InfoComm 2013: June 12th – June 14th
By Rupert Denoon (Crestron Regional Manager)
InfoComm 2013 took place at the Orange County convention Centre, in sunny Orlando, Florida, USA – the Home of Disney. It was a record year with 35,126 attendees; an increase of 2.5 percent from the 2012 event.
InfoComm is so much more than an exhibition area for new technology trends: it's a platform for professionals to meet up, discuss industry experiences and stories, debate solutions, and learn from one another. I am always amazed by how friendly and professional the exhibitors at these shows are.
The main exhibition took place from the 12 to 14 June; however my visit started a day earlier at the Crestron Sales Conference. This was held at the Orange County Convention Centre and the opening was hosted by Crestron Founder and President, George Feldstein. The opening was short and captivating, one cannot help but be inspired by the passion Mr. Feldstein has for this industry and his company. This was followed by an equally inspiring speech by Randy Klein, Executive Vice President at Crestron Electronics.
After a short coffee break we sat down to an insightful product overview and a sneak peak of products that will be showcased at the Crestron stand, this was presented by Dave Silberstein Director of Channel Development. The following products were showcased,
- Crestron's new GLB Dali ballasts
- Saros Premium ceiling speakers
- Saros Pendant speakers
- Aspire Dual 8" Subwoofer
- HD-XSP Surround processor
- Connect it media point
- 3 series Family of processors
- DINAP3
- DINAP3MEX
- New inFiNET EX products
- TSW730 Roomview panel
- DMCO-7x Streaming output card
- AMP 100 Wireless presentation device
- Crestron RL " Microsoft lync"
This was followed by a booth tour. This tour is given to all Crestron employees and distributors. At each point we were given specific new product information to relay to our dealers.
Over the next three days, my colleague Bruce Genricks and I made our way through the exhibition hall of over 50,000 square feet of exhibits, and more than 925 companies exhibiting. Needless to say, it's almost impossible to go through every booth, but we sure did try.
It was great to meet up with John Ungerer, a former employee of Electrosonic SA who is currently based in Brisbane where he is heading up Kramer Australia. He gave me a private tour of the Kramer stand before the show started and I was amazed by the size and look of the stand. We spent an enjoyable evening together in downtown Orlando chatting about the industry and about the good old days.
Crestron's legendary InfoComm parties lived up to expectation, with the amazing Penn & Teller magic show hosted by Jay Johnson. Crestron ticked all the boxes, great food, drink, people and the best entertainment!
In conclusion: InfoComm 2013 was a huge success, with record numbers of attendees and may fantastic exhibits. Crestron products were recognized with 8 industry awards by the leading trade publications, dealer channels, integrators and consultants. We look forward to seeing you at InfoComm 2014 Vegas!
