, automate the boarding process, and convert text messages to speech, for example,” says Benny Ameti, MKJ senior engineer. This helps with ADA compliance, a feature unique to GLOBALCOM.IP.

Because Dante facilitates the distribution of both digital audio and video signals, MKJ was able to also implement innovative visual messaging solutions that complement audio broadcasts. For example, to help travelers with hearing impairments, digital signage automatically displays messages being broadcast audibly. This same signage can be used for wayfinding applications, like directing people to the nearest airport exit during an emergency.

Phasing in Dante, Keeping CobraNet

Legacy and leading-edge technologies like CobraNet and Dante can co-exist peacefully, as MKJ demonstrates in the initial phases of its communications upgrade of several terminals at LaGuardia Airport. For markets like the transportation industry, which roll out expansion projects in multiple phases, being able to bridge old and new communications networks keeps the facility operating at full capacity while the upgrades are rolled out. No matter which Dante-based AtlasIED amplifiers, microphone stations, controllers, and communications endpoints MKJ installs, audio broadcasts can be shared seamlessly between the existing CobraNet-based network and new Dante network.

AtlasIED unified communications (UC) for transportation environments

AtlasIED GLOBALCOM.IP

The Montgomery County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in Conroe, TX serves as a centralized hub for data analysis and the management of response efforts related to large-scale events and natural disasters. The facility—which serves as a resource for government agencies—recently upgraded its AV/IT systems with the deployment of a Christie Terra SDVoE (Software Defined Video over Ethernet) solution, which enables signal distribution to any displays in the EOC, via 10Gb Ethernet.

Chris Lawson, regional vice president at Conference Technologies out of St. Louis, MO, the AV design and integration firm charged with deploying the solution, said that prior to this project, the Montgomery EOC was equipped with a fixed chassis system that limited the number of sources and options for distributing information. “It was important for them to be able to add sources and displays, and push information to them in real time with low latency in any arrangement of video and data required,” he said. “Choosing Terra enabled that.”

While scalability and flexibility are high priorities for anyone charged with deploying AV support for mission-critical facilities, so too is the question of uptime. When one considers that a two-hour period of internet downtime can wreak significant havoc in a small to mid-sized business, it can be downright catastrophic in organizations responsible for dealing with situations that come down to a matter of life and death. But how can tech managers guarantee that their mission-critical systems will indeed work 24/7?

For Sumanth Rayancha, CTO at PepperDash Technology Corp., an enterprise AV solutions provider headquartered in Salem, MA, it starts with accepting that they won’t. “Everybody on the team has to understand that you define the goal as the system never going down, but the reality is, at some point the system will go down,” he said. And, he added, the general rule is that system failures will occur when one least expects them to. “The first part is, regardless of what you’re doing from a technical standpoint, you have to be operationally prepared for the downtime.”

The key word here, Rayancha underlined, is “operationally”—it’s not enough to have all the right equipment in place unless those operating it have prepared for an inevitable failure. “You can’t just activate the room and [only] use the room when you have an emergency,” he said. Instead, mission-critical operations center teams should hold drills that simulate failures and how to best respond to them. “You need to be drilling, you need to be preparing for failure.” He said that in his experience, the two industries that have the most experience with this approach are broadcast (where dead air equals disaster), and the military (whose job is to deal with disaster).

Of course, it’s also necessary to select the right equipment for the job. “What we’ve seen from time to time is that people stick with what they know, and what they know depending on who the team is—and that might be conference rooms,” Rayancha said. “Typical conference room equipment might be good for a lot of circumstances, but it might not be the right product for something that’s really meant to be 24/7 mission critical.” 

This means that not only the technology has to be high-performing; so too does the manufacturer’s support team. While IT managers are accustomed to purchasing service-level contracts that include benefits such as parts replacement within two hours, this isn’t always possible with AV equipment. The solution: having cold spares on hand. “You figure out what has the heaviest hitting impact if you have a failure, keep spares around, and have your team trained on replacement,” Rayancha said.

As is the case with conducting drills, it’s also necessary to perform regular preventative maintenance to keep things up and running. “The other problem that we’ve run into is where the customer builds out the system and then the system sits there,” Rayancha said. In this scenario, the technology is performing well during relatively calm periods, but when “the customer has a real emergency and then they discover a problem, processes and procedures aren’t set up to actually work through the room properly.” Regular testing and maintenance contribute to preventing this situation.

Daniel Griffin is vice president of marketing at Userful, a visual networking platform developer headquartered in San Ramon, CA. He argues that his company’s software-based solution contributes to maintaining uptime because it’s built on the same standards that tech managers are used to working with—thus, keeping things simple. “What needs to be paid more attention is the human side,” he said. “What happens when you’ve made things so complicated that only one engineer understands how your video wall works? Keep this standards-based, simple, and intuitive, and operating on the infrastructure every other IT person in the world is accustomed to.” If the tech is 100-percent redundant, but only a limited number of team members know how to operate it, eventually there will be problems, he added.

Another issue that exists in mission-critical deployments is the tendency to over-engineer solutions in order to compensate for potential failures, Rayancha noted. “The problem with that is eventually, your engineered solutions for failure are more likely to cause a failure than to actually help you through one,” he said. One-hundred percent redundancy is one way people try to address failure, which isn’t necessarily a good approach when it comes to AV. “Part of the problem is, a lot of the equipment that we deal with isn’t designed for redundancy—not for true, active/active fail-over scenarios,” Rayancha said. “People will try to engineer their way around one, but there’s a reason [these solutions] don’t always exist off the shelf—they’re difficult to build.” Sometimes, he added, the best workaround is simpler: move the entire team to another equally equipped mission-critical space down the hall. 

At PepperDash—a technology firm, after all—tech obviously plays a key role in mission-critical deployments, but it’s not necessarily the silver bullet. “It comes back to the human aspect of it, especially in circumstances where you have lives on the line,” Rayancha said. “If you’re not mentally prepared for that, the technology is not going to get you out of that situation.”

One of the best ways to ensure uptime (almost) all the time is to drill team members on what to do when the system fails. Usually, this starts with defining likely failure scenarios, and then creating run books that detail things like who is responsible for what; what must be visible in the room at all times; and what outside sources—such as teleconferences—are implicated. Then, the AV/IT manager activates the failure scenario, and team members run through simulations.

Rayancha uses an example from the oil and gas sector: “They have specific emergencies that they know they’ll have to deal with—it could be a natural disaster, it could be drill rig problems—and they simulate it,” he said. “They run through: this is happening here—what do you do? And the operators in the room have to keep it together and do what they’re supposed to do, which could be: call this person up and get a video feed so we know what’s going on from here.”

“It’s basically scenario or business case-based,” said Howard Nunes, CEO at PepperDash. “And the concept of the run book is a very important one, where you define ahead of time what the likely scenarios are that you’ll have to face, and how you would address them, and then run drills against that. And the drill may not be perfect—your predictions may not be perfect—but you’re at least somewhat prepared.”

Lamar Airports was selected to overhaul the advertising signage in San Antonio International Airport with four bigger and brighter NanoLumens LED displays. The project will give advertisers higher visibility and more flexible canvas, and the airport  visitors a more modern image. 

Commissioned by the airports division of Lamar Advertising and integrated by VIA Technology, the project includes four strategically placed displays, They are a flat-panel display above the B-Side entrance to the Baggage Claim zone, a column wrap within the Baggage Claim zone, and a ribbon display above the TSA check-in area. The fourth and final display of the project is a quatrefoil, a four-lobed geometric shape central to the culture and brand of San Antonio. This distinctive display overlooks the TSA check-in area. All of these locations were chosen because they are well-lit and highly trafficked.

After winning the advertising rights to the airport, Lamar Airports committed to a sweeping overhaul of the airport’s signage. According to Michael Neck, airport project manager for Lamar, “Lamar always seeks to find digital advertising opportunities that complement the airport aesthetics, enhance the passenger experience, and deliver great opportunities for local and national advertisers to get their messages to their clients.”

“The goal was to showcase San Antonio’s ability to move forward into the future with technology and to include advertising along with that,” said Michael Villa, of VIA Technology, the integrator for the project. “The signs that previously filled the space gave an empty and plain feel. LEDs offer much greater clarity and customization.”

Airports typically feature high levels of ambient light, and San Antonio International is no exception. When asked about how such light levels affect signage, NanoLumens Regional Sales Manager Eric Siegler noted, “It’s important for airport passengers and advertisers alike that passengers have access to clearly visible signage. So signage must stand out, even when the environment is filled with sunlight. LED is really the only solution bright enough to accomplish this. It was the right technology for what Lamar and the airport desired for their user experience.”

Neck expanded upon the apt fit of LED for the project. “LED displays bring a level of customization that cannot be achieved through LCD solutions. Lamar was able to showcase the local pride of San Antonio with the customized 2.5mm pixel pitch LED Quatrefoil display. We were also able to develop a column-wrapped LED that showcases the tech-forward approach that San Antonio desires and deserves.”

Each of the four displays features a 2.5mm pixel pitch, with all used almost exclusively for advertising content. The specific locations for each display were chosen because they are high-traffic areas where passengers also exhibit high dwell time. 

“These are some of the most complex displays in the city, so VIA Technology was grateful for the opportunity to work on this project and to be included as a premier technology installer in San Antonio,” commented integrator Villa.

With millions of daily visitors, YouTube has become an ideal platform for government agencies to keep the public apprised of breaking legislative developments. Content traditionally reserved for public TV or meeting rooms is now increasingly being live streamed, as the Minnesota House of Representatives is showing. House Public Information Services, a non-partisan office of the Minnesota House of Representatives, broadcasts select meetings live on PBS and cable when the House is in session, but also delivers a live stream of every meeting room to YouTube, relying on AJA’s HELO to stream meeting content to potential viewers 24/7.

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Looking to enhance the accessibility and quality of each stream, House Public Information Services engineering director Michael Simonds recently modernized the agency’s workflow, bringing streaming in house and upgrading image quality from SD to HD. “HD is everywhere now, and before using HELO, our feeds were down-converted from 1080i and streamed in SD to our website using a third-party service,” he said. “That level of quality just wasn’t cutting it anymore, especially for the cost, but fortunately technology like HELO has made it easy and affordable to stream HD content to better cater to audience viewing habits.

"With HELO, we can live stream high-quality content straight to YouTube, so anyone who is interested in meetings or debates on important issues can open up the YouTube app, find the stream they want to view, and tune in directly from their computers, phones, or other portable devices; it’s improved the viewer experience and saved us a ton on streaming costs.”

HELO’s support for closed captioning was another key consideration in the workflow overhaul, as the office strives to be ADA compliant for the public. Latency also played a large factor in the decision. “HELO’s closed captioning support is huge and a major reason we decided to go with it,” Simonds said. “The devices have also helped us reduce latency by nearly 90 percent, going from one minute to five seconds; that’s a noticeable improvement and perfect for the kind of talking-heads content we’re covering.”

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The Minnesota House of Representatives campus spans multiple committee rooms with production equipment spread throughout the House Chamber and surrounding buildings. The main production facility is based in the state office building across the street from the House Chamber and features two production control rooms. Since all meetings are considered public, 13 HELOs located in a media hub in the basement of the Minnesota State Capitol, where content is distributed, stream committee room footage 24/7 to allow access to meetings that may not get television coverage. All video typically runs through the media hub and is converted from SDI to fiber for long distance runs, and back to SDI in the main control room. There, it is run through a switcher and graphics system. Audio is distributed back at the House Chamber and submixed down to Simonds’ department. Graphics are then added into the feeds, which are converted back to fiber and transmitted across the street to the Capitol building and back into the media hub. The feeds are then sent across a VLAN to the House IT network, where its internet connection is used to send the feeds to YouTube. 

“The HELOs pack a lot of punch for such little devices,” Simonds said. “Lined up vertically in a rack, their power is impressive, especially given the massive workstations traditionally used to achieve the same end result. They’re also super easy to use: plug them in, turn them on, and they do exactly what you want. They just keep working, even when running 24/7—true workhorses.”

In addition to using HELOs for live streaming to YouTube, Simonds’ team uses a host of other AJA gear for delivering content to broadcast to public TV stations. These solutions include FS2s for frame synchronization, and Hi5 Mini-Converters for converting SDI to HDMI for large HDMI monitor walls. 

In a place like Las Vegas, you have to be bold to stand out—and this starts with getting the attention of visitors as soon as they arrive.

Understanding the revenue-generating, creative and production advantages that only an LED display-based advertising network can deliver, Lamar Airport Advertising recently removed all of the static advertising signage and banners in the Terminal 1 baggage claim area of McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas and replaced them with 60 Engage Series and Performance Series LED displays from NanoLumens.

“As the initial purchase price of LED displays continues to become more and more competitive, the enormous revenue-generating, creative and production efficiencies the format offers have become more and more compelling,” said Rosemary Vassiliadis, director, McCarran International Airport. “After a careful review, we decided that the return on investment opportunity was very real, which convinced us that the time was right to undertake a complete renovation of the baggage claim area advertising displays to meet the needs of our advertisers for years to come. Lamar partnered with us to make the project a reality.”

Those needs, according to Brig Newman, vice president and senior director, airports for Lamar, include better engagement and greater advertising recall coupled with the ability to replace creative on the fly, and target arriving passengers with rifle-specific messages. “Today’s generation of travelers and consumers are completely digital-centric,” he emphasized. “They respond to digitally delivered ads in a way that they never will to static display ads. It’s a generational shift that is here to stay. Our advertisers understand the shift and they want to be able to leverage it in their campaigns, complete with audience analytics and targeted messaging.”

Recent studies by Arbitron and Capital Networks underscore the fact that consumers engage more completely and more often with digitally delivered ads than they do with static ads. What’s more, according to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA), out of the top 100 OOH advertisers, 37 doubled their spending on digital ads from Q3 2016 to Q3 2017.

“Most of the adverting that Lamar had in that baggage claim area needed to be constantly updated as the shows and events in Vegas frequently change,” said Dave Merlino, NanoLumens vice president of sales. “Removing static banners and sign graphics and putting up new ones was an additional cost for Lamar’s advertisers. Replacing those banners with NanoLumens LED displays empower Lamar to offer their clients a world-class digital advertising platform whose content can be changed instantly to meet the needs of its advertisers.”

Among several challenges encountered during this massive project was the task itself. Sixty static signs had to be replaced with NanoLumens displays while the baggage claim area continued to operate around the clock. “The project often took place as travelers were passing through the baggage claim area in what is a 24/7/365 airport,” Merlino said.

“This was a huge project considering the number of displays we were replacing,” Newman said. “Time was of the essence as well, as we needed to replace the static signage with the NanoLumens displays in a timely fashion to meet the needs of our advertisers. The flexibility we were offered working with NanoLumens, along with their incredible six-year warranty, removed a lot of the issues we were concerned with.”

Local Las Vegas integrator Vision Sign handled this massive install and knew from past experience that NanoLumens displays were the perfect solution for what Lamar wanted to accomplish with this project. “There is a lot of ambient light coming through surrounding windows in the Terminal 1 baggage claim area, which really lends itself to LED, so NanoLumens was ideal for this install,” said Jeff Quintana, vice president at Vision Sign. “Lamar Advertising wanted to bring the space to life and switching from the static ads to NanoLumens LED displays did exactly that.”

Lamar and Vision Sign also had to handle the issue of providing the necessary power to run the 60 NanoLumens displays, as well as finding the room in this busy airport for a rack system that would power all the content being driven to the displays. As Quintana explained, “NanoLumens specifies the power requirements ahead of time, so that’s a huge help and their displays work with any media player and software platform—so the powering content part of the equation is simplified as well.”

Lamar engaged OSSI to design and install the software platform that runs the massive new system. OSSI designed and manages the NOC that powers all the digital signage at McCarran.

The 60 NanoLumens displays were broken down into a variety of sizes and types and installed all around the McCarran Terminal 1 baggage claim area. The largest among them were soffit displays, with six of these being installed on the walls surrounding baggage claim. All of these were 4mm Performance Series displays measuring 64 feet wide by 9 feet high. Six more 4mm Performance Series displays were also installed as soffit displays, with four of those measuring 32 feet by 9 feet, and the last two checking in at 32 feet by 5 feet. All of these displays rotate a set list of advertisers, enabling each to be seen by every arriving passenger in Terminal 1. A complementing loop runs in McCarran’s Terminal 3.

Lamar additionally replaced the dated video system at McCarran with two 32-foot by 18-foot 4mm Performance Series displays that run full-motion video with sound. “We wanted to restore McCarran’s prominence in welcoming our visitors,” Newman said. “McCarran has been known for years as ‘Times Square West’—we’re back on the map with this iconic installation and our advertisers are excited to be a part of this ‘first-impact’ greeting.”

The remaining 44 NanoLumens displays are all Engage Series, vertical banner-face displays installed on columns that surround the McCarran baggage claim area or are positioned on top of the baggage carousels themselves. There are 22 Engage Series 2.5mm displays that are roughly 5 feet wide by 13 feet high running on the structural columns throughout the Terminal 1 baggage claim and eight more banner-face displays that are on smaller columns where the ceiling is a bit lower, measuring 5 feet by 9 feet.

The remaining 16 horizontal displays were installed on top of the baggage claim carousels—14 of which are double-sided 2.5mm Engage Series displays and two more that are single-sided displays, all measuring 12.5 feet by 3.5 feet.

In February 2021, NASA’s Mars 2020 Rover is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet. The spacecraft will have the capability to capture imagery and sound as the Mars 2020 vehicle descends through the Martian atmosphere and lands on the surface of Mars. To capture sounds from the Red Planet for the first time ever, the Mars 2020 Rover will be outfitted with a selection of equipment from DPA Microphones.

DPA’s d:dicate 4006 Omnidirectional Microphone will capture the high-quality audio while the MMA-A Digital Audio Interface will be used to record and send  audio to a computer through its USB connection. Both mics will be paired with MMP-G Modular Active Cables, which act as ultra-transparent preamplifiers. The Mars 2020 spacecraft is currently being assembled at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California and the DPA products will be installed onto the vehicle in early 2019.

DPA won the contract from JPL based on its products ability to perform under demanding environments and the ability to deliver industry standard communication interfaces. DPA microphones can withstand the extreme conditions associated with space travel, leave a small footprint, and connect to a computer with a USB interface. “These products will be in space indefinitely, which is a testament to DPA’s quality and resiliency,” says René Mørch, product manager at DPA Microphones. “We are honored to be a part of this mission.”

The trip to Mars is expected to take seven months and will subject the Rover to extreme temperatures (environments could be -100 degrees Celsius/-148 degrees Fahrenheit), travel pressure both in and out of the atmosphere, and intense vibrations associated with traveling in a rocket. The spacecraft design team has created a specialized enclosure to mount the MMA-A interface inside the rover chassis and in cooperation with JPL/NASA, the DPA R&D team created a custom MMP-G amplifier housing to bolt onto the exterior of the Rover. The microphone will allow the public as well as project engineers and scientists to hear sounds as the Rover descends to the surface of Mars.

Capturing both audio and video of the spacecraft’s descent to the Martian surface will provide a new experience. After the Rover has landed safely on the surface of Mars, the Rover’s computer will gather the stored MMA-A audio data and the video imagery from the entry, decent and landing cameras to educate and entertain audiences everywhere. Although the audio and video data is not mission critical, it should prove to be very informative to engineers and scientists.

Melbourne, Australia’s Town Hall is a historic building that has stood tall in central city Melbourne since 1867 and is used for cultural presentations, concerts, theatrical plays, exhibitions, and tourism. So, when the Melbourne City Council (MCC) approached Citadel Technology Solutions (CTS) to install a display to promote and celebrate the city’s rich aboriginal history, Citadel Solutions Architect Paul Materazzo and the Citadel team designed the “LED Blades” display and then turned to Digital Place Solutions (DPS) and NanoLumens for a LED Nixel Plate solution that would reimagine a 19th century building for a 21st century audience of visitors.

“The MCC had a specific idea to try to attract people to enter into the town hall visitor center off the street and they wanted a display to grab people's attention with a visually stunning presentation of the region’s Aboriginal history,” Paul Materazzo said. “This would be their first LED display installation and they wanted it to be stunning and immediately compelling.”

Paul Materazzo stressed that the MCC was looking for an unusual solution and knowing the flexibility that the NanoLumens Nixel Series offers, he proposed what he called “LED Blades”: a four-post display design that would be the first of its kind in Australia.

“The MCC wanted a solution that would allow them to display individual words or images down each post, so I came up with the design of the four posts and I wanted them in various heights to enable each to have individual media displayed, or a complete display over all four posts,” he explained.

The finished display consists of four unequal length blades, the tallest at 2.2 meters, with a total display width of 1.1 meters. The Nixel Series LED displays tied this concept together as they designed each display to Citadel’s very specific specs.

“DPS worked with NanoLumens in selecting the correct LED solution for the job and then helped design the layout and insured the right technical cabling and process to make the displays able to handle the content on multiple posts together and as a single canvas,” he said.

Materazzo also noted that, “Andrew Pain from Avico was instrumental in working with us to build the canvas map for the blades and configure the digital media to display on the blades, utilizing the Smart Sign Platform.”

DPS director Gerry Thorley also spoke to the role the DPS/Citadel relationship played in making this project a success. “Through DPS experience and NanoLumens support we were able to use the two international time zones to work out the design, drawings, and budget very quickly. DPS, NanoLumens, and Citadel really pulled together as a team to deliver a stunning LED display solution on time and on budget. The result is a solution that galvanizes the attention of visitors, allowing the Melbourne City Council to present its rich cultural history in a way that will never be forgotten.”

The specific content includes an introduction to Melbourne from the Aboriginal community along with subtle imagery depicting the transition of the Aboriginal history to modern day Melbourne. A voiceover explains how the Aboriginal people see the land today and how it still connects with their history. Visitors are then directed to the area's many galleries and museums that showcase Aboriginal culture.

Among the many factors that made this a successful installation for Citadel was the support and confidence Materazzo felt working with NanoLumens on this project.

“Having the NanoLumens six-year warranty provided such a peace-of-mind and the hands-on approach they gave us from the very beginning speaks to the great support they offer,” Materazzo said. “They worked with us through every stage and also were personally involved in helping us succeed and reach our target of on-time delivery and excellent build quality.”

Susan Jacqui, senior project coordinator, business and tourism for the MCC added, “The element of speed, flexibility, and commitment to make it happen on the part of NanoLumens and DPS played a major role in turning Citadel's and MCC's ‘dream of an idea’ into a compelling and engaging reality.”

Christie has donated a 1DLP laser projector and lens to a new large-scale exhibit called “No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man,” which opened at the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C. on March 30.

Each year in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, a city of more than 75,000 people rises out of the dust for a single week. During that time, enormous experimental art installations are erected, many of which are ritually burned to the ground. “No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man” brings the large-scale, participatory works from this desert gathering to the nation’s capital for the first time.

Six major artworks are erected in adjoining streets and Five Ton Crane, an Oakland, California-based industrial arts collective, is one of three featured artists contributing to the larger group exhibit running until September 16, 2018 (with some works remaining on exhibit until January 21, 2019.

David Shulman, co-founder of Five Ton Crane, said, “Art cars have come to play a big role within the ‘Burning Man’ culture and the Renwick Gallery invited us to build a ‘mutant vehicle’ for this exhibit. Our concept is a 1920s Art Deco movie palace on wheels—in essence, an open air ‘drive-in movie theater’ and performance space. There are three rows of seats, a concession stand, candy and popcorn, and ticket booth, all done in our own version of 1920s style. Additionally, our exhibit is fully modular, allowing for the mutant vehicle to be built and then re-assembled inside the main first floor gallery.”

The Christie projectors power a series of black and white silent movies created by lead artist Bree Hylkema, which show on the screen throughout the Five Ton Crane exhibit.

“I am delighted that Christie agreed to support our creation through this donation,” said Shulman, who was already familiar with Christie’s visual technology through his role as chief financial officer of Obscura Digital. “Christie DWU850-GS projectors are the perfect solution for our art creation because Christie’s laser illumination eliminates the need for lamp and filter replacements and provides 20,000 hours of low-cost operation.”

“We needed something that could last for a long time, with little maintenance, that were powerful enough to withstand running 10 hours a day for six months—and that’s where Christie came in,” added Sean Orlando, co-founder of Five Ton Crane. “In the marquee, there is a monkey’s head, which was inspired by Hanuman, the monkey god, and his mouth is open. From the inside of the monkey’s head comes the beam from the Christie projector; it looks really cool.”

“We’re really appreciative that Christie was willing to work with on this,” concluded Shulman, “and it has been working out really well. The movies were created in-house by a collection of our artists and there are plans for six more movies to be added.”

Paul Dumpel, sales manager, Christie, said the specific nature of this large-scale art project, based on the concept of a movie theater, was a compelling reason to support the project with the donation of the two projectors and lenses. “Christie’s visual technology will be on full view at the Renwick Gallery for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who annually come through the doors of the museum.”