CLEVER INTEGRATION OF EXISTING TECHNOLOGY AT THE RAF BOARDROOM

Audio visual and control equipment in the 24-seater boardroom at the Road Accident Fund in Menlyn, Pretoria, was recently revamped by Teljoy Audio Visual to provide an efficient system which combined new and existing equipment.

 

Eric de Jager from Teljoy Audio Visual designed and implemented the system. It is testament to the durability of Crestron equipment that the existing MP2 control processor, TPS4500 touchpanel and Gentner AP400 DSP were still in good condition and could be used in the ‘new’ system to achieve a more economical total solution than if all new equipment had been specified.

The TPS4500 touchpanel is an early 2000 model, and although there are some graphics limitations, the GUIs still look good. The old Gentner AP400 DSP also has some limitations, but with clever integration could still be used. However, the MP2 remains the brain behind the re-designed system, which now offers true feedback response.

The boardroom has 2 fixed screens, 2 plasma screens, 2 Epson EMP Series projectors, a Polycom VSX 8000e videoconferencing system, and dual zone lighting with fluorescent and dimmers – the latter controlled via a Crestron CNLSP-4 dimmer.

The screens may be split or used together and can switch or project 3 sources. The boardroom can also be linked to spill-over rooms, and there is the facility to record audio and/or video of the meetings.

The boardroom table provides 20 connection points for a variety of input sources, and the Kramer VP1608 RGBHV and 6 VP211DS switching/routing equipment is installed in a rack below the table, with all cables neatly hidden away in cable trays.

The sound equipment consists of 2 Shure SCM810 microphone mixers and 12 Beyerdynamic MPC22 microphones. The client asked Teljoy Audio Visual to use the existing equipment, which created an additional challenge by having a master source and then having to ‘echo cancel’ them individually. This is not the normal practice, but by calculated speaker placement and hours of setup, the integrator achieved a proper voice lift throughout the boardroom.

“The end result was a sophisticated, fully integrated room that the client was delighted with and the installers exceptionally proud of. No doubt the success of this project owed a lot to the sophistication and stability of the Crestron equipment selected, as well as to the support and interest of Electrosonic SA,” said Rosemary Finch, Chief Operating Officer of Teljoy Audio Visual.