Unions allow workers to negotiate collectively with employers over wages, benefits, workplace health and safety, job training and other work-related issues. They represent a variety of workplaces, including multinational corporations, small manufacturers, state and local governments, colleges and universities, hospitals and private non-profit organizations. Unions gather routinely in union halls to discuss innovative partnerships with employers and negotiate industry-leading wages and benefits for its members.

Young Electric and Communications, a California-based electrical contractor, was selected to provide design and build services, including AV, data, access control and security, at a local union hall. “We partnered with Skyline Construction, CBF Electric, Kenmark, Modus Designs, CRI Furniture, Woodtech and others to complete a new office build-out,” Jerry Richardson, CTS-D, AV manager for Young Electric and Communications said. “We provide white-glove, boutique integration services. Our focus is on technical integrations with various conference rooms, all-hands spaces, training rooms and, in this case, an auditorium and boardroom.”

“The client’s previous system was challenging and unreliable. We needed to create a consistent solution that provided a simplified user experience. They only utilize the space once a month, particularly for union hall meetings, requiring a solution with an easy user experience,” Richardson added.

Young Electric and Communications integrated a 3×3 Planar video wall flanked by two 86” displays in the main hall. The room includes QSC Q-SYS with audio and routing control of the video sources to create a Zoom Room experience. Visionary’s PacketAV Matrix Series was selected for AV-over-IP video distribution throughout the main hall. The integration was replicated in the boardroom, including a 98” display, Q-SYS with Zoom integration and Visionary’s PacketAV Matrix Series to create a “cohesive and seamless experience” throughout the union hall.

“Visionary’s PacketAV Matrix Series is very interoperable and supports various forms of Q-SYS integration, which simplifies our integrations,” Richardson explained. “We ultimately selected Visionary because of the interoperability with QSC, but we have been using their technology for quite some time. Our manufacturer’s rep, The Farm AV, introduced us to Visionary’s technology.”

Visionary says its PacketAV Matrix Series provides real-time transport of audio and video over IP networks. It supports current technology standards, including Dante, AES67, H.264 and others. Visionary’s interoperability with Q-SYS provides a consistent audio, video and control experience and enables users to optimize their Q-SYS systems to the needs of each unique space.

“Visionary checks all of the boxes,” Richardson said, “Their price point is competitive. The quality of their solutions is fantastic. The solutions are interoperable with Q-SYS. Most importantly, the technical features, such as the video quality, low latency, stability and reliability, are first-rate.”

“We’ve found that Visionary is unique – they understand how their products are being used. There are a lot of manufacturers that are not in tune with how their technology is being integrated. We’ve never had any issues with Visionary. Their technical support team is very responsive and helpful,” Richardson added.

The new system significantly increased collaboration and connection for Young Electric and Communications’ clients.

“The end user loves the solution. The entire boardroom and auditorium functions as a Zoom Room. From the end user’s perspective, it’s a seamless experience. They can enter the room, hit a button and easily start the meeting. From their perspective, it’s straightforward,” Richardson said.

Visionar says its 4K UHD-over-IP PacketAV Matrix Series encoders and decoders create a flexible, scalable, cinema-quality solution for IP networks. The PacketAV Matrix Series offers ultra-low latency with “unlimited” distribution capabilities. Utilizing existing network resources, the company says the encoders and decoders can be rapidly deployed to enable cost-effective distribution of multi-channel Dante/AES67 audio and video-over-IP.