AV Technology - April 2009 - (Page 15)

FIRST PERSON: INTERVIEW Does an organization really need a dedicated room for videoconferencing? It depends on the meeting style. Many people use video within their web conferences of collaborative sessions. This is a personal videoconference that does not need a dedicated space. But what most people consider to be videoconferencing does require spaces designed specifically for the use of the technology. Considerations are necessary for lighting, camera sightlines, display sightlines, audio, acoustics, and finishes. The virtual meeting room concept referred to as “telepresence” requires spaces built exclusively for the purpose of videoconferencing. Should videoconference spaces be considered during the initial design phase of a new construction project? They most definitely should be. Without proper planning and design considerations there can be mistakes made that will negatively impact the usability of the room. Very often these mistakes are not easily repaired. The initial design phase is the opportune time to avoid these mistakes. What are some of the biggest challenges in designing a space for videoconferencing? Everything associated with it can be a challenge. But if I had to highlight one, it would be failing to accurately identify the needs of the room at the beginning of the design process. It is very easy to fall back on stock designs of a conference room, and try to fit as many people into the space as possible. But, typically only seven people within a room will participate in a meeting. This holds true for videoconferencing as well but those seven participants may be located in different cities. Thus, it is critical to understand the “personality” of the meetings that the client will have to size and position things to make it all function. Are you seeing an increase in demand for VC systems? Yes, we are seeing an increase and it’s happening for a number of reasons. The technology and transmission methods have matured to the point that there is greater stability and reliability. A second reason is the nature of the economy. Travel budgets are being reduced and alternative means of L. WILLIAM NATTRESS III, CTS-D, CTS-I Associate Principal, Shen Milsom & Wilke meeting must be leveraged to allow meetings to occur. Web conferences have seen the greatest growth but videoconferencing usage continues to rise too. Third would be the green initiatives. There are obvious advantages to walking to a meeting room instead of flying to it. We are also seeing telecommuters take advantage of the technology for their general staff meetings without leaving their desks. Should technology managers plan a dedicated network and broadband connection for videoconferencing – or can they run it on their data network? Videoconferencing will run on their networks and there will be dedicated bandwidth associated with it. More significantly is the bandwidth used during the videoconference. A VOIP audio call will use between 25 to 90 Kbps. A H.323 point to point video call can push 4 mbps, while a telepresence solution can easily exceed 12 mbps. This can become very challenging to manage on any network if the VLAN, Quality of Service (QoS), and Service Level Agreement (SLA) of the network are not correctly set. Negotiating through firewalls and network protection is another issue. Special gateways or network translation devices will almost always be needed. What can technology managers do to maximize their company’s investment in a videoconference room? User confidence in the technology will always be the driving factor. If a call fails or there are issues with the technology, then the end user will not be so inclined to continue using the rooms. It’s always best to begin the deployment of these systems with testing that verifies every point within the network environment. This should be done long before the first videoconference system is brought online within the network. Once operational, the systems will require ongoing support and maintenance. This is on both the hardware and software side. Very often the only time that support personnel learn of a problem within a room is at the time of the failed call. We are beginning to see some very creative strategies that organizations are using to encourage the use of videoconference solutions. Of greatest note is the recent trend to having departmental credits issued for use of the technology. Since there is a time savings, the organizations increase their productivity which positively impacts the bottom line. GUIDE TO VIDEOCONFERENCE SPACES 15

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AV Technology - April 2009

AV Technology - April 2009 Contents Perspective: Lost in a Cloud Precedent Corporate: Seven Rules of Thumb for the AV Technology Manager Government: Collaboration Will Help Reshape Federal Agencies Education: Moving Day Managing Digital AV Content Audiovisual Untethered Irvine’s Mobile Command & Control Vehicle AV with a View Product Forum: Revolabs Fusion Wireless Mic System Product Spotlight: Network Test Equipment Tech Horizons: Ever Thinner New Products Ad Index AV MO: Power Consumption in AV Devices

AV Technology - April 2009

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