AV Over IP in Education and Esports

April 22 2024 5 minutes read

“The Omega series consists of switches, extenders and video processing solutions with features and technologies designed specifically for today’s meeting and conference rooms”
– Jeroen Den Dunnen, Development and Innovation, Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam (GLR)

Creative, innovative and strong willed, that’s the Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam (GLR)” and they certainly live up to that. During the search for an AV over IP solution, the GLR looked beyond the obvious brands and solutions. The choice fell on Atlona. Atlona is an internationally progressive manufacturer with a surprising offer, yet still relatively unknown to the Dutch audio-video market. Jeroen den Dunnen, responsible for development and innovation in the Media, Entertainment and Technology department, explains why he chose Atlona.

Challenge: Find a vendor that is responsive to current needs and willing to collaborate on future developments

“Education is always evolving, especially at the Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam. Understandably so, given the rapid developments within the creative industry. Innovative technologies follow each other up in quick tempo. The GLR pays constant attention to new developments in the business world. Graduates are therefore able to compete at a European level in Media, Design, and the Creative Industry. The MET department (Media, Entertainment and Technology) is constantly working on new developments and researching innovative solutions. They try to stay five years ahead of the current market, to ensure graduates immediate employability. Five years ago, the focus was on AV control systems,” tells Jeroen. The search for a suitable AV control system was a difficult one. “A number of big names in the market were unable to provide the required flexibility. Demo requests, for example, were never complimentary and solutions were ‘Windows based’. Not exactly ideal in an environment where Apple equipment is used. In addition, the AV over IP systems offered, were not intuitive. And that just so happened to be one of the most important requirements, because the more unaware we are of a system, the more user-friendly it must be. A difficult challenge of course. Being unaware of a system, is in fact a sign that everything works and is automated. Appearance and operationality must be smooth. This proved to be quite the challenge,” says Jeroen.

Solution: Atlona speaks the same language and develops quickly

During the Integration Systems Europe trade show in 2019, Jeroen came across Atlona’s stand. Soon Jeroen came to realize that Atlona and the GLR were speaking the same language. Through System Integrator D&MS and Intronics, Atlona’s Belgium-based distribution partner, the collaboration begun. AV over IP solutions from Altona offer several advantages over other brands.

For example, Atlona’s AV over IP OmniStream™ offers the performance and reliability of traditional AV distribution while adding unlimited scalability and cost efficiency. This is thanks to its integration into data networks. “It’s tremendously affordable: if you want to expand the system, the cost doesn’t add up quickly. I saw many possibilities in the Atlona product range. The Omega™ series consists of switches, extenders and video processing solutions with features and technologies designed specifically for today’s meeting and conference rooms.

“Not to mention Atlona Velocity™, an innovative IP-based AV Control platform. The Velocity platform allows AV systems to be configured and customized in minutes without the need for complex programming skills. Velocity is intuitive and easy to explain to a 16-year-old student. The system allows third-party products into the system, so the adoption rate is high. Control drivers are also quick to develop. In addition, the touch screen functions as a booking system for meeting rooms. With the right connection it is even possible to turn the lights in the room on and off and set them to the desired position, and we can darken the windows”, explains Jeroen.

“The Velocity platform allows AV systems to be configured and customized in minutes without the need for complex programming skills. In addition, the touch screen functions as a booking system for meeting rooms” – Jeroen Den Dunnen

Result: Esports Space, classrooms and personal workplaces furnished with Atlona

The Esports Space is the newest state-of-the-art facility of the Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam. At esports events, many media disciplines come together: organizing an esports event, creating visuals for a live stream, building a stage including a shoutcaster booth, providing the live stream, directing, reporting on the matches, etc. Several Atlona solutions have been applied in the Esports Space. With the help of the intuitive touch-screen control panel, the Esports Space can change from an esports event to, for example, a teaching environment in the blink of an eye. To further develop the media disciplines, a facility for the new eXperience Integration (XI) specialization was recently built alongside the Esports Space. Four technologies are central to the XI specialization: control systems, audio, video, and lighting technology. The XI classroom contains four simulation rooms aimed at four sectors in which new technologies are also used a great deal to create an experience: corporate (companies), retail (shops), residential (luxury homes) and hospitality (leisure sector). In concrete terms, GLR faculty translated this into the reconstruction of a meeting room, a shop, a home cinema, and a hotel lobby. In these four settings, the previously mentioned technologies are clearly present. There are also four table groups in the classroom, each table accommodating eight students. Each table group focuses on one of the four technologies which the students can experiment with.

A nice addition is that the students must program the demo rooms themselves. All demo rooms are equipped with Atlona solutions. Atlona Velocity gateways and touch screen control panels were chosen for meeting room scheduling information. Thanks to the integration with popular calendar applications, schedules are displayed on control panels at the entrance to the meeting room.

The control panels feature color-coded interfaces and LED frames to indicate whether a meeting room is available. This allows users to check for the meeting room availability of an entire corridor in just one glance. Users can make ad hoc bookings directly from the control panel. In the retail demo area, customers are attracted with eye-catching digital messages in the shop, prompting them to make purchases. Matrix switchers from Atlona ensure that any source can be sent to any display and distribution amplifiers ensure that a single source is sent to multiple displays. All channels can be selected and sent using an intuitive touch-screen control panel.

“Students are enthusiastic about Atlona. At the online Atlona Academy they can follow several technical training courses free of charge to broaden their knowledge and stay up-to-date. They also learn how to apply Atlona products and solutions in practice and how to combine them with other brands. They also give feedback directly to Atlona. This completes the circle: not only the MET department but also our students work and develop together with Atlona,” concludes Jeroen.

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