CONFERENCE ROOMS THAT DRIVE BUSINESS

Transcription

1 CONFERENCE ROOMS THAT DRIVE BUSINESS NOT DRAIN RESOURCES A NETWORKED APPROACH TO SOLVING COMMON CONFERENCE ROOM CHALLENGES Now, more than ever before, IT professionals are expected to contribute to the company s bottom line. This means significantly reducing budgets for maintenance or keeping the lights on activities. One area of business that consumes considerable IT resources is the corporate meeting room. Whether through user error or system complexity, these rooms, which should improve productivity and drive business, are instead draining resources. This white paper takes a close look at the type of equipment found in meeting rooms and discusses the core problems that are driving support tickets. It presents an alternative approach that uses the network to solve these common challenges and reduce costs.

2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CONFERENCE ROOM: (kon-fer-uhns rům) (Noun) 1. A meeting space containing touchy AV equipment and even touchier participants. 2. A continual source of help-desk tickets. 3. A solid business driver when networked with proper AV equipment. The business managers and executives at a Fortune 500 financial services company had so many problems using their audio and video (AV) conferencing equipment they required an IT person to be present in every meeting. The lost productivity and impact on their partner relationships cost more than staffing every meeting room. This company is not alone in the struggle to clearly and easily collaborate with remote partners, customers, and workers. A July 2010 study of large UK businesses found, 10% of an IT manager s working year is eaten up by helping out with meeting room technology problems. i Also troubling for IT staff is that while 40% of users blame meeting room equipment for the problems, 23% blame IT. ii While there are many components to a meeting room, audio is the linchpin that holds meetings with remote participants together. In this white paper, we ll discuss how IT managers can use the power of networked audio to create conference rooms that drive business. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 1

3 THE ANATOMY OF A MEETING ROOM Meeting room equipment ranges from simplistic conference phones to multiple audio visual systems designed to deliver an in person experience. Integrated, installed audio visual systems typically include the following: Audio Component Mics and loudspeakers Telephone interface Audio processor Function Picks up and amplifies meeting room audio. Allows VoIP or analog connection to remote participants (meeting room, landline, cell, bridge). Improves clarity of the audio signal, removes echo and noise. Provides inputs and outputs to connect mics, loudspeakers, consumer electronics, video codecs, PC, etc. Video Component Video codec Display Laptop Function Encodes and decodes video signal for transmission to and from remote site. Connects to audio mixer to send and receive audio signal. Shows video feed from remote site. Interfaces with projector to share presentation. Interfaces with audio mixer if connecting web callers. Control Component Touch panel Wall control Remote control Function Controls all functions in the room (curtains, lights, HVAC, volume, dialing, projector). Controls volume and dialing features. Controls volume and dialing features for video conferencing. The more complex the room, the greater chance you ll have for equipment integration problems and user errors. The illustration below shows the typical connection points in a small conferencing room. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 2

4 HOW MEETING ROOMS DRAIN RESOURCES Reducing the time and expense of supporting and maintaining meeting rooms frees IT resources to innovate and move the business forward. Consider these sources of meeting room trouble tickets. Ceiling Loudspeakers Video Codec Mics Audio Processor Web Conference FIGURE 1: COMPONENTS OF AN INSTALLED CONFERENCING SYSTEM Poor Audio Quality Demand for clear audio during conference calls is one of the leading reasons businesses invest in new audio conferencing systems, according to a study conducted by the National Systems Contractors Association (NSCA). About onethird of the study respondents cited audio quality as a significant factor in these purchase decisions. iii As more companies take their business global, the need for clear, naturalsounding audio becomes more critical. However, fixing audio problems is time consuming because there are many factors that can affect quality. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 3

5 If users complain about... Reverberant, tinny audio Hearing echoes Not hearing the remote participants well enough Not being heard Difficulty with foreign accents, general intelligibility issues Not hearing audio from DVD player or other audio device Too much background noise Remote participants calling in from landlines can t hear video conferencing participants The issue could be... Hard surfaces in the room, glass walls, mics too far from participants Echo cancellation not functioning properly, mics too close to loudspeakers Conference phone that is inadequate for room size, improper loudspeaker coverage, mic problems on the far side Not enough microphones for room size, mute is on, problem on the far side Could be a combination of several sources; speakers, signal processing, line quality or it could be incorrect speaker placement Audio signal is not routed properly to the loudspeaker Noise cancellation settings, open mics Audio is not routed properly to and from all participants, bridging capabilities Integration Issues Many companies take a phased approach to implementing conferencing equipment. This typically results in a variety of video and audio conferencing equipment being used, built on an infrastructure that was designed by multiple vendors. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 4

6 Any time IT infrastructure is cobbled together to accommodate disparate or proprietary systems, IT teams struggle to manage the combination of technologies and users struggle to remember how each room works. Corporate Network Room Equipment - Audio Processor - Amplifier - VoIP Interface - Echo Canceller Tabletop Mics Server Rack Ceiling Speakers FIGURE 2: SILOED MEETING ROOMS, EACH WITH ITS OWN SET OF CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT. Lack Of Remote Management When meeting room equipment doesn t allow Ethernet connections for control purposes, the only option for IT is to go to the room and service the system in person. Not only does this take IT time from other projects, but it adds unproductive time to the meeting participants as well. IT personnel responsible for multiple buildings or remote offices will spend enormous amounts of time and budget supporting meeting rooms. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 5

7 Inflexible Configurations Users expect conferencing and collaboration tools to work how and when they need them. And this demanding user environment requires a mix of highperformance, intuitive controls, and flexibility. If the room set up or the type of meeting changes, the meeting room equipment must be able to accommodate the new requirements. What is one day a presentation may be a panel discussion the next and a sales meeting with remote participants the following week. This level of flexibility keeps pace with business needs and enables effective collaboration. THE MEETING ROOM MARATHON IT managers report that, on average, they walk a distance of 300 feet from their desk to the meeting rooms and back each time they have to go to help with a meeting room technology incident. With an average of 8.6 incidents a week, that s the equivalent of walking miles a year practically a marathon.iv 4 WAYS NETWORKED AUDIO DRIVES BUSINESS By bringing audio conferencing systems onto the network, IT managers can transform their meeting rooms into collaborative environments that give their companies all the benefits that collaboration is intended to provide, especially improved business outcomes. When the audio conferencing systems used in a company s meeting rooms are connected to the network, employees can initiate an audio conference in the meeting room as easily as they can from their desktops. Network-based audio systems also improve audio quality and facilitate future expansion of the system to additional meeting room locations. Here are four ways moving audio conferencing to the network can drive business. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 6

8 #1. Increases Collaboration With Professional Audio Quality Audio quality influences communications effectiveness. It can make the difference between a successful sales pitch to an international customer or a frustrating MOST IMPORTANT IP COMMUNICATIONS iv Audio Conferencing Web Conferencing VoIP exchange that ends in misunderstanding. It is important to the well-being of company personnel as well, who can become frustrated and fatigued when struggling to hear or be heard over a sub-par audio system. When networked, an audio system can share resources, specifically the digital signal processing equipment, which enhances the audio quality. An audio transport protocol, such as Audio Video Bridging (AVB) or CobraNet, is used to transport audio signals over Ethernet. This form of networking allows IT managers to reduce costs by sharing equipment between rooms. For example, a company can use the network to transport audio between rooms, such as a boardroom, the CEO s private conference room, a training room, and a marketing conference room. By comparison, a siloed four-room environment would require four sets of equipment because each room would need its own digital signal processing hardware. #2. Reduces Support And Maintenance Costs A networked meeting room also eliminates many of the challenges caused by disparate systems. It eliminates room silos and it makes it easy for IT personnel to remotely manage and troubleshoot the network. This helps the IT department reduce legacy equipment maintenance costs, which is becoming more important to businesses as technology continues to accelerate. Networked audio systems are controlled and configured through an Ethernet connection. This allows IT personnel to manage the system remotely and fix problems even those as simple as unmuting a microphone via desktop-based software controls. This is especially advantageous for businesses in multiple geographic locations or multi-building campuses where IT personnel are centrally located. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 7

9 #3. Adapts To Your Business If today s small meeting room becomes part of tomorrow s large training room, your audio system needs the flexibility to meet this new requirement. This may mean adding microphones or integrating a video conferencing system. Audio Network Corporate Network Room equipment - Audio processor - Amplifier - VoIP Interface - Echo Canceller Server Rack Tabletop Mics Ceiling Speakers FIGURE 3: NETWORKED MEETING ROOMS THAT SHARE CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT. When all audio conferencing systems are networked, you can route audio from any input in any room to any output in any room. This makes it easy to change configuration, combine rooms, or even create an overflow meeting room. Adding a couple of microphone inputs is as easy as creating a network drop. And since rooms can share resources, it s no longer necessary to purchase an additional audio processor to accommodate the new mics. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 8

10 #4. Improves The User Experience Ease of use is essential to the effectiveness of the audio conferencing system and the collaboration process these systems facilitate. Every minute spent troubleshooting a system is lost time for everyone involved. Networked audio systems support a number of user control options, which allows meeting participants to activate and utilize the system effectively. When the meeting-room audio systems are standardized and networked, companies not only reduce support and maintenance costs, but they can also reduce training and travel costs for their personnel by providing a cost-effective alternative. ADVANTAGES OF DIGITAL AUDIO NETWORKS For business managers Saves time Increases efficiency Enhances communications Enhances learning Accelerates decision making Shortens time to market Works with global partners For IT managers Simplifies maintenance Eliminates interoperability challenges Creates a future-proof system Delivers high quality audio, better user experience Allows remote troubleshooting Integrates with VoIP Decreases support costs Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 9

11 GET NETWORKED WITH AUDIA AND NEXIA FIGURE 4: THE CARD-BASED PRECONFIGURED AUDIAVOIP NETWORKED AUDIO SYSTEM FROM BIAMP Biamp Systems takes audio quality far beyond what s common for IP conference phones or analog telephone adapters. The Audia series of professional audio conferencing solutions makes it easy for IT professionals to transform their meeting rooms into collaboration rooms that meet their demands. Using a unique modular card-based design, Audia- VOIP delivers a completely preconfigured, networked audio solution for all VoIP conferencing needs. With AudiaVOIP, you can minimize expenses by networking all your conferencing audio and sharing digital processing resources between rooms. FIGURE 5: NEXIA TC (TELECONFERENCING) AND NEXIA VC (VIDEOCONFERENCING) DIGITAL SIGNAL PROCESSORS If you demand high quality distance-conferencing or need to distribute audio throughout multiple rooms, there s no smarter choice than Nexia. More than cost-effective, Nexia is a robust system with high-fidelity sound and industry-leading software. The entire Nexia line is designed with a network-friendly open architecture to help create economical, intuitive solutions. You ll save time, effort, and resources both physical and financial. Designed specifically to provide crisp, clear audio in teleconferencing and videoconferencing applications, Nexia TC and Nexia VC deliver true 20Hz to 20kHz bandwidth during multiple participant conversations, with natural, true-to-life sound, and full duplex transmission of speech, including doubletalk. All Biamp conferencing products feature Sona AEC, our most advanced wideband acoustic echo cancellation algorithm. Conversations come through full, rich, and echo-free. Adding Biamp DSPs to your conferencing solution guarantees low maintenance and professional quality sound with no additional headaches. Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 10

12 ABOUT BIAMP SYSTEMS Biamp Systems has been a leader in high-performance audio systems since Through a worldwide network of systems integrators and distributors, Biamp delivers products that meet the professional audio requirements for a range of applications, including corporate boardrooms, conference centers, performingarts venues, courtrooms, hospitals, transportation hubs, campuses, stadiums, and recreational facilities. Biamp is headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon (USA), with additional engineering operations in Brisbane, Australia. To learn more, talk with a Biamp representative: biampinfo@biamp.com References i The Meeting Room Marathon - A Waste of Corporate Time, Dynamic Markets research commissioned by Casio, July ii Ibid iii Market Intelligence Briefings, Q3, Audio & Video Teleconferencing/Telepresence Market, June NSCA Research, p. 12. iv The Meeting Room Marathon Biamp Systems Conference Rooms That Drive Business 11

13 CONTACT US A: 9300 S.W. Gemini Drive Beaverton, OR USA T: T: E: W: