CEDIA Communicates Q2 2019 by CEDIA EMEA

QUARTEr 2 2019

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Integrating the World’s Largest Catamaran 30 Years of CEDIA, 30 Years of Tech Web 3.0 — It May Change Everything

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ContENTS

10 12 16 18 28 32 40 44

CEDIA AWARDS A preview of the 2019 EMEA venue and judges

30 YEARS OF TECH Big advances in home tech since CEDIA’s founding in ‘89

I AM CEDIA: JUSTIN F. KERN Meet the brains behind the successful Australian firm, JFK Automation

MARINE MARVEL Liquid Automation retrofits the world’s largest catamaran

OUTSIDE IN Bekins creates a sportsman’s paradise on the Lake Michigan shore

ON SHOW Hanson Audio Video highlights its showroom experience

MEMBER OF EXCELLENCE Members tell us about the benefits of this new CEDIA designation

WEB 3.0 The next iteration of the web will change everything, says Rich Green

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WELCOME… To this second quarter issue of CEDIA Communicates. We’ve got three project profiles for you in this edition: land, sea, and showroom. Enjoy a tour through a spectacular lakeside home by Bekins (Michigan), a brilliantly designed experience centre from Hanson Audio Video (Cincinnati), and an incredible marine integration by Liquid Automation (New Zealand) — it’s a retrofit of nothing less than the world’s largest catamaran. You’ll also find in these pages practical advice you can use immediately: we tell you about building an effective strategy when it comes to implementing service contracts, share advice on working with property developers (from their perspective), and reveal tips on installing the perfect distributed video system from CEDIA’s own, David Meyer. CEDIA’s Tech Council has been busy too: to mark CEDIA’s 30th anniversary, the Tech Council has been looking at the 30 developments that have most powerfully impacted our industry since CEDIA’s founding in 1989. We look at the first 10 items in that list in this issue, with the others appearing in Communicates Q3 and Q4 of this year. Lastly, I’d like to note that I’m penning these words from our new world headquarters in Fishers, Indiana, which is now, officially open. We’d held classes here during the “soft opening” period, but now, every bit of the building is ready for guests and students. We encourage our members to see what the CEDIA experience centre is all about, and we’ll be using the space to show architects, designers, and builders what’s possible when it comes to beautifully integrated home technology solutions. Couple that with our terrific new educational facilities, and the new HQ is now another tool that will help CEDIA help you for the next 30 years — and beyond. Enjoy the issue! All the best,

Tabatha O’Connor CEDIA Global President and CEO

Contact

8475 Nightfall Lane, Fishers, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46037, USA Email: info@cedia.org Telephone: +1 800.669.5329

Front cover image: Liquid Automation — The Catamaran CEDIA Asia Pacific Awards 2018 Best Auto, Marine, or Aircraft Installation

www.cedia.net

Unit 2, Phoenix Park, St Neots Cambridgeshire, PE19 8EP, UK Email: info@cedia.co.uk Telephone: +44 (0)1480 213744 www.cedia.co.uk

All material in Communicates is the copyright of CEDIA and any reproduction of said material would require written permission from the publisher. Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of content published, CEDIA cannot accept responsibility for any factual errors that may occur. CEDIA cannot accept responsibility for the veracity of claims made by contributors.

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NEWS IN BRIEF THE SUNDAY TIMES BRITISH HOMES AWARDS CEDIA has announced an exciting new partnership with the Sunday Times British Homes Awards, the prestigious national scheme which celebrates exceptional design in all things home. The Sunday Times British Homes Awards is the only honours that recognises every aspect of housebuilding — from one-off houses to major developments, interiors to landscaping, individual extensions to placemaking on a grand scale. The awards ceremony itself, held this year on the 19th September at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square, attracts some of the biggest names in housebuilding, architecture, and interior design to a sell-out event. Contenders and winners are given extensive coverage in the Sunday Times, Britain’s biggest selling quality Sunday newspaper and across its popular digital platforms.

NEW CPD FOR DESIGN AND BUILD PROFESSIONALS CEDIA has launched a new Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training course for design and build professionals on Designing Home Cinemas and Media Rooms. This CPD is tailored to help architects, interior designers, and property developers understand how to help clients choose and specify rooms, as well as the design principles needed for a dedicated entertainment space. Digital entertainment plays a huge part in the modern lifestyle and is something that can be truly astounding when experienced in the correct environment. Dedicated and convertible entertainment spaces need careful thought and professional design to perform well, and ultimately impress the homeowner. Accredited by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID), this new CPD course identifies the key principles of how to design and implement these entertainment spaces. Any CEDIA member who wants to present CEDIA CPD content must first become recognised as a CEDIA Outreach Instructor (COI). The COI programme enables members to provide continuing education to their local design and build industry partners,

helping establish vital businessto-business networking contacts and raising the awareness of CEDIA, its members, and the home technology industry. As this is a specialist subject CPD presentation, members must be confident that they have a substantial amount of knowledge in these subject areas to be able present this seminar and will need to provide proof that they have met the appropriate requirements. To access the new CPD material, members will need at least one of the following qualifications: • HAA Certified • THX Certified • ISF Certified • ESC-D Certified • Sat the CEDIA Home Cinema Design Fundamentals & Advanced Home Cinema Design courses (within the last five years) • Winner/Finalist in the CEDIA Awards within the Home Cinema or Media Room categories (within the last five years) • Other relevant CEDIA or manufacturer training on Home Cinema/Media rooms Members must show they have accomplished at least one of the qualifications, they can do this by logging and uploading their certificate via cedia.net/ Education/SubmitCEU. Once received, CEDIA will provide a link to the new CPD presentation.

CEDIA members are encouraged to enter the Best Smart Homes category, where they will receive a 15% discount on entry by using the code, MEMBERS15. This category will be judged by a panel of designers, architects, and homebuilders, as well as Giles Sutton, CEDIA’s Senior Vice President of Industry Engagement. The scheme is now open for entries with a closing date of 2nd May 2019**.

britishhomesawards.co.uk ** Initial Entry deadline: Midnight Thursday 2 May 2019 Entry Fee: £350 +VAT per entry (less 15% for CEDIA Members). Final Entry deadline: Midnight Thursday 16 May 2019 Entry Fee: £435 +VAT per entry (less 15% for CEDIA Members)

NEW MEMBERS CEDIA welcomes 110 new members across the globe this quarter.

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UPDATED BOOT CAMP CEDIA has updated the Boot Camp training package to ensure it is an excellent way to develop the basic skills integrators need to get started in the industry and meet the requirements necessary to develop and thrive in their careers. The big change to Boot Camp is the addition of an all-new one-day course dedicated to Testing, Measurement, and Troubleshooting Techniques. With a wide range of technologies, equipment, and signal types in play, it’s normal to expect a few hiccups during installation time. This course is all about what to do when commissioning systems, and for when things don’t quite go as expected. It covers troubleshooting methods and best practices, electrical system measurements integrators would use in their day-

CEDIA RELEASES NEW WHITE PAPERS

to-day operations, plus hands-on use of test equipment. Topics covered include: • Identifying the correct test equipment for a range of electrical and data related systems • Using test equipment to measure a variety of electrical parameters within AC and DC circuits • Using a data cable qualification tool to test data infrastructure • Processes for finding, fixing, and verifying various smart home systems • Common stages of the test and commissioning phase in a smart home project. The updated Boot Camp package also benefits from a new Electronic and Science Skills day. This will provide attendees with the

essential training in the typical maths, science, and electronics that integrators will have to utilise within the home technology industry. Topics covered include: • Understanding and manipulating formulae • Working with triangles, percentages, and ratios • Waves, frequency, and wavelength • Electricity and electrical theory • Tools, PPE, and other equipment needed • Avoiding client problems through effective communication

cediaeducation.com

CEDIA has released two new white papers —The Integrator’s Guide to Video: Resolution and Securing the Residential Network. The Integrator’s Guide to Video: Resolution is designed to help guide CEDIA members through the selection, presentation, and consumer description processes for video display and presentation. It covers video resolution fundamentals and applications, as well as the technical progression of Ultra High Definition, 4K, and 8K. Securing the Residential Network holistically examines the components that make up local area networks (LANs), the roles each play in security, and the possible weaknesses presented by current technologies. The white paper takes a deep dive into facets including information security, grades or classes of LANs, network hardware and its use in securing the LAN, passwords and authentication, and network devices. Both of these new white papers are available for CEDIA members to download at no cost in the resource library and on the CEDIA Online Community. White papers can be purchased by non-members for $99 at cedia.net. cedia.net/ProductCatalog

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A FREEWHEELING AT THE CEDIA KEYNOTE TECH SUMMIT T he road trip of CEDIA Tech Summits has begun, with the industry already enjoying events in Fort Lauderdale, Irvine, and Los Angeles in the U.S. and London in the UK. With CEDIA announcing further dates for these regions, as well as events to be held in Australia, Canada, India, and Mexico, there are many opportunities for the industry to come together and combine learning with networking.

CEDIA hosted a keynote at the Fort Lauderdale Tech Summit. The opening question was “What technology will affect our businesses in the next one to three years?” The importance of the question wasn’t lost on Eric Bodley, the man behind Future Ready Solutions and a CEDIA Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Eric, who was moderating a panel at the Tech Summit, noted that “the most valuable thing you produce is a customer. Why not use those technological leaps to circle back and reconnect with that homeowner you worked

with a while back?” And the notion of that “circling back,” that ongoing relationship, became the driving topic of discussion among Eric and his fellow panellists, which included CEDIA’s Giles Sutton, LeGrand’s Chris Kovacek, Access Networks’ Bryce Nordstrand, and IC Realtime’s Dean Morgan. Chris narrowed the conversation to the shift in the custom integration business: “We’ve gone from ‘automated’ to ‘smart’ home. What had we done for years? Automation — it was timers, setting schedules, scenes. Now, we’ve seen the proliferation of voice starting to anticipate events: ‘The voice assistant sees I have a flight at 8 a.m. It knows I’ll need coffee at, say, 5:30’ …” This brought Giles to a pretty interesting premise. Giles, who’d been a successful high-end residential integrator in London before coming to CEDIA, proffered that he expected the industry to split into two. “Everything — all those devices — will eventually self-configure. As a result, you’ll have a category of jobs that have some kind of fixed labour costs, and above that, you’ll have the mid- to high-end custom design projects.” “And you’ll have to decide where you’ll want to live,” noted Eric.

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Chris noted that the upshot here was one that has been discussed for a while in the CEDIA universe: while most integrators run what’s essentially a “hybrid” business — half retail, half service and design — the margins on hardware have been steadily vanishing. “It’s forcing the integrator to become someone who curates a lifestyle experience,” as he put it. But Bryce noted that the inherent problem here was the constant headache of the “endless service call.” “A single firmware update could perhaps foul up the whole job — it’s not your fault, but the client holds you accountable.” The solution, according to Bryce: “Documentation and agreements that include what’s NOT covered as well as what is covered by your firm.” Having that conversation with a customer should be easier now, thanks to everything from Netflix to HVAC service contracts. “Do you know when the Netflix charge comes out of your checking account?” asked Chris. (Only a few attendees murmured in the positive.) “You keep enough money in there to cover those charges,” he noted. And ironically, that concept of “big player creating awareness,” extends to the role that the “Amazon product” plays in the space now too: “Before Eero, we always heard about clients pushing back on the idea of having multiple access points. Now hardly anyone questions it. That’s the power of their marketing money,” said Chris. Dean concurred: “The ‘name-brand’ video doorbells have done great things for consumer awareness — but they also have limitations that everyone in this room can overcome.” “And an educated customer is my favourite customer,” added Eric. “The person who installs the Ring doorbell himself and goes to the trouble of figuring it out — he knows he’s going to need help when he wants to step up.”

Don’t miss your chance to attend the next CEDIA Tech Summits. Visit cedia.net/events to keep up to date on the upcoming events.

EDUCATED “ANCUSTOMER IS

MY FAVOURITE CUSTOMER.

”

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CEDIA TALKS

AT ISE ISE 2019 at the RAI in Amsterdam wasn’t just full of people, it was packed with brilliant ideas of the next paradigm shift in tech: CEDIA’s thought leaders offered their opinions in 2019’s series of CEDIA Talks.

Direct-LED vs. Two-Piece Projection Michael Heiss gave a presentation at the association’s booth on day two that answered the question: “Will direct LED replace two-piece projection systems?” The short answer

was “no,” the more nuanced answer was “that depends on the situation.” Michael ticked off all the variables that would affect a decision regarding the two solutions: What’s the screen size? Resolution? What aspect ratios might be involved? And, likely most importantly, what’s the budget? He pointed out that both the projector and screen factor into issues concerning image brightness, for example, while with a direct LED solution, “She be what she be,” in his words. Additionally, with a two-piece system, screen size and aspect ratio does NOT change the native resolution — but pixel pitch will change with screen width when an LED screen is the solution. Technological advances have made centre-channel audio less of a concern when it comes to LED solutions, but the biggest obstacle to broad adoption is still likely price — an LED system runs roughly three times the cost of a projector/ screen setup.

From Fire to Photons Lutron’s Sam Woodward returned to the CEDIA booth for a talk on the three revolutions in lighting: sources, user interfaces, and networking and connectivity. We’ve gone from candlelight to LED lamps in a variety of form factors, including elegant, sculptural/architectural shapes; seen switches make vast progressions from the binary on/off twoposition wall plate to include both “intentional” control to automated interactions (think presence detection, geofencing, and so on); and have digital control that makes for networked, integrated systems. Sam also notes that while the number of zones per room is going up, the amount of power needed per fixture has dropped in direct proportion to the addition of all of those fixtures — it’s a result of something that’s the lighting industry’s version of Moore’s law, called Haitz’s law: Named after Roland Haitz, a now-retired scientist from Agilent Technologies, the law forecasts that every 10 years the amount of light generated by an LED increases by a factor of 20, while the cost per lumen (unit of useful light emitted) falls by a factor of 10. — from nature.com

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Mass Sensorisation Christiaan Beukes of Sphere Custom (London/South Africa) dug into the impact of Big Data in his CEDIA Talk on mass sensorisation. Armed with startling graphics that outlined just how much time the average human is connected via a variety devices — and how much information that can give to advertisers, businesses, insurance providers, and even — gulp — governments, Christiaan compared the direction of the connected world to the stalker-y lyrics of the Police hit, “Every Breath You Take.” We’re pulling in so much data, in fact, that the people tasked with measuring all of it are about to run out of zeroes — we’re literally about to break the decimal system. Data is currently being measured in yottabytes (10 to the power of 24 bytes), and next up are brontobytes (which, although it sounds a lot like Fred Flintstone’s favourite take-out meal, it’s a term we use to express 10 to the power of 27 bytes. The other word that had been proposed for this whopper of a digit? The even sexier “hellabyte.”) So what’s the end game here? With all that personal information being shared by the constantly plugged-in human, we could create a utopia of connected humanity that all works together toward a common good — or a dystopian hellscape in which your health provider disallows you from ordering bacon during breakfast because your blood pressure’s up. In all seriousness, the threat for abuse of this massive amount of data we’re freely sharing with the connected universe is very real, and our notions of privacy — not to mention free will — could be easily shattered in the near future.

Wi-Fi 6 In his CEDIA Talk, Geoff Meads (Presto Web Design) explained the benefits of “Wi-Fi 6,” which is a rebranding of the 802.11ax standard. (Similarly, 802.11n becomes “Wi-Fi 4” and 802.11ac will be renamed “Wi-Fi 5.” Look for the digits coming to an icon on a connected device near you.) As you’re likely aware, the range of frequencies on which devices can operate is limited to a narrow

swath that’s been designated as “free to air” by governments — you don’t need to pay for a license between 2.4 and 5 GHz. The trade off? Your power’s limited. Add a massive amount of traffic to that bandwidth, and trouble’s afoot. While 5G might solve some issues, it’s got its own problems: namely, its range is fairly limited and the average home won’t run out and buy a batch of new devices. Wi-Fi 6 is an efficient use of present residential gear — for example, there’s a technique called “beamforming” that 6 can implement: using multiple directional antennas (instead of spreading a signal everywhere, like a radio tower), it can “direct a beam” to a specific point. There are a myriad of other ways that Wi-Fi 6 creates a more stable signal for the residential user, but Geoff saved the best news for last: It’s shipping now.

To watch these CEDIA Talks, visit youtube.com/CEDIAHQ

OUR NOTIONS OF PRIVACY — NOT TO MENTION FREE WILL — COULD BE EASILY SHATTERED IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

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CEDIA

AWARDS

VENUE

The spectacular Victoria and Albert Museum in London will be the venue for the 2019 EMEA CEDIA Awards, which is due to take place on Thursday 26th September. “The CEDIA Awards celebrates devotion and excellence within the industry,” comments Matt Nimmons, Managing Director of CEDIA EMEA. “The Victoria and Albert Museum is the world's leading museum of art and design and will provide the perfect setting for members to enjoy a fantastic evening amongst some of the oldest and most respected artworks which have stood the test of time for centuries. This is an inspirational location, perfect for acknowledging our most creative and talented members.” This prestigious black-tie event will begin with a drink’s reception in the Museum’s famous Dome. Designed with a soaring ceiling, classical architecture, marble floors, and an extraordinary central glass sculpture, the Dome is one of London’s most elegant and impressive settings and

the ideal location for opening the CEDIA Awards in style.

The dinner and ceremony will be hosted in the largest and most prestigious space in the museum, the Raphael Gallery. Housing some of the most important surviving examples of Renaissance art in the world, the Raphael Gallery will embrace guests with a stunning Spanish altarpiece backdrop and exquisitely creative artwork dating back to 1516.

JUDGES The Home Technology Professional categories are now closed for entries, and judging is taking place this month. This year’s judging panel includes: • Geoff Meads — Home Technology Professional EMEA Awards Chair (Presto Web Design) • Pip Evans — Home Technology Professional EMEA Awards Vice Chair (NV Integration) • Simon Fulstow (SONA) • Owen Maddock (ConnectedWorks) • Chris Morley (Cyberhomes)

SPONSORS

Following a hugely successful campaign as headline sponsor for last year’s awards, ABB is back on board as the headliner for the 2019 event. ABB is a pioneering technology leader with a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years. Specialising in electrification products, robotics and motion, industrial automation, and power grids, AAB operates in more than 100 countries. Today, ABB is at the forefront of delivering affordable smart home technology with its home automation system, ABB-free@home, which can quickly and cost-effectively transform any house or apartment into an intelligent home. Bowers & Wilkins, Samsung, and Meridian have signed up as official event sponsors. Founded in 1966, Bowers & Wilkins has over 50 years’ experience in making the very best audio equipment in the world. Whether it's hi-fi, home theatre, or custom installation, its loudspeakers are designed to reproduce sound as accurately as possible. Providing innovative solutions across the electronics sector, from the standout The Wall TV to its LED for Home range, Samsung has everything that the professional integrator needs. Since 1977, Meridian Audio has been crafting innovative, elegant, high performance audio solutions. Meridian has an everexpanding portfolio of market-leading audio products to help dealers across the world create unbeatable high resolution audio experiences for their customers.

cedia.net/awards

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A lot has happened in the last thirty years. Since CEDIA’s creation by a group of tradespeople, entrepreneurs — and yes, hackers — in 1989, the pace of technological change has been nothing short of startling. As Ray Kurzweil noted in his book “The Age of Spiritual Machines” back in 1999: “Computers are about one hundred million times more powerful for the same unit cost than they were a half century ago. If the automobile industry had made as much progress in the past fifty years, a car today would cost a hundredth of a cent and go faster than the speed of light.” So, what have been the changes, the innovations, the advancements, and inventions that really affect the folks who are out in the residential tech space, pulling cables, and troubleshooting lousy firmware updates? CEDIA’s Technology Council — a group of people tasked with forecasting what’s coming next to help keep our members’ businesses nimble — came up with a list of 30 that have impacted the residential tech industry since CEDIA’s inception. Here are the first ten.

Television has gone from CRT to LED. In a statement that signalled a jump as important as the Philo T. Farnsworth made (taking TV from a mechanical system of spinning discs to one that relied solely on electronics for reception and transmission of images and sound), the FCC declared that on 13th June 2009, “full-power television stations nationwide are required to broadcast exclusively in a digital format.” That transition made possible a clarity and colour range that the old cathode-ray tubes couldn’t capture: HD TV that arrived first as 720p, then 1080p, and now, 4K — which is soon to be replaced by 8K. The other advancement here? HDR, or high dynamic range, succinctly explained by CEDIA’s David Meyer: “Where wide colour gamut gives us more colours to choose from, HDR puts it to good use by greatly expanding the range from dark to bright of every grey and colour shade, resulting in a huge colour volume for a far more vivid picture.” TV displays got thinner and thinner. Digital TV had another benefit: It plays really, really well with flat panel sets. LCD and plasma battled it out for market dominance after the sets became available for consumers in the late ’90s: liquid crystals were brighter, but plasma screens were able to get bigger. LED TVs eventually pushed to the top of the display food chain, and the ubiquity of flat-panel displays drove prices down dramatically: when first introduced, a 42” plasma screen could set early adopters back $15,000, today a big-box-bought 4K UHD LED TV that size can be had for less than $300 bucks.

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The internet wasn’t always right there in your hand. Some future civilisation may come across a layer of landfill waste from the ’90s and deduce that for a brief period, the U.S. was husing 5-inch-wide discs with holes in the middle as Coins of the Realm. (Imagine the history books in 3019: “For perhaps a decade, the U.S. Treasury was replaced in part by something called ‘America Online’ …”) The grinding speed of downloads and bizarre audio chatter of the dialup log on was, of course, replaced by broadband. High-speed internet connectivity is now as important in the developed world as electric light — and that connection is always “on,” too, whether via ethernet cable, a modem and router setup delivering Wi-Fi, or the smartphone in your hand.

Streaming media has gone from a trickle of an idea to a huge geyser of content. In 2000, Reed Hastings, the Big Kahuna at Netflix, was running a company that was losing money. His DVD rental-service-by-mail wasn’t cutting it. He began to pitch an idea to a video rental chain called Blockbuster — for $50 million, Blockbuster could own 49% of the

streaming service Hastings was pondering. Blockbuster, of course, said no, and the rest is (literally) brick-and-mortar history when it comes to rewinding VHS tapes and paying late fees. Although the concept had been around since the ’90s, the preponderance of high-speed internet connections (and the various devices and displays that can carry both audio and video) has made streaming a massive player (pun intended). One example: as of September 2018, streaming accounts for 75% of the revenue in the music industry.

Devices talk to one another in an ever-expanding number of ways. When CEDIA began, “Recommended Standard (RS) 232” had been around for nearly 30 years itself. The familiar old D connectors have since been replaced by an astonishing range of devices and protocols — both wired and wireless — that allow devices in the home to communicate. From Z-Wave and Zigbee (which use much less power than Wi-Fi) to the incredibly portable (but shorter-range) Bluetooth, the smart stuff in your home is connected in ways only dreamt of in 1989. As Tech Council member, Sam Woodward

“

As David further notes, “On one hand, we had the transition from ‘the box’ — CRT TV sets — to flat panel displays and ever-increasing size, resolution, and capability, and concurrent to this, we saw the transition from analogue 4:3 TV to digital 16:9 and high definition.”

R AR E E 0 S A Y Y 3 R E E 0 | A 0 Y 0 Y | 30 3 S S | 3 3 R R S | S | A A R R E E S A EA 0 Y Y 3 R E 0 | Y A Y | 3 3 E 0 0 S | Y | 3 3 R S S A | A R R E E S S A EA 0 Y Y R AR E 0 | Y Y 3 3 6 E 0 0 S | | Y 3 3 R 0 S | S | A R R E E S S A Y A Y R E 30 0 A EAR 0 YE 9 Y 3 0 S | | Y 3 3 R 30 S | S | ARS ARS YEA R AR E E 0 0 A Y Y 3 3 E E 0 | Y 0 Y 7 30 | 3 S | S | A 3 R R E S S A EA 0 Y | TELEVISION'S R R E NOT JUST FOR A Y A Y 3 3 E E 0 ENTERTAINMENT 0 | Y | Y 3 | 3 0 –0 IT'S FOR | S S 3 R R E SAFETY AND S S | A Y A RTOO AR E SECURITY, E 0 S A Y Y 3 R E 10 E 0 0 | Y | Y 3 3 0 3 | 30 S | S | ARS ARS R AR E E 0 S A Y Y 3 R E 0 | A 0 Y 8 0 YE | 30 3 S S | 3 3 R R S | S | A A R R E E S A EA 0 Y Y 3 R E 0 | A 0Y 0Y 3 3 E S | | Y | 3 3 R R S S A | A R AR E E S S A Y Y R AR E E 30 0 | Y Y 3 E 0 0 S | | Y 3 3 R 0 S | S | A R R E E S S A Y A Y R R E COMMUNICATES

(Lutron) notes, “Reliability of communication is the foundation to a stable system, as all integration is built on top of the protocols used for inter-device control. These continue to advance.”

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The user interface has developed in ways that science fiction predicted. From handheld remote to control keypad, the way we interact with our devices still has holdovers from the early days of CEDIA. But the touchscreens that accompanied the early iPhones marked an evolutionary step that was just a precursor of major disruptions ahead. In the last few years, we’ve seen the rise and refinement of voice control that will soon be coupled with gesture for a (hopefully) seamless experience in which, say, a homeowner just points and asks the shades to lift. And after that? Control by thought alone, perhaps? Television’s not just for entertainment — it’s for safety and security, too. Closed-circuit television had been around for decades before CEDIA got organised, but it was mostly used in commercial applications. Now it’s part of integrations large and small. Tech Council member, Eddie Shapiro (SmartTouch USA) has installed CCTV systems in both businesses and homes. His take: “I think probably what's changed the most is the technology of IP. On the residential side, we're not even using recorders. In some cases, we're actually recording to SD cards built into the camera, and people are playing back their videos as if they had a DVR or NVR.”

The light bulb has seen more than one bright idea. A glowing filament inside a glass bulb — it’s an image that seemed so, well, brilliant, that it came to represent the “bright idea.” Those bulbs, however, are also wildly inefficient, converting less than 5% of the energy they chew up into the on-demand light that helped create our modern civilisation. Fluorescent light (the scourge of many an office drone) came next, followed by advances in CFLs and eventually a broad adoption of solid-state LED lighting in an astonishing variety of colours and temps. Current lighting gives us bulbs that can act as their own switches and dimmers, be automated to react to a variety of events, or even take on forms that look nothing like a “bulb” at all.

You have an astonishing amount of computing power right in your hand. The Palm company was founded in 1992, just a few short years after the inception of CEDIA. Their Personal Digital Assistant, the “PDA” became wildly popular, eventually spawning a PDA/cellphone combo (the “Treo”) that saw competitors spring up — notably, the BlackBerry family of devices. (Remember when those phones were called “CrackBerries” — a play on their addictive nature?) Our concept of the smartphone would be completely revolutionised on 9th January 2007, when Apple rolled out the first iPhone. Most of us are now digitally connected wherever we go, and we expect to have that connectivity (and the control it can provide to other devices) available on demand. To put all of these advances into perspective: We each hold in our hands a device over 120,000,000 times more powerful than all the computers it took to put men on the moon in 1969 combined.

Computation and storage have moved to the “cloud.” Longtime CEDIA Tech Council stalwart, Mike Mansicalco has these thoughts about the massive impact cloud computing has on the residential universe: “Early on, we had physical media. We had discs, CDs, tapes, VHS, and so on. Then, we moved to servers like Kaleidescape, which remain an option.… Eventually, the speeds to the home got great enough and reliable enough to shift to streaming services. And now the cost for cloud computing is so low, we have massive amounts of storage for a few bucks a month. To give you an example, I spend $10 a month for a terabyte of data on Google Drive.” But, of course, security becomes an issue. “I think generally, society tends to lean towards convenience and lower cost and is willing to sacrifice some level of privacy and security,” says Mike. In our industry, though, it’s actually raised awareness around privacy and security. It's caused people to talk about these things.” cedia.net/tech-council

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I AM CEDIA JUSTIN F. KERN, JFK AUTOMATION How did you get into the industry? I began my working life as a cabinetmaker in 1992, during which time I would be sent to clients’ homes to remove old AV cabinets and install new ones. At this time, AV was just a hobby, but I would often identify opportunities to hide their audio equipment in the new cabinetry and add architectural speakers

“

elsewhere in the home. I would often do this work after hours and found that, over time, it extended to other needs such as basic multi-room video with modulated satellite TV systems and extended IR Control. With my interest in technology growing, I was presented with an opportunity to work for Sony retail as an IT manager — despite having virtually no IT

WE SHOULD ALL BE CHARGING GOOD MONEY FOR OUR WORK AND FOCUSSING ON WHAT REALLY MATTERS — GOOD DESIGN AND ENGINEERING PRINCIPLES.

“

experience behind me. As part of the role, I was assisting the sales team in introducing new IT and photography product ranges to customers. This often resulted in me going to see customers in their homes to show them how to use these new products. Inevitably, these same customers had AV needs too, and at the time, Sony had a system where customers would pay a predetermined fee for delivery and installation and the work would be assigned to the most competent technician. As a result, I ended up buying a van and found that I was being kept busy most days, installing heavy glass tubes — and then plasma TVs — often utilising the skills I had developed as a cabinetmaker. Eventually, it made sense to break away from Sony and I ended up setting up my first business, which I called “Just-For-Kicks” Audio Visual — a play on my initials. I was still being referred all the complex installations from Sony which kept me very busy. In 2004, I landed my first big

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residential project and I recall receiving the deposit cheque for $10k by mail, which at the time, was a big deal. I still have that customer to this day — I have since watched their children grow up and get married. What’s your favourite project and why? Around five years ago, we completed a unique project for a young bachelor who responded positively to a number of fun and innovative ideas for his new apartment in Sydney’s famous beach suburb of Bondi. He was a big fan of Premier League football, so we ended up installing a stateof-the-art video tiling system, so he could have four satellite feeds at the same time, as well as custom motorised artwork to hide his enormous TV when not in use. But the real unique part was when he asked me to provide a way of controlling the “smells” in the home, similar to the smell-ovision concept developed in the 1960s. We ended up engineering a bespoke oil-based aroma system that would allow him to choose any one of four scents on his iPad to mist into his apartment via the AC system. Which home technology do you consider the most important today and why? I have mixed feelings about this. I think in the current technology climate, the user interface is key — whether it is touch, voice, sensors, and so on. I believe that in the next five to 10 years, this will change dramatically and will move towards the unthinkable, or rather, “The Thinkable:” Is the future in mind control? What’s the biggest issue for home technology businesses today, and how can they deal with it? I can identify a few issues. The first would be that it is very difficult (almost impossible) to find good staff. It can take years to find someone already in the industry who is a good fit, or else you invest time and money into training staff

and hope that it eventually pays off. The second is the ongoing issue of maintaining a level playing field with our competitors. We are finding that we are being compared against companies that offer significantly cheaper pricing, but not nearly the same level of service. Unfortunately, many customers focus on the bottom line, despite our attempts to educate them on the “right way of doing things.” We have worked really hard to differentiate ourselves from our peers and continue to focus on good design principles — properly engineered solutions rather than a shopping list of products. Which leads me to the third issue of product. We spend an exorbitant amount of unbilled time, testing and finding faults in new hardware — time that if we didn’t spend, we would fail on every project. It’s time for manufacturers to step up and ensure they’re only delivering products to the market once they are fully tested and proven reliable. If there was one thing you could change in the industry what would it be? The increasing trend for undercutting pricing. We should all be charging good money for our work and focussing on what really matters — good design and engineering principles.

How long have you been a CEDIA member? We have been a CEDIA member for 15 years. Why did you become a CEDIA member? I wanted to be part of the wider AV community and give back to the industry wherever possible. Which CEDIA benefits have you/ do you plan on taking advantage of, and why? We make use of the training of offer, member events, including the CEDIA Expo, as well as the careers page — these are all appreciated services. What does the next year hold for your company? We are constantly working on our systems and processes and are therefore continuously evolving. We look forward to growing the team and taking on bigger and better projects, which hopefully will reap greater rewards for my clients and staff. What do you consider your biggest achievement as a CEDIA member? I would consider my greatest achievement as still being in business after 17 years, when many of my talented peers have suffered during the tough financial times. And, of course, being a CEDIA member for 15 of those years.

jfk.com.au

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HOW THEY DID IT

THE

CATAMARAN

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his stunning yacht integration — which the CEDIA Awards judges simply called “a beautiful project” when they awarded it the 2018 CEDIA trophy for Best Auto, Marine, or Aircraft (Asia Pacific) — is a retrofit of the world’s largest catamaran by Liquid Automation. In addition to the usual challenges presented by marine retrofits, such as working in existing (and usually incredibly tight) rack spaces and ensuring that the gear was weathertight, Liquid Automation had a total of only 11 weeks to complete the

job. The first five were spent planning the project, then a mere six to wrap up the integration. Additionally, the boat was moored in Malta — no less than 11,200 miles away from Liquid Automation HQ. Nine zones of AV and four audio-only zones are featured in the ship’s entertainment systems, with room for later expandability and upgrades. Additionally, Liquid Automation notes that “as this vessel is capable of worldwide travel, the satellite TV decoders are designed to be swapped out as the vessel moves to new locations.”

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The client also needed remote monitoring for the vessel, a complete overhaul of the lighting systems, a robust wired and wireless network with five separate VLANs, and climate controls that can draw humidity away from the racks. Lastly, a big component of a yacht such as this is security: â&#x20AC;&#x153;We installed custom Panasonic PTZ cameras to the exterior of the yacht and fixed wideangled cameras in the engineering spaces. The cameras have full control from the crew touch panels only,â&#x20AC;? said the integration team.

EQUIPMENT LIST Anzor

Ideal

Apple

Ihiji

Avigilon

Jaycar

CDL

Lutron

Crestron

Maser

Digital World

Middle Atlantic

Draytek

Midwich

Gefen

Oppo

Google Chromecast

Panasonic

HFA

Ruckus

Hi-Q

Well Forces

Liquid Automation Unit 20, Building F, 14-22 Triton Drive Rosedale, Auckland 0632 New Zealand

+64 947 95415 liquidautomation.co.nz CEDIA Member Since 2007

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CHALLENGE AND SOLUTION

How to Win Over Property Developers — and What Not to Do

Home automation. We tried to understand what this meant, and what benefit this Holy Grail of home technology was supposed to bring us. We awarded contract after contract to the next salesperson who promised this time “it would all be different,” praying that they got it right. It just never happened. Central control and endless connectivity (whatever that meant), all accessible from your smart device, not only promised to make the incoming purchaser’s life easier, but was also a must if we wanted to make our homes desirable in this demanding market. And time and again, the systems failed. But they didn’t just fail. By the very definition of the word, this implies that it worked at some point before. In 2015, we as a company had decided enough was enough. There is nothing wrong with a switch. You turn it on, you turn it off. And the fewer switches, the better. Switches work. Switches have always worked. Home automation, to us, was worthless, and although our houses lacked it, it was better to under-promise and over-deliver on what we did have going for us, than the alternative. By mid-2017, every other email or telephone call was an AV company wanting to come and introduce themselves. We had sleepless nights inventing new ways to say “no thank you” politely. Eventually, when Rob Garrett from CEDIA member company, ARP Smart Homes, got in touch, we gave in. Our first meeting went as you’d expect. We brought our passionate hatred for anything related to home automation, and Rob brought an undying need to prove us wrong. But Rob came at it from a new angle. He promised that because he had a computer and networking background, as opposed to either electrical or AV, his installations would work. “It’s down to the stability of the network. If this works, everything connected to it will work.” No one had ever said this before, so it caught us off guard — we had no choice but to let him at least have a go. We agreed to let him price our latest new luxury family home in Beaconsfield, Mulberry House. The difference between ARP Smart Homes’ pitch and the countless others that had gone before was again abundantly clear. ARP Smart Homes took

Peter Warren

Director of EAB Homes

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“

Ultimately, we knew that as a business we had to take the plunge, as otherwise we risked falling behind in the marketplace.

their time to understand the plans, but also, most importantly, to understand how we as a developer spec our homes and what makes us different from others operating in this end of the market. We tend to find that we spec our properties much higher than our competitors. For us, it’s important that in future-readying a property, we are not only providing the incoming owners with the very latest in equipment and wiring, but that we are giving thought to what the property may require during its lifetime and installing a system capable of being upgraded in the future. Spending the time with us to appreciate these factors meant that ARP Smart Homes was then able to produce a very concise and clear tender, again, something else that this industry often gets wrong. We felt nothing was too much to ask — they were always polite, helpful, and willing to spend the time. Ultimately, we knew that as a business we had to take the plunge, as otherwise we risked falling behind in the marketplace. It was not an easy call to make for us, given our past experiences, but ARP Smart Homes got the job. The installation process was smooth — and even better was the attention to detail. Ask a tradesperson on our sites what they love most about working with us, and they will tell you it’s that we keep a punch list rolling throughout. Our reputation is built on our finish quality for every aspect of the build, but what was really odd with

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ARP Smart Homes, is that there wasn’t really a snagging list when they were done. Generally, a socket or switch has to move up, down, left, or right, at least one, but there was nothing! Throughout the build process, they were always talking to us and the site manager, and so items were being located correctly from the start. Wiring was being tested prior to areas being finished, and follow-up trades were being consulted regarding the location and finish detail of their items too. They even took the speaker covers away for powder coating to colour match the wall finish in the cinema room. And, still to our amazement this day, there is not a part of the system that doesn’t work. The Wi-Fi works. The gate entry works. The AV works. The CCTV works. It all works — from the wall-mounted iPads and Alexa integration in the property to my smart device three-hundred miles away. The benefit is not only that we know an incoming owner won’t be calling us two hours after moving in, but that since we’ve specially configured a scene on the Savant Pro system for the estate agents too, they can’t get it wrong either. Finally, comes the handover. Again, ARP Smart Homes knows that we are quite demanding on this front, since we need to be able to pass on foolproof documentation to the new owners that clearly details not only what has been installed, but also what can be installed. The quality of the CAD plans that arrived was fantastic, with speaker and pre-wire positions clearly marked, and also detail on any consumable parts that any layman could understand. In keeping with our digital format for handovers to a new home purchaser, ARP Smart Homes made these all available electronically, and they now form an invaluable section of our sales pack. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. A phrase often used when looking back at a bad decision. In this case however, we look back at when we met ARP Smart Homes, and we’re not only thankful that we took the plunge, but we wonder how others managed to get it so wrong. For us, there is no looking back, only looking forward to the upcoming projects on the books, and that we know each installation from here on out will run as it should, on schedule and on budget.

eabhomes.co.uk arpsmarthomes.co.uk

.co.uk

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THRIVING IN BUSINESS AS A WOMAN: WINNING OVER THE MEN OF “MAD MEN” It’s not the ‘60s anymore. But women still struggle for equality in the workplace. Whether an employee or owner, it’s important for women to gain the respect of their clients, co-workers, vendors, and associates.

by Leslie Shiner Owner of The ShinerGroup

While we try not to let stereotypes affect our behaviours, it is interesting to note that men and women do think and act differently, and their actions are also perceived differently. For example, when it comes to the dress code in the workplace, women need to dress slightly more formal than men. A man wearing khakis and a polo shirt can be considered “business casual” while a woman in the same outfit might be seen as sloppy. When looking at the communication style between men and women, there are two words that women use more than men: “sorry” and “just”. Consider the implication of these two sentences: “I just want to make sure that you will still be able to meet me at 3 p.m.” vs. “Please confirm our 3 p.m. meeting.” The passive nature of “just” demeans the writer, as if she is timid and afraid. As for “sorry,” it’s a good thing to apologise if you did something wrong. But women have a tendency to apologise even if they didn’t do anything wrong. Consider using “it’s unfortunate that…” instead of “I’m sorry that…” when discussing an event that was out your control. There is a term coined back in 1978, the Imposter Syndrome, which often applies to people who cannot take ownership of their own accomplishments and have a fear of being exposed as a fraud. While both men and women suffer from this, it is particularly common among high-achieving women. According to an article in The Atlantic: “In studies, men overestimate their abilities and performance, and women underestimate both. Their performances do not differ in quality.”*

Leslie Shiner is the owner of The ShinerGroup, which provides toplevel financial and management consulting for the integration industry, helping businesses maximise profits and gain financial control. She was the second woman to be inducted as a CEDIA Fellow and has received the CEDIA Top 10 Instructor Award multiple years.

THRIVING AS A WOMAN SESSION How confident are you about your knowledge and work? Do you focus on earning respect and acknowledgement for your work? There are many strategies women can use to achieve success in the business world. Join me between 8:30-9:30 a.m. on Wednesday 26th June at Google Academy, London where I will be hosting a free breakfast session that focusses on thriving as a woman. This session forms the opening of CEDIA’s Financial Workshop. The full agenda for the day is as follows:

8:00-9:30 a.m.

Breakfast and coffee

8:30-9:30 a.m.

Thriving as a Woman talk

10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

Financial Workshop

1:00-2:00 p.m.

Lunch

2:00-4:30 p.m.

Financial Workshop

To register for the event, visit cedia.net/events

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ALLOW YOUR BUSINESS TO SURVIVE, GROW, AND REMAIN COMPETITIVE I like simplicity, so the “five-stage Paul Laville Director of life-cycle” that T21 Group describes the different stages a business will pass through during its lifetime appeals to me greatly. Plus, it applies to all businesses without exception. The five stages in my simple cycle are: 1

Start-up

Growth

Shake-out Maturity

5 Decline

In each of these stages, are three key metrics: sales, cash, and profit. In the start-up phase, sales are slow, cash is limited, and profit is negligable. You need sales to come in, and if you’re doing the selling, delivering the service, and running the business, it’s very easy to concentrate so much on sales that you relegate the focus on cash and profitability. It’s easy to develop a tunnel-visioned approach to your business that can be harmful not only to its growth, but also to your health. And if your sales techniques are lacking, then there’s a real danger your business won’t succeed. In the growth phase, sales are picking up, and you break even. Cash inflow is good, and now you can repay debts, pay yourself, your partners, and your employees. Your products and services are of proven value in the marketplace, and maybe there’s opportunity to expand. However, when you expand, your costs increase — bigger offices, more staff, more vans, warehousing, and so on — and your profitability dives. It will pick up, but you may need to cut redundant processes, change suppliers, renegotiate contracts, etc., to help manage your

expansion, i.e., shake-out the business. Get it right, and you’ll enter maturity, after which, unless you continually diversify and restart the cycle in new markets, you’ll enter the decline phase of the business life-cycle, AKA “retirement plan.” All of these stages have to be managed, by which I mean you need strategies for getting through them. If you don’t have a strategy, then you may find that your business flounders, reacting to short-term issues — firefighting rather than growing. It’s easy to blame disruption on external forces — I won’t mention Brexit — but these are things you can’t control. Move on. The business training workshops we’ve been running with CEDIA aim to help you form a sound business strategy and sharpen your sales skills no matter which stage your business is at. I know it’s difficult — if you’re a solo enterprise or a small partnership — to find the time to set out a business or sales strategy, or even to attend the courses which can help you do so. But if you can make the time to see us, then it’s time well spent, because we can give you the insight and tools to help you manage your business strategy, take control, and make it successful. UPCOMING TRAINING EVENTS: Consultative Selling Skills 10th May 2019, St Neots This workshop will take you through the key stages of up-to-the-minute, solution-based consultative selling techniques with powerful closing strategies. It’s not a hard sell, but it is a persuasive one designed to create long-lasting relationships with your customers and gain profitable, premium-level sales for your business. Developing a Competitive Commercial Strategy 7th June 2019, St Neots This session explains how by setting a clear strategy in place, you are more likely to succeed and achieve your goals both financially and professionally. For more information, visit cediaeducation.com

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BRINGING THE OUTSIDE IN This lakeside home provides spectacular views and clever lighting and sound to create a true outdoorsmanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s paradise

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his home, tucked into the dunes along the shoreline of Western Michigan, is an outdoorsman’s oasis. It’s massive, too — the private setting allows for soaring ceilings, creating a top level (with a roofline at a staggering 60 feet) that affords spectacular views of the local scenery, including great Lake Michigan sunsets. The first floor of the home is equally jaw-dropping — this entry point, according to systems designer, Dustin Deal, ESC-D at integration firm, Bekins, “features a stateof-the-art gym, media room, and a one-of-a-kind trophy room that would make any Cabela’s jealous.” The room’s “natural” setting, designed to bring the effect of the outdoors into the home, required careful lighting design and control to heighten the effect. Ambient sound for the room is controlled via a Crestron system, and Crestron is

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used throughout the other two floors of the retreat as well, controlling Lutron lighting in addition to the audio. In-ceiling Paradigm speakers are used throughout the home, along with soundbars by Leon. The middle level of the home, called the “Dune Level,” features three rustic bedrooms and a guest suite, a craft room, and a kids’ play area. Lighting and shading are automated in the building’s second story. Power management was part of the project too: “We used Panamax BlueBolt PWM which allows our service team to remotely power-cycle any components through IP control. All critical sub-systems are powered through BlueBolt and can be switched on and off as needed,” says Dustin. Since the home was a new build — and since the client had a great relationship with the Bekins team — the only real challenge here was internet access, located 1.5 miles away at the customer's office on the same lot. “We ran singlemode fibre from the office to the home,” Dustin explains. Making the controls intuitive for a variety of users across a range of ages was key. “The home’s got audio in every room, automated shades, lighting control, total-coverage wireless networking, RF remote controls in every room with a television, and touchpads and keypads all around — we had to ensure that setting every scene in this home is just a touch away,” says Dustin. The project, with a total value of just under half-a-million dollars, picked up Finalist honours for Best Integrated Home, Level III, at the 2018 Americas CEDIA Awards.

INTEGRATED SYSTEMS INCLUDE

EQUIPMENT LIST

Video distribution Audio distribution Security camera system Lighting and shade control • Multi-site network • Ambient sound system (Trophy Room) • Local cellular repeater

• Chief hardware • Crestron controls, processors, and amps • Leon soundbars • ICRealtime NVR and cameras • Leviton patch panels • Lutron products • Marantz receiver • Middle Atlantic racks • Pakedge products • Panamax products • Paradigm speakers • Sonance amp • Sony televisions

• • • •

Bekins, 735 Washington Ave., Grand Haven, MI 49417, USA | 616.842.2743 CEDIA Member Since 1993

bekins.us

Dynaudio Custom Studio series LCR

Your space, your system, your way

You want discreet design and world-class performance? You’ve got it. The Dynaudio Studio series modular LCR speaker system is a unique way to create truly customized left, centre and right speaker channels – and to scale the system to match the room and work around existing wall studs. With technology derived directly from Dynaudio’s legendary home hi-fi and professional studio speakers, our Custom Studio architectural speaker range is engineered to give stellar performance, along with simple tool-free installation.

The Dynaudio Custom Studio series: engineered to entertain

dynaudio.com

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HOW THEY DID IT

HANSON AUDIO VIDEO SHOWROOM Hanson Audio Video 10800 Montgomery Road Cincinnati, Ohio 45242 USA 513.563.0444 hansonav.com CEDIA Member Since 2007

INDUSTRY PARTNERS Justin Doyle J. W. Doyle Construction Role: Builder Troy Hanson (CEO, Creative Director) Hanson Audio Video Role: Architect Diane Hanson Choice Consulting Role: Interior Designer Greg Hanson (COO, CFO, CMO) Hanson Audio Video Role: Specialty Consultant

This 5,600-square-foot, $1.35 million “experience centre” is designed “to educate and inform our various stakeholders (customers, employees, builders, designers, architects, community) regarding brand quality and what makes our key manufacturers the best in the world,” according to Hanson Audio Video. To that end, features include a “house within a showroom,” to illustrate technology integration in a real-world setting. Beyond the rooms of the “home” (including a kitchen, bedroom, living room, and many more), other display areas include “various approaches to technology: for example, speakers are shown as floor standing, bookshelf, in-ceiling, in-wall, invisible; and in various sizes to match lighting, quality differences by room, etc.” and “an array of

products that provide a good, better, best, and ultimate selection to accommodate most budgets.” Key vendors are represented with video tours of their factories, exploded views of the products, and careful explanations regarding the aspects of those products and how they differ from other, similar devices. Hanson Audio Video also provides the history of their relationship with those vendors, so visitors understand exactly why the specific products are being offered. Hanson Audio Video adds that the showroom reflects a fundamental company philosophy: “We don't sell products and services; instead, we help people buy products and services.” Hanson Audio Video won the 2018 CEDIA Award for Best Showroom (Americas) for this Cincinnati masterpiece.

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”

WE DON'T SELL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES; INSTEAD, WE HELP PEOPLE BUY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

”

BRANDS LIST • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Audeze Aurender Boulder Control4 Bowers & Wilkins dCS Devialet Focal Grado Jenn-Air Kaleidescape LG Lutron Magico McIntosh Moon Nordost Pakedge Paradigm Roon Rotel Samsung Seura Sonance Sonos

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CEDIA EXPANDS INTO

INDIA

CEDIA recently welcomed Roopesh Shah to the team, appointing him as Regional Development Consultant in India. What attracted you to this new role with CEDIA? Roopesh: I’ve seen a surge of technology integrators within the country trying to provide the latest technology to the home user to give them a luxurious experience. However, there are currently gaps between the expectations of the experience the home user has and the ability of the professionals to deliver the experience. CEDIA can help bridge this gap by supporting integrators in their quest to add to their knowledge and skill sets. I look forward to helping all of them evolve in an organised manner, which will result in a win-win situation for the professionals and the end users. What experience do you have that will help you in this role? Roopesh: I have over 10 years of rich experience across leadership roles in the field of technology in the enterprise, home, and telecom industries, specialising in sales, operations, and business development. During this time, I have been working aggressively on new concepts and ideas, and implementing them successfully within the team to drive business growth. For the past year, I have been in the role of national business development manager for Audio Vision India, a CEDIA member based in Mumbai. We have experienced exceptional growth within India over the last three years. How important was it for CEDIA to add someone from that region to the team? Roopesh: This is a great opportunity to increase our member engagement in India. I am only in my first month at CEDIA, but I already know that now is a great time to be getting involved, as there have been some exciting developments recently — the launch of the Member of Excellence programme, the acquisition of The CEDIA Designer and the member discount that goes with it, as well as the publication of several new white papers. We have also just introduced a new Indian members’ community on the CEDIA website, and I am excited to see the type of discussions and connections that this platform helps develop. And let’s not forget our annual Tech Summit, which we will be hosting again this year. There is a lot going on within CEDIA at the moment, and now, with you on board, our Indian members are in prime position to be able to take advantage of all of these benefits. How can they find you? Roopesh: It’s fair to say that I am very excited by this new role and am ready to hit the ground running. Please feel free to contact me directly on rshah@cedia.org.

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CHANGE in the Workplace

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Change can be hard. This is true for Samantha Ventura every facet of our lives and seems CEDIA Senior Director of Education especially true in our workplace. Even for people who enjoy new challenges and fresh perspectives, change is often accompanied by frustration, watercooler dissent, and overall griping — from the seasoned employee to the impressionable new hire. Change is often made more difficult because there is little to no focus on the transition part, which is arguably the most important. According to a 2017 report from the Harvard Business Review, roughly 70% of companies who push for a significant change in their workplace ultimately fail. This is likely because they did not prepare their employees for the transition that was about to take place. So, what is the difference between change and transition? Change is external, and typically involves goals, strategies, action, or project plans, and one or all of those is usually what is talked about the most. In fact, sometimes the only thing shared by leadership is the overarching goal of where the company is headed. Transition accompanies change but is typically thrown by the wayside. The reason the transition part is so important is because it is the most PERSONAL part of the change: It is the internal process that employees find themselves going through when attempting to adapt to the change, as well as whatever new situations that change is presenting. Until people are able to successfully transition from the old way to the new way, the change will not come easily, if at all.

ENDINGS: This is the first reaction of the person to the change, which may be accompanied by anger, shock, and quite often, workplace gossip. This is because the transition is asking employees to alter how something has “always been done.” It may require employees to do things like changing their job title or status, moving, changing their commute — and maybe even watching some of their friends be fired or laid off. Leaders need to let employees “grieve” a bit without taking it personally. Their work and their work environment are personal to them, and that is okay. EXPLORATION: William Bridges also calls this the neutral zone — it’s the most disorganised and chaotic of all the stages because it is when the actual change is occurring. People are experiencing a variety of emotions — fear, confusion, uncertainty — that may bring on stress. But they can also feel a newfound energy or creativity, which leads ultimately to acceptance. For leaders, this is when ample time should be given to prepare employees for what is happening: Conversations, meetings, transparent messages, and follow-up communications are all great ways to encourage employees to accept the change by dealing successfully with the transition. Be patient and thoughtful, leaders! This is a crucial time in implementing change and, if not handled well, can lead to a large number of demoralised and disenchanted employees walking amongst the larger group. NEW BEGINNINGS: This is the exciting part. When the other stages have been dealt with successfully, this is where you start to see the change being implemented and the employees thriving as the new beliefs, processes, and practices take root. You can often feel the energy moving in a very positive direction, with employees feeling engaged and the improvements you envisioned actually happening.

This is a psychological process, and it is difficult for some to accept without proper discussion, time, and reassurance. You will often hear leaders say people need to just “get on board,” yet they are forgetting that most people do not like or embrace change! William Bridges (1933-2013) was a pioneer in studying change management and divided transition into three stages: endings, exploration, and new beginnings.

If you are a leader attempting to implement any change into your business, be open to feedback, transparent with what the change is going to mean to your employees, and a strong role model for what the new way is going to “look like.” Beware of appeasing people who are upset about the change, but at the same time, recognise that you’ll need buy-in from your followers during the time of transition. Stay strong with your vision, and bring others on board with your energy, compassion, and thoughtful approach to how your employees are feeling.

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THREE TIPS FOR DISTRIBUTED VIDEO:

Matrix Switch, AV-over-IP, and VOD Streaming

David Meyer

CEDIA Director of Technical Research

here’s been no shortage of talk over the last year or more about “the death of the matrix switch” in the face of AV-over-IP. I’d like to challenge this with other, somewhat more pragmatic considerations. It’s quickly getting to the point where we first need to consider whether HDMI-based distribution is actually required. If yes, then it’s a choice between matrix or AVover-IP, both of which are totally viable. We’ll come back to these later. Streaming content is taking over. Big time. IP-delivered video-on-demand (VOD) can be streamed over a standard home network directly to a smart TV or via an accompanying media player or mobile device. Cisco’s latest Visual Networking Index (2017-2022) report suggests that video will account for 82% of global IP traffic by 2021(1). We’re actually approaching 80% already, so it’s totally believable. The same report also suggests that global VOD traffic will be the equivalent of 10 billion DVDs per month by 2022. Of this monstrous load of video streaming, the two giants are Netflix and YouTube, which together, account for more than one-quarter of global internet traffic (by megabytes): Netflix 15%, YouTube 11.4%(2). By the way, YouTube is bigger on mobile, accounting for a whopping 35% of global mobile traffic, leaving 65% for everything else! (In case you’re wondering, Facebook/Instagram accounts for around 20%, but I digress.) Netflix has more original content than any cable/ satellite channel in existence. According to Variety.com, in Q3 2018, Netflix released 676 hours’ worth of new original content, up 50% from 452 hours the previous quarter (to 30th June) and 289 hours in Q3 2017(3).

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TIP NO. 1 The primary displays warrant the highest quality, so keep them separate from the distributed video system. For example, for a large 4K (or 8K) HDR panel display or projector in a main living zone or dedicated cinema room, it’s good practice to direct-connect them with high performance HDMI. That is, sources such as UHD Blu-ray, 4K cable box, Kaleidescape player, etc., are connected to the AV processor, then directly to the display via HDMI. Ideally, all HDMI should be minimum 18Gbps, with longer lengths in either active copper or active optical cable (AOC). Or even better, full fibre with ends that can later be swapped out for upgrade to uncompressed 48Gbps HDMI 2.1 for the best possible performance path.

TIP NO. 2 Use a 1x2 HDMI splitter behind any source that you need to connect to both the primary display/s and distribution system. By keeping the primary displays independent, it not only allows them uncompromised performance, but it reduces the demands on the distribution system to a more practical level. After all, secondary displays may entail smaller TVs, many of which are 1080p or even lower, legacy resolutions. Match the distribution system capabilities to the best of the displays that are being used. Regular HDBaseT (the 10Gbps kind) will support 1080p and 4K up to 30fps, even with HDR (at 4:2:0). And compression is so good these days that any use in HDBaseT or AV-over-IP will generally look great (latency notwithstanding), so don’t necessarily discount options based on this. The scalability of matrix or AV-over-IP comes down to centralised versus decentralised. The disadvantage of the matrix switch is its fixed dimension — 4x4, 8x8, 16x16, etc. It means that a system with only a couple of sources and, say, 10 displays may be regarded as an inefficient and expensive proposition, though that can mean great margins. AV-over-IP has a big advantage in being decentralised, with the endpoints at sources and displays being largely scalable. Only got two sources and ten displays? Easy — just use two transmitters and ten receivers. If the client wants to add a couple more TVs, get a couple more receivers and add them right in. 10GbE AV-overIP systems support the highest quality, but again if the primary displays are kept separate, the options are opened right up, and a reasonably priced 1GbE AVover-IP solution might serve a project’s design goals perfectly.

TIP NO. 3 Sorry if this one’s obvious, but — do your homework. AV-over-IP systems may cost more than a basic matrix solution, but the flexibility might be something that your clients would be keen to invest in. As the system size increases, it may flip to see AV-over-IP become a more economical solution as larger matrices are exponentially more expensive. Check with your vendors about this cost vector, and if you’ve not yet used an AVover-IP system, it could be well worth checking out.

Furthermore, an increasing number of programmes are in 4K with HDR. As for YouTube, well, I hope you’re sitting down. As of February 2017 (the latest I could find), 400 hours’ worth of new content is uploaded to YouTube EVERY MINUTE. That equates to 65 years’ worth EVERY 24 HOURS. So who’s watching? 1.8 billion logged-in users globally — around 10% of whom are from the U.S. — collectively watching 1 billion hours per day. Fun fact: there’s a meagre 245 active users in India, so therein lies an opportunity!(4) Generally speaking, the younger the audience, the higher the streamed content viewing, and the lower the proportion of viewing time spent on fixed TVs. They prefer mobiles and tablets. (Anyone with kids will attest to this.) Stats differ amongst various reporting outlets, but they all indicate a shrinking of legacy cable, satellite, and overthe-air TV viewing time, moving instead to on-demand streaming content. That’s why traditional broadcasters and subscription TV providers have also been moving to ondemand IP delivery. Of course, IP delivery means apps. These could be accessed directly in a smart TV via an HDMI-connected media player, of which we’re spoiled for choice with the likes of Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, NowTV, Fire TV, etc. Having apps either directly in or directly connected to each display in a home negates the need for a dedicated video distribution system. At least for that content type. This brings us to the question of what type of video content homeowners might want to distribute around the home. It’s a no for locally stored media files with a product or service like Kaleidescape or Plex, which operate over a 1GbE network. There’s no point distributing gaming content due to the operating range of controllers, plus latency in distribution systems makes it a non-starter anyway. How about DVD and Blu-ray? They’re a little inconvenient for distributing around a home but are still certainly candidates. The leading source for distributing around a home is still cable/satellite and time-shifted TV, with one or more boxes in a central location. But wait, didn’t we just say that these services are in decline? Well, yes, but the older the age group, the slower the transition to IP video. That’s still a big demographic and plenty of business opportunity as distribution systems represent profit that an integrator can’t get from IP delivery alone! So, back to where we started, a client wants to distribute predominantly cable/satellite and time-shifted TV to the various displays around their home, to complement an inhome movie server and IP-delivered content to each display. For this, you need a robust home network (which we won’t get into here — there’s a great range of CEDIA courses for that), and video distribution via a matrix switch or AV-over-IP.

Cisco Visual Networking Index: Forecast & Methodology 2017-2022

Sandvine Global Internet Phenomena report 2018

3 https://variety.com/2018/digital/news/netflix-original-content-record-676 hours-q3-2018-1202975383/ 4 https://expandedramblings.com/index.php/youtube-statistics/

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MAKE YOUR MARK E

arlier this year, CEDIA announced the launch of the CEDIA Member of Excellence designation. This highly anticipated programme aims to celebrate excellence by allowing companies to demonstrate their company’s commitment to delivering exceptional experiences to their clients, investing in professional development and certification, technical excellence, and serving their industry. Since its launch, a number of members around the world have engaged with the programme with three EMEA members — ConnectedWorks, Homeplay, and Woelf — having already earnt the Member of Excellence designation and many more are on the path to gaining the Member of Excellence or Advanced Member status. CEDIA catches up with some of these members.

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Owen Maddock

James Ratcliffe

ConnectedWorks, UK

Homeplay, UK

Albert Mizrahi

Jan Martens

SmartLab, Mexico

Woelf, Belgium

Nick Caripis

Mark N Lynch

BNC Technology, S. Africa

Quality Sound & Video, U.S.

What was the primary reason for engaging with this new programme? Owen Maddock: We’ve achieved a lot as a CEDIA member company in the four years since we joined. I’ve engaged in the volunteer programme to create the new Home Cinema and Media Rooms CPD and serve on the CPD task force, and last year, we were honoured to receive our first CEDIA Award, having been recognised as a Finalist in 2016. We carry all the advanced certifications: Designer, Networking Specialist, and Technician, and we maintain our education and training. That’s quite a lot of stuff to explain to clients. The Member of Excellence designation lets us show off our achievements in a simple and easy-to-digest format. It’s also great to have impartial, independent confirmation that we really are as good as we like to think. James Radcliffe: We had all of the credentials in place — certified staff, client and trade supplier references, a volunteer on staff, and CEDIA Award Finalist recognition — so it would have been remiss of us not to apply. Albert Mizrahi: We want to make Mexican clients and architects aware that there are professional and committed companies in Mexico that are capable of doing home automation projects with the same or higher levels than anywhere else in the world. It is for this reason that we have applied for the Advanced Member status. Jan Martens: CEDIA has helped my business a lot in the past — especially through the training that they offer. When I heard about this new programme, I thought that it was a good opportunity to get more involved with the association, as it allows my company to be viewed as a truly professional business to clients, designers, and architects.

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Nick Caripis: It’s always important for us to differentiate ourselves from other companies in this industry, and I think that this CEDIA programme is a good opportunity to achieve this. Mark Lynch: I have been a CEDIA member from the beginning, and I believe the CEDIA brand makes a difference in the minds of our customers.

What do you see as the main benefit for becoming a Member of Excellence or Advanced Member company? Owen: The obvious benefit is that as a Member of Excellence company, we’re at the top of the list in the CEDIA Finder service. Provided you’ve got a good Finder Service entry with pictures, text, and logo, it means more enquiries for us. I recently had a really nice job come in from 80 miles away because we had the best Finder Service entry in the region. Secondly, by being a Member of Excellence, we know that we’ll be first in the queue for PR and marketing opportunities from CEDIA in our region, as and when they come up. James: This status is something else that will help set us apart in an increasingly crowded market. We believe that we are among the best at what we do and having an independent third party verify that we are helps demonstrate our value to our clients. Albert: We see the main benefit as being prestige among our market and our industry. When selling projects or services, your name matters a lot. Jan: The industry that we work in is a growing market, with loads of integrators offering the same services. We see the main benefit of being a Member of Excellence as setting ourselves apart from our competitors. We always look to offer the best service, educate others to improve the industry, and lead the market — a reason as to why we were the first member in Belgium, the first company to win a CEDIA Award in Belgium, and now, the first business to become a Member of Excellence company in Belgium. Nick: Differentiation amongst competitors and competitive advantage. We want to be able to highlight that we add value and expertise and create a sense of certainty that when a client buys from us, that we have been in the industry for a long time and are a stable company.

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Our staff are super proud that they are working for a CEDIA Member of Excellence company.

Mark: It demonstrates that we have been involved in our industry at a high level since we commenced operations.

Talk us through the importance of differentiating yourself from other companies and how this programme helps you achieve this? Owen: Trades such as electricians or gas fitters are safety-critical — you have to possess the certifications and maintain them, or you’re not legally allowed to trade. You can set up as a smart home company tomorrow, and you don’t actually have to do any training at all, although the results might be questionable. We are highly trained, qualified, design-led specialists, and we wanted to show that off. We also wanted to show that we’re a bit premium, focussing on performance-driven, highquality solutions for our clients. James: During the period of time that homeowners (and to a lesser extent, architects and designers) are gathering proposals and interviewing integrators, they’re often unaware of the “behind the scenes” complexity of the systems that we design and install. Because of this, the temptation to go with the lowest bidder can be strong. We do our best to educate clients as to what makes for a good installation (proper design, planning, execution,

aftercare, etc.) and being a Member of Excellence company is another thing that helps demonstrate that we care about doing things properly. Albert: With the help of CEDIA, our company is highlighted as a reputable company, and that can be the difference for a client when deciding between two home automation companies. Jan: CEDIA helps companies learn the basic skills, share their knowledge, and work together as an industry. From here, it is each company’s responsibility to then learn their own style and path to success. A good analogy is to compare ourselves to restaurants — everyone serves food, but the way in which they do so is very different. This is the same in our industry. We have all developed our own personality and approach. At Woelf, we all love our job and see that what we do is more than just installing a system or making it work — it’s about providing our customers with the best experience in their home. Mark: In this era, where many are entirely focussed on price differentiation, we believe that end-user satisfaction starts with a good design/ plan. This must be followed by competent installation with trained integrators. After this, follow-up customer service is key in getting reports of complete customer satisfaction. To this end, we believe in the importance of differentiating ourselves from non-certified entities to achieve this goal.

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Do you see this as a motivational tool internally for your employees and if so, how?

The CEDIA Member of Excellence selection process includes rigorous verification of member companies’ qualifications in areas including: • The company ensures continued customer service by providing three client or customer references from three projects within the last 12 months and two references from CEDIA Trade Supplier Members. • The company must demonstrate philanthropy by having either one CEDIA volunteer or at least one CEDIA Outreach Instructor (COI) on staff. • A percentage (based on size) of each company’s full-time technical staff must hold at least one CEDIA advanced certification — ESC-T, ESC-D, or ESC-N Certification (does not include ESC). • The company has demonstrated exceptional quality by being a CEDIA Awards finalist or winner within the last three years.

You can connect to more about the Member of Excellence programme here: cedia.net/programs/excellence

James: Absolutely. Our staff are super proud that they are working for a CEDIA Member of Excellence company. It’s also increased their awareness of continuing education units (CEU) and has motivated them to keep their training logs up to date. Albert: Of course. The team are motivated — they want to belong to a qualified and outstanding company that has succeeded due to their hard work. Jan: Yes, of course. Since becoming a CEDIA member, I have encouraged staff to get involved and develop their technical and personal skills through CEDIA training and resources. I'll urge my team to be proud of being a Member of Excellence and will look to continue offering them CEDIA training and certification. Nick: I believe that it’s great to be a part of something bigger than just you — it’s something that is prestigious and this creates pride, loyalty, and a sense of belonging. Mark: Pride is an important part of the equation. Employees must have pride in the work that they do and the satisfaction that our clients derive from their work. By being the only company in our area that generates professionally prepared design documents, installation documents, and after-completion project documentation, our employees know that we are committed to doing the job right. They are motivated by this and take pride in our company.

Talk us through how easy the registration process was? Owen: The process was super easy. In principle, the two applications — you have to pass Advanced Member to become a Member of Excellence — should take under an hour for both. In practice, there was a short delay in obtaining references from trade suppliers, while the end clients were delighted to help and came back to us straight away. I hadn’t been completely diligent in recording all our CEU points, so I had to go back over the last two years’ training and register it with CEDIA. It turned out that we averaged 15 CEU points per year since the last certification date, well above the target of 10. Achieving 10 CEU points per year is extremely easy. All the training you do counts — whether it’s training or CEDIA-approved manufacturer training. I would urge everyone to get involved. The one I see most is really good, professional companies who meet the standards but haven’t quite “got ‘round to” taking certifications. It doesn’t cost very much, so what are you waiting for? Programmes like this are much more powerful and effective when more companies join in. James: It was very simple indeed. Everything was clear and straightforward. Albert: It was pretty easy, and CEDIA helped where needed. Jan: If you are active within the CEDIA world by attending regular training courses and events and volunteering where you can, then the registration process is a quick and easy 30-minute job, as you already have all the requirements and paperwork in place. Nick: The process was incredibly quick and easy — we had no problems completing the application at all.

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This status is something else that will help set us apart in an increasingly crowded market.

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See the Greatness The Next Generation Display Technology

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THE SPATIAL WEB

The next generation of the web experience will be utterly revolutionary — and it’s only three years away

Ed Wenck

Rich Green is excited.

“This phenomenon Content Marketing is the single Manager, CEDIA most important development in the history of technology. It will change human evolution. It'll change the human species. It's right there in front of us. “And what's really mind blowing is that it's three years away.” Rich is speaking about something that’s been referred to as the Spatial Web, Mirrorworld, or Web 3.0. Web 3.0 is a development that Rich’s been tracking from his vantage point in Northern California — his firm, Rich Green Design, sits in close proximity to Stanford and the big tech firms that have overtaken the Bay Area. Rich has been watching the convergence of a

number of technologies — from 5G to Blockchain to Edge Computing — that will take the web as we know it now and turn it into the stuff we’ve heretofore only seen in science fiction. Web 1.0 and 2.0, then… First, a bit of background: when Netscape and other browsers started popping up on desktop machines back in the mid-1990s, the web was a one-way proposition for most people: you read text, looked at still pictures, and so on. That was Web 1.0. “Web 2.0, which is the era we're in right now, was the dawning of mobile applications, social networking, and interactivity with the web,” says Rich. “Blogs, blog posting, Facebook, that's Web 2.0, where you have web-based, rich media applications that are interactive.” Rich prefers the term “Spatial Web” for the next iteration of our digital world. “Web 3.0, which

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“

We're going to have a complete upside-down transformation of home controls.

day. “All you need is is this new era that's IoT + 5G + Edge imagination, and emerging right now, the world changes, incorporates the Computing + AR + the human species spatial web. The AR Cloud + AI + changes.” says metaphor goes Imagination Rich. from a flat, twodimensional screen = The Applications to an experience So, what does this The Spatial Web where you're actually mean for the CEDIA looking through the integrator? And how screen into a threedoes one prepare? dimensional world. That 3D Rich: “Keep an eye on everything world is our reality, but overlaid on I'm talking about. Go back and top of it, on a one-to-one match, is reassess your relationship with the a digital reality. That digital reality Internet of Things (IoT). Be prepared is comprised of spatial applications to deploy 5G inside people's homes ordered and made sense of with and businesses. Become hip and wise artificial intelligence.” to the augmented reality glasses, We’ve seen primitive peeks into what’s earbuds, and fingertip haptic devices. next: Pokemon Go is one example. Buy them. Buy samples, put them in But the 3.0 version will be vastly more your lab. Have a budget for this kind complex than a cartoon character of research in your company. Learn it, appearing on a smartphone’s image and when Apple comes out with an of the sidewalk in front of us. “It's a augmented reality set of glasses, buy digital twin, it's a digital mapping of them. Get them to your staff and work digital assets, creations of 3D objects, the stuff out. and so on, overlaid on top of the real “Because what will happen is, we're world,” explains Rich. “The way we going to have use cases in the home. peek into that is through our mobile With the spatial web, you'll be able to phones, it's through our tablets, see Alexa and Siri walking around the but, most importantly, it's through room in front of you as a robot, as a augmented reality glasses.” person, as an avatar. You'll be able to This is crucial, according to Rich: react to them and respond to them “Augmented reality is the key to our as if there was a person in the room visibility into the 3D web.” named Siri. The Formula “We're going to have a complete But AR is just one part of the equation upside-down transformation of home that makes this advance possible. controls. Instead of having to install a The speed and low latency of 5G, the Crestron or a Control4 keypad on the ubiquity of the Internet of Things, wall, there's nothing on the wall. You the power of edge computing, and just look at it with AR glasses, and the distributed ledgers of Blockchain there's a virtual keypad there, and you — which can help provide security point to it, and you say, ‘Turn down the and “democratisation” of the tech, as volume.’ You point to a speaker and Rich puts it — all converge to create you say, ‘Turn up the volume on that the potential for this next-gen web speaker.’ You point to a lamp in the experience. As every part of this ceiling and you say, ‘Dim that light.’ string of technologies communicates Okay. This gesture interactive mode of with its fellows via the AR Cloud, home controls, where there actually the spatial web creates a one-to-one are no physical controls in the room, “Mirrorworld” (as dubbed by Kevin they're all in the spatial web space, Kelley in Wired magazine) that can that becomes richer than anything mimic — or enhance or distort — the we've ever had or imagined.” world we’re physically, as opposed to digitally, living in. Add a set of haptic gloves that simulates the sense of touching an object that isn’t actually there in three-dimensional The complete podcast: Episode space, and you’ve got an immersive 94, iTunes file number 1901. experience that can convincingly rival cedia.net/podcast the “real” experiences one has every

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RETHINKING SERVICE Building RMR is all about setting the right expectations Remember the old days of air travel? Bags flew free before one airline made it a slogan. There weren’t à la carte options for legroom or snacks; and now and then, an upgrade to first class could be had just for the asking. When that changed, some people were understandably upset. But there’s a whole generation of folks — heck, multiple generations now — who are vastly more familiar with the Spirit Air or Jet Blue models of “pick this or that” upgrade or “extra for this or that” price. That’s the starting point for the lunchtime class presented by Joey Kolchinsky of One Vision Resources at a recent CEDIA Tech Summit. Joey’s a guy who’s transitioned completely from the integration business to the service-provider industry. “It’s about expectations,” says Joey, noting that for a lot of integration firms, the client’s expectations are: when they call, you jump. No matter the time, no matter the place, no matter the circumstance. Joey’s developed a plan — admittedly via trial and error — that elevates the notion of a service contract to something that’s as important as proper speaker placement or sound isolation. It’s a paradigm shift that involves careful framing. When a client calls, who are they talking to? What steps will the person repping your firm walk the customer through before the decision’s made to roll a truck? Internally, the concept involves companies thinking carefully about how they’re structuring — and streamlining — the service process. “Often, the service coordinator — the person who’s scheduling a visit if that’s necessary — is completely overqualified,” notes Joey. “Firms think they need someone who’s well-versed in every technical aspect of the home scheduling those

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truck rolls. It’s not necessary.” Joey is fond of a multi-tiered solution that integrators can offer their clients at the outset (and if your company’s not farming out remote monitoring or any other service, ensuring that there are employees dedicated to this aspect of the biz alone). That tiered system starts with a zero-dollar, minimalist agreement that guarantees little more than a return phone call at some point in the future — and tops out with a “signature” service that cost monthly fees that run well into four figures and beyond. In between, there are levels that guarantee response times and check-ups, but whatever level the client picks, they agree to that service plan on day one. And what is day one? In the integration field, that definition can be murky, but Joey narrows it down: “The moment any user begins interacting with their system, that’s day one. You can have technicians finishing up punch lists or what have you, but the moment someone in the home turns on a display, they’ve gone from ‘installation client’ to ‘service client.’” It's important to make clear what’s covered – and what isn’t — when that transition occurs. There’s got to be transparency regarding how and when the job morphs from punch list to service contract. “If you set the expectation that there’s going to be peace of mind,” says Joey, “that a set monthly fee will mean attention will be paid (and the customer won’t get dinged for the entire billable hour it took to, say, reboot one device) — well, clients can do that math pretty quickly.”

You can have technicians finishing up punch lists or what have you, but the moment someone in the home turns on a display, they’ve gone from ‘installation client’ to ‘service client.’

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onevisionresources.com

Video. Audio. Control.

The only matrix-powered universal remote app able to control BT, Virgin, AppleTV and pretty much any display.

HDANYWHERE.COM

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% last 5 the

“The toughest part of a job? Sometimes it’s the last 5%.” - ANON

I will never forget when one day I walked into a project site and the end user said, “There seems to be a message on everything saying it’s overheating.” I walked downstairs to the basement where all the racks were, and there was a dust sheet draped over all the racks and a guy sawing next to it. I thought, well, yeah — this isn’t exactly the best thing.

WISDOM FROM OUR MEMBERS (And Some Others, Too)

Nick Fichte, (Crestron) on the strategy of building racks off-site from the CEDIA Podcast “A Pair of Project Profiles” (Episode 110, No. 1910)

I am so impressed by the eager willingness of people to learn, to advance their professional careers at a show like this. The classrooms are full. The questions are superb. Rich Green, (Rich Green Design, US) on the energy he encountered at ISE 2019 from the CEDIA Podcast “ISE Day One” (Episode 103, No. 1906a)

As CEDIA members, one of our key roles is to provide our clients with both the benefit of our technical experience, as well as creative input. Nic Black, (The Pyramid Group, UK) on a big part of his mission statement

We work with an interior design company with over 65,000 Instagram followers, and recently, they put it to a vote: “to voice control or not to voice control?” It seems the jury is still out on this one with an almost perfect 50/50 split. Pip Evans, (NV Integration, UK) on client comfort with VUI

We’re excited about the advent of IMAX Enhanced too. It promises improvements in image, sound, scale and quality that will give us another great talking point with consumers. Luke Crutcher, Living Home Tech (UK) explaining why home cinema and media rooms are making a strong comeback.

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