Month: February 2009

Recession, Seshmession!

A Cheery Friday Babble:

Okay, so… Earlier in the week, I promised a review/report on my recent Digital Signage installation/set up, and I said it would be posted by the end of the week.

It’s Friday.

Ah, nuts.

*hangs head in shame* Before Monday? I’ll get it posted before Monday!

But, I was not procrastinating. I really wasn’t! Because my A/V company has been busy as all get out.

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Catching Up!

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve posted for one very good reason. AV Dawn has been out in the field! That’s right, faithful readers. Last week, I was unshackled from the desk and spent a large part of the week on a job site, installing and programming a new digital signage network. Stay tuned, as I’ll be blogging/reviewing this particular system, later this week, based on my experiences.

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Borrowing Brains, Part V of V

5 Tips to Select and Get the Most Out of
Your A/V Design Consultant


Tip #5. Know What You Want the System to Do and Communicate It!

If you learn nothing else from this article, learn this! I cannot stress enough how important communication is in ANY A/V project! You are the client. Without you, there is no need for consultants or integrators! Now, you don’t have to know every technical detail about every component or things like that. That’s why you HIRE a consultant (design or design/build) to begin with… so you don’t NEED to know! However, you should have a general idea of:

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DTV Transition Update

BREAKING NEWS –
The latest on the 700 mHz Transition from the FCC!

As I am sure you have all heard by now, the US House of Representatives revisited the DTV Transition deadline yesterday, voting 264-148 in favor of a bill to delay the Transition date from February 17 to June 12. This means the House passed the delay, which was passed by the Senate last week. The bill now moves to President Obama for his signature – an almost-certainty since the Obama Administration has been backing this delay all along.

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Borrowing Brains, Part IV of V

5 Tips to Select and Get the Most Out of
Your A/V Design Consultant


Tip #4. Consider Design/Build.

If you are in a non-bid or sole-source situation (a.k.a., most non-government jobs), consider pursuing a Design/Build project rather than using a separate consultant and integrator. This will often lead to a smoother, more seamless integration – “Too many cooks…” and all that – as well as providing a cost and productivity savings. With a Design/Build, your chosen A/V Integrator will actually be your consultant in addition to providing and installing your equipment.

 

Borrowing Brains, Part III of V

5 Tips to Select and Get the Most Out of
Your A/V Design Consultant

Tip #3. Ask for References from Customers… and Integrators… and Follow Up!

This is a bit obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t actually ask for references…or ask for them and never call them to get the scoop! I can’t stress this enough. TALK to other people who have worked with your potential A/V consultant.

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Borrowing Brains, Part II of V

5 Tips to Select and Get the Most Out of
Your A/V Design Consultant

Tip #2. Look for Real World Installation and Integration Experience.

You know that horrible expression, “Those who can, do; those who can’t teach?” While I don’t subscribe to this theory about educators, there is a grain of truth to it when it comes to A/V Consultants. Now, before the hate mail pours in, let me be clear: Most A/V Consultants are well-respected A/V professionals who have worked in the field for decades and made the leap to consulting in order to share their experiences with the world.

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Borrowing Brains, Part I of V

5 Tips to Select and Get the Most Out of
Your A/V Design Consultant

 

President Woodrow Wilson once said, “I not only use all the brains that I have, but all that I can borrow” – Sage advice, not only for a President, but for any person in the business world. After all, who among us wants to become the clichéd “Jack of All Trades, Master of None?” Relying on your own ‘close enough’ knowledge of technology (or the knowledge of your brother-in-law or neighbor who is “so good with all that tech stuff”) can cost your company dearly – time, money and productivity. So, when it’s time to install or upgrade A/V systems in your company, you need to ‘borrow brains.’ You need an A/V Design Consultant.

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