Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/177525
as remote learning for students, the image must be captivating," says Rawlings. "Make sure the lights used are good quality, but it's just as important to use those lights well." Headquartered in Calgary, Wallworks Acoustic Architectural Products Inc. "offers complete acoustic solutions for residential, commercial and industrial applications." That covers most structures that might need such services. General manager Lyle Fuller says there is a greater understanding of the need for good acoustics: "The knowledge curve has improved, along with the evolution of the industry — a big improvement over the last 30 years and at an even faster rate in the last 10 years. People realize that they can have an exceptional sound system, but without an acoustic treatment it will not perform the way it should." Wallworks will work with builders from the start of a project or can help during construction in conjunction with an acoustic consultant. "We manufacture and distribute worldwide," says Fuller. "We're finding the market to be active, with our business not slowing much at all in the last couple of years. We continue to offer new acoustic-specific products — various kinds of perforated acoustic wood products and diffusers, some of those being high-end products. People find that after an acoustic treatment, the results are significant and clients are very impressed at the difference in clarity of both words and music." A subsidiary of the Mitsubishi Electric Corporation of Japan, Mitsubishi Electric Sales Canada Inc. markets large-scale LED video displays and an extensive range of projectors, display wall systems for command and control, as well as commercial LCD monitors for digital signage and public display systems. Elan Azar, vice-president and general manager of Mitsubishi's Display and Imaging Solutions Division headquartered in Markham, Ontario, says Mitsubishi offers sales, marketing and service for its customers in both residential and the larger commercial side of the business. Azar says that dedicated home theatre front projectors are better suited to deliver the true home theatre experience than a 28/ FEBRUARY 2012 p.26-31Audio_Energy.indd 28 large TV: "Projectors designed for home cinema provide the biggest bang for the buck where you can get the true immersive theatre experience in full HD with adjustable screen sizes, typically in the range of eight to nine feet wide, to fill your field of vision from an optimum viewing distance of 12 feet." On the commercial side, Azar says large outdoor LED displays and signage are more popular than ever. The company recently installed three mammoth high-resolution, 30-foot-by-50-foot displays, two being portrait-style, at the newly refurbished BC Place stadium."These displays provide a way for corporate brands to deliver their messages to the masses with more excitement than boring billboards," says Azar. Vancouver-based Commercial Electronics Ltd. has been a Canadian leader in audiovideo, integration, automation and control for 54 years. Hal Clark, director of engineering and design for residential systems integration, says the company can handle jobs of all sizes and complexities, from a home system to emergency systems, hospitality, educational facilities, even planetarium controls. As well, the company offers parts and service, an engineering group and information technology specialists. "There is a huge variety of new clients today," says Clark. "With mobility — including phones, pads, all of that — people can be confused with what sort of system and equipment they need at home. People also want freedom to bring media home from the office and plug into their home central control. We can also use the Cloud to access media, and to diagnose and remotely repair a system." "The core of our company has gone way beyond audio-video," he continues. "Smart meters being installed by BC Hydro, for example, are primitive compared to some of the automated systems available. And through our integration processes, we can design the appropriate technologies and provide simple control and monitoring solutions. That also means we can save our customers from confusion and energy costs.In terms of technology today, the biggest concern people have is simplicity of operation, keeping systems operational without a lot of maintenance." Owner of Vancouver's La Scala Home Cinema + Integrated Media, Marilyn Sanford and her team create award-winning customdesigned home cinemas and integrated home systems. Though La Scala opened in 1989, it was 20 years later that the company really took off, the focus being the homeowner and some light commercial. "People are more confident with putting technology in their homes," says Sanford of today's homeowner. "People are more comfortable with technology. There is also a real love of Macbased platforms that is creating excitement and confidence with technology." Sanford notes that, "a media room is more popular than the idea of a dedicated home theatre. A media room is social and open: the hub of a home. A home theatre is specifically for the movie or sports experience and is typically away from the hub." The integration of all the aspects of media, including control of lighting and other technologies from one device — using tablets and smartphones — is becoming popular in high-tech homes, says Sanford. She also expects more Cloud-based products and applications. "The Cloud is just starting to make a difference," she says. "It opens up the computing power and storage, which can be easily accessed, creating greater flexibility and access to content and applications. And we're only just at the beginning." ■ Audiovisual Systems 1/23/12 10:31:52 AM