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Schedule meetings with your remote control
March 21, 2011
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The remote for the boardroom TV can now be a meeting planning tool that books rooms, sets up the room’s AV automatically and more. The System Controller originated from a need to organize the multiple remotes that were on the typical training and boardroom shelf. It started with separate remotes for the TV and DVD player and quickly escalated. There are now systems available at many different levels of budget and sophistication. A large enterprise wireless control system can be developed or it can be a user-friendly wall plate that anyone can intuitively operate.

Boardroom and training centres have recognized the benefits of a control system and will see continued adoption of the technology. Until recently these products were referred to as AV System Controllers but now they manage and control much more than the audiovisual components in a room.
 		  

In fact some AV control systems include software such as the AMX Resource Management Suite (RMS) meeting planner module. This software tool enables you to book boardroom, meeting room and training hall sessions. It also lets you configure the audiovisual set up for the room so that when the meeting is scheduled to begin the AV equipment is turned on and raised or lowered into place, the lighting and window shades adjusted, the temperature for the room set and the computer is powered up.

“The RMS is a great meeting management tool that can support up to 1,000 meeting rooms and track 10,000 assets with web-based reports for the meeting planner and IT department,” said George Grech of AMX.

The setting of a room’s temperature also means that the entire organization’s heating, ventilating and air conditioning system can be programmed and easily controlled from a single source, even your iPhone. This makes it a green idea as well as a money-saver. These systems are sophisticated – they can automatically recognize people working late in one area of the building and adjust the temperature and lighting accordingly while turning off the other lights and adjusting the temperature in other areas as per the regular schedule.
The RMS and many other systems will also notify you via email about the number of hours a projector lamp has or report if any equipment is unplugged or moved. This reporting function can help track assets, save maintenance costs as well as avoid the potential embarrassment of a projector going down in the middle of a critical presentation.

Those using training facilities can look for a control system that includes hosting and managing training videos that can be viewed from any monitor or projector on the organizations network. No more locating and loading instructional videos; they are on demand from anywhere within the corporate network.

The Kramer RC-8iR is a popular choice of training and seminar room managers. It is a wall plate with only eight buttons that will not overwhelm the average facilitator or presenter that is unfamiliar with the room. Behind this unassuming controller (see the attached RC-8iR photo) can be sophisticated functionality. Hit the “on” button and an entire sequence of events take place turning on the audio, video, data and lighting settings.

Corporate meeting planners should understand how far the TV remote has come and what the best system control solution is for their organization.

Ralph Niekamp, Inland AV Saskatoon general manager, addresses audiovisual considerations important to event planners. As a branch manager, Ralph brings a unique perspective as he is involved in both permanent systems design and integration and AV rentals applications.


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