Integrated Systems Europe 2020’s professional development program will feature over 200 leading experts (from a wide variety of disciplines and subject areas) across five days of keynotes, conferences, masterclasses, workshops and presentations.

Presented under the slogan, “Learn. Discover. Be Inspired,” the program has been produced by Integrated Systems Events working in close co-operation with AV industry bodies — in particular, its co-owning associations AVIXA and CEDIA — media partners and other independent organizations.

The program includes an opening address; 13 conferences across five days in the Hotel Okura and RAI Amsterdam — a record number for ISE; a four-day training program from CEDIA; AVIXA FlashTracks (on Stand 13-N110) and CEDIA Talks (on Stand 1-E20) and a full program of free thought leadership sessions on the Main Stage in Hall 14 (sponsored by Shure).

The opening address on Mon., Feb. 10, will be given by Duncan Wardle, a consultant to Disney who was previously head of innovation and creativity at the entertainment giant. His presentation, “Think Different,” will look at how companies can reawaken traits in employees such as imagination, intuition and curiosity to create an environment that fosters creativity and innovation.

Àngels Chacón to ISE 2020, the minister of enterprise and knowledge in the Catalan government, will also attend ISE 2020. She will be addressing the AVIXA Women’s Council on Wednesday, Feb. 12, on the main stage. She will also take part in the Hola Barcelona! Event in the Forum on Friday, Feb. 14.

On Monday, Feb. 10, Jeff Sonnleitner — a professional network and security instructor with over 35 years’ experience — will lead CEDIA’s cybersecurity workshop. He is a network specialist and information security instructor at Moraine Park Technical College, Wisconsin. The workshop will cover all aspects of network security and privacy for professionals working in either the residential or the commercial space.

Jeff Day — a business advisor, resident of North of 10 Advisors and chairman of the AVIXA board of directors — will be speaking on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at an AVIXA FlashTrack session (on Stand 13-N110). It’s called “AV Wellness Trends — Must-Know Applications and their Impacts create Real World Opportunity for Integrators and End Users.” The next day he will chair an AVIXA panel discussion, “The Experience Revolution — How Content and Experience Change Everything in a Brand Activated World!” on the main stage.

On Monday, Feb. 10, the award-winning architect Aryanour Djalali, founder and CEO of DNA Barcelona Architects, will give a keynote at the Smart Building Conference. His theme is: “Smart Nature, Smarter Buildings.”

Speaking at the inaugural Control Rooms Summit ISE on Tuesday, Feb. 11, will be Rossano Giachino, control center manager at CERN since 2008. Giachino was in charge of control center operations for the Large Hadron Collider during its operation, as well as for two other particle accelerators, the Super Proton Synchrotron and the Large Electron Positron.

Giving the keynote address at the XR Summit ISE on Tuesday, Feb. 11, will be Hilary McVicker, VP of business development at The Elumenati — a leader in the field of immersive projection design in education, enterprise and entertainment. Her keynote is: “Immersive XR and Pushing Creative Boundaries.”

Alexandra Hussenot is the founder and CEO of Immersionn, the world’s first VR discovery engine. She is also the U.K. lead for Women in Immersive Technologies, a community of 1,000 members that aims to empower European women working in XR. She will give a Main Stage talk, presented by ISE, on Wednesday, Feb. 12: “Surrounded! How Immersive Technology Dominates the Experiential Market.”

Glenn Kelly is head of production at The Imaginarium Studios, the U.K.’s leading performance capture studio — founded by actor and director Andy Serkis, where he is exploring how motion capture developments will affect various media. In a Main Stage session on Thursday, Feb. 13, presented by AV Magazine, he will be talking about “Mixed Reality in Theatre Productions.”

Two more show features have recently been added to the ISE 2020 content program. In Hall 14, the VR at ISE feature will contain two very different interactive virtual reality exhibits. Two Digital Projection Multiview VR systems will be demonstrated, each of which allows up to three people to view and interact with a stereoscopic 3D virtual model. Each person sees the object from their own viewpoint.

The other part of the VR at ISE feature will be an immersive VR theme park ride. Designed and run by Lightspeed Design, this DepthQ VR attraction will take attendees on an interactive fantasy ride through aquatic environments.

Each evening, projection mapping will be displayed on the RAI’s Elicium building. The upper floors of the futuristic nine-story building at the front of the exhibition center will be transformed by the projection, specially created for this location. The projection will be produced by ISE and the RAI, supported by seven technology partners.

Details of ISE 2020’s professional development program can be found on the ISE website at http://www.iseurope.org. Further details will be available later this month in RISE, the official magazine of ISE 2020, and the ISE 2020 Professional Development Guide.

December 12, 2019 — Reading, PA: Hot on the heels of its successful company launch at the StreamGeeks Summit in New York City, streaming solutions startup StreamGear Inc. is bringing its innovative VidiMo solution to the consumer electronics industry’s biggest stage. At CES 2020 in Las Vegas, the company will demonstrate how the new hardware-and-app combination provides an easier way for video and social media enthusiasts to create and stream engaging, high-quality, live productions. StreamGear will exhibit in booth 51775 within CES Eureka Park at the Sands Expo and Convention Center from January 7 to 10.

VidiMo – short for Video director on Mobile – enables anyone to become a social media video star or citizen journalist. VidiMo turns a smartphone and HDMI video source (such as a camera) into a full-fledged, virtual production and transmission studio, enabling a single operator to produce multi-source, television-style shows that can be streamed live, recorded or both.

Smartphone camera quality has improved significantly in recent years, but dedicated video and DSLR cameras still provide superior creative functionality such as greater optical zoom, depth of field, tactile focus and iris control. VidiMo lets producers have the best of both worlds, bringing an HDMI video source into their iOS or Android smartphone and combining it with the phone’s camera and other sources. VidiMo users can simply capture an HDMI signal into their mobile device and stream it, or use the app’s fast, intuitive interface and advanced features to create professional-looking live shows on the fly in real time.

The VidiMo system consists of the battery-powered VidiMo Go hardware and VidiMo App. VidiMo Go’s innovative physical design forms a complete handheld production solution, serving as a capture device for HDMI video and analog audio signals; attaching any size of smartphone to a DSLR, sports/action or professional camera; and flexibly positioning the phone for convenient control of the app.

Meanwhile, the VidiMo App provides a complete live production toolkit on the smartphone, letting the user be the director, operator and on-screen talent all at once. For each show, users can switch between six fully-customizable scene layouts that mix live video and audio sources – including the HDMI source and the phone’s front or rear camera – with graphics, text and pre-recorded media clips. Shows can be recorded on the smartphone or streamed live to popular third-party services such as YouTube™ Live, Facebook™ Live and Twitch™.

VidiMo’s November debut received rave reviews from attendees at the StreamGeeks Summit, with both new and experienced streaming video producers praising its rich features, simplicity and user-focused design. With VidiMo scheduled to ship in Q1 of 2020, StreamGear is now taking applications for its Early Adopter Program and discussing retail partnerships with wireless communication service providers. Prospective users and partners are encouraged to contact StreamGear at sales@streamgear.io.

“VidiMo’s elegant simplicity opens the door to high-quality, live streaming production for a vast number of potential producers who previously couldn’t access this level of capabilities,” said Darryl Spangler, CEO of StreamGear Inc. “Everyone who has seen VidiMo first-hand has been truly impressed, and we’re looking forward to CES attendees experiencing the same ‘Aha!’ moment when they experience it in person.”

Flooded by bright sunlight, the presentation room at the University of Colorado’s Wolf Law building lays down a tough challenge for any screen. In our Installation of the Month, a dnp Supernova Core Screen makes the case for cost-effective, high-performance solutions – and wins convincingly.

The Law School at the University of Colorado in Boulder, USA, aims to inspire the vigorous pursuit of ideas, critical analysis, contemplation and civic engagement to advance knowledge about the law. The presentation room at the School’s Wolf Law Building plays an important role in this work.

Bright natural light floods the display

The Wolf Law presentation room is a collaborative zone used for mock courtroom scenarios, panel selections and general presentations. When the room needed a major upgrade of AV equipment including a new screen, the University contacted local consultants The Sextant Group for advice. Their screen specification was short yet challenging: a large, cost-effective screen that would perform well – even in bright ambient lighting.

Affordable ambient light rejection

“The screen was to be located immediately below a stretch of skylights,” comments Brandon Parrish, Senior Audiovisual Systems Designer at Sextant. “It would have to cope with lots of natural light.” It was clear that Wolf Law would need a screen with very effective ambient light rejection. The challenge was to keep it affordable.

Sextant recommended a dnp Supernova Core (120”, 16:9) Screen, which delivers high contrast balanced with an ergonomic brightness level that prevents eyestrain. The images are fully saturated, with exceptional detail, even on a sunny summer’s day.

“No better solution”

“There is no better type of screen for this scenario,” says Brandon Parrish. “Our customer at Wolf Law is very impressed with the results, particularly with all the light shining down directly onto the screen.”

SAN JOSE, Calif., December 12, 2019 – Atlona, a Panduit company, continues to strengthen its global presence with new partner and personnel appointments that bring important resources closer to its customers in every region. The appointment of Lutz Nordbrock as Technical Sales Engineer is the latest addition to the company’s EMEA team as the company looks to strengthen its regional team.

Nordbrock brings more than 25 years of technical sales and engineering expertise to Atlona, including nearly a decade in broadcast engineering at the beginning of his career. He subsequently transitioned to the industrial and commercial AV markets, serving as an independent technical representative for globally-known brands including Samsung-Techwin and Mitsubishi-Electric. He most recently held regional account management and sales engineering with Optoma (a division of Coretonic) and Vivitek, strengthening his expertise in projection and display systems.

In this newly created position, Nordbrock will closely communicate with EMEA customers throughout the sales journey on all technical matters. This includes everything from initial system design, technical drawings, and field application planning through to post-deployment problem-solving. Nordbrock’s past installation experience will bring additional value by working with integrators on the installation and commissioning of IP-based AV systems.

Nordbrock will also collaborate with Atlona regional sales managers in the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) for training and certification classes. This includes dedicated trainings at Atlona and partner facilities, as well as initiatives at regional industry events.

Atlona CEO Ilya Khayn emphasized that there is an increasing need for experts such as Nordbrock on the global sales team as Atlona transitions to a more “solutions-oriented” sales approach.

“Lutz’s wealth of engineering experience, commercial AV background, and knowledge of the entire AV ecosystem adds an important layer of technical expertise to our growing team,” said Khayn. “More specifically, Lutz is capable of diving deeper into timely industry topics such as AV/IT convergence and networked control, which will prove especially valuable to our partners managing AV over IP deployments at end user facilities. His communication skills will also add value to a wide range of customer-facing requirements, from education to onsite support.”

Long-time DiGiCo user, Stage Sound Services was one of the first companies to invest in the British console manufacturer’s latest Quantum 7 engine for its seven SD7s, stating that their unwavering belief in DiGiCo’s ability to continually upgrade its product made its most powerful engine to date a must have for the Cardiff-based rental company.

“As well as the SD7s, we have a large stock of SD10s,” says Stage Sound Services Phil Hurley. “When it was time to add more consoles to our inventory, we wanted to invest in the very latest technology and having seen the capabilities of the Quantum 7 it was an obvious choice. We knew that as soon as our customers saw Quantum 7 was available, they’d want to use its new features and capability to enhance their sound designs.”

Two of the Quantum 7s were put to immediate use on the UK theatre tour of Dr Doolittle and the London production of Fiddler on the Roof at the Playhouse Theatre, additional consoles are being put to use on two versions of the Blue Man Group world tours and Matilda International Tour.

“We’ve been using DiGiCo for at least 10 years and we’ve been very happy with how they continually update them, without making the product obsolete” says Phil. “The recent upgrade for the SD10s helped our decision as it underlines DiGiCo’s ethos of ensuring longevity for its products and a good return on investment.”

“As a rental company, when we’re considering a big purchase, we need to know what a manufacturer is planning. DiGiCo demonstrates a solid commitment to its customers, we know they’re going to be around for a long time and that we are adding industry standard consoles to our inventory. It is a policy that has paid dividends over the past decade, and with our new SD7 Quantum 7s, it’s one we are sure will continue to serve us well.”

12 December 2019, London, United Kingdom – In April 2019, artistic director and show creator, Luc Petit, has launched a brand new show in Qingdao, China named the ‘Qing Show’. This permanent show was in development for more than 4 years by international teams from Luc PETIT and Art Team Group Asia Ltd.

The grand opening of this exceptional and one of a kind show attracted more than 1500 spectators. disguise solution sits at the heart of the production with disguise 4x4pro’s powering the show’s extensive video projection mapping.

The show is staged in an innovative immersive theatre seating up to 1,500 spectators, featuring two sets of revolving bleachers and a 360º view of the action. The massive 50-metre wide water stage is backed by a beautiful 15-meter-high projection screen. More than 430 special equipments, 263 costumes, 2D 3D flying systems and thousands of props are used on set for this unique storytelling show.

Qing Show tells the epic tale of The Eight Immortal Beings whose adventures represent archetypes within traditional Chinese society, each applying their unique strength as they work together to cross the sea. Along the way they encounter armies loyal to dragons and a variety of obstacles and must work together to succeed in their quest. “This is a large venue with a cyclorama, big inflatables and some fountains as projection surfaces,” says Stan Walbert of Stello Productions who managed the video mapping for the show. “This ambitious project took four years to design and create. The venue was built for the show and projectors, so their position and coverage had to be determined precisely.” Stan and the team used disguise’s projection study tool to determine luminosity, coverage and the number of projectors to use. He adds, “disguise’s Projection Study tool was an essential part of the process ensuring accuracy in positioning of projectors, as well as providing a way for the content team to test their files with the disguise project.”

He explains that the story takes place in universes representing Fire, Ice, Water and Nature where projection mapping is mixed with 2D and 3D actors, flying props and automated scenery. All available surfaces are projection platforms in this immersive scenography. That challenging setup represented a total of 12 screens, five of them automated, in a wet environment that included seven large inflatables, a large curved cyclorama, a rear-projected fountain screen.

“Projection mapping is an essential part of the show and makes the whole stage come alive,” says Stan. “The venue building was specially constructed so all of the ground level could become a pool during the show. The construction had a few months of delay, but the opening date stayed the same, so we had to move fast and efficiently, and the disguise workflow was the perfect solution for those conditions.”

Workflow partner EVOKE Studios from Europe, found OmniCal to be a viable problem solver, especially in aligning the curved cyc whose physical screen had six corners, not all of which were visible at time of calibration.

“We achieved solid calibration results on a screen it’s safe to say anyone would have had a rather hard time with. OmniCal made it the proverbial walk in a park. It’s a tool you can count on that slides into your existing workflows with great ease, filling in some gaps one might run into,” says Vincent Steenhoek, managing director for EVOKE Studios who together with its technical director Kristaps Liseks, managed on-site mapping, programming and systems. “OmniCal enables us to resolve the challenges that projects like this bring and increases our confidence in project delivery and the achievable level of finish.” he adds.

“When the construction showed some big differences from the 3D plans we used OmniCal to adjust the mapping calibration without sacrificing the quality or needing to remodel the surfaces in external softwares and redo content rendering,” adds Stan. “The disguise Hong Kong and Shanghai teams were on hand to help with technical support.”

Stan and the rest of the team made use of the disguise Designer software, allowing them to visualise, design and sequence their projects even when working remotely across different time zones. “The timeline was timecode driven, so it was very convenient to program – I was able to do that in France with the Video Designer while technicians were on site to calibrate the mapping. I just had to send them the show file so they could continue to work on site with the creator and content team.”

The show’s Creator is Luc Petit. Philip Alexi and Anne Roelandt are the Production Directors and Emmanuel Dufoing the Project Manager. Marie-Jeanne Gauthe is the Video Content Designer and Knightworks the video content team.

Cardiff, UK – December, 2019. When Cardiff-based SR Production Services invested in a new Martin Audio Wavefront Precision Compact (WPC) line array, they knew not only that they would be the first PA company in Wales to run the innovative and scalable system, but with so much of their event work taking place on problematic sites, requiring close offsite noise control, this system would uniquely be able to solve a lot of their issues.

“Generally, the events we do are heavily noise-policed,” confirmed SR director of operations, Alistair Brick. “However, there is one particularly sensitive event—a barn party, promoted by House & Techno specialists, Cellar Door at a farm in the Valleys—where other systems we have used previously have never been adequate, as there has always been noise escape leading to complaints. It was principally for this that we invested in WPC with the result that it not only played much nicer than what the promoters had previously experienced, but there were no noise complaints.”

In fact, one of the DJs, Cellar Door’s Jimpy, had posted online ahead of the event: “This year’s Cellar Door visit to the farm features a brand new sound system supplied by Martin Audio, the very same audio company which is heard all across Glastonbury including the Pyramid stage. The sound system not only brings an even greater clarity of sound over last year’s event…but provides a high degree of noise mitigation control. This ensures the sound is focused on the event and not on the surrounding area using state-of-the-art technology.”

It was that state-of-the-art technology that had attracted SR co-directors Matthew Dunford and Alistair Brick, in their quest for “a compliant and current system.” They duly placed the order for eight WPC, six SXH218 subwoofers and a pair of utility XD15’s with JP Cavaco at Martin Audio dealers, Enlightened. Cavaco arranged a demo which confirmed that this would be an ideal system, and it immediately went out on a conference for a high-profile restaurant group.

Martin Audio’s product support representative Simon Purse jumped in with an instant masterclass in DISPLAY, Martin Audio’s optimization software, which Al Brick found “really easy to navigate, and not the slightest bit clunky.”

He says they are presently running the system in 2-box resolution “but when we add four further WPC boxes and amplification later on, we plan to increase this to 1-box resolution.”

Now firmly in the Martin Audio camp, they subsequently added eight Blackline X8 enclosures as a conference system (partly supplied by Enlightened, partly by Leisuretec) and this was featured at the Cardiff International Film Festival.

Al Brick said after several months of running the new WPC he couldn’t be more delighted. “Every time it’s gone out it’s been rebooked, and on every occasion where there had been a noise pollution problem previously there was no longer a problem, either with the levels required on-site or off-site.”

He said the rigging system was excellent and the system easy and quick to fly and derig, while the ease of setting a cardioid sub array was another plus factor. However, there had been one further reason for purchasing the WPC. “Our engineers really wanted a 10” box, which goes a little bit lower than the 8”. As one put it to me, ‘Get a 10” system for the love of God…I want to be able to hear my snare!’”

For more about Martin Audio, please click to http://www.martin-audio.com.

CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, December 12, 2019 – In order to provide integrators with superior-quality video distribution solutions that are easy to install and compatible with every modern control system, Nortek Security & Control (NSC) today announced the immediate availability of a new Xantech® Premium 4K Video Over IP solution that uses Power over Ethernet (PoE) to deliver unlimited 4K video streams over a 1GB network switch with an imperceptible latency of just one frame.

The solution includes three products – a transmitter, a receiver and an advanced control module – that work together to deliver lossless HDMI signal, bi-directional IR and RS-232 over a single CAT cable at lengths up to 330 feet (100m). The solution’s wizard-based setup can be completed in just a few minutes from any device, greatly simplifying and expediting installation. Whether a project calls for a video wall, a large number of distributed 4K displays, or a combination of endpoint types, the flexible system enables drag-and-drop control with independent signal routing for video, audio, USB, IR, RS232 and CEC.

“The new Xantech 4K Video over IP solution delivers best-in-class usability, compatibility and power, allowing integrators to configure video distribution systems and videowalls of any size more easily, and complete jobs faster,” said Neal Ellsworth, NSC Product Manager, New Initiatives. “The system can expand to deliver content to infinite displays, and integrators only have to pay for what they need. In addition, end users gain simpler control with drag-and-drop routing through the Advanced Control Module, and the setup and user interface are the same across all major control systems.”

Xantech’s new Premium 4K Video over IP solution includes three SKUs:

• The XT-4K-VIP-TX: 4K Video over IP Transmitter with Audio Breakout that runs on PoE from the network switch or local PoE source. It transmits lossless HDMI, bi-directional IR and RS-232 over a single CAT cable up to lengths of 330 feet (100m).
• The XT-4K-VIP-RX: 4K Video over IP Receiver with Audio Breakout that runs on PoE from the network switch or local PoE source. It transmits lossless HDMI, bi-directional IR and RS-232 over a single CAT cable up to lengths of 330 feet (100m).
• The XT-4K-VIP-ACM: 4K Video over IP Advance Control module that allows simple third-party control of the Xantech Video over IP system using TCP-IP, RS-232 or IR. It is compatible with all major control systems, providing integrators with greater installation flexibility.

Toronto, ON. CANADA, December 11, 2019 – Graeme Murphy’s arresting new production of Madama Butterfly by Opera Australia is a contemporary look at Puccini’s alluring heroine. It’s a tale that begins in rapturous love and ends in the cruellest heartbreak. Fragments of film flutter across the stage, creating a dynamic backdrop for Murphy’s vision of Butterfly while incorporating innovative tech and both of CAST’s flagship products, wysiwyg and BlackTrax.

Madama Butterfly‘s story is relatively simple to understand, and while sung in Italian, there are English and simplified Chinese surtitles. Pinkerton, a US naval officer, is seeing the world in the name of war and pleasure. When ashore in Nagasaki, Japan, he seeks the best and fairest woman and is offered Cio-Cio-San. Constrained, cocooned, caught in a moment of desire, Butterfly is incandescent. In her exotic embrace, Pinkerton finds paradise, then carelessly condemns his bride to purgatory.

The production is filled with a plethora of new tech toys. Double revolves, 16 LED screens, laser projectors, BlackTrax followspots and the new repertory moving light rig for Opera Australia. With so much going on visually – the audience is certainly never bored.

Murphy has replaced inner spiritual calm with external objectification and subjugation as the dominant motif that pervades both moments of love and despair. Video projections reinforce or counterpoint this with sympathetic textural monochrome relieved at crucial moments by garish dissonant colour.

Detailed Planning

Michael Scott Mitchell the designer provided about 600 renders and DWG’s of screen positions and content. As with all projection shows, the balance of lighting changes significantly. In the old days, projection was too dim. Now it has the potential to dominate the visual palette. Damien Cooper, the show’s lighting designer, was concerned finding that sweet spot of balance would be an issue. Sean, the AV designer, was very collaborative in balancing the stage. The few times that AV turned off during rehearsal showed the team just how bright the lighting rig was against AV. Opera Australia upgraded their standard rig to equipment that could match the AV. The AV was running at 200 nits. About 5% of what they can do.

“We spent two days with wysiwyg preprogramming lighting cues, which I do find to be very helpful. Time was our biggest enemy on this show. I think I ended up with 90 minutes of dark time before cast came on stage. The pre-plot gave us a great starting structure to allow us to work over the rehearsal. The Programmer John Llwelyn was not only handling direction from me but AV triggers and BlackTrax triggers. I have to say, hats off to John. An excellent programmer.” – Damien Cooper, Lighting Designer

Jason Morphett handles the BlackTrax programming. BlackTrax was chosen for the complete choice of angle for the followspots. Madama Butterfly used a ghost gauze for projection which limited traditional followspot angles. Butterfly has four costume changes in Act 1, finally dropping down to a white towel with bare shoulders. This meant she could not use BlackTrax, so she stood out from the crowd with a traditional followspot. A pretty good result! BlackTrax requires a large amount of programming, every iris cue, every exit. Opera Australia staff prefer to program each one.
In addition to the Opera Australia rep lighting rig, added was a 12 x Mac Aura to the outer revolve. An attempt to reclaim some side lighting that the revolving side LED panels blocked out. These were used to highlight flown dancers, under the cantilevered scenery structures and to bounce off the Harlequin Hi-Shine mirrored floor. These were run off batteries and inverters with WDMX.

Final Thoughts

“Overall, I am pleased with what Butterfly became. As mentioned before time was our greatest obstacle. We had two x three-hour piano dresses to tech this show with all these ingredients and two casts of principals. Congratulations to the lighting crew on getting us there so smoothly. Butterfly will remount next year in Melbourne.” – Damien Cooper, Lighting Designer
Opera Australia’s new production of Madama Butterfly pushes the boundaries of traditional stories, breaking the mould as much as possible for an operatic production. Graeme Murphy gives Madama Butterfly new life and meaning in today’s fast-paced world.

“BlackTrax is a genuinely exciting advancement in lighting technology. For Opera Australia, it allows us to “find” and “follow” the singers wherever they might be and in opera performances we often have singers arriving late or substituting for another artist at very short notice. BlackTrax give us flexibility and allows us to do this with a minimum of fuss.” – Opera Australia’s Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini

The Crew

Conductor

• Massimo Zanetti (until 6 Jul)
• Nicholas Milton (11–25, 29, 31 Jul; 1, 2, 3 Aug)
• Brian Castles-Onion (27 Jul; 6, 7, 10 Aug)

Director

• Graeme Murphy

Creative Associate

• Janet Vernon

Production Designer

• Michael Scott-Mitchell

Costume Designer

• Jennifer Irwin

Lighting Designer

• Damien Cooper

Master Electrician & BlackTrax Diviner

• Jason Morphett

Lighting Programmer

• John Llewelyn
• Suzy Brooks

Lighting Supervisor

• David Parsons
• Catherine Alexander

Opera Theatre Head Electrician

• Kyle Bockmann

Followspot Operators

• Jemima Flett
• Graham Buck

Floor Electrics

• Lindsay Williams
• Jake Mortimer

Digital Content

• Sean Nieuwenhuis

Assistant Director

• Shane Placentino

Lighting Equipment and Extras

• Chameleon Touring Systems provided lighting and lighting hires

PSA announced Wednesday that general registration has opened for PSA TEC 2020. Discounted early bird pricing is available until Jan. 12, 2020, for all attendees. Attendees are encouraged to register promptly to secure their seats. Waitlists will be utilized for sessions and certifications that reach capacity. Register for PSA TEC 2020 by clicking here.

“Our team has worked hard to compile a top-notch line up of educational sessions for PSA TEC 2020,” says Anthony Berticelli, vice president of operations for PSA. “Important trends this year are managed services, recurring monthly revenue, AI and cybersecurity.”

PSA TEC will be held April 20-23, 2020, at the Sheraton Downtown in Denver, Colorado. This is the premier education and networking event for all professional systems integrators in the security and audiovisual markets. This year’s conference will feature over 125 sessions, workshops and certification training from industry-leading experts and partner organizations categorized into dedicated learning tracks focused on job function.

The educational content includes sessions for systems integration professionals with a desire to stay relevant and thrive in changing markets through personal and professional development. Attendees will leave TEC with ways to improve operational efficiencies, add additional value to their businesses and their customers’ journeys and support emerging market trends from their own vantage points. A complete list of the sessions are here.

“One of the most notable changes for PSA TEC 2020 is a new direction and expansion of our cyber track,” said Candice Aragon, director of marketing for PSA. “Cybersecurity concerns are among the most pressing issues facing our industry, so we have partnered with the Security Industry Association (SIA) to bring extensive sessions on the topic.”

Additionally, this year, the exhibits will return to Wednesday, April 22, 2020, and will feature nearly 100 leading manufacturers and service providers. Here’s more information on who will be exhibiting at TEC 2020.

The special room rate for PSA TEC at the conference hotel, Sheraton Downtown Denver, is $204/night (plus tax and fees). Rooms are subject to availability, and attendees are advised to book their hotel room promptly after completing their PSA TEC registration.

Collaboration Squared announced the addition of portrait mode usage for its Video Window video collaboration system. The Video Window is an always-on videoconferencing portal for teams that need multi-location communications without having to schedule it. Collaboration Squared says it added a portrait mode to make personal interactions more immersive and feel even more like the other person is standing right in front of you. The included picture explains how it works.

No special hardware is required; users just turn their display on its side — though all users need to use a display that supports portrait usage. Through Collaboration Squared’s software, any USB camera can remain in the upright position — helpful when using the system for Zoom, Webex and Microsoft Teams calls, too.

Here’s more information about the Collaboration Squared Video Window.

Broadcasting globally in more than 150 countries and territories, World Poker Tour (WPT) has ignited the worldwide poker industry. As a leader in the innovation of the sport since 2002, WPT also hosts a number of high-profile corporate and VIP events throughout the year. Needing a design element that could accentuate the visual experience at each tournament and event, WPT Global Events Manager Steve De Santis invested in reFLEXion LED video systems from Nashville-based PixelFLEX™.

“WPT features a lot of professional and recreational players we see often who look for comfortability and reliability with tournament structures they trust from people they recognize and know,” began De Santis. “We have a footprint on six continents and our players love the quality and consistency of our events.”

Knowing the level of trust and commitment shown by the players, De Santis wanted to ensure that each event provided the most engaging gaming experience. Having previously relied upon standard graphic displays to help create the ideal environment, he now wanted to heighten the creative potential of the visual displays to match the excitement around each tournament.

“As part of our event presentation and playing environment, we had been using older graphic kiosks for quite some time which really was the impetus for our search,” continued De Santis. “As an innovator in the game of poker, WPT wanted something that was a bit more impactful and most importantly to our tour management personnel, portable. We needed a technology solution easy to transport and able to deliver a unique visual impact.”

A dynamic replacement for traditional static and backlit signage, the reFLEXion LED is a self-contained 2.5mm pitch/resolution video display with a sleek design for easy mobility throughout any space. Its Wi-Fi connectivity allows for convenient networking and content updating to maximize the viewer experience, and it is customizable with multiple base options. The LED display of reFLEXion can be further customized to a specific size with an assortment of color aluminum frame options, plus it can create seamless right angles to wrap around 90 degree corners wherever needed.

“One of WPT’s leaders had actually heard about the reFLEXion LED system before, but initially thought it might be a price concern for us,” added De Santis. “As I took the lead on the project, we sourced about 20 different manufacturers and were really open to trying any solution as long as it was lightweight and portable. What we found was that the reFLEXion was a perfect fit for us, and it was the best solution for both our needs and our budget as we kicked off our 18th season.”

With the technology from PixelFLEX now on hand, De Santis and his team got straight to work putting them to use. Ready to see the difference created by using high-definition LED video displays throughout the tournament floor, the reFLEXion systems took the event design to a completely different level.

“We used the new LED video displays for the first time on a main tour stop in Atlantic City, and we found that the content options are almost limitless,” admitted De Santis. “You can easily layer video, text and still image content on top of each other, and we are very excited to experience its full potential. We are ready for everything that the displays can do and it seems that they can accommodate anything we can imagine.”

While some may be wary of how easy it might be to create dynamic video content for an LED video display, De Santis was also surprised by the simplicity of the reFLEXion operating system. Working within the wireless capabilities of the displays, the event management team at WPT was quickly able to have their new event design ready for its debut.

“Utilizing the software provided by PixelFLEX, we were easily able to plug-and-play with the reFLEXion LED video displays,” explained De Santis. “We had quite a bit of fun seeing what we could design on the fly as we were able to connect to them wirelessly, which was an absolute lifestyle change for us. With its intuitive nature and the simplicity of the software, our event set-up was a lot easier and it allowed us to start using them right out of the box without any issues at all.”

Wanting to also take advantage of the portability capabilities of the new displays, De Santis would have another opportunity for creativity on their first tour stop. With a number of events taking place as part of the tournament, the reFLEXion LED video systems doubled-down on their design potential.

“The mobility of the devices make it so that we can be more creative in our decisions of how to impact not only the tournament, but also our client and corporate events as well,” concluded De Santis. “At the Atlantic City event, we were able to relocate the displays from the casino floor into the Sports Book and upload new content specifically for an exclusive VIP Player party. The ability to take a digital kiosk from one side of a venue to another has never been an option for us, and this opens up a whole new level of creative possibilities.”

For its 90th edition, the Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) has launched a new, interactive digital experience that will engage, inform and entertain visitors. With a new official app and redesigned website, GIMS is enhancing the event experience for the numerous attendees visiting in Geneva, as well as many other enthusiasts watching from all corners of the world. Tickets for the upcoming GIMS are now available on the new official GIMS app and on the website.

To connect even more closely with attendees in 2020, GIMS is introducing a new digital companion: the official GIMS app. Available for iOS and Android devices, the app is highly customizable, allowing visitors to tailor the content to their personal preferences. The app offers comprehensive information on the GIMS, including the exhibition and key event elements such as GIMS Discovery, GIMS Tech and GIMS VIP Day, as well as information to help attendees plan their time in Geneva. Through the app, attendees have also access to exclusive opportunities not available elsewhere; for instance, raffles for GIMS Discovery Drives are only accessible via the app. Additionally, the app keeps visitors up to date on the most important news in the automotive industry and mobility sector before, during and after the show. Tickets can be purchased quickly and easily via the app and on the website, with discounts available when purchased online rather than at the counter. The app is now available free of charge in the app stores (iOS and Android).

Across the app, website and onsite, visitors are immersed in an exciting, vibrant visual brand that reflects the focus of GIMS 2020 on innovation and the future of mobility. Developed by Jung von Matt / Limmat, the digital experience employs a special algorithm, so that users never see the key visual themes in the same way.

Olivier Rihs, Managing Director, GIMS: “We are excited to offer many new experiences at GIMS 2020 and are confident that every visitor will find something to his taste, from the car enthusiast to the technology freak to the business executive to the event fan. And now, thanks to the new app, we’ll be able to extend the GIMS experience around the world and throughout the entire year; it will be a great source of information and insight on GIMS-related topics”.

GIMS 2020
Visitors can expect to see a tremendous variety of exhibits; 150 exhibitors have already registered for GIMS 2020, including major car manufacturers as well as promising start-ups in the technology sector. Once again, GIMS can count on its valuable presenting partner; for the 5th time, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy will be present at GIMS with its co2tieferlegen campaign.

“At its 90th edition, GIMS combines tradition, passion and innovation. Visitors will be able to test the whole range: from mobility solutions for today to the visions of tomorrow, from efficient city cars to fast sports vehicles”, says Maurice Turrettini, President of the GIMS Board of Trustees.

FAIRFIELD, N.J. — Dec. 12, 2019 — Middle Atlantic Products, a brand of Legrand | AV, is celebrating 40 years of engineering professional AV solutions that deliver greater system reliability, efficiency, and flexibility to commercial and residential applications. To mark the occasion, the company held a full week of activities last month, which included opportunities for its manufacturing and office employees to come together to reminisce about Middle Atlantic’s rich history, which has led the company to where it is today, and share their passion for the future of AV. In addition, Middle Atlantic sent treats to its 40 oldest customers to thank them for all their years of support.

“Middle Atlantic was founded with a focus on supporting the professional AV community, which includes our customers as well as our employees,” said Tim Troast, vice president and general manager at Legrand | AV, Middle Atlantic Products. “Their service has not only shaped our customer-first mentality but also sparked our innovation that goes beyond our racks and into our furniture and intelligent power solutions. We’re incredibly thankful to everyone who has contributed to this achievement. We wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for their unceasing commitment.”

For the past four decades, Middle Atlantic has proven itself to be a true industry leader in engineering AV solutions that are innovative, expertly designed, and solve integrators’ toughest challenges. Founded in 1979, the company released its first product: speaker grills. Since that time, Middle Atlantic has gone on to expand its product offering to countless award-winning products and more than 30 patents across a broad range of AV categories. These include the CEDIA Hall of Fame-honored RSH Series Custom Rackshelf and AXS Series rack; the No. 1-selling AV rack, the BGR Series; the L7 Series height-adjustable AV lectern; and the company’s innovative power solutions, the DC Power Distribution family and RackLink intelligent power distribution options.

More information about Middle Atlantic Products is available at Middle Atlantic’s website.

ANAHEIM, DECEMBER 12, 2019 – When the music industry comes together for NAMM 2020, DPA Microphones will be on location (Booth 17910) highlighting the newest versions of its 6000 Series of subminiature high-end pro audio microphones with the CORE by DPA technology. Among these is the lightweight, one-size-fits-all 6066 CORE Headset that attaches over the ears, has a three-point spring mechanism to grip below the ears and head, and is now also available in brown in addition to the previously released beige and black options. Like the headsets, the 6060 and 6061 CORE Lavaliers also have new color offerings – brown and white, as well as a white eight-way clip.

With stellar audio and a rugged, IP58 water-resistant rating, DPA’s subminiatures have become a notable force among leaders in the industry. This includes sound designers such as Dan Samson, Gareth Fry, Richard Brooker and Gareth Owen—all of whom were surprised by the exceptional sound quality packed into the mics’ small, compact design. Since its introduction to the market, DPA’s subminiature microphones have been used by London’s Royal Academy of Arts; First Baptist Dallas, one of the country’s most prominent megachurches; and Australian-based LSS Productions, to name a few.

“I chose to upgrade to DPA’s 6066 CORE because of its impressively small capsule and redesigned headset—for such an unobtrusive solution, the sound quality is impeccable,” says First Dallas Baptist lead audio engineer Brad Roberts. “The 6066 is completely hidden from close-up HD camera shots, and its non-reflective boom further improves the aesthetic, as it does not catch undesirable stage light. The vocalists, musicians and audio team all notice that the audio quality is more pristine and sounds very natural.”

Measuring in at just three millimeters (0.12 inches) in diameter—the new 6000 Series capsule is 60 percent smaller than those of DPA’s existing 4000 Series. “The 6066 headset is a lot more discreet than earlier DPA headsets, which is why I felt it could work well for Sunday in the Park with George,” says Marcello Lo Ricco, owner of Australian sound design, equipment hire and production services company, LSS Productions. “We wouldn’t get away with the look of using a bulky headset. On top of that, the new colors available on the 6066 CORE Headset blended nicely into light or dark skin tones. Also, the new 6066 headset has a detachable cable, which is a great advantage because it means we can easily replace it if it is damaged.”

While the 6000 Series mics may be small, they are powerful in terms of performance, as all three models incorporate the company’s CORE by DPA amplification technology, which reduces distortion and increases dynamic range. “Whichever DPA mics we choose, from 4080 lavaliers to our recently adopted 6066 CORE Headset Microphones, we know we will be making the best possible source recordings that will need the minimal amount of post-production,” says Benji Fox, AV Events Manager, Royal Academy of Art’s, Benjamin West Lecture Theatre in London. “The proven track record of DPA mics at the Benjamin West Lecture Theatre means that I am now looking to expand the RA’s stock across other sites and for a variety of specialized applications.”

Designed to incorporate many of the features that the industry was searching for in miniature mics, DPA’s 6000 Series has quickly grown in popularity. “When we launched our 6000 CORE line of microphones last year, we were met with quite a bit of excitement from the industry,” says Christopher Spahr, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for DPA USA. “Our tiniest microphone capsules not only deliver an exquisite sound, but also require little to no need EQ. The introduction of new microphone colors is a further indication of DPA’s commitment to providing world-class products to a wider sector of the pro audio market.”

For more information on the 6000 Series CORE Microphones, please visit DPA Microphones website or contact your nearest dealer.

New York, New York, Dec. 12th, 2019 – Collaboration Squared announced today the launch of
Portrait Mode for Video Window.

Video Window is the world’s first immersive always-on video conferencing portal for teams that
enhances human connection, collaboration and improves multi-location team performance.
Customers love how personal Video Window feels and how it helps the relationships they form
with their colleagues. That’s why we created Portrait Mode. To make personal interactions
more immersive and feel even more like the other person is standing right in front of you.

Portrait Mode for Video Window is especially useful for socializing in shared lounge, canteen,
and kitchen areas. It’s also ideal for team working areas if you’re tight on wall space.

No special hardware is required, you just turn your display on its side. Through special software
development the camera will remain in the upright position, especially important for when using
the external calling mode to Zoom, Webex, etc.
Daryl Hutchings, CEO of Collaboration Squared, creators of Video Window states “It blows me
away the reaction people have the first time they see Video Window. People love the feeling of
personal connection it gives them and Portrait Mode is a natural extension of this, it’s our most
immersive experience yet.”

After 10 years of service, Aker BP’s Onshore Operation Center (OOC) had become too limited in capacity, and an upgraded space was needed to handle more rig lines and improve collaboration. Aker BP’s ambition was to build a new world-leading Onshore Collaboration Center (OCC) in Stavanger for its Drilling & Wells operations, designed to support ever-changing workflows and the digitalization of processes. The OCC will act as a central location for Aker BP’s expertise in well placement, real-time operations, geo-steering, autonomous drilling, and the execution of the well versus the Digital Twin. It will also be the repository for rig connectivity and rig-to-shore IT support.

‘Our ambition for the OCC is to put us in the top 5% of operators worldwide for collaborative environments and remote operations. With this project we wanted to be cutting edge, to take ourselves out of our comfort zone and do things differently.’ Andy Deady, OCC Lead

Business benefits for Aker BP

The main investment vehicle was based on a BSEE report after the Macondo incident. The report found that the ROI for vendors and operators who invest in collaboration centers in oil and gas and well construction has been measured to reduce Non-productive Time (NPT) by 2.5% over a year. The tangible business benefits in adopting such a collaboration center or a real-time center is twofold: reducing invisible lost time (ILT) and increasing productivity by having everyone in the same room, using the same information, bridging the team onshore and offshore, and creating a shared situational awareness. Bringing down ILT (invisible lost time) and NPT (non-productive time) can reduce the well cost by 5%.

A new way of designing collaboration centers

The new Aker BP OCC is designed with the ethos of allowing the team to enter an environment, use it and leave if need be, but have a core team that is always located in that room, which provides greater flexibility. The environment is designed around the inputs of operators and specialists, based on their experience in the existing OOC and their needs for more collaboration and flexible design. Partners were also both part of the concept and detailed design phase, inputting how they would be interacting with the systems, and how they would be connected their applications.

A flexible solution based on standardization, infrastructure, and display technology

The Cyviz solution is based on 13 systems, all interconnected with a new generation IP-based infrastructure for routing and data distribution. The uniqueness of the solution resides in the flexibility of this new architecture, but also in the standardization principles applied to the design, and deployment of the solution.The flexibility is also reflected in the display technology favored. Seamless projection with video processing, allowing multiple dynamic PiPs (Picture-in-Picture) to be added, moved and shared across rooms. The system design also had to support the two levels of access to wells’ information, with unrestricted access and tight wells, which implies severe access restrictions.

Standardization: A future-proof solution

In contrast to the traditional approach where the control system software is customer specific, the Cyviz software platform is standardized, configurable and upgradeable, reflecting Aker BP’s culture of continuous improvement. The value of standardization for Aker BP is threefold. Firstly, it meant that Aker BP’s technical lead could take full responsibility for post-installation management, support, and maintenance tasks. All configurations and adjustments to ongoing operations can be made in-house with more speed and efficiency, instead of having external support coming in for re-programming. With standardization, Aker BP has full ownership of their solution. Secondly, it meant that the software platform powering the entire OCC was upgradeable and future-proof. This was a strategic and cultural direction meaning that Aker BP could better manage, support and improve the OCC as organizational changes occur over time. Finally, as reliability and uptime were also key requirements from Aker BP, the high level of standardization simplified and cut time on the implementation process and will enable predictive maintenance.

IP-based infrastructure and information highway

Superior video and audio quality means travelling to customer sites or between offices is much reduced, saving time and money as well as reducing Aker BP’s carbon footprint. A new IP infrastructure was developed by Cyviz, preferred to a traditional AV matrix approach that would have been too specialized and too rigid. The solution needed to be innovative and based on IT principles with a simple distribution over IP. Changing the signalling distribution and avoiding the rigidity of cabling and matrix, resulted in an ‘information highway’, allowing Aker BP to handle and distribute all data and information, making it possible to work on digital assets with much more flexibility.

‘The innovative design for the AV over IP that Cyviz came up with really stood out as a differentiator and impressed us.’ Andy Deady, OCC Lead

After writing a couple blogs in 2017 about the equally loved and hated potential of “as a Service” (aaS) models to take off in AV, I took a break for a while and watched as the industry discussed the idea.

If you missed my original posts on this, you can catch up here:

AV as A Service

AVaaS Financially Speaking

There are all sorts of arguments for and against AVaaS, but the one that has emerged as a reason that AVaaS will “never” work in certain markets: Service Level Agreements (SLAs). The argument goes like this:

“AVaaS won’t work in my organization because if someone has a problem in a meeting/class/etc. they need support within a few minutes and only in-house staff can get into the building/room in that amount of time.”

I don’t disagree with the fact that on-site support of this nature dictates that support staff be located within a few minutes walking distance. What I do disagree with is that it has any relevance to the viability of an AVaaS model.

Now that you’re fired up… let me explain.

First, managed service models, where the equipment is paid for in full up front as a capital expenditure and support services are sold as an extension of the support, face this SAME issue.

No one has argued managed services aren’t relevant to our industry. If the needed SLA is a 15-minute in-room response, you can accommodate this with an onsite technician supplied by the service provider just as you could with in house staff.  At that point it really comes down to whether or not the organization has the resources to do it in-house or needs third-party help.

Second, there is no requirement for AVaaS models to include managed services AT ALL.

This is where things have been misinterpreted greatly about what an aaS model actually is.

If you’re using MS Office 365, you’re using an aaS product (paid for based on number of employees and which software suites are needed and charged per period of time as opposed to an upfront cost). The advantage is that new versions are automatically included, fees for licensing are based on the number of machines and not on specific MAC addresses, services can be started or stopped at set intervals, etc. But Office 365 is not tied to any type of managed services contract for the PCs, technicians, etc. In-house IT usually manages the Office 365 account or a separate third-party IT services company may do it.

AVaaS doesn’t have to include managed services at all.

It’s a financial model that charges for AV resources based on usage of equipment and is charged for a pre-agreed interval of time.

No, that’s NOT a lease.

A lease takes the full cost of the equipment, amortizes it over time, and then just allows installment payments against that equipment. Leases do not allow for flexible changes in equipment without first “buying out” (paying for) the equipment in the original lease and then starting a new lease term with the new equipment.

This means a lease offers no financial advantage over a purchase other than preserving cash flow.

You still pay the same amount over time, given keeping your money invested elsewhere nets you the same interest that you’re paying on the lease term.

AVaaS is a per use model, that only charges users based on consumption of resources and allows for flexible changes in the resources needed over time without buyouts.

Let’s say a conference room system costs $25,000 to buy outright and you do five meetings a week, 50 weeks a year for a three-year technology cycle. Each meeting essentially costs you $33 if you amortize the cost of the system across those meetings. A lease would divide that $25,000 over 36 months, not changing the real cost.

Now let’s say you could instead pay $50 per meeting as in an aaS model, but you only pay for actual meetings. If you do less meetings that month, you pay less, and you have flexibility to change things monthly and not every three years. That is the advantage of an AVaaS model.

Here’s another scenario. Let’s say you have 15 meeting rooms based on needing different options for employees and proximity to rooms from each part of the building, but at any given time, a max of 10 of them are in use concurrently.  Wouldn’t it be nice to only pay for the 10 meetings and not the other five rooms that sat empty that day?

This is why virtualization of things like DSPs and having all resources connected to a common network are the unlock to AVaaS models. These models only work if we can reduce hardware costs per room without reducing the needed functionality. Rooms really only need four things to facilitate meetings today. A camera and a microphone to capture video and sound, and a display and speakers to display video and sound. The network is the matrix switch, the virtual DSP does the in-room AEC with the in-room mic and speaker, etc. Control is done via BYOD, and in fact, given that every person carries a camera, microphone, display, and speakers in their pocket, there are several emerging technologies that leverage these as supplementary devices/ILO in-room equipment.

I gave a Car-as-a-Service example in my previous article. The two examples I gave were Uber and Waive Car. They are both aaS models. One includes a driver, one doesn’t. Whether a third-party service provider (Uber driver) drives the car or you drive it yourself, it doesn’t change the fact that its an aaS model.

In the same way, managed services are a separate entity than AVaaS, and whether or not you hire support out or do it in house doesn’t change the viability of an AVaaS model.

So, evaluate managed services based on SLAs and the cost of in house staff vs. outsourced staff parked onsite or offsite. That makes perfect sense.

However, when evaluating the viability of AV-as-a-Service, the only question is:

“Would I benefit from a per-use consumption model or from flexibility to change out AV resources outside of my typical technology refresh cycle?”

If the answer is yes… AVaaS is viable for your organization.

Anaheim, California (December 12, 2019) – Extron is pleased to introduce the TLP Pro 300M 3.5″ portrait wall mount TouchLink Pro Touchpanel. The TLP Pro 300M is designed to control video, audio, lighting, shades, HVAC, security, and other systems within virtually any environment. This touchpanel is equipped with a 320×480 resolution capacitive touchscreen built with scratch and smudge-resistant Corning® Gorilla Glass®. The TLP Pro 300M also features the convenience of Power over Ethernet, which allows it to receive power and communication over a single Ethernet cable. It conveniently mounts in a one-gang junction box without the need for additional mounting hardware. The TLP Pro 300M is ideal for any environment requiring a wall-mountable, portrait touchpanel with a fully customizable interface.

“We are always looking for new ways to integrate our Pro Series touchpanel technology into new spaces for even more control options,” says Casey Hall, Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing for Extron. “Our compact TLP Pro 300M is our first touchpanel with dedicated portrait orientation; it can be used in countless applications for simple, stylish AV and environmental control.”

The TLP Pro 300M works with any Extron IP Link Pro control processor or HC 400 Series system and is designed for use in AV system applications that require complete, interactive control of a broad range of source devices. TouchLink Pro touchpanels operate using standard network infrastructure and are easy to install with reliable and cost effective Ethernet cable. All TouchLink Pro touchpanels can be customized using Extron GUI Designer software. This powerful interface design software offers ready-to-use templates for a wide variety of rooms and presentation environments. These designs may be used as is or customized for the application by simply changing individual graphic elements.

For more information on the TLP Pro 300M, click here.

Casio’s Marketing Manager, Wayne Borg, joined Gary via video today to show us how small his new 4000 lumen XJS400UN projector really is. It’s an LED/Laser projector that’s spec’d to last 20,000 hours, and with 10 years of LED-based projection behind them, Casio’s specs are backed-up with literally millions of solid-state projection installs. This native WUXGA (1920 x 1200) projector is aimed at higher ed, but we think its form-factor will have it used in a lot of meeting rooms and retail signage applications, too. What do you think?