Westin Long Beach Hotel Hosts Local Businesses and Events in High-Tech Meeting Space Protected by Furman

Competition is stiff among hotels that want to host events and corporate meetings for local businesses. To attract the event planners and meeting managers, the Westin Long Beach Hotel in Long Beach, California, recently transformed its large ballroom into a 4-room convertible space with divisible walls. To further enhance the space, the hotel turned to local integration firm Spinitar to incorporate the latest audio system and technology. According to Rudy Zavala, Associate Systems Designer at the firm, the goal of the installation came down to three things: simplicity, functionality and reliability.

“One big ballroom is great if you want to host large receptions or conferences, but the ability to split the space into four smaller rooms offers the hotel greater revenue opportunities and opens access to smaller parties and budgets,” Zavala explained. “But it’s not as simple as just putting in some convertible walls. Separate rooms mean you need separate audio systems and control interfaces that can also function as a single unit when the room is fully open for a larger event. To do this we used QSC’s Core 500i network audio solution backed by the protection of a BlueBOLT-enabled Furman F1500-UPS to ensure smooth, effortless operation 365 days a year.”

Routing all the power through the Furman UPS boasts multiple advantages. Utilizing the BlueBOLT cloud-based power, energy and network management platform, the device enables Spintar to access the equipment at its power source from anywhere in the world using any Web-enabled device. In case of a locked-up device or system power issue, the integrators can do remote hard resets of the touch panels, amplifiers and network switcher, even the entire QSC system if needed, greatly reducing service calls. This provides efficiency for both the hotel and the integrator, saving them time, money and frustration.

Featuring Furman’s advanced Series Multi-Stage Protection (SMP) surge/spike protection circuit, Extreme Voltage Shutdown (EVS) and Linear Filtering Technology (LiFT), the F1500-UPS provides the hotel with professional-level protection, filtration and backup combined with features engineered specifically for the needs of A/V systems. Fully programmable, the unit features an intuitive LCD front panel interface, which displays valuable system and diagnostic information, such as battery time remaining based on current load and voltage input/output. Additionally, critical load management capabilities allow hotel employees to prioritize allocations of battery power to connected equipment while the unit’s programmable IR blasters provide safe shutdown of remotely based equipment.

“Easy-to-use is an all encompassing term,” Zavala concluded. “This means that guests must be able to walk in to the space and use the system right away, every time. Additionally, the hotel managers and staff should be able to operate the meeting rooms without worrying about complicated technology. The GUI we created for the audio system is a floorplan of the space, with each touch panel opening up to its section of the room, and all the other sections are available by simply flipping to the next page of the interface. This way presenters can quickly use the input panels to hook up a microphone, iPod, or video player to one section or the whole room, while setting volumes for each specific area.”

Best of all, the system is designed to be easy-to-use for the integrators themselves. Incorporating the Furman F1500-UPS into the system simplifies the configuration, ultimately saving Zavala and his team time and money through BlueBOLT remote power management.

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NanoLumens Introduces NanoClear™, the Next-Generation Transparent Visualization Solution!

NanoLumens®, the world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of visualization solutions in any size, shape, or curvature, today announced the introduction of the next great advance in its solutions offerings — the groundbreaking, fully-transparent NanoClear™ display platform.

“NanoLumens has always been unique in its ability to provide customers with visual solutions in any size, shape or curvature — solutions that in every respect live up to their imagination,” NanoLumens Vice President of Marketing and Business Development Nate Remmes explained. “However, the introduction of our transparent visualization technology takes the company to the next level of innovation. We’re proud to be one of the first companies to commercialize this industry-changing technology, and provide exceptional solutions to customers around the world.”

Utilizing state-of-the-art nano-optical particle diffusion, the new NanoClear display platform allows objects to seamlessly float in space. The display can accept input from nearly any device or content management system to produce specific messaging on the clear display. Extremely slim and ultra-lightweight, NanoClear, like all NanoLumens visualization solutions, is also energy-efficient and feature a bright, seamless, high-resolution picture quality.

The company’s patented display technology and highly innovative visual solutions are transforming the way companies engage their audiences in every type of higher education, retail, hospitality, stadium, arena, casino, transportation and public event environments.

In fact, according to Remmes, NanoClear has recently been installed in major retail locations, airports, and arenas, including the TD Garden in Boston. “We’re thrilled to see this new technology already changing the atmospherics in so many diverse installation environments,” he said.

Drones Offer Pro AV Dealers an Unprecedented New Revenue Opportunity as Surveillance Applications Take Off

Drones are becoming increasingly important in assisting first responders and law enforcement officials in the area of surveillance, according to Stampede President & COO Kevin Kelly, who today asserted that this increase in drone usage offers ProAV dealers an unprecedented new opportunity in security, live event, and law enforcement surveillance applications.

“It should come as no surprise that one of the most immediate and promising applications of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, is in the area of surveillance,” Kelly said. “Law enforcement officers, first responders, live event producers — anyone engaged in the critically important tasks of security and surveillance are quickly understanding the benefits of drones, and the FAA is beginning to allow their use for these applications.” 

Just last month, according to Kelly, the Michigan State Police department became the first police force in the nation to receive statewide authorization by the FAA to use drones for law enforcement purposes. After reviewing the department’s safety and program procedures, the FAA approved the use of an unmanned aircraft to photograph crash sites, search for lost people, inspect natural disasters and conduct surveillance. 

“All of these applications are casebook examples of how an exciting new technology like drones can be immediately incorporated by ProAV dealers into their product mix,” Kelly added.  “Our industry, collectively, has the dealer network with the expertise in the video category and the vertical market end-user relationships required to seamlessly integrate drones into meaningful solutions that save time, money and in some cases, lives." 

According to Kelly, two issues have stood in the way of making the use of drones a practical reality for customers who need and rely upon cost-effective surveillance solutions in their day-to- day life — concerns about privacy and the availability of educational resources to train drone operators.  “In my opinion, both of these concerns can now be addressed in a way that allows for this remarkable new technology to quickly become a mainstream part of 21st century surveillance,” Kelly commented. 

The FAA has made it very clear that it is in the process of developing standards and guidelines for the safe and legal use of drones in commercial applications, in ways that do not violate an individual’s right to privacy. The guiding principle in this process is to make sure that drones are used, not in a broad general way, but rather in an controlled environment where the owner/operator would have a right to have a security professional present. “The altitude limit of 500 feet further ensures that drones used for surveillance will not be used to monitor the activities of the at large general population,” Kelly added. 

Secondly, Kelly said, there is now a very clear path forward for ProAV dealers seeking to offer their drone customers a complete solution.  “Thanks to a strategic alliance Stampede has formed with Unmanned Vehicle University (www.uxvuniversity.com) ProAV dealers will now be able to purchase and resell to their customers specific certified courses that will enable them to operate drones in a safe and sanctioned way,” he added. 

Unmanned Vehicle University is now designing dedicated manufacturer based product training that is customized to show vertical market specific dealers how to integrate unmanned aerial vehicles into their product offerings to customers.  Finally, there is a way to educate dealers on how to integrate drones into their commercial offering and then provide the necessary training to both their employees on the category and their customers on how to operate the drones, providing a complete turnkey solution.  What’s more, the dealers will profit when they resell UVU’s unique training courses.  

“The size commercial drone market will grow to be 12% of the $98-billion in cumulative global spending on aerial drones over the next decade,” Kelly added. “This partnership with UVU will help our customers to be ready to go when these licensing and training regulations are finalized. It will also allow our dealers to offer UVU’s training courses to their end-users as part of their camera drone offering and profit on every class they sell.”

Growing Bank Makes the Most of its Office Space With ELAN g! - Controlled Convertible Conference Room

As a company grows, its technology infrastructure can get complicated quickly. At Franklin Synergy Bank’s new headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, the company is taking steps to keep things simple, starting with its recent installation of an ELAN g! control system.

Working with local integrator Audio Video Elements, Franklin Synergy Bank was able to maximize its real estate by creating an AV system that works double duty in a convertible conference room with a retractable divider. Thanks to the ingenuity of the integrator and the flexibility of the ELAN g! system, the room’s AV system can be operated easily whether it is utilized as a single large conference room with one media presentation, or as two smaller rooms with separate audio and video for each room.

“Creating a single AV system that is easy to use in multiple configurations can be a challenge,” said Aaron Lawrence, owner of Audio video Elements, “but with the ELAN g! system nearly anything is possible. The final result is a multi-purpose room that converts from a large conference room with a singular AV system to two smaller rooms with two distinct AV systems, using all the same equipment and the same controls. Simplicity was extremely important for this project, and that extends all the way to the custom podium we designed that includes a 10-inch monitor so speakers can follow their presentations without having to turn around.” 

The room includes two identical projection systems with Optoma 1080p projectors and 132” motorized Draper projection screens that drop from the ceiling, along with six pairs of in-ceiling speakers and two Shure wireless microphones. Video can be displayed from permanently connected cable boxes, users’ laptops or a Blu-ray player. When the motorized divider is open, the full room can be controlled from a 7” ELAN touchpanel to the right of the projection screens, and when the divider is closed, that same touchpanel controls only the right side equipment, while a second 7” ELAN touchpanel adjacent to the left projection screen controls the left side equipment. Lawrence programmed the g! system so that this happens seamlessly, with no work required to switch between a single- or dual-room configuration. To add to the convertible nature of the room, the stage is hydraulic and can be lowered to ground level to increase floor space when required.

“We installed TVs and data infrastructure throughout the whole building, requiring more than 100 Cat5 runs, but the crown jewel is this conference room,” Lawrence said. “The versatility of this conference room will allow Franklin Synergy Bank to use it as they see fit, and to do so easily. Even though the technology is very advanced, it took less than 10 minutes to show employees how to use it.  That’s what’s so great about the ELAN g! system, that it can perform all these really powerful automation processes but is easy enough for a complete technophobe to operate.”

In addition to the ELAN touchpanels, several employees have access to the system through the ELAN g! mobile app on their smartphones. This way they can operate the system without getting up, if necessary. All of the equipment is housed is a separate room in a rack that is protected by a Panamax M4315PRO surge protector, ensuring smooth operation for years to come.