Organization of American States – Case Study
On a regular basis, Audio-Video Group is presented with client problems that are all different in nature, yet the same. They want to have the latest technology integrated into their workspace while meeting their budget. The Organization of American States (OAS) was no different than any other client as they had the common problem of outdated and failing technology that needed to improve and do so within their budget.
Every year, OAS holds its premier political forum of the Americas in Washington D.C., where the independent countries of North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean come together to advance their common goals and work out their differences. Topics discussed range from the rights of indigenous peoples to territorial disputes, but ultimately, OAS is where multilateral dialogue takes place at many levels and relies heavily on a strong microphone system. The OAS has a designated room in which these meetings occur called the Simon Bolivar Room. As the designated meeting area, this is where the microphone improvements needed to take place.
Conference Systems (CSI), who you can visit at www.conferencesystems.com, was tasked with the design of a new microphone system for OAS as well as the distribution of equipment for the needed improvements. Once the new system was designed, AVG was awarded the project to install the conferencing microphone system. A Brähler CDSVAN was chosen, which is the first conferencing system that offers an all-in-one solution for conference applications. This system provides microphone control, simultaneous interpretation, voting, recording, audio zoning and/or camera control capabilities depending on the needs of the client. The CDSVAN is the leading conference system in the industry as a result of these options as well as its enhanced audio quality, extensive range of functions, and the networking and integration capabilities. As far as OAS, these system capabilities were great considering that at one time, there can be up to 70 different countries present in the meeting room. As you can imagine, not all of these countries speak one native language and the audio quality may be compromised.
In an effort to maintain an excellent audio quality and have effective microphone control, it was necessary to install a portable DV9 and PV9 microphones. The portable DV9 is a portable delegate microphone base, meaning that this microphone has the ability to override any other microphones within the system. Additionally, the microphones could handle multiple speakers, speaking a variety of languages. Each microphone has the ability to allow speakers to request the floor subsequently placing them in a queue for the moderator to reference. This helped organize the forum, as it gives the moderator the opportunity to turn on and off microphones at their discretion.
Considering the vast differences in languages and the need to interpret them, there are four glass booths in the room designed specifically for simultaneous interpretation. In this booth, there are two interpreters that sit and translate the dialogue to the native language. Additionally, each person on the floor who speaks English as a native language is equipped with an earpiece in which translates what non-native speakers are saying. For those seats not on the floor, there are speakers integrated into each seat using an INFRACOM system to give those occupants the ability to choose which floor meeting they want to listen to in a language of their preference. The INFRACOM system includes an interpretation system that can handle six languages as well as the floor. This system is an integral part of a smoothly run forum.
To aid in interpretation and to maintain a pleasurable experience for all participants and meeting listeners, a DOLV Digital Interpreter Console was used to ensure that these objectives were accomplished. The interpreter console allows for transmission of the floor in addition to 31 other languages, and has controls for volume, bass, treble, microphone and mute systems giving the user more control of their experience.
While each of the aforementioned system components are great when used alone, they make an impeccable system when used together. A system that allows the OAS forum to have continued success each year in providing a pleasurable experience for those involved while using up-to-date and reliable technology.
The completion of this project demonstrated what our team and our process are truly capable of accomplishing and that we were an integral part of providing a solution to OAS. If you would like to hear more about our project with the Organization of American States, the technology we used, or think you have a similar challenge, please feel free to contact us at 301-668-4448 or visit our website, www.audiovideogroup.com.