State Eoc Integrates Sources And Communications, Overcomes Challenges

BY DAN DALEY, Sound & Communications Magazine, January 2016

During the mid-summer, when the Colorado State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in the Denver suburb of Centennial was undergoing a long-delayed AV makeover, www.shootingtracker.com, an online database of mass shootings that claim four or more victims, logged more than 30 such incidents around the country. None were in Colorado but, as Ed Kern, AV Systems Designer with the Denver office of CCS Presentation Systems (www. ccsprojects.com), the integrator that did the renovation, spoke during our interview, it was within a week of the rampage at a 38 Sound & Communications January 2016 Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood center and the day after an even worse one in San Bernardino CA.

Underscores The Need

There was little that could be said about either horrific event but, collectively, they did underscore the need for a state-of-the art emergency operations center that could bring up video and audio from a wide range of sources, manage it across multiple displays and help representatives from police, fire, medical and other emergency services make sense of life-and-death situations that range from crimes to weather disasters, and other emergencies that seem to unfurl faster and more often every year.

The state’s existing SEOC, the central hub for all tribal, local, state and federal agencies to coordinate responses to hazard events, incidents and disasters throughout the state, had been a bit of an AV time capsule. Its AV complement consisted primarily of six-foot dropdown projection screens, overhead projectors and three 42-inch plasma screens, with audio distributed through low-voltage ceiling speakers.

Workers at the nearly 60 workstations in the 25’x60′ SEOC had to contend with aging equipment that couldn’t handle the growing number of sources, such as news broadcasts, emergency communications, and satellite and internet feeds. In addition, the AV was barely coherent: The width and depth of the room, along with a barely nine-foot ceiling, made it difficult for some team members to see critical information being displayed on the projection screens.

Visibility issues extended to the projected images themselves, which were not bright enough for many team members to view clearly. And dimming the lights rendered the environment adverse to videoconferencing, which is a feature team members use for their day-to-day activities. Finally, the audio was underpowered and often barely audible.

Biggest Challenge

At the time, CCS’ biggest challenge was designing solutions and integrating them in the space of just 30 days, a time frame Kern described as “miserable” and one compelled by state accounting exigencies, and by the fact that the SEOC would have to be completely vacated during renovation. Its functions would have to be relocated elsewhere temporarily, spread out among other nearby EOCs. The SEOC could be offline for a maximum of a single month, especially during Colorado’s summer fire-season months.

The task seemed daunting enough that the state employees had a pool going, betting how many days over deadline the installation would be finished. Fortunately, the job window fell in between large projects on CCS’ own schedule, giving the company the manpower and programming resources required to finish on schedule.

Read the complete article here: http://www.soundandcommunications.com/serving-colorado-state-eoc-integrates-sources-communications-overcomes-challenges/

Are Your AV Needs Becoming An Emergency?

Skip the ER and visit our HEALTH showroom

CCS Presentation Systems is excited to announce that our new Health Rooms in the Manufacturers Product Showcase are now complete and open for visits. These showrooms feature the latest tech products and services available for the Healthcare Industry. The impact of this technology will be big advancements to the industry and the care that is provided.

With a quick tour of these four show rooms, you’ll be able to experience and interact with this technology and quickly realize its’ impact and how easy it is to adopt.

CCS Health Club 600

  • CCS Health Club – This space was designed to showcase the modern Health Club. It features two NEC V552 55” LCD panels mounted with Chief’s 2 x 1 Fusion ceiling mount kit. And, the Williams Sound’s Hearing Hotspot lets users access the audio from each individual display through an app on their smartphone.

CCS Treatment 600

  • CCS Treatment – This space replicates a high-tech doctor’s office. The room is complete with three 28” 4K desktop monitors from Viewsonic that form a digital xRay viewer, SONY’s 4K 55” LCD display with a 4K media player showing open heart surgery, and an Ergotron WorkFit Sit-Stand workstation holding a Viewsonic All-in-One 23” touch computer.

CCS Kids' Korner 600

  • CCS Kids’ Korner – This waiting room will never be boring for kids. The SMART 442i Interactive Table featuring 40 simultaneous points of touch provides thousands of collaborative activities for children. And, a 55” NEC flat panel and Roku 4K media player displays streaming movies.

CCS Waiting Room 600

  • CCS Waiting Room – Get a preview of what to expect from test results as you interact with this MRI on a Sharp 70” Aquos Interactive display. With the touch of a finger you can manipulate images and make notes on screen that can be saved for later review.

Whether for a hospital, medical center, medical school, adult care, research facility or health club, CCS can provide solutions and help with design, integration and training. Come visit our new showrooms at our Scottsdale headquarters at 17350 N. Hartford Drive. And, to arrange a tour with one of our AV consultants, call us today at 480-348-0100. You can learn more about our company and our manufacturer partners on our websiteFacebookGoogle+, and Twitterpages.

#CCSPresentationSystems #Scottsdale #TeleMedicine #DigitalHealth

TEQlease AV Equipment Financing

We understand that purchasing a new AV system for your organization can require a sizable investment. But we can make your available capital go further for you with our custom leasing services.

CCS has partnered with TEQlease, one of the industry’s leading financial partners to make financing options available to all of our customers. Whether yours is a public or private educational institution, a corporation, or some other entity, CCS can provide leasing options that will make sense for you. We can vary terms and types of leasing vehicles to get your payments where they need to be to help you acquire the AV systems you need now, including the design and installation services you need to get the job done, with money that you may only have available to you over the next few years.

Most approvals can be issued within 24 hours and our leasing partner provides the highest level of customer service to help you easily understand your options and to make the whole process a pleasure.

Visit https://ccsprojects.com/leasing/ for more information.

Find a CCS location near you!

Discover Video for Visual Communication across Industries

Auditory communication can only engage people to a certain degree, especially across miles, or between locations. A conference call, for example, allows people to participate verbally, but not to illustrate complicated points, pull ideas together in a cohesive pattern, or place aspects of a project in order of priority. It also tends to make people’s minds drift. They may try to pay attention, but can end up doodling, consulting their calendars, or even nodding off. That reduces the effect of long distance training, impedes progress, and diminishes the results of business meetings, remote classes, and government collaborations.

Visual Communication Options

Live Video Streaming allows a presentation, class, meeting, lecture, or demonstration to be sent to one person, a few people, or many people at the same time in different locations. The results can be streamed to any device capable of an internet connection. That includes desk tops, SMART televisions and whiteboards, tablets, iPads and iPhones, and Roku machines. Services from companies, such as Discover Video, also provide the option to have event published on social media site through embedded coding.

Video On Demand is ideal for education libraries, showing procedures to medical students, and reviewing training exercises for military maneuvers or first responder protocols. Facilitators, business owners, teachers, researchers, and project managers can select any video and recall it for review. It is perfect for fact checking, comparing test results, measuring the progress of projects, or reviewing design specifications. Instant access can expedite results, improve problem solving techniques, and help creators and contributors continue with brainstorming efforts.

Live Webcasting is yet another option for visual communication provided by experienced companies like Discover Video, for example. This provides an effective and professional way to frequently update website information, launch products, make announcement, and engage site users. Websites with video experience higher volumes of visitors, increase repeat traffic, and keep browsers on their sites longer than websites with no webcasting capabilities. The whole point of investing in a website is to create exposure for the business. Adding affordable webcasting services will help attain that goal.

Products Required

Other clever uses of visual media systems includes digital signage in common areas, interactive office directories, and displaying announcements in classrooms. There are systems, products, and services designed specifically for classrooms. SMART boards, for example, are designed to be viewed from every angle of a classroom, and can be used as a viewing screen or whiteboard. Teachers and special guest speakers can show recent news stories to discuss current events. Emergency alerts, important breaking news, and events that are history in the making can be displayed to all appropriate classes. DEVOS systems for on-demand videos are other products available for an array of visual communication capabilities.

Most manufacturers of visual communication components have websites that explain products in detail. They highlight the advanced technology utilized in the creation of each model, and present a list of the innovative functions, software, and accessories included with the purchase. What they typically do not do is sell products directly. They include a page on their websites to direct customers to the nearest distributor of their products.

To be efficient, required information includes industry or intended uses, physical location of primary use, budget for the project, and the name or email of a contact person. A follow up call is made by a representative of the authorized dealer and service provider in that area. In New England, for example, the caller could be from CCS Presentation Systems. Another company would be responding from a different region.