Our 2020 Audio Visual Case Study Review has landed! Featuring ESTA, Toorak College, Presbyterian Ladies’ College and Ave Maria College, our Case Study Review takes a deep dive into some of our more recent AV-mazing installations of 2020.
Click here to read the review in full.
Infrastructure developments and the mega projects in the region are boosting spending on audio visual solutions and major vendors are gearing up to reap the harvest.
From high-definition slim bezel signage monitors to a range of intelligent, interactive LED displays, the market is embracing modernity, simplicity in design and intelligent innovation.
Ravinder Kumar, general manager of business solutions network at Sharp Middle East, told Gulf News that the industry is in a consistently growing trajectory.
“We need to discount the ongoing drop in oil prices but the overall audio visual industry is growing. The infrastructure projects in the region are promising for many years to come. The biggest countries are Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar,” he said.
Led by products, equipment, and services for megaprojects and events such as World Expo 2020 in Dubai, 2022 Fifa World Cup Qatar, and transport and Smart Cities projects in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, the hospitality and retail sectors are set to see the most benefit.
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According to trade association InfoComm International, the Middle East’s audio visual market is set to post one of the world’s fastest growth rates after Asia, increasing by 76 per cent from $1.57 billion (Dh5.8 billion) in 2012 to $2.76 billion in 2016.
The audio visual market for the Middle East and Africa region is set to reach $4.63 billion by 2016, out of this the GCC is expected to contribute more than $300 million.
Buoyancy of growth
Audio visual technology covers every industry vertical, and can include high-definition displays and projectors, lighting to sound systems, and streaming and webcasting technology.
Kumar said that the buoyancy of growth has been predominant in health care and education besides infrastructure. Retailing sector has been strong due to the malls, theme parks and entertainment parks.
Sharp has launched the world’s first 8K TV and the world’s largest 120-inches 4K commercial screen, which is worth $250,000.
“We are looking at multiple sectors for the 120-inch screen, predominantly for high-security area control rooms and for some high-profile customers to use it homes,” Kumar said.
Richard Tan, Executive Director, InfoComm Asia Pte Ltd, said that the UAE is a hub for entertainment and sports, with its audio visual market for venues and events crossing $50 million by 2016.
“The Middle East posting one of the world’s fastest growth rates in audio visual technology shows that we’ve gone from an era of talking about the benefits of audio visual technology, to organisations actually purchasing solutions — whether high-definition displays for exhibition sites and stadiums, virtual check-in kiosks at hotels, or security systems for metro projects,” he said.
Robert Nurgberg, director of Marketing (B2B) at LG Middle East and Africa, said that the industry is going to explode in the next couple of years. The biggest sector for video walls is retail and transportation sectors.
Commercial LCD display and projector solutions provider NEC Display Solutions of America has announced its X554UNV display, designed to be ideal for indoor video wall applications in control rooms, retail stores and transportation environments.
According to NEC, forward-looking organizations continue to deploy video walls for strategic business advantage. According to market research firm DisplaySearch, the global large-screen display market is expected to grow 27 percent this year to more than 3 million units shipped, and video walls are contributing to that expansion, the company said in the announcement.
The new display launch is in response to those rising market expectations, NEC said. With an ultra-narrow bezel design of just 3.5mm between neighboring displays, commercial-grade brightness and ultra-HD TileMatrix support, the X554UNV delivers a 3840 x 2160 UHD resolution across an entire video wall. Its direct LED-backlighting also delivers improved brightness uniformity, reduced power consumption and mercury-free components, the company said.
In addition, Auto TileMatrix features allow a user to simply set up the size of the video wall on the first display and automatically scale the content through the remaining displays. With the press of a few buttons, the entire video wall is set up. The result is faster installation, which reduces costs and improves the customer experience, NEC Display said.
“Video-wall displays, like the X554UNV, help a variety of organizations not only make bold statements but also deliver on business objectives,” said Keith Yanke, senior director of product marketing for large-screen displays and projectors at NEC Display. “They are just some of the solutions that NEC Display is leveraging to help people and organizations communicate, build relationships, inspire, impart knowledge and improve productivity.”
The X554UNV also supports Intel’s Open Pluggable Specification, the first industry-wide standardization in option slots to simplify digital signage. The OPS option slot allows for easier installation, use and maintenance of digital signage.
Among its other features:
Full commercial build with steel chassis, commercial-grade cooling fans and temperature sensor;
Auto ID feature, which reduces install time in the single press of a button;
Expanded connectivity panel, including DisplayPort, HDMI, DVI and OPS slot support;
Expanded daisy chain options with DisplayPort 1.2, which enables 4K resolution;
Brightness of 500 cd/m² and 4000:1 contrast ratio;
Auto ID/Auto TileMatrix technology for video walls up to 100 displays;
Carbon footprint meter, which calculates and tracks carbon savings;
ENERGY STAR 6.0, which meets strict energy efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy; and
NaViSet Administrator 2, which eases administration and management.
Challenge
A cellular store in a Canadian mall wanted to catch the eyes of passing shoppers. The architect wanted more than a simple 5×5 video wall and designed it to fit into a corner with the last column on the adjacent surface. On top of that, the installer only had 3-4 days to get the job done.
“The challenge was the super narrow bezel, a 90 degree bend, and to maintain serviceability,” said Gil Gauthier, Certified Technology Design Specialist at Advance Pro in Winnipeg, Canada. Advance Pro is an electronic systems integrator for audio, video, communications, security and multimedia.
Solution
Gauthier said the biggest advantage of the ConnexSys system is the ability to hang the mount from standard strut channel, a common item for AV installers. “It’s kind of like the Lego block of the installer world,” he added.
Senior technician, Joe Premecz, expects to encounter imperfect walls on the job site, which makes lining up displays a challenge with individual mounts. The use of strut channel, though, to provide an even reference surface, allowed him to accommodate the distortions of the wall.
“By attaching the mounts to the steel, the panels were near proper alignment from the start,” he said.
The installer only had three days on site to put in the wall on top of working around the electrician, flooring and lighting installers. They were using ultra narrow NEC displays with no bezel and a total gap of 1 millimeter between displays. On top of that, the last column’s perpendicular placement would be a huge challenge.
To meet that challenge, Premecz said the ability to slide the displays horizontally and adjust the depth made it easy to line up the corner edges. They spent half a day making sure the strut channel was installed and square, then put up the 25 panels in about three hours.
“They were a huge time saver,” Premecz said.
Though there was a short turn around for delivery, Chief was able to ship the new mounts directly from the factory to arrive on site when needed.
“I know the installer kind of went white when he heard the 90 degree part,” Gauthier said. “It’s already a challenge to line up. If it wasn’t for those brackets, I don’t know how he would have done it.”
The micro adjustment allowed by the ConnexSys system to line up the screens safely before locking them in place, the quick leveling using strut channel to hang the main row of four screens, and the need for ultra precise alignment for the high definition content made the job possible.
“There’s no way it would have happened otherwise,” Gauthier said. “It keeps the installer happy. It keeps the job on track. And even if the customer doesn’t care about the bracket, they care that the wall works.”
Serviceability was also key. They needed front access to adjust and change content and software. The RapidDraw release system helped the installer pop out only the displays he needed to access at the time.
Results
The client is running live video, sporting events, and ads to draw people in to the store. Gauthier said any specs he does, he just puts Chief in now – that whatever extra price might be involved is more than covered by savings in installation costs, allowing the company to work tighter deadlines.
“Chief listened to installers,” Gauthier said. “This is a prime example of making life easier for installation guys. They said this makes life better and easier. It makes clients happier. The overall project was easier and smoother. It’s win win win. By looking after the installers, we are looking after everybody.”
