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Associations Focus: InfoComm 09 Largest Pro AV Show Ever Held on East Coast

InfoComm 09 was the biggest commercial AV show ever held on the East Coast, with more than 29,000 AV professionals attending from more than 80 countries

Associations Focus: InfoComm 09 Largest Pro AV Show Ever Held on East Coast

Jul 14, 2009 12:00 PM

InfoComm 09, held in Orlando, Fla., had more than 29,000 AV professionals and 850 exhibitors in attendance.

InfoComm 09 was the biggest commercial AV show ever held on the East Coast, with more than 29,000 AV professionals attending from more than 80 countries.

“InfoComm continues to be the one tradeshow where most professional AV service providers make their important buying decisions for the year,” says Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., executive director, InfoComm International. “Despite the global economy, the AV marketplace has enthusiastically embraced InfoComm as the place to make their purchasing choices, network with product and service providers, and enhance skills through our robust educational program.”

Education at InfoComm remains robust

Registrations for InfoComm Academy educational courses totaled 7,249 for 2009. Super Tuesday, a full day of advanced instruction for AV pros, attracted 356 registrants in 2009. The Institute of Professional Development (IPD) attracted 388 registrants.

Attendees come to InfoComm for the diversity of courses on topics as varied as acoustics and videoconferencing. Among the most attended courses were Technology Trends and the Business Executive Symposium. Other popular classes included The Future of Audio, CTS Study Group, and Customer Service from the Inside Out. Master classes, including one taught by industry legend Buford Jones, were of great interest to the advanced students who often attend InfoComm for the opportunity to become more educated and earn renewal units for the CTS credential. With half of all of the education sessions being new, participants flocked to classes on sustainable AV and digital signage.

This year, all 60 seats to take the Certified Technology Specialist (CTS) exam at a local testing center were sold out.

Generosity flourished at InfoComm 09

InfoComm International is pleased to announce that the winner of NEC’s Best of InfoComm Award, Da-Lite, has designated InfoComm’s International Communications Industries Foundation (ICIF) as the recipient of its $25,000 prize donation. In addition, Da-Lite has elected to match its prize winnings with an additional $25,000 donation to the ICIF. “Da-Lite is honored to receive the first-ever NEC Best of InfoComm Award, and congratulates the other finalists,” says Wendy Long, Da-Lite vice president of marketing. “It was only logical for us to donate our winnings to ICIF, which is dedicated to promoting industry education. Da-Lite is pleased to match its prize money with an additional $25,000 contribution to help develop the next generation of AV professionals.”

InfoComm 09 Platinum Sponsors include Bosch, Christie Digital Systems, Crestron, and Extron. Gold Sponsors include Middle Atlantic Products, Polycom, and Tandberg.

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Associations Focus: InfoComm 09 Largest Pro AV Show Ever Held on East Coast

Jul 14, 2009 12:00 PM

InfoComm releases first performance standard

The InfoComm International board of directors approved release of the association’s first performance standard, The Audio Coverage Uniformity Performance Standard.

One of the fundamental goals of sound-system performance for both speech reinforcement and program audio is the delivery of consistent coverage in the listening area. A well-executed audio system design is one that allows all listeners to hear the system at approximately the same sound pressure level throughout the desired frequency spectrum range, no matter where they’re positioned in the designated listening area. The Audio Coverage Uniformity Standard provides a procedure to measure this spatial coverage and criteria for use in the design and commissioning of audio systems.

The procedures prescribed by this standard are intended to be used primarily for AV presentation systems in which audio is provided as a part of the system within an enclosed environment. These systems may be installed within a variety of AV applications, including conference rooms, training rooms, classrooms, auditoriums, theaters, and museum exhibits. This standard may also be applied to large-venue audio systems or any system that includes audio coverage within enclosed spaces.

The Audio Coverage Uniformity Standard is limited to uniformity measurements and specifically does not include testing or measurements for spectral response, time domain issues, or other parameters that may be required to assess the total performance of an audio system. Future standards may address other audio concerns.

“The ACU Standard was developed by InfoComm’s Standards Committee and the Audio Coverage Uniformity Working Group to improve the listening experience in a wide variety of audio installations,” said InfoComm International Executive Director Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D. “Architects, facilities managers, owners, and technology managers will benefit from a test which verifies that their audio system meets one important criterion of quality.”

The ACU Standard was developed in an open process with consensus and transparency. InfoComm plans to submit the standard to the American National Standards Institute for adoption consideration in the next few weeks.

“The entire audiovisual industry is indebted to Audio Coverage Uniformity Task Group Chair Fred Ampel of Technology Visions, Performance Standards Planning Committee Chair Scott Walker [CTS-D, LEED AP] of Waveguide Consulting, and their team of volunteers who developed this important tool for AV consumers and technicians,” Lemke said.

InfoComm honors industry leaders and pioneers

During InfoComm 09, InfoComm International presented its Distinguished Achievement Award to Robert S. Simpson during the InfoComm International President’s VIP Reception. In 1964, Simpson co-founded Electrosonic, a worldwide audiovisual company that operates as a systems integrator, product manufacturer, and service provider for AV facilities. Based in the United Kingdom, Simpson is a frequent writer and lecturer on audiovisual and lighting control topics, and is author of the highly regarded guidebooks Effective Audio Visual, Videowalls, Videowalls—The Book of the Big Electronic Image, and Lighting Control—Technology and Applications. He has worked on numerous museum, theme park, and permanent exhibition projects worldwide, and has contributed to the design concepts of many of the company’s products.

InfoComm’s Distinguished Achievement Award is the highest honor bestowed on an industry member by the association. “When the InfoComm Board of Directors considers honoring a member with the Distinguished Achievement Award, two major criteria are applied: the career accomplishments of an individual and the individual’s contribution to the AV industry,” said Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., executive director, InfoComm International. “Bob Simpson is not only known as ‘The Father of AV’ in the U.K., he is one of the great visionaries that has changed the way the entire world experiences AV, and InfoComm is proud to recognize his achievements and lasting legacy.”

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Associations Focus: InfoComm 09 Largest Pro AV Show Ever Held on East Coast

Jul 14, 2009 12:00 PM

InfoComm also presented its Educator of the Year Award to L. William Nattress III, CTS-D, CTS-I, an associate principal at Shen Milsom & Wilke in Chicago. An AV expert, educator, and youth leader, Bill Nattress has served as a member of InfoComm’s Professional Education and Training Committee (PETC) since 1999. He served as PETC chairman from 2006 to 2008 and chairman of the Certification Subcommittee from 2003 to 2005. He is currently a senior faculty member for InfoComm Academy and has taught InfoComm’s design track courses and presented at InfoComm tradeshows worldwide. Most recently, Nattress played a key leadership role in the technical research and editing of InfoComm’s power and grounding curriculum. His experience in control system design and programming was used as the foundation for his authoring of the chapter on remote control systems in the book Basics of Audio and Visual Systems Design: Revised Edition.

 
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“Bill Nattress has helped InfoComm’s education program make incredible strides,” said Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., executive director, InfoComm International. “As chairman of InfoComm’s Professional Education and Training Committee, Bill has worked tirelessly to improve the quality of instruction and expand InfoComm’s educational offerings to match the changing needs of our technology-based industry.”

InfoComm also recognized the achievements of Adele De Berri, the founder of Da-Lite Screen Company, who was posthumously issued the first InfoComm International Pioneers of AV Award. De Berri invented the “silver screen” at the company she founded in 1909, De Berri Screen and Scenic Company, later renamed Da-Lite Screen Company. Born in 1885, she was influenced by Thomas Edison, George Eastman, and their inventions. De Berri applied her knowledge of aluminum ware and her curiosity about the reflective nature of paints to create the first projection screens sold to the motion picture industry. Through the years, she continued to develop new projection screen products, including Da-Tone, a perforated projection screen that allowed the audience to hear new sound “talkies” through the screen. Soon after, De Berri introduced the glass-beaded projection screen surface. Later, she developed the electric projection screen, a major success in nonmovie theater applications.

“InfoComm is pleased to recognize the technological and entrepreneurial achievements of Adele De Berri,” said Randal A. Lemke, executive director, InfoComm International. “She was one of a few people able to develop a technology that is still relevant a century after its invention. We honor the memory of Adele De Berri and her business, Da-Lite, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.”

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