On AV Control 2.0: Crestron

Michael DiBella, Director of Product Marketing, Commercial at Crestron

(Image credit: Future)

AVT Question: Please share insight into the importance of AV control in today’s environment and what to expect in the near future. [June 2022]

Thought Leader: Michael DiBella, Director of Product Marketing, Commercial at Crestron

The need for more robust control was accelerated by the pandemic, and we saw that with a spike in demand for many of our offerings, especially Crestron Virtual Control (VC-4). We’re seeing more technologies than ever before being integrated into meeting spaces and campuses.

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Pre-COVID, we saw an explosion of huddle spaces which were relatively simplistic. But post-COVID, we’ve learned you cannot have a space without video conferencing—which obviously is a peripheral. And with that, we’re now seeing the need for sound reinforcement, the need for more tech such as lecture capture, and all these different technologies that are becoming mandatory for us to communicate and work.

You now have software-based controls, which means less worry regarding hardware appliances that come with labor-intensive aspects." —Michael DiBella, Director of Product Marketing, Commercial at Crestron

Couple that with the advancements as sensors and smart lighting: While all those technologies had been in the marketplace for years, the proliferation of COVID at first made us very, very squeamish about touching shared surfaces. Control solutions that drove automation suddenly became very popular—and that hasn’t really gone away. Add scheduling to the mix, and you’ve created tremendous efficiencies in every AV-connected space in your firm—energy dollars, HVAC costs, all of that can be reduced by rooms that shut down by themselves.

We’ve all become very comfortable with these systems. The controls you’ll find in most every office are very intuitive, but as end users, these solutions are as familiar to us as our smartphones.

Lastly, I’d note the fact that you now have software-based controls, which means less worry regarding hardware appliances that come with labor-intensive aspects. It’s becoming ever easier—and less expensive—to bring control solutions into every connected space.

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Cindy Davis is the brand and content director of AV Technology (AVT). She was a critical member of the AVT editorial team when the title won the “Best Media Brand” laurel in the 2018 SIIA Jesse H. Neal Awards. Davis moderates several monthly AV/IT roundtables and enjoys facilitating and engaging in deeper conversations about the complex topics shaping the ever-evolving AV/IT industry. She explores the ethos of collaboration, hybrid workplaces, experiential spaces, and artificial intelligence to share with readers. Previously, she developed the TechDecisions brand of content sites for EH Publishing, named one of the “10 Great Business Media Websites” by B2B Media Business magazine. For more than 25 years, Davis has developed and delivered multiplatform content for AV/IT B2B and consumer electronics B2C publications, associations, and companies. A lifelong New Englander, Davis makes time for coastal hikes with her husband, Gary, and their Vizsla rescue, Dixie, sailing on one of Gloucester’s great schooners and sampling local IPAs. Connect with her on LinkedIn.