It's no secret that sound reinforcement systems for corporate boardrooms, auditoriums, and other presentation environments have gotten much more sophisticated over the last several years. At the same time, increasingly versatile audio technology is routinely called upon to deliver both analog and digital content emanating from formats such as DVD, or via streaming media applications such as downloadable MP3 and RealAudio files. Having excellent audio for professional applications has become essential. So it's not surprising that there has been an intense learning curve encountered by those looking to become educated about the products that best fit presentation facilities.

Conference rooms, boardrooms, and auditoriums have to be able to adapt to a world in which audio is becoming integral and essential.

John Storyk, co-principal of the Walters-Storyk Design Group in Highland, New York, says, "Over the past few years I have seen a continuation of the following trends in the design and construction of high-end corporate boardrooms and auditoriums: Substantial improvements and new developments in imaging and sound, as well as a convergence of delivery and control. [These] have all come to the fore." Due in part to the rapid emergence of DVD-Video as the hot consumer application for both audio and video delivery, presentation professionals are finding that corporate boardrooms, although still primarily concerned with speech, video, and media conferencing, are increasingly requiring 5.1 surround sound capabilities as well. For example, Salisbury, North Carolina's Kapell and Kostow Architects (KKA) have designed conference and presentation spaces for some of the country's biggest broadcasters. Focusing on design, atmosphere and comfort, one of KKA's recent broadcast projects was the redesign of the Sloate Media Center at Barnard College in Manhattan.

Sound Connections
Achieving success in audiovisual and teleconferencing environments sometimes has more to do with personnel than it does with technology. There are many presentation rooms where clients are unable to use or otherwise appreciate their often-expensive equipment. Largely, engineering firms have designed such rooms with technology in mind. They are complicated, expensive, and look good on paper. But questions arise in the most critical areas: Can and do people use them? Can users rely on the systems? Are users comfortable both presenting their message and working the equipment? More often than not, the answer is no. Thankfully, there are a number of new connectivity products and systems coming to market for professionals who need to get up to speed in a hurry.

Conference rooms, boardrooms, and auditoriums have to be able to adapt to a world in which audio is becoming integral and essential.
Newpoint Technologies, a provider of network management, was recently selected by Arrowhead Space & Telecommunications to support the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) with its communications systems. Newpoint will assist Arrowhead in providing fixed and global satellite services for all government agencies (air, sea, and land) that need satellite bandwidth and related satellite-based hardware, services, and applications. Engineering support, licensing, and host-nation approval, along with other ancillary services, are covered under this contract. Newpoint's Compass, a real-time data server with a unique indexing algorithm, can support data updates in milliseconds. Likewise, Newpoint's Mercury product provides management of unmanned remote sites.

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