The DSM BioMedical Experience Center in Exton, PA is the "Project of the Month" in the April 2019 issue of Commercial Integrator.

Office Collaboration Made Less Complex

The team at IMS Technology Services in Garnet Valley, Pa., created the DSM Experience Center for company headquarters design based on several discussions with the DSM staff about their wants and needs. The center of the Experience Center is the multi-faceted table that yields multiple group collaboration configurations. In addition to the table there are some side areas that have connected AV to provide users with a great amount of flexibility to bring content and UCC to the employees.

“The intention of the AV system was to create a space which not only looks and sounds impressive but also allows a maximum amount of workflow within the space,” says IMS project manager Patrick Whipkey. “The initial contact was a referral from a current customer who is a property manager. The client went to the property manager’s location and saw their technology and asked who provided it.”

Various Video Solutions Cover the Space

The office solution comprises a 4X2 8K interactive touch Planar video wall on one side of the room, a 3x2 non-interactive Planar video wall on the other side of the room, and an 86-inch Planar hidden in a cabinet that raises and lowers via a hydraulic lift. Finally, there’s another 86-inch Planar on the fourth wall for breakout sessions. The systems are fully integrated with Crestron control for ultimate flexibility and simplified operation, including the ability to drag-and-drop content sources.

From the beginning of the project, there were challenges that pushed the limits of milestone management against the deliverable date, Whipkey says. He notes that the general contractor, Spring Garden Construction, was extremely easy to work with and handled the adjustment in schedule and equipment deliverable in stride, as well as the IMS installation team.

One of the largest challenges IMS faced was the intricate and delicate construction that surrounds the interactive 4x2 video wall. Although perfected on paper during the engineering process, some field adjustments were required on the wall construction that encircles the video wall displays. Additionally, there were two teams involved in the programming and operation of the interactive function of the wall. Coordination between content creation and Crestron programming team from IMS had to be seamless during the implementation and launch of this technology due to the timeframe they had between the end of construction and the client’s first meeting — a meeting for which they had several key board members flying in from all over the world.

Tight Deadline Met, End User ‘Ecstatic’

A favorite aspect of this project is the 80-inch display on the credenza lift. This featured a PTZ camera mounted to the underside of the floating credenza top that was mounted to the display lift. The lift, supplied by Auton Motorized Systems, was easy to install, easy to control, and generated no noise outside of the credenza cavity, the integrator says.

The successful project was engineered, tested, installed, and commissioned in just over two months. The entire IMS team worked as a cohesive unit to pull this technologically advanced project off in time for the client’s high level meeting. “The customer is ecstatic with the end result,” Whipkey says. “It gives them the flexibility they were looking for and the ease of use makes adoption great.”

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