March 2009

Special Event

Obama’s Visit to Canada

When Barack Obama, the newly-elected 44th President of the United States, came to Canada for his first official trip abroad last month, it was a huge deal!
"This is a testament, not just to the size of our trading relationship and the closeness of our alliance, but also the strength of our friendship," Prime Minister, Stephen Harper told the House of Commons.

On such a momentous occasion, who was the trusted critical AV supplier of choice? Why, AVW-TELAV, of course!

Here’s how AVW-TELAV utilized the latest and greatest technology to ensure the meeting was up to presidential standard, taking into consideration that the Parliament Buildings are Heritage Buildings, the elevated security concerns surrounding the visit, as well as the short time frame that was allotted for the set-up:

•In the “Reading Room” where the press conference was held, AVW-TELAV provided simultaneous interpretation equipment for 100 head sets along with multiple media feed boxes. A direct feed from the podium was sent to the White House in Washington. The Press received both feeds.

•AVW-TELAV also sent interpretation feeds to two closed circuit rooms namely, the Railway Committee Room in the House of Commons and the Aboriginal Room in the Senate.

•The Railway Committee had a Christie 6500-lumen projector projecting onto a 9 x 12 screen surface, to view the President’s arrival in Canada, his arrival at Parliament Hill, and the actual press conference. A Folsom Pro Switcher was used to accept the video broadcast and then provide a cable video feed. For conservation purposes, AVW-TELAV used the in-house patching system to avoid running cable along the walls reducing our use of black gaffer tape. This resulted in a look that was aesthetically pleasing as well as being environmentally friendly.

•An additional audio system for 100 members of the press along with 200 Infrared (IR) receivers were provided and monitored.

•The Aboriginal Room which was smaller in scale consisted of 100 IR receivers and a smaller screen video that was viewed by the Members of Parliament.

AVW-TELAV completed the entire setup the day before the event and arrived on site in the wee hours of the morning to test, retest, and then retest again, before the President’s arrival and the actual press conference. Obama’s first official international visit can be remembered as a historic day where flawless AV management set the stage for two world leaders to unite.