City of North Battleford

The City of North Battleford, in Saskatchewan, Canada, planned to move its city hall council chamber to the Don Ross Community Centre. As part of the move, the City wanted to upgrade its chamber audio visual system to provide a better in-person communication and remote viewing experience. However, plans came to a hard stop when the country went into lockdown due to COVID-19.

Limited space at the Don Ross Community Centre required the City to seek a midpoint location to host chamber meetings. Officials settled on the Chapel Gallery, a former church.

The City of North Battleford engaged AVI-SPL’s Chris O’Neill for an AV solution that could:

• Be adapted to multiple environments
• Support live streaming
• Ensure in-person and remote audience audio and video interactions were crisp

AVI-SPL Canada Account Manager Chris O’Neill consulted on a portable tech solution that could be placed on tables or stands, reducing permanent installs and ensuring easy transfer to the Don Ross Community Centre.

“Originally, we thought there was an opportunity for a more packaged solution,” said O’Neill. “After further discussion with the City of North Battleford, our designers and I recognized we would need to develop something more custom to support the flexibility and transportability requirements. And we landed on a Biamp-based system.”

AVI-SPL’s AV streaming solution features a Biamp distribution signal processor (DSP), a Crestron control system, two NEC projectors, two PTZ cameras, Shure microphones, Voice Lift (a zonal microphone and audio system that supports free-flowing conversation among individuals on opposite sides of a room) powered by Community speakers from Biamp, Samsung displays, and switchable streaming via the City’s preferred UCC platforms.

The Chapel Gallery layout featured Shure multi-directional table array (or puck) mics to capture quality audio while still being distant. Voice Lift speakers and PTZ cameras were placed on tripods rather than mounted to walls. And NEC projectors sat on a table at the center of the chamber layout. However, AVI-SPL had more than system mobility and layout to consider in this space.

“We had a large open space that was all stone and concrete, which created a lot of noise,” said Daniel Aucamp, the City of North Battleford’s IT Manager. “We had, of course, the challenge of spacing. And we had to prepare the system quickly.”

Chris O’Neill, along with AVI-SPL design and integration experts, solved the audio challenges by installing circular and rectangular ceiling-hanging acoustic panels.

When the City was ready to transition to the Don Ross Community Centre, AVI-SPL teams transported and adapted systems with only some slight modifications.

The final solution features a V-shaped council table and a podium across the room. A large Samsung display sits on the floor, facing city officials between the council table and the constituent podium. Samsung monitors and Shure boundary microphones are available at each official station. The podium features a Sennheiser wireless kit with a gooseneck microphone.

NEC projectors are mounted to the ceiling, projecting content on Da-Lite screens on either side of the space for official and in-room audience viewing. Wall-mounted 4K PTZ cameras and Voice Lift speakers capture city official and constituent interactions, supporting clear in-room communication.

An operator station at the back of the room features a Crestron control system with touch interface. Audio visual signals are sent via USB to the operator’s PC in order to present a seamless communication experience for those streaming the session remotely.

City of North Battleford officials are pleased with the successful install and adoption of their new council chamber AV system.

“Overall, we had a good experience with AVI-SPL,” said Aucamp. “We are really glad that we found an AV partner that really knows their product, can deliver on what they promise, and sticks to what was agreed to. The overall experience was really good despite overcoming supply issues and worldwide disease. It all came together as it should have.”

The City regularly streams council sessions. Daniel Aucamp shares, “We have remote participants that come in via Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Webex, and more. Some also join the meeting to participate while others watch the meeting remotely with no ability to take part but just absorb.”

The City also broadcasts its platform stream to Access Communications, a local cable TV provider in Saskatchewan.

Since integration, the team has embraced AVI-SPL global support and maintenance services to explore adding auto-camera tracking.

“The system is capable of [auto-camera tracking],” said O’Neill. “It will take some programming changes and commissioning work to implement. But we’re excited to have those development discussions with the City.”

Are you planning AV/UC upgrades, a complete room, floor, office renovation, or a system transfer to a new location? AVI-SPL is ready to help you design or find the best solutions for your needs. Contact us today to get started.