Reasons why you should commission an AV technology consultant

09.12.2021
macom is a company for technology consultanting and design. Designing audio-visual systems is our specialty. In our projects, we cooperate with many other design departments within the scope of new construction and modernization projects. This also includes design for technical building equipment (TGA) and electrical engineering. These colleagues are mainly responsible for designing and implementing technical infrastructures in buildings. In some cases, this also includes AV technology components. We are often asked why an additional specialized av technology designer is needed? Why can’t all technical building infrastructures be designed by a TGA/electrical design office? What distinguishes the AV technology designer from the TGA/electrical disciplines?

Integrated system design

AV technology has long since ceased to consist purely of audio-visual hardware solutions and proprietary cable infrastructures. Today, we speak of user-, installation- and operation-oriented conception, design and realization of integrated AV/IT system architectures. These include, for example, large-format LED walls, multi-touch screens, tracking-based camera and microphone systems, room and desk booking solutions, unified communication and collaboration platforms, streaming over IP networks, wireless presentation, IoT sensor technology and many more.

A network of expertise

As Europe’s leading AV/IT consulting and design company, macom can rely on an expert team of over 80 permanent employees with in-depth specialist knowledge. All employees deal in detail and with focus with the various aspects of technology-based use cases, av technology systems, solution architectures as well as procurement and operating models. Cross-site and cross-project collaboration and the constant exchange of knowledge are an important multiplier for the technical and experiential knowledge. In each project, different experience values and perspectives can thus be quickly incorporated. Since a TGA/electrical trade has to serve a broad spectrum of services in building technology solutions in addition to AV technology, the comprehensive detailed knowledge in the area of AV/IT environments, which are increasingly critical for success from the user and operator perspective, may be lacking. Often, there are only very few specialized employees, who are only partially available in the projects and often only with basic AV technology knowledge. Detailed questions then often only emerge during implementation or operation. This leads to enormous risks in terms of user satisfaction, operating expenses and follow-up costs.

Individual consulting and user orientation

macom experts take into account all individual customer needs in all phases of conception and design – from the user, procurement, construction, and operational perspectives. You receive professional consulting based on macom best practices to tailor AV solutions to your goals and requirements. We not only provide answers, but also ask the right questions. From the very beginning, we rely on consistent 3D visualization in the form of a digital twin. The aim is to give the customer orientation, to show alternative solutions in an understandable way and to guide him through all phases of the project up to the handover to the company in order to arrive at the best possible solution. The TGA or electrical trade mainly executes the customer’s requirements from the construction service description. The success of the project then depends on the information, needs and requirements provided by the customer. This demands a great deal of the customer’s own work in advance, which is difficult for him to provide. In case of doubt, ambiguities and details are not clarified in the design stage and are solved ad hoc during implementation on the construction site. This results in considerable cost and quality risks.

A holistic approach taking into account the intersections

As a technology consultant and designer, macom takes a holistic approach to AV technology. With strategic needs analysis and conceptual consulting, we start early in the project, create detailed design and implementation management, accompany you in tendering and procurement, control the implementation and accompany the handover into operation. We clarify not only the design and construction intersections, how to get the technology installed in the building, but also how to use it effectively and operate it economically over a long period of time. In doing so, we use methods and tools that are specially tailored to work in the AV/IT sector. We coordinate the entire process and closely align our department with the other disciplines to ensure that all parts of a project mesh perfectly. If you neglect AV technology at the beginning of the process, the results may not be satisfactory at the end. It happens time and again that we are then called at a late stage in the project to fix it. Then we can often only be the fire department and try to contain the time and quality risks as well as the cost risks.

Always one step ahead

macomLABPlaza

In our macomLAB, our business innovation team also researches and tests new technologies, changing user requirements and industry trends in order to identify innovative developments at an early stage and always stay one step ahead. The findings flow directly into our projects to provide our customers with the very latest state of the art advice within the scope of the projects. We take feedback from our projects and feed it back to manufacturers to further optimize existing solutions and find new approaches. Are you planning a AV technology project and still wondering how to approach it? We are your reliable partner and will be happy to assist you as a professional consultant and expert designer.

Author: Felix Niedrich, Editor macom GmbH