Electrosonic is proud to announce that it has qualified at the Diamond level in InfoComm’s Certified Audiovisual Solutions Provider Program (CAVSP), the only organizational-level recognition of its kind. Diamond is the highest level designation; it recognizes that 50 percent of the company’s sales, customer service and technical staff worldwide have achieved and maintain individual InfoComm Certified Technology Specialist (CTS) certification and completed relevant coursework from the InfoComm Academy.

“We are pleased to have achieved the coveted InfoComm CAVSP Diamond-level certification,” says Electrosonic President Jim Bowie. “The designation highlights Electrosonic’s dedication to excellence as an international audio-visual solutions provider. It also signals the importance we place in having our staff worldwide continually sharpen their skill set via individual InfoComm CTS certification.”

Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., InfoComm International’s Chief Executive Officer, says that a CAVSP designation “gives AV companies a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Customers of audiovisual communications and presentation systems can be confident of professionalism and an aspiration to excellence when working with these companies that have invested in education and training to stay current on the latest AV technologies and techniques.”

“We have always focused on demanding audio-visual solutions and believe that we best serve our customers by constantly developing our staff,” says Ilari Anttila, Vice President, EMEA of Electrosonic. “Achieving this Diamond-level CAVSP designation is a recognition of our efforts, and it will allow us to continue supplying our customers with high-quality AV solutions.”

The organizational-level CAVSP recognition program is the only program of its kind available for the commercial audio-visual industry. In addition to confirming that 50 percent of the company’s employees are InfoComm-certified and have completed important coursework, the Diamond-level designation means that Electrosonic has agreed to comply with 10 Standards of Excellence developed in collaboration with industry experts to emphasize the best practices of audio-visual businesses.

These Standards of Excellence are a guidepost for AV companies and professionals who place the customer first and offer quality AV solutions. They include the commitment to provide complete customer satisfaction with AV solutions that provide value to the client. They convey the importance that providers place on their own skills development through continuing education and reflect the critical role that AV professionals play as partners with IT specialists, architects, building managers and others.

Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures, from Las Vegas-based Morpheus Lights, are giving Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band’s Wrecking Ball World Tour a look that The Boss’s previous concert performances have never had before.

The Wrecking Ball World Tour kicked off in the U.S. this spring in support of The Boss’s 17th studio album, “Wrecking Ball.” Springsteen’s lighting designer Jeff Ravitz, of Intensity Advisors, selected 28 Sharpy fixtures for his inventory after having seen them last fall.

“In putting Bruce’s tour together I thought the Sharpys would be an excellent replacement for the lights we had been using inside the set platforms to push light through custom openings we created,” he explains. “I thought they’d be a nice change with a really defined and distinct look. The Sharpys also allowed us to design with some interesting gobo patterns.

When Ravitz added Sharpys the idea came up of using hazers to paint the air and enhance the lights’ sharply-defined beams. Adding the singer-friendly MDG AtmosphereAPS hazers that Ravitz chose — to help create interesting visual compositions–was a first for a Springsteen tour. “The haze really helps to show off the Sharpys,” Ravitz reports.

He positioned 16 fixtures below the stage shooting up through plexiglass windows that replace part of the deck on the custom-built Tait Towers stage plus 6 fixtures each, on two vertical side trusses shooting from left and right. The Boss’s shows have typically been designed to be very horizontal to allow for maximum sightlines from every angle. But for Wrecking Ball Ravitz decided to add some Sharpys to a powerful vertical truss for a “very dynamic look.”

He says, “We’re having a lot of fun with the Sharpys. Sometimes they’re used with no color, sometimes with deep color and sometimes we even ballyhoo them. We feel we’ve found the right balance.”

The Sharpys are proving to be rugged and reliable on the long tour schedule, Ravitz adds. “The crew tells me the Sharpys are pretty bulletproof and are working great every day.”

A.C.T Lighting is the distributor for Clay Paky in North America.

Francesco Romagnoli, Clay Paky Area Manager for North and Latin America, adds, “We’re so pleased to see our Sharpys on this high profile and very popular tour. Mr. Ravitz is an excellent designer and it shows in the projects he works on. We’re glad to be able to help with our innovations.”

Lighting designer Herrick Goldman recently scored big at Dallas Cowboys Stadium helping transform the football field into the site of a spectacular event for Ward & Ames Special Events, the company that created a first ever design concept straddling the 50 yard line for the launch of Emirates Airline’s Dubai to Dallas route. With support from GDS LiteWare fixtures and grandMA lighting control, he gave a “larger than life� look to the celebratory dinner and presentation for 950 guests with entertainment by musical group Splash and a performance by cast members of “Dancing With The Stars.� A.C.T Lighting is the distributor of grandMA and GDS lighting in North America.

Goldman deployed 24 GDS LiteWare Satellite up-lighters to illuminate the stadium’s exterior arched entry and positioned additional fixtures along the red carpet, which led guests to the VIP lounge for cocktails. Bright Star Productions of Houston implemented all the entryway designs.

GDS’s LiteWare range of RGB LED solutions for lighting include the new Satellite, which offers a fully-adjustable head with 360º pan and 180º tilt for easy focusing. The up-lighters provide an ideal solution for today’s demanding events. With no cabling required for power or control, the fixtures are deployed in the desired locations by simply switching them on.

“A.C.T Lighting’s Ben Saltzman showed me the fixtures about a year ago, and I saw them again at PLASA,� Goldman explains. “They work great. You just set them and forget them. They’re bright, require no cabling and have handy wireless DMX. They’re perfect for quick one-of installations like the Emirates gala.�

After cocktails in the Legends Club, Emirates guests were led to stadium seating for the first presentation. The venue’s 70×160-foot LED screen (currently the world’s fourth largest) was lowered to 40’ feet above the 50 yard line on the field and curtained off with black velour traveler track. Ward & Ames asked Goldman to create a simulated landing strip runway which he did by lining it with 130 feet of Color Kinetics ColorBlaze lighting and High End Dataflash strobes, using vertical trusses as searchlight towers to amp up excitement in the crowd. When the traveler opened it revealed an elegant dinner setting and a 120-foot wide stage on the opposite side of the field.

Goldman controlled several hundred lights with a grandMA console; a second desk was on hand for backup. “When it’s my choice, I only specify grandMA,� he declares. “Paul Sonnleitner did some fast and beautiful programming on it.�

In addition to the runway lighting, the grandMA controlled cyc lighting with 75 fixtures working together to produce more than 25 different looks for the set. The stage boasted a 115-foot high center cyc flanked by 68-foot high cycs.

The console also controlled stage lighting, dance floor lighting and back lighting. Goldman turned to the grandMA for control of audience lighting, too, which featured 60 fixtures.

BARTKRESA Design, Inc. chose the Vista Spyder X20 1608 video processor to provide blending of multilayered graphic content and sequencing for the Event Solutions magazine Spotlight/ICA CATIE Awards at the recent Event Solutions Idea Factory 2012 Conference in Las Vegas.

Event Solutions magazine, the leader in event industry news and information, held its awards ceremony in the Palace Ballroom of Caesars Palace to honor the top names in the event and catering world. BARTKRESA Design, which specializes in creating large-scale projection environments, provided the Vista Spyder X20 for the gala showcase content for the festivities.

Via pixel mapping, the Palace Ballroom was transformed into a lush red-curtained stage with three large viewing screens and Art Deco detailing. Within this theatrical environment, an emcee interfaced with the projections – helping define the flow and structure of the awards ceremony, including an opening operatic act and the projection of award categories and nominees, and transitional backgrounds.

Feeding the Spyder X20 with background graphics, live camera feeds and computer graphics were eight DVI inputs, and by taking advantage of the Spyder’s 16 inputs, BARTKRESA supported all the primary and backup sources without using an upstream matrix switch.

“Spyder enabled the integration of a multitude of varied graphic elements and animations that the presentation required,” said Bart Kresa, president, BARTKRESA. “That meant pixel mapping for the architectural facades and decorative details that defined the stage. It also meant cityscapes for transitional effects, award categories and nominee listings, and the gilt frames that enclosed graphic backgrounds and animated titling.”

BARTKRESA design deployed the Spyder’s soft edge blending function on the inputs, seamlessly creating an internal blend from the sources across four screens. The company also used alpha stills to give the IMAG windows an elegant picture-frame look.

“Spyder’s performance was just fantastic,” concluded Kresa. “We were completely satisfied with it.”

About Christie(r)
Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc. is a global visual technologies company and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ushio, Inc., Japan, (JP:6925). Consistently setting the standards by being the first to market some of the world’s most advanced projectors and complete system displays, Christie is recognized as one of the most innovative visual technology companies in the world. From retail displays to Hollywood, mission critical command centers to classrooms and training simulators, Christie display solutions and projectors capture the attention of audiences around the world with dynamic and stunning images. Visit www.christiedigital.com.

Rapper and pop singer-songwriter Pitbull, a Billboard Latin Music Award winner, has been playing to packed houses on his PlanetPit World Tour 2012 where Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures are in tune with the artist’s unique vibe.

The tour recently concluded a cross-Canada run, will be heading for Europe shortly and plans to return to the U.S. in the fall. Lighting designer Justin Geiger of California-based Impulse Creative Group designed a tiered rig with video in the center for the Canadian dates. Impulse Creative Group consists of a design team with experience in live concerts, corporate events and houses of worship, which offers production design, system development and total show management.

“There’s a high-energy club vibe to the show; it’s very upbeat,” says Geiger. “The venues mostly hold 8-14,000 people, and Pit is selling out all over the place.”

Geiger “built everything around multiple heights and depths,” placing six Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures on band risers, four Sharpys in each of the two wings and eight more across the top.

“They’re being used as the high impact fixture of the show,” says the lighting designer. “They’re crazy bright, unbelievably fast, and definitely the main focus of the rig. In fact, I use them for every cue. Everyone is surprised how much those little fixtures make such a difference in our show.”

Geiger notes that Sharpy fixtures appear to be “popping up everywhere” these days. “For good reason,” he notes. “I had never used them before but told my production manager that I had to have them for the tour. And I just love them.” Lighting fixtures for the Canada tour were supplied by Briere.

Geiger plans to redesign the rig for the next leg of the tour. “I hope to use all Clay Paky fixtures,” he says. “I’d like to add Alpha Beam 700s to my inventory of Sharpys.”

A.C.T Lighting is the distributor for Clay Paky in North America.

Francesco Romagnoli, Clay Paky Area Manager for North and Latin America, adds, “We’re glad that our fixtures are doing so well for this tour. Mr. Geiger is a great designer truly understands the impact that the Sharpy can have.”

About Clay Paky
Headquartered in Seriate (Bergamo), Italy, Clay Paky SPA has a history of designing and manufacturing innovative professional show lighting. The company was founded in 1976 by entrepreneur Pasquale Quadri who anticipated the enormous impact the evolution of technology would have on the show and entertainment worlds.

Christie Digital Systems Japan (Christie) in co-operation with NHK Enterprises Ltd., WOW and Sigma A&V and Rental Corporation, played a key role in creating Sunday’s NHK documentary broadcast – “See Everything That Makes Tokyo Sky Tree Special!” – in advance of the Tokyo Sky Tree’s official public opening on May 22, 2012.

Christie’s expertise in ‘projection mapping’ was leveraged during the shooting of the documentary to deploy and operate 27 Christie Roadie HD+35K projectors, the world’s brightest and best DLP projectors, to project images created by NHK onto a 4,500 square-meter area on the East Tower, over a distance of up to 130 meters. Set on the rooftop of the eighth floor of the Tokyo Sky Town shopping mall, each projector is capable of 35,000 lumens output.

“As a professional-use projector manufacturer, it is an honor to provide technical cooperation for projection mapping in a locale that is as large in scale and as topical as the Tokyo Sky Tree,” said Mamoru Hanzawa, general manager, Christie Digital Systems Japan. “Projection mapping allows large numbers of people to share the excitement of seeing an image projection that, although far larger in scale than conventional uses, requires no screen setup and takedown, and does not interfere with the building or other object on which it is projected.”

Eye-Pleasing Projection Mapping Now Within Reach
Christie projectors have the reputation for image quality, reliability and brightness that artists, designers and rental stagers count on for their displays and events, and the firm is pleased to be the projector manufacturer of choice that helps create many spectacular displays, including those used in “See Everything That Makes Tokyo Sky Tree Special!”

Primitive forms of projection mapping have been around for more than a decade. Originally, projection mapping was used to project static images onto buildings and exterior structures using slide-projector setups and film to create lighting effects. Mapping to these surfaces was difficult since the designers were required to use technology that used camera obscura-type manipulations. The light sources were often not bright enough, so the result images could not been seen very well.

To eliminate these problems, Christie developed advanced technologies that help enable today’s complex and stunning mapping displays to be created. Technologies like Christie Twist and Christie AutoStack allow the projected images to be warped and edge-blended into irregular shapes and surfaces, as well as enable the set up and maintenance to be accomplished more accurately and quickly using cameras, projectors and software.

For advertising, events and ceremonies, projection mapping continues to be an engaging way of transforming buildings and facades in order to attract and excite people. As more displays emerge for advertising and entertainment, more and more people are deciding to use this type of environmental modification for weddings, ballrooms and corporate events. It’s the imagination and creativity of people working with the capabilities of today’s digital projectors that is helping to make projection mapping displays go mainstream.

“Projection mapping goes further than just providing content for television programs and for displays at events. It is a projection method with enormous and yet to be fully realized potential,” said Mamoru Hanzawa, general manager, Christie Digital Systems Japan.

“Furthermore, in the age of the personal computer, the smart phone, and the tablet, where each individual has come to enjoy watching still and moving images on his or her small device alone, visual experiences able to be shared by large numbers of people at once are, I believe, of great significance and value.

“As a leading manufacturing company of professional-use projectors, Christie wishes to contribute to the future of such shared visual experiences made possible by the use of projectors,” Hanzawa continued.

“Projectors are used not only in the entertainment sector, such as with image projection of this type here and movies, and the like. They are also used in a wide range of other fields such as pharmaceuticals, medicine, and for academic and technical research. It will be greatly satisfying if the application of projectors in this project can serve to show as many people as possible the enormous possibilities they have for image projection in general.”

About Christie
Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc. is a global visual technologies company and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ushio, Inc., Japan, (JP:6925). Consistently setting the standards by being the first to market some of the world’s most advanced projectors and complete system displays, Christie is recognized as one of the most innovative visual technology companies in the world. From retail displays to Hollywood, mission critical command centers to classrooms and training simulators, Christie display solutions and projectors capture the attention of audiences around the world with dynamic and stunning images. Visit www.christiedigital.com.

Christie, the official contents sponsor for Expo 2012 Yeosu Expo, is pleased to announce the Organizing Committee for Expo 2012 has selected Christie Roadie HD+35K projectors for its signature multimedia night show. Set against the natural backdrop of the Yeosu Sea, the 47-meter high Big-O is the world’s largest water curtain and the landmark installation at the expo.

Designed and directed by France-based ECA2, who were involved in shows such as the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1998 World Cup in France and the Eiffel Tower Millennium Show, the “O” stands for the ocean and resembles the numerical zero to illustrate a new beginning for the sea. The show is expected to remain as a permanent centerpiece after Expo.

Two sets of triple-stacked Christie Roadie HD+35Ks, the world’s brightest and best DLP projectors, project a short animated film about ocean conservation onto the water screen at the internal rim of the “O,” which is located about 100 meters away. To complete this show, the “Fountain Show,” staged by the US-based WET Design, also utilizes four sets of dual-stacked Christie HD+35Ks projecting content onto three sets of fountain jets located at distances of 20 meters, 25 meters and 30 meters respectively. The nightly multimedia show also includes other special effects such as moving water jets, mist, flames, lighting, and laser works.

“Christie HD+35K projectors are wonderful. They’re bright and offer superior quality. We’re getting a brightness level of more than 200 nits, which is more than what we expect. Even under strong wind conditions which affect the water screen, we’re still getting the clarity and the exact image focal point,” comments Guillaume Duflot, chief of operations & technical director, ECA2. “We have an excellent ongoing relationship with Christie, having collaborated with them on many projects in many parts of the world including Singapore and China over the last five years. As a company, they’re ultra-responsive and offer products of the highest quality.”

“Projecting onto moving waters is a challenging task. The Christie projectors are able to fully maximize the potential of our fountain show by adding a surreal touch. We’re very happy with the results as they really bring the whole show to life,” comments Helen Park, senior vice president, WET Design.

“The images projected by the Christie projectors are visually stunning and they have definitely met or even surpassed the requirements set out by the Organizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea for the Big-O show. I’ve always been working with some of the world’s best companies and, in this case, Christie is the company who can offer the best visual solution for this show,” comments Yves Pepin, creative consultant to the Yeosu Expo 2012 Committee on the Big-O project.

“We wanted the best possible solution for the Big-O show and all the companies that we were working with – including ECA2, Electrosonic and Wet – unanimously proposed Christie. In this case, we decided to select Christie as a partner for this event. We would never be able to forget the visual impact that the show had on us when we first saw it. The projected images were brilliant and crisp even when we did the trial projection in the rain. The visual projection not only tells an entertaining story but most importantly, it helps to visually convey the expo’s core message – the need for ocean protection,” comments Berni Cho, Project Manager, Big-O installation.

Under the expo’s theme “Living Ocean and Coast,” various promotional locations and pavilions at Yeosu Expo have deployed close to 250 Christie visual solutions for the 93-day event taking place May 12 to August 12, 2012. Christie J Series, Christie M Series, Christie E Series, Christie Roadie HD+35Ks, Christie Roadster S+20Ks, Christie LX Series and Christie MicroTiles are used to help visually convey the message about the need for ocean conservation to an estimated turnout of eight million visitors from around the world.

“We’re very fortunate to be selected as the contents sponsor for the Expo 2012 Yeosu Expo and to be involved in one of the biggest events in Korea this year. Most importantly, we’re able to transfer our knowledge and experience gained from our strong participation in the similar expo event in Shanghai during 2010,” comments Lin Yu, vice president, Christie Asia Pacific. “We started working on this event early last year and we’re pleased that our groundbreaking visual solutions are present in some of most significant installations including the Big-O, the Denmark Pavilion, the China Pavilion as well as corporate pavilions.”

As early as May 2011, Christie MicroTiles were selected by the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea Organizing Committee to promote the event at the Incheon International Airport and Gimpo International Airport. These visual solutions will remain in use until the end of Expo.

About Christie
Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc. is a global visual technologies company and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ushio, Inc., Japan, (JP:6925). Consistently setting the standards by being the first to market some of the world’s most advanced projectors and complete system displays, Christie is recognized as one of the most innovative visual technology companies in the world. From retail displays to Hollywood, mission critical command centers to classrooms and training simulators, Christie display solutions and projectors capture the attention of audiences around the world with dynamic and stunning images. Visit www.christiedigital.com.

A.C.T Lighting, Inc. has named George Masek Vice President, Automated Lighting for the company. He will be based in Dallas, Texas. A.C.T Lighting is the distributor of Clay Paky lighting in North America.

“We are delighted to welcome George to A.C.T Lighting,” says president and CEO Bob Gordon. “George strengthens our knowledge base on automated stage lighting and brings with him first hand knowledge of the history of automated lights. He knows how to take care of lighting professionals and how to provide exactly what they need to be successful. He has more than 20 years experience in the lighting industry and we expect him to strengthen our position as the number one Clay Paky distributor in the world.”

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the folks from A.C.T Lighting and to have the chance to be associated with the powerful brands they represent,” says Masek. “I saw joining A.C.T Lighting as a great chance for growth and an opportunity to work with a group of professionals I truly admire. I’m looking forward to combining my knowledge base in automated lighting with their great products and talented people.”

Masek started as a road tech for Philips VARI*LITE in 1990. He toured with Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, INXS, Depeche Mode, Gloria Estefan and other top bands and designed lighting for the Incredible Acrobats of China. He became a charter member of The 500 Club, an exclusive group of staff members who worked on shows featuring more than 500 VARI*LITE fixtures.

He later moved over to manufacturing and tech support becoming head of the company’s tech support department. He became an account manager for touring, handling Jimmy Buffet and Lords of the Dance, among others. Subsequently, Masek took a position in long-term leases and installation support and was named Product Manager in 2001.

“The various positions I held allowed me to work in rock ‘n roll touring, on Broadway, for feature films and television, as well as on installations and corporate tradeshow projects,” he notes. “If you can use an automated light for it, I’ve done it!”

A 1989 graduate of Southern Methodist University with a B.A. degree in Radio/Television, Masek is a member of IATSE Local 82.

About A.C.T Lighting

A leading importer and distributor of lighting products, A.C.T Lighting, Inc. strives to identify future trends and cutting-edge products, and stock, sell and support their inventory. The company provides superior customer service and value for money to all of its clients.

For more information call 818-707-0884.

George Masek can be reached by email at george@actlighting.com

Robert Juliat (RJ) is pleased to announce that Alan Keen has joined its American team. Alan joins RJ with more than twenty years experience in design, sales, and management within the theatrical lighting industry. He will be responsible for strengthening relationships with current dealers, specifiers and end-users, while actively identifying and establishing new opportunities and relationships.

Fred Lindauer, Robert Juliat USA Managing Director, states, “I am thrilled that Alan is part of our team. He shares my desire to provide prompt and enthusiastic customer support and I am confident that his knowledge and experience will be instrumental in growing our business.”

“I am excited about the opportunity of working with Robert Juliat,” Keen comments. “Robert Juliat manufactures high quality and innovative products for the entertainment and architectural lighting industries and I look forward to sharing our message, building upon our current associations, and developing new relationships.”

Prior to joining Robert Juliat, Alan worked with Production Resource Group (PRG), Genlyte -Entertainment Technology (now Philips Entertainment), and Electronic Theatre Controls (ETC).

Alan can be reached at (203) 623-0041 or alan@robertjuliatamerica.com

About Robert Juliat

Robert Juliat is a three-generation, independent family-run company dedicated to the manufacturing of professional stage lighting products. Robert Juliat lights are used by customers who include Cirque du Soleil, Celine Dion, New York’s Lincoln Center, LA’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Bruce Springsteen, Disney Theme Parks, Carnegie Hall, The San Francisco Opera and Ballet, The Royal Shakespeare Company, The Comedie Francaise, The Sydney Opera House, plus theatres, schools and public venues around the world.

R&D, production and the company headquarters are based in the village of Fresnoy-en-Thelle, 50 km north of Paris. Robert Juliat USA is located in Wallingford, Connecticut. For more information visit www.robertjuliatamerica.com.

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The rich history of the Brooklyn Navy Yard from before the Revolutionary War to its exciting rebirth in the 21st century has found a home in Bldg 92′s Brooklyn Navy Yard Center (BNYC). An exhibit and visitors center operated as a program of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, the BNYC features a number of exhibits implementing Alcorn McBride Digital Video Machines and Digital Audio Machines.

The BNYC showcases the history and innovation of the Brooklyn Navy Yard where many warships – including the Civil War’s famous U.S.S. Monitor – were built and which today serves as model of industrial re-use and green manufacturing. The space occupies former naval officers’ quarters and offers interactive and conventional exhibits, videos and artifacts.

Design/build integrator Videosonic Systems, Inc. worked with museum designer Robin Parkinson to help communicate the ideas contained within the design package. “We’ve had a lot of success with Alcorn McBride products over the years,” says Glenn Polly, of Videosonic. “They’re a well-known staple for museums thanks to their bullet-proof performance and reliability.”

Videosonic senior project manager/programmer Eugene Ababio notes that “the Brooklyn Navy Yard has a pretty solid history and a lot to say” in the BNYC. “Our priority was to make sure we could provide technology that would not hinder the storytelling process.”

He points out that in an exhibit-type installation, “all the devices are critical components and at the BNYC all those devices were Alcorn players. That said, you might think you’d spend most of your time testing and troubleshooting ’til close out. But not with Alcorn. The units were very powerful products yet simple to set up and manage.”

The ground floor of the BNYC features a photo montage comprised of five 46-inch Samsung displays driven by five Alcorn McBride DVM-7400 Digital Video Machines. Each display contains a motion detector so when visitors approach they trigger the story of the photo showcased. Focused audio is provided via soundtrap-housed speakers and Alcorn McBride AM4 Digital Audio Machines. All of the playback equipment is located in an IT server room back of house.

The BNYC’s second floor has rooms documenting different periods in the Navy Yard’s history. Videosonic selected Alcorn McBride AM4 Digital Audio Machines to deliver information about various artifacts when visitors pick up exhibit handsets. The orientation theater also features an Alcorn McBride DVM-7400 Digital Video Machine, which drives the display on a 70-inch screen.

The third floor includes models of ships with embedded video monitors. All are triggered by motion detectors and driven by Alcorn McBride DVM-7400 video players. Additional DVM-7400s provide playback in a wing whose porthole viewers/monitors detail battleship construction. Another, rugged-style theater space, built from rusty corrugated aluminum and cyclone fencing, tells the story of the Navy Yard’s very successful reinvention. It houses a 70-inch monitor fed by a DVM-7400 video player.

Ababio reports that Alcorn McBride’s tech support throughout was “excellent. I’ve worked with a lot of AV gear for the last 15 years, and it’s impossible not to run into situations where you need help from tech support. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s difficult to find more than a few technicians who know their products inside out. I never had this issue with Alcorn; everyone I spoke with had an excellent understanding of their products and was able to offer instant solutions.”

He adds that the Alcorn McBride products easily supported the multiple content providers contracted by the BNYC. “The project incorporated a number of content providers who didn’t all use the same technology. Thank goodness, Alcorn supports all the major file formats and compression rates. It was a relief for the content providers to hear us say, ‘Yeah, we can support that.’”

Southside Design’s Sam Morse was the exhibit fabricator for the BNYC.

About Alcorn McBride:
Founded in 1986, Alcorn McBride is the leading manufacturer of show control, audio and video equipment for the themed entertainment industry, and a rapidly growing provider of audio and video systems for retail environments and transportation applications. Staffed by some of the industry’s best engineers and backed by outstanding customer support, the company has demonstrated great agility in bringing new designs to market. A hallmark of Alcorn McBride products is their durable, zero maintenance design. The company’s products provide consistent, reliable operation for audio and video playback applications worldwide. For more information, visit www.alcorn.com.