Holt AV / Video recently completed a major renovation conference room for a local company.  This room was designed to meet multiple needs including training and conferencing as well as double as a situation room to deal with specific emergencies relating to the organization’s business units.

The display portion of the design consists of 5 individual LCD projectors and 2 LCD Panels.   This gives the owner the ability to display information on 7 devices at one time.  Three of the projectors are configured to project on a wall and can display one 20ft wide image or any combination of twelve separate images including both computer and television sources.  This gives the user the ability to stay on top of important information in a nearly unlimited number of ways.  A spreadsheet based resource scheduling application, The Weather Channel, local newscasts, outage reports, and any other media source could all be viewed at one time on the main wall of the room.

At each end of the room, projectors four and five display directly on electronic whiteboards from Smart Technologies.  These boards allow hands on control of desktop applications notations made on the board can be saved with the original document and users can interact with applications just like they would by using a mouse.  These boards can also be used to display non-interactive content, like television channels, as well.

With 21 distinct sources to choose from, users of the room might have had trouble deciding on which audio source to listen to if not for the Sprox Sounddog wireless audio system.  The Sounddog system allows different users in the room to “tune-in” to eight different audio feeds through a handheld audio receiver.  The handheld units can be used anywhere in the room and different source can be selected with the touch of a button.  The functionality is extremely important when several different operators have to monitor different local news broadcasts during an emergency.  This feature is also nice when monitoring sporting events on off hours.

The entire system is controlled by a wireless touch panel system by AMX.  Programmed by Holt AV system installers, the control system is designed to make using the room simple and convenient.  All functions ranging from turning the system on, to changing display wall configuration, to choosing the main room audio feed can be done right from the portable touch panel.  The system is so flexible that it can be reconfigured at a later date and can accommodate additions of equipment including room lighting controls and further display devices.

Another feature of this installation includes pop-up input boxes mounted directly in the conference room table with connections for both internet and telephone access.  The table boxes also serve as input points for laptops to connect to the projection system.  These four positions allow for a maximum of 4 notebooks to attach to the system at each box and any notebook connected through the table boxes can be displayed anywhere on the projection wall or the white boards.

Overall this particular room was designed with many uses in mind.  The ability to configure the display technology to fit particular needs quickly and easily was a key requirement for the customer to fully utilize their investment.  Through the use of advanced switching technology combined with intelligent system programming and user friendly touch screen controls Holt AV has delivered an impressive array of technology, functionality and usability that should serve the users well for years to come.