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XTG Experience Technology Group delivers fresh ideas and exceptional immersive experiences. M1000R Round Black Sound masking speakers. Z4-B four-zone, high-definition acoustical system. 48 | D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 2 Audio Visual Systems P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E S Y AV I -S P L ; V I B R A-S O N I C CO N T RO L The key trends coming down the pipeline for the audio visual sector by ROBIN BRUNET P erhaps by nature and partly due to sheer inspiration, the audio visual sector in 2022 continued to advance technological innova- tion, and in some cases, products are even fostering a return to normal in the wake of the pandemic lockdowns. And as always in this fascinating realm, trends abound. "We're seeing two important trends shaping our industry," says Kelly Bousman, senior VP, marketing, at AVI-SPL. "The first is how busi- nesses of all sizes and sectors are reimaging their relationships with employees and customers. Taking a human-centric approach to designing these critical interac- tions has led to new applications of experience technology – experience centres, large-scale brand statements, and XR studios for communications and events." In this regard, AVI-SPL offers XTG, the company's Experience Technology Group that fuses technology with space and content. XTG works with leading- edge architects, designers, and content producers to deliver fresh ideas and exceptional immersive experiences. "Among other benefits, reimagining digital transformation with experiential spaces is an ideal way of making the office a magnet instead of a mandate, so vitally important in attracting professionals back into their workspaces in the wake of COVID," Bousman says. These technologically driven immersive experiences can also be delivered in museums, visitor centres, libraries, hotels, casinos, and of course entertainment venues. Projects that have relied on XTG's expertise include the Edmonton Public Library (a two storey-high, 40-foot-wide digital wall with touch interactive capabili- ties), and the Microsoft Executive Briefing Center (movable walls and immersive displays for profiling customer success stories on the Microsoft platform). Bousman goes on to note that the second industry trend "is the rapid deployment of new meeting room technology to ensure all participants, whether in room or remote, can equally see, hear, and contribute. These new meeting rooms are chang- ing in their layouts, technology, and function. To best envision these new spaces and validate their designs, we introduced virtual reality [VR] design services." VR accelerates the design process while building buy-in for the finished results. The service also allows multiple stakeholders to be engaged in human- centric design thinking, including the often-overlooked end-user (the AVI-SPL website contains demonstrations on how this technology works). Office solutions are also a major aspect of Vibra-Sonic Control's work. Partner Danielle Macey recently presided over the installation of a Z4-B – a four-zone, high-definition acoustical system along with M1000R Round Black Sound mask- ing speakers for the Stratford Underwriting Agency Inc. offices in Vancouver. The significance of this project is due in part to Stratford's industrial style space. While beautiful and modern, it has a lot of hard surfaces that carry sounds throughout the complex. "Within the office there are various teams with differing noise levels: in one section of the office the team works quietly, while in another area claims calls are fielded with many people having phone conversa- tions in close proximity to each other," Macey explains. "Also, it was important that meeting room conversations remain private." Thanks to careful analysis of the space and the use of the Z4-B and M1000R speakers, sound masking was implemented in all areas of the office to reduce distractions and keep conversations more private. A four-channel processor was uti- lized so that each work zone could have the sound specifically calibrated to suit the space, with the Enhanced Privacy function utilized to give an extra layer of privacy to the meeting room (this function is built into the Z4-B controller and is accessed by Bluetooth connection via the user's smartphone or tablet with a user-friendly app). Paul Kamoh, regional manager at Vibra-Sonic, stresses just how much Bluetooth capabilities have improved the provision of sound masking in offices and other spaces. "It makes the systems such as what Danielle describes truly user-friendly, in addition to being fully scalable and versatile – an example of the latter being the ability to pipe in paging, if required." Sense Of Self

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