CATEGORY:BEST APPLICATION OF AV IN EDUCATION
BUDGET
11 crore INR and above (USD1.48 million and above)
PROJECT OVERVIEW
AlJamea-tus-Saifiyah is a world class University. It consists of an academic block, Boys hostel, Girls hostel, Faculty housing, Auditorium block and assembly-dining blocks form the other areas. The entire campus has been designed on AVoIP backbone. Cisco 9500 core switches have 10Gbps link to Cisco 9200 access switches. The bandwidth has been provisioned on the network backbone such that AV transmission-reception can take place throughout campus. The significant areas of project for AV include 650 seater auditorium, Assembly hall, Prayer Hall, Kitchen-Dining that also used as a seminar space, Qaat hall used for presentations-seminars, multipurpose-hall, audio recording studios, central courtyard, lecture halls and conference-rooms. Each of these venues are operable as individual venues and double up as overflow spaces with two-way live AV transmission to/from the chosen primary area. For Audio the Backend system was designed using Dante compatible products. The cameras are connected on 12G-SDI backbone and video transmission on AVoIP. The venue is also used for large community gatherings, with guests seated across campus. The PA system works on cobranet network. The PA system and the audio system within specialised venues have been integrated using a Dante bridge.
What did the client want to achieve?
The client required an advanced system based on digital platform with backward compatibility & fallback to analog connectivity. The system had to be easy to use for smaller daily applications & scalable for larger complex events. The large events are very critical & the failure of live AV transmission is not acceptable. The infrastructure should incorporate 4K/12G-SDI standards with digital audio. The system should have provision to add floating displays, cameras, loudspeakers, microphones at various zones with minimal wires pulled on floor. Outlets to connect these had to be provisioned in the demarcated zones on IP backbone. Certain important areas also had to be equipped with snake cables for analog fallback. For daily events the system should be operable on Ipad by students while for large events a specialsed team would operate the same. During large events with jam-packed crowds where the noise floor can be as high as 90dB, the quality of the sound had to be extremely superior with 10-12 open microphones. The solution had to be aesthetically compatible with sleek look to blend with the interiors. The location of microphones should be dynamic based on orientation of the event.
Scope of work your company was involved in
We were engaged as Design Consultants for ELV services since 2015. Our design services included AV, IT, Security, FAPA systems. In Nov. 2022, we were assigned the responsibility of building the AV aspect of the project for key areas. Our scope included finalising concept design, selection of equipment, helping client to liaison with OEMs for purchase, creation of technical drawings, supervision & build of AV. We were required to understand the functional expectations from various stakeholders; end-user, client’s AV team & the project owner. The solution based on functional requirement had to be co-ordinated on drawings meeting the aesthetic constraints. Equipment selection was based on technical & aesthetic merit to complement the carvings on marble interiors. Options from multiple OEM meeting the requirement was presented to client. Actual product demos were organised for as part of a private roadshow with live demonstrations of loudspeakers, AVoIP devices & active LEDs. This helped the client to choose the end product with proper understanding of the end result. Our build team was involved in testing of cables, terminations, rack-dressing, congifuration & testing of the solution. Change request from the client was also accommodated in the best possible manner during execution.
What key challenges were faced?
1.The civil work on site was quite delayed providing us with only 6 weeks to complete the installation.
2.There was a difference of opinion between AV technicians & interior team over choice & placement of equipment. We had to strike a balance choosing the products that did not compromise technical deliverable while also retaining sleek form factors.
3.The client’s team has been used to analog systems while the owners wanted the latest digital technology.
4.The on-site execution did not follow the drawings in spirit. As a result the physical provisions did not match & changes had to be made technically to meet the site conditions during execution.
5.As lead time on Cisco switches were high & client had missed placing orders for AV switches, netgear switches had to be procured a week before the opening day. Handshake between Cisco & netgear is not straightforward resulting in AV streaming issue.
6.The client decided to have a single control room for video for all the event spaces instead of distributed control rooms quite late. The cables had been pulled as per the original scheme. Connectivity over fiber for 12G-SDI had to be planned and provided.
7.A lot of last minute changes were made by the technical team with regards to connectivity addition, deletion and amendments.
How were those challenges resolved?
1.Our team worked closely with the on-site civil team aligning our activities.
2.The interior designers were presented with options of equipment that closely blended with their interior. They were educated about the necessity of specific loudspeakers & importance of mounting location to manage quality of sound. They were convinced to make changes in their design. In the auditorium where the requirement was to keep the loudspeakers inconspicuous, we chose the K-array solution to ensure proper distribution of sound and good looks. The architect was also not keen on having the active led wall of the proposed size. By explaining the line of sight and AVIXA standards the architect was convinced about the active led screen size.
3.Educating the client’s AV technicians about digital technology, training them & preparing them for a digital system was a great breakthrough.
4.Our engineers worked closely with Cisco & Netgear to ensure smooth functioning of AVoIP. We had to closely configure each and every switch with compatible parameters for smooth transmission of AV over network. Requirements for Dante and Lightware AVoIP also differed in terms of packet size requiring individual port configuration. While Dante works smoothly on a 1500 MTU, Lightware requires 9000 MTU on a jumbo frame
How has your work helped the client?
The client uses the campus for events & daily activities. The audio-video quality is much better than their old system. They can monitor & manage the networked system. It allows flexibility in accommodating students in different venues & prevents overcrowding by relaying between venues. As a last minute request they integrated a microphone in prayer hall with assembly hall’s audio transmission over Dante. Routing signals across the campus is simple with networked AV. The students in this campus do have requirement of having small performances or events in the common areas of various floors. These events at times have to be also seen by other groups in assembly hall or recorded for review. In the older campus this was only possible by pulling long cables or moving recording equipment. However, over network this has become easier by adding AVoIP boxes at desired locations.The PA system is integrated with the AV system via Dante, enabling audio feeds during events to all areas of the campus & emergency announcements into event spaces. The QSC I/O USB bridge & Blackmagic Webpresenter allows web conferencing using installed microphones, loudspeakers, & cameras. A digital PA system replaced the traditional bell & interactive displays in classrooms enhance student-faculty engagement.
What are you most proud of in relation to the project?
47th Dai Syedna first expressed the desire to setup Jamea Campus in Mumbai in 1885. We are proud to be part of this dream envisaged 150 years ago. Inauguration of Al Jamea Campus in Mumbai was done by Hon. Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi in presence of His Holiness Dr Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin. As the Prime Minister was inaugurating the campus, their technical team came in to verify the system as PM’s address could not be interrupted due to any reason. They found that our system could be run through the QSC DSP as well as the A&H Aventis mixer. Further, the microphones had connectivity on Dante as well as snake cables connected on the Stagebox. This assured them of redundancy and they did not require us to setup any rental/portable systems for backup. The entire proceedings of the opening ceremony was allowed to be run on the installed sound. The national broadcaster Doordarshan also used the video feeds from our 4K cameras transmitted to their makeshift control room on the campus over AVoIP. It was our installed system’s feed which was relayed live on the national television. The PM in his address mentioned that he was impressed with the use of technology on the campus.
List of KEY Brands and related Solutions (Models) that were defined for the project:
- DSP
QSC 510i and 110f
Meyer Sound GalileoDigital Mixer
Allen & Heath Aventis and SQ6
TouchMix30Dante Breakout Boxes
Shure ANI4In
QSC Atterotech UNDX2IO+ and UNDX4I
QSC QIO seriesWireless Microphone System
Shure ULXD Digital Wireless System
Sennheiser Speechline system with SL MCR DWAmbient Microphone
Audix M45 with Dante interface DN4Loudspeakers
Assembly Hall
Meyer Sound Ultra X20 & MM4XPPrayer Hall
Meyer Sound Ultra X20 & Tannoy CMS503ICT LPKitchen-Dining
Tannoy CMS503ICT LPQaat Hall
Renkus-Heinz ICC12/3 as it is a very reverberant space with a domeAuditorium
Karray KY102 (3X) + KY52 (2X) per stack. Total 2 Stacks.
Karray KAN200 used as front fills
Karray KS2PI subwoofer
Tannoy VX-6 wall mount speaker in Royal Box and VIP Seating Area
Tannoy CMS503ICT LP ceiling mount speaker in Green RoomAmplifiers
Labgruppen – E series
QSC
K-arrayAVoIP
Lightware VINX-120-HDMI-ENC/DECVideo Mixer
Black Magic Atem 4M/E Broadcast Studio 4KVideo Recorder
Black Magic Hyderdeck studio 4K proUSB Interface for Web Conferencing
Blackmagic Web Presenter 4K
QSC IO-USB BridgeCameras
Panasonic AW-UE150 and AW-UE-100Active LED
AOTO 2.5mm 10.2m W X 4.8m HLED Screens for Assembly Hall
110″ LG Display 2XProjectors for Assembly Hall & Dining
Panasonic PT-VMZ71DAutomation System
Crestron VC4 with IpadWireless Presentation
Crestron AirmediaConvertors
Blackmagic Terranex Mini 12G-SDI to HDMI
Blackmagic Terranex Mini HDMI to 12G-SDI
AJA Fido-2R-12G Fiber to 12GSDI
Crestron HD-EXT3C-B
Crestron HD-EXT4C-WDigital PA System
Biamp VOCIA
VA8600 was used as PA Amplifier
MS1e was used as Messaging Processor
LSI16 was used as interface between PA System and FAS System
DS-10 was used as Desk Paging Station for the Centralised Location
EWS-10 was used as Wall Mount Paging Station for Individual Buildings
VAM1 was used in security cabin for emergency announcement.
VIDEO:
Supporting Docs:
Assembly_Hall_Mahad_Ul_Zahra_Audio_Schematic_18012023 - Sachin JainAssembly_Hall_Video_Schematic_for_all_areas_18012023 - Sachin Jain
Auditorium_Audio_Schematic_18012023 - Sachin Jain
Auditorium_Video_Schematic_for_all_areas_18012023 - Sachin Jain
SIIA- AV Concept and Speaker Concept layout for Assembly Hall Ground Floor_compressed - Sachin Jain
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