A/V Archives - Control Concepts

Creating Harmony By Understanding Personalities

No matter the company or situation, the relationship between sales and engineering is always strained. Despite their need to work together the ability to find harmony is often a challenge. Similarly, tensions also exist between other team roles or departments such as project management and programmers, or marketing and product development. In each case, a […]

The Benefit of Commitment to the AV Industry

Despite the innovative technology, impressive solutions, and memorable experiences, according to popular opinion is that the people and community are AV industry’s greatest assets. Most who find the AV industry stick with it for the long haul and build a successful career, making it even more interesting and impressive is that historically they happen upon […]

How to Optimize Projects and Manage Costs

As discussed in a previous post titled “Higher Hourly Rates Result in Lower Costs,” an hourly rate is not indicative of the true cost of a service provider. Rather, the time it takes to complete tasks or deliver outcomes is the determining factor. Since time is a limited asset for everyone, its value should be protected […]

How Higher Hourly Rates Result in Lower Costs

When evaluating a service provider like a independent programming company, the question about hourly rates can many times serve as a qualifier. While comparing hourly rates would seem to be a natural way to narrow down the field, the decision may not be as straightforward as it seems. As clients are evaluating their options, it […]

Standardization through Custom Programming

One of the bigger issues currently trending in the AV industry is the sentiment that custom control system programming takes too long, costs too much to create, and is not easy to maintain. While there is some truth in this proclamation when looking at one-off programmed solutions, alternative approaches exist that offer very different results. […]

Takeaways and AHA! Moments from InfoComm19

The week after InfoComm will always be bittersweet for me. While I enjoy the energy, excitement, engagement, and activity of the week, I also feel a mix of excitement, exhaustion, over-stimulation, disappointment, and reflection when it is over. As with any big event, all of the planning, the hype, the anticipation, the hard work, and […]

How Everyone is Connected Through User Experience

User experience (UX) is quite the buzz word these days in the AV industry. User experience not only describes the seamless operation of an AV system addressing needs and pain points of users, it also captures the emotion a user feels when utilizing the space and interacting with technology. User experience is built upon a […]

Making Technology and the AV Industry Accessible

Control Concepts, whose main focus is AV control system programming and software development, has brought a lot to the industry including expert knowledge, industry-known modules, drivers, and middleware, as well as a diverse team whose skill sets has get reach across the industry. However, Control Concepts doesn’t limit itself to hiring only those who are […]

Celebrating SCN’s The Nine

In an industry thirsty for new talent, the AV world also takes time to recognize the rising, influential people already in the industry and who are establishing their roots. Specifically Systems Contractor News (SCN) The Nine scouts out aspiring folks who are not just “in AV,” but who are involved and making a lasting impact. “The […]

The Importance of Introducing Young People to the AV Industry

While attending several AV industry events this year, I have been witness to some consistent remarks that particularly resonated with me. All were constructive in their intent, yet the associated emotion ranged the gamut of curiosity, concern, and alarm. Each of these instances stemmed from a basic realization that there were no new faces in […]