PETALUMA, CALIFORNIA — After 31 years in business, the owners of Boone Bowling Center decided to hang up their shoes and retire, effectively shutting down Boone, North Carolina’s only bowling alley. When Patric Zimmer, a business consultant and an owner of the 10 Park Lanes bowling alley in Charlotte, North Carolina heard the news, he chose to invest in a second location, keeping the sport alive in Boone. With a two-hour commute each way, Zimmer needed a way to oversee the newly renamed and renovated 10 High Country Lanes without physically being there. He turned to local technology integration firm Audio Video Headquarters for the answer — an ELAN Entertainment and Control System that allows him to oversee the bowling alley from a mobile device in Charlotte or from anywhere in the world.
“A builder that we had previously worked with was asked to complete the bowling center’s remodel, and recommended us to Patric Zimmer, the new owner,” Audio Video Headquarters owner Gary VanSant explained. “We’ve been in the business for more than 30 years, so Patric felt confident with our work. We showed him what we could do with the ELAN system, making many features automatic while allowing him remote access; he loved it!”
Adding a 21st century spin on the bowling center, Zimmer installed a full bar to support local breweries and upgraded all of the entertainment features. Two 75” TVs were mounted above the bar along with TVs at each of the 16 lanes within the alley. Through the ELAN system, the Alley’s manager can control every television within 10 High Country Lanes through the ELAN App on an iPad Mini, easily changing the channel for bowlers to enjoy their favorite sports game or TV show.
Zimmer was extremely pleased with the entertainment features of the ELAN system, and eventually asked VanSant and the Audio Video Headquarters team to expand the system to include cameras, automated office door locks and thermostat control. Through a single ELAN App, Zimmer can check the venue’s thermostats to ensure the bowling alley is staying energy efficient, unlock or lock the office for employees and watch a live video feed of the venue.
“When you have multiple venues, it’s cool to remotely log into the cameras and see how many people are at a specific venue having fun,” Zimmer stated. “It gives me the opportunity to see what is happening with the business at any particular time.”
Yet 10 High Country Lanes is not stopping there. According to Zimmer, Boone locals and visitors can look forward to an outdoor deck this spring. “The system was built so it’s expandable,” Zimmer said. “As we add other areas to the bowling center, the system can grow with us. When the outdoor deck opens this spring, we’ll be adding even more TVs.”
Zimmer concluded, “Gary and his team at Audio Video Headquarters have been amazing to work with not only during the initial installation, but also advising us on how we can expand the system. The ELAN system is great, yet having knowledgeable and professional people to install the product is half of the battle! It was a great overall experience with the equipment and the integration firm.”
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About ELAN
ELAN, from Core Brands, develops an award-winning line of whole-house entertainment and control solutions distributed through a comprehensive channel of select dealers throughout the United States, Canada, and countries worldwide. To learn more, visit www.elanhomesystems.com.
About Core Brands
Core Brands combines the product and marketing strengths of iconic and award-winning control, audio, power management, connectivity and video distribution brands including ELAN®, SpeakerCraft®, Gefen®, Niles®, Panamax®, Proficient®, Furman®, Sunfire® and Xantech® to deliver a portfolio of connected home solutions to its channel partners and end users. For further information, visit www.corebrands.com.
About Nortek, Inc.
Core Brands is a Nortek company. Nortek Inc. (Nasdaq: NTK) is a global diversified company with leading brands and innovative, technology-driven products and solutions for lifestyle improvement at home and at work. For further information, please visit www.nortek.com.
