Good collaboration that can be seen and heard

How do you define modern room setup at Panatronic? 

Roman Binder: It is our target to design, with the customer, ideal media-technical features that are easy to operate. A high quality of image and sound, that fit in with the room design.

Which trends concerning the design of conference and meeting rooms can one currently observe?

Here, a lot has happened in the last years: higher resolutions, at least 4K, fine pitch LED technologies for better contrast and colours, beamforming microphones for better audibility during meetings and conferences, wireless solutions like Miracast or Air Play, intelligent cameras with integrated speaker tracking, Cloud based solutions, touch displays or whiteboards to work together interactively, user-coordinated touch panels to operate the room control, such as light, blinds, etc.

How do you address the individual and increasingly more complex demands of the customers to furnish rooms in a functional and at the same time aesthetic way?

We think that audio-visual technology has become simpler compared to before, as there are fewer analogue cables and most of it can be operated by pushing a button. I simply take part in a meeting and the rest is managed by the room itself.

How do you make sure that video systems are seamlessly compatible with conventional platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom or Webex?

Well, at the beginning there is always a consultation meeting with the customer to find out which platform is already available in the company. Based on this information we always start the setting up. We don’t try to impose something new on the customer that does not suit them and that cannot be handled.

What are the biggest challenges during the integration of video systems in existing IT and communication infrastructures?

It requires a close collaboration with IT technicians. That the bandwidth is made available and that the firewall is enabled. The room acoustics must be suitable, and that the correct, certified hardware is made available.

And here NTS comes into play?

Exactly. When we collaborate on a new project, then we are able to rely on the expertise and the service of NTS. There is a lot of Cisco know-how available at NTS and there are many good people where the topics network technology, but also data center, security and the mentioned collaboration are concerned. On our side, the focus is more on media technology, with audio, processors, controls, etc. Regarding this topic – complement each other well.

How did the partnership between Panatronic and NTS start?

Originally, the collaboration with NTS started in the framework of a project for the Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft (the company that manages Austrian publicly owned real estate).  We were responsible for the media technology and NTS supplied the Cisco components. Due to the close coordination during planning and implementation, a constant exchange instantly developed – and over time a mutual trust as well. Out of this good cooperation, additional joint projects quickly evolved. The chemistry between the two companies was right from the beginning and up to today it forms the basis for fair and successful cooperation.

In which areas is it suggested to outsource expertise and where is it reasonable to establish and strengthen internal know-how?

Principally, know-how is available on our end for most of the projects. Our employees constantly participate in trainings and courses by various manufacturers as you always have to be kept up to date. During complex projects that require more resources and time, we outsource certain parts to familiar partners like NTS for instance. During large projects such as the campus of a university, it makes sense to outsource the network infrastructure – for this we are missing the staff as well as the specific know-how. It is important to know your own strengths and to specifically include external expertise when it is necessary.

Are there concrete examples where you have successfully realized a project together with NTS?

A current example would be the Vienna Holding sports arena. The sports arena Vienna is currently under construction, and it is a multi-function sports center with halls for ball sports, gymnastics, and athletics as well as several meeting and press rooms. Here, we equip the meeting and the multi-function rooms with Cisco video conferencing technology.

Which special demands does the customer have in this project?

The special demand at the sports arena is the fact that you have to be able to stream from each hall or each terminal point to each room. A dedicated network was established enabling everything to converge. This is what we do – we buy the video conferencing equipment from NTS which they integrate into Vienna Holding.

How can the NTS corporate motto “Relax, We Care” be applied to Panatronic?

We offer a ‘full package’ to our customers, from the planning all the way to the positioning. Here, we take care of everything, and we make it as easy as possible for the customer, and we monitor that everything works well and that all parts fit together.