NanoSessions

Storytelling connects the parts of people that other communications don't typically reach. The way we engage, excite, and educate people about technology is to make it meaningful for them. People can see the impact of your technology and make a decision or take an action in response to the story. In this episode of A View From The Top by NanoLumens, Host Brandy Alvarado-Miranda talked with Yiannis Cabolis, Director of Technology Innovation at Electrosonic, about the intersection of storytelling and technology. With over 15 years under his belt, Cabolis has filled many different roles at Electrosonic. In his current role, he connects the dots between various aspects of technology the company uses from their vendors. He also focuses on things they can produce as part of their innovation initiatives. When it comes to innovative and disruptive technology trends, Electrosonic keeps its ear to the ground, particularly in the immersive and experiential spaces. There is quite a bit going on in the space, according to Cabolis. “Ideally, what we're trying to do, in terms of disruptive technologies, is to look at ways where the environment can be as aware as possible, of itself and the viewer,” Cabolis explained, “a person we're trying to connect, provide that storytelling and entertain.”

Storytelling connects the parts of people that other communications don't typically reach. The way we engage, excite, and educate people about technology is to make it meaningful for them. People can see the impact of your technology and make a decision or take an action in response to the story. In this episode of A View From The Top by NanoLumens, Host Brandy Alvarado-Miranda talked with Yiannis Cabolis, Director of Technology Innovation at Electrosonic, about the intersection of storytelling and technology. With over 15 years under his belt, Cabolis has filled many different roles at Electrosonic. In his current role, he connects the dots between various aspects of technology the company uses from their vendors. He also focuses on things they can produce as part of their innovation initiatives. When it comes to innovative and disruptive technology trends, Electrosonic keeps its ear to the ground, particularly in the immersive and experiential spaces. There is quite a bit going on in the space, according to Cabolis. “Ideally, what we're trying to do, in terms of disruptive technologies, is to look at ways where the environment can be as aware as possible, of itself and the viewer,” Cabolis explained, “a person we're trying to connect, provide that storytelling and entertain.”

The concept of security is a well-worn trope in all industries. However, the weakest link of any system is fairly easy to determine. On this episode of the NanoSessions podcast, NanoLumens IT Director Tony Tran sat down with Sean Heath to discuss surprising facts regarding most security vulnerabilities. Quite often, the simplest explanation is the most accurate, according to Tran. “Your weakest link is always going to be the end user and awareness," he said. "An untrained user is always the weakest link to any security system.” Another challenge that content managers face is the somewhat unavoidable vulnerability inherent with cloud-based access, Tran explained. “Basically, you have to operate under these pretenses that it’s not a matter of if it happens, but rather when,” he said. Taking time to plan for those possibilities during the development stage definitely makes for a better end product, detailed Tran. “We typically take a little bit longer to deploy our products, because we have to think about all of these scenarios,” he said.

Founded with a mission to create a digital wallpaper that would transform the way audiences engaged with their surroundings, NanoLumens pushes the limits of media architecture further and further each year. We’ve found that as digital display technologies grow more prevalent in all facets of daily life, audiences not only expect to see screens in just about every room they enter but also to see these screens integrated into the very fabric of a building’s architecture. Working with renowned content creators like the digital sculptor Refik Anadol and the experts from Second Story and Moment Factory, NanoLumens has helped some of the world’s most sophisticated clients in transportation, communications, and commercial real estate evolve their space from simply a building into an immersive, future-proofed digital environment. We’ve written in this space before about the degrees of freedom in design NanoLumens grants each of our clients but its worth briefly touching on the media architecture successes of a few installations because each represents a remarkable achievement in thinking outside the box.To read the full blog post, click here.

A common refrain heard in the Pro AV space is the admiration for all of the newest technological advances. On this episode of NanoLumens' NanoSessions, Joel Krieger, Chief Creative Officer for Second Story, sat down with host Sean Heath and they discussed how the newest disruptive technologies are being used in more subtle ways. Generally speaking, digital displays have followed a path similar to that of the internet, according to Krieger. “In the beginning, the internet was pretty interesting and it was like the Wild West. Eventually, it got commercialized and advertising began to really take over," he said. The digital display industry initially fell into the same pattern of prioritizing the advertising disruption, however, Krieger feels that is changing rapidly. “We once again have a moment to kind of think about how we treat the ‘built environment’ and how we activate these canvases in a way that’s in service of the people and the business,” he explained. The recent unveiling of a massive lobby installation, titled “Unify”, reinforces Krieger’s feeling that the next evolution of display technology application will be markedly different that the current digital modality. “With Unify, we’re not trying to communicate a message; we’re trying to create a feeling for a space,” said Krieger. “There are other ways to calculate value or return on investment from a media piece and it’s not always ‘how many impressions of your advertising message can you get across?’.” Redefining the purpose of the display is a way of acknowledging the impact of the message displayed on it, as well, according to Krieger. “What’s the value of how your employees feel in your building? How do you put a value on that," he asked.

Not everything is in the cloud. In fact, businesses that handle sensitive data such as financial records, medical records, and travel documents must maintain higher network security than ever before. That's sent these businesses off the cloud and back to on-site hosting for their digital display management systems. Until now. NanoLumens just launched a locally-hosted version of its AWARE digital display management system. Its development was inspired by NanoLumens customers who'd asked for a one-to-one version for local hosting. "We've been asked a few times from clients 'hey is there a locally hosted version of this?'," said Brice McPheeters, Director of Product Line Management and Customer Service, our guest on this new episode of NanoSessions, a NanoLumens podcast. "We made sure we created a true one to one interface. The exact way you interact with the cloud version was one to one with what we reproduced in the locally hosted version." McPheeters says ease of use is important because digital is everywhere and used by everybody. It's not just integrators or AV professionals using display management systems. "Everyone throws that term around but we've actually gone head to head with our competitors," he said. "We're just extremely easy to use as an operator, IT manager, or anyone who's having to educate new users."

Without a background or steady base of knowledge of Pro AV, it's honestly hard to keep up with all the advanced digital display technology that NanoLumens puts to work in its state-of-the-art displays. Micro LED versus LCD, pixels, pitch, curved display... for a new customer or someone new to the industry, learning and understanding all the terminology is no doubt a challenge. On this new episode of NanoSessions, a NanoLumens podcast, host Sean Heath welcomed senior copywriter Robert Simms to discuss the learning curve and how he goes about writing copy that'll get read. "When you're learning how to learn something, first you have to accept the fact you probably don't know anything about the space you're getting into," Simms said. "That was certainly the case with me. When I came to the industry, I had almost zero understanding of how the technology and the industry worked and how people in the industry communicated with each other." But lacking a background in engineering helped Simms approach learning complex technology with an outsider's or layman's viewpoint. "My background in communications helped me take a complex subject in engineering and translate it into more simplistic ideas that people without an engineering background will understand," Simms said. "If I had my druthers, I'd write as informally as possible because I've found the most natural way to communicate is to write as you speak."

By their very nature, inventions are the first of their kind. That's exciting for someone like Ted Heske, Director of Intellectual Property for NanoLumens who has devoted his life to emerging solutions. On this new episode of NanoSessions, a NanoLumens podcast, host Maggie Shein welcomed Heske to discuss patents and the intellectual property they work with when creating state-of-the-art display technology. "When you buy a NanoLumens display, that's a significant bundle of unique intellectual property that collectively provides a lot of advantages to our customers," Heske said. The Georgia-based company is known for creating large-format LED displays such as JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 digital display that measures 30-foot wide by 10-foot high as well as other first-of-its-kind creative technology displays. As a former inventor of consumer products himself, Heske said patents and intellectual property are interesting because it's uncharted territory. "If an idea is worthy of a patent, that means no one has done it before," Heske said. "That's a constant source of novelty and a problem solver myself, I'm always interested in understanding how new things work." Heske also discussed the most significant patents in NanoLumens' arsenal of intellectual property and what makes those pieces of display technology so important.

When an outdoor LED board caught fire in New York's Time Square earlier this summer, experts turned new attention to fire safety and flame resistance of LED screens. On this episode of NanoSessions, a NanoLumens podcast, host Daniel Litwin welcomed Adam Dixon, operations director of electrical engineering for NanoLumens, to give his perspective on designing fire retardant LED displays. That fire "raised some eyebrows" among experts like Dixon because health and safety in public spaces where LEDs are often displayed are of utmost importance. "For any environment where the LED display is considered the building material, such as equipment in a transportation space where large crowds of people in small spaces, health and safety is a concern," Dixon said. NanoLumens has been well ahead of the curve in flame retardant LEDs. For about three years now, Dixon has been helping design and test fire retardant LED displays in collaboration with fire research companies and institutions. "Fire dynamics are incredibly complex," Dixon said. "We explored some uncommon or never previously used material combinations for the LED package itself as well as the air board construction." By looking at published research data about how homogenous materials hold up against fire and conversely how different combinations of materials react to fire, heat and smoke density, NanoLumens developed a well-researched and tested solution that could become a standard. Dixon explained, "We felt the best approach was to minimize combustible mass, so if you have less material to burn theoretically you're going to generate less radiant heat."

On today's episode of NanoSessions, host Sean Heath sat down with Joe' Lloyd, NanoLumens vice president of global marketing and business development about the company’s recent study on competing value propositions of LED vs. LCD display technology and shared what the future looks like for LED display. “The weird and the wow, we sometimes call them,” said Lloyd. “We’re the company that people come to with a paper napkin drawing and a really amazing idea, and they’re looking to bring that to life.” The Georgia-based company is known for creating large-format LED displays such as JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 digital display that measures 30-feet wide by 10-feet high, among others. But NanoLumens tackled a new challenge with this industry-wide survey, conducted over three months with 450 integrators, direct buyers, architects, and end users of LED and LCD display products. While price and size often lead the conversation, serviceability and hours of use are two important factors that consumers said they consider when considering LED versus LCD. “This survey jumps into the value proposition,” Lloyd said. “From an upfront spend perspective, LED display is going to cost more up front. But we’re diving into the total cost of ownership and what does that investment look like over time.” For example, enterprise-level LCDs have gotten larger with much smaller bezels, while bezel-free LEDs have improved with smaller pixel pitches and longevity with 100,000 hour diodes. Also in this episode, Lloyd revealed some of the surprises found in the survey as well as a discrepancy between users’ perception and reality.

There is such an impressive digital display at JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 that it’s become an iconic piece of content and likely a favorite among first-time visitors to the Big Apple. On this new episode of the Nanosessions podcast by Nanolumens, Dana Michaelis, vice president of sales for Nanolumens shares how a digital display project comes to life from concept and what’s really possible with Direct View LED at the world’s largest airports. “What has happened in other cities around the country, if not around the world, is that the bar gets continually raised,” Michaelis says. “It’s all about the passenger experience, and visualization is a key component of that.” The double-sided 30-foot wide by 10-foot high NanoLumens Nixel Series LED video board displays flight information for arriving flights, the time, news and weather information, as well as marketing messages from advertisers, on the convex side for travelers inside the terminal. On the other side, directly opposite the door from customs, is an iconic welcome to the city that never sleeps: “‘Welcome to New York,’ it says” Michaelis says. “It’s the type of display that generates such a wow factor, people stop and take photos of it.” The LED display creates an immersive experience that makes digital signage more effective than static images and opens a wide opportunity for stunning new forms of content, Michaelis says.

Digital cinema technology in the Pro AV industry is changing at an ever-accelerating rate, no one is arguing that. What makes this shift unique, though, is the fact that evolving cinema technology is changing the consumer experience on a wholesale level, not simply changing the technology that the consumer uses. To explain what this means for the Pro AV industry, NanoLumens' chief technology officer Gary Feather sat down with host Sean Heath on this new episode of NanoSessions. They broke down what made DLP projection revolutionary at the time, how the motion picture industry has come around to digital cinema, and what’s possible with new direct view LED cinema in Pro AV. “It’s all about creating new experiences for customers and for creatives, it’s about a story well told,” Feather said. That might be unusual to hear from a CTO — focusing on what he calls “the creative's” story and the customer's cinema experience, but that’s what makes Feather a sought-after expert in this industry. Feather began his career at Texas Instruments, which in the 1990s, developed a revolutionary digital projection technology called DLP that rivaled traditional film cinema quality. “Everyone scoffed at the idea that a story could be told better with digital than film,” Feather said. “Now that’s reality.” Feather shared the impact direct view LED will have on the consumer experience and the types of content that can be created with this technology.

LED screens are no longer just in the box. With sophisticated technology, digital displays now have the ability to become digital wallpaper, and that’s exactly how NanoLumens thinks of their displays. To discuss this topic today is expert Joey Commander, Senior Business Development Specialist at NanoLumens. Joey’s role at NanoLumens has grown since he started there four years ago, and he’s found that his unique educational background made the company a great fit. “I have a business communication background as a PR major in college, and that has helped me be able to communicate well in this sometimes-complex sales process. With a film and video minor, this fit right into the AV world, as I already had an understanding of video production and the hardware involved,” Joey shared. He was able to parlay his education and experience, now guiding clients through projects, as he did with an installation for Nestle. “The project with Nestle is a great example of how we think about direct view LED. We consider it as a digital wallpaper with any surface able to become a digital display. We can create unique sizes, shapes, and curvatures. The Nestle project was a lobby area that had curvature, so we used or patented flexible screen to match the radius of each space. Three offset displays create a ribbon that flows around the ceiling of the space. It’s a dynamic experience for all that enter the space,” Joey said. The future of LED screens and where the technology is heading, the options are basically limitless. Joey commented, “You can think of our displays and what they can offer in the same way you’d consider what color to paint the wall. It can be anything with a digital screen, as subtle or as engaging as you wish, all changeable at any time.”

Much of the focus on LED technology has been about resolution, but there comes a point where screens may have a sharper resolution than what the eye can see. In this episode of NanoSessions, Dan Rossborough, Director of Strategic Projects with NanoLumens, explains that the Pro AV industry has reached this peak, but at the end of the day it's all about perception. “Resolution is directly tied to pixel pitch or the density of pixels in an area. Resolution is also in the context of viewing distance. So, yes, we’ve come to a point where resolution is probably at its max, but what we’re most concerned with is helping architects and designers find the appropriate products based on viewing range and resolution,” Rossborough said. While in most scenarios, LED screens are flat, NanoLumens began to look at screens from a different perspective. “LEDs have been traditionally flat. But if you look at the roots of NanoLumens, the company’s foundation has always been around R&D. We have many more engineers than sales professionals. We really wanted to revolutionize the industry," Rossborough said. "LEDs were initially used outdoors. We didn’t just want to take the outdoor solution and bring it indoors. That’s when we started looking at the screen as a material, one that could be flexible," he said. NanoLumens screens can now fit any surface, and they are moving toward compound curvatures that are nonlinear. It all started with the company's first direct view LED display in 2012. “Coca-Cola came to us in 2012 and had a hallway that they wanted screens all down the hallway. They originally spec’d 60 plasma screens. The catch was that these screens had to be front serviceable. So, we started developing a product and created the first fully front serviceable direct view LED. We installed them, and they are still running today,” Rossborough said. This first foray into customization has become the specialty of NanoLumens. “Most of the products we have now started from a customer needing something that didn’t exist. Everything we build is application specific and bespoke. Why? There are not two architectures that are identical, so why should displays be the same," Rossborough said. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Pro AV Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication. A new episode of the Pro AV Show drops every Thursday. Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @ProAVMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Price is always a factor in every purchase. Every business wants to ensure they stay within budget, but, of course, cheaper is rarely better, except for the pocketbook. Professional LED display solutions are no different. While LEDs are widespread today, they aren’t all equal. So, the question becomes, is the price worth the value? Discussing this topic with us today is Eric Techo, Director of Global Marketing & Sales Operations for NanoLumens. “Price always comes to the forefront in AV. Everybody’s always looking to save money, but it’s critical for buyers to consider the return on investment. It’s not just the screen itself; it’s the service, the warranty, and more,” Eric said. At NanoLumens, they consider their products to be high-end, which means they cost more than most LED screens. “First and foremost, we try to educate our customers about the value of the screens. We want to know what they are going to be doing with the screen; will it play HD content or text or something else? We provide recommendations, and even if we are outside their budget, we’ve given them valuable information. Proper advising is part of our culture,” Eric relayed. However, Eric says he’s seeing a shift away from the price being the determining factor. “In the global market, there’s a new trend shifting away from just being price conscious. Top tier customers need top tier products. Changes are happening in the AV market. People want high-quality products that make the customer happy and coming back for more product,” Eric shared. Even when customer sometimes can’t increase their budget, they often find their way back. Eric said, “We’ve unfortunately had many folks come back to us when they’ve chosen a lower cost product that breaks. We’ve had situations where we were more expensive but offered a longer warranty and higher quality product. The customer decided to go with another company, and things went south. The product just wasn’t the quality as represented. So, we’ve been there to help those companies as best as possible.” Learn more about the reality of price vs. value in LED screens by listening to the podcast.

This podcast originally aired on the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast. Some wow-inducing digital displays are going up in a most surprising places: Airports. On today’s episode of the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast, brought to you by Marketscale, host Shelby Skrhak sits down with Brett Farley, director of strategic business development for NanoLumens, to discuss how digital displays range from everyday way-finding signage to dynamic art and spectacular displays. “Everything from emergency alert systems, to dynamic signage from different CMS’, dynamic airport displays are both functional for safety and way-finding, and spectacular for art displays,” Farley said. Farley pointed to large format digital display technology making some amazing installations possible at airports worldwide. Places such as Toronto Pearson Airport, Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and New York’s JFK International are leading the way in digital installations. On the podcast, Farley went into detail about the particular innovation happening at the Changi Airport in Singapore, which has evolved from an airport to a true destination for people. “It’s an airport, an amusement park, a destination, all-in-one,” he said. Farley also shared what innovations NanoLumens is working on next, and what the future of airports could be. These changes represent a re-imagination of the modern air travel experience. An experience, he said, that is getting better all the time.

This podcast originally aired on the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast.The most innovative uses of digital dvLED technology being implemented across the world, from airports to public stadiums, are made possible by the best possible tech — not the cheapest. “The key is educating the consumer so they can make the best possible decision,” said NanoLumens Vice President of Global Marketing and Business Development Joe’ Lloyd. Lloyd understands that customers are looking for the highest quality solutions that truly meet their needs today as well as for years to come. That is why understanding the jargon and technology in an LED solution will help buyers make the most informed buying decision possible. On today’s MarketScale Pro AV Podcast, Lloyd breaks down her thoughts on quality versus price. She offers an interesting analogy for the connection of price and quality in technology, likening LED solutions to mobile phones that have risen in quality and price commensurately. NanoLumens’ quality is on display throughout the world, but one of the most impressive examples is in the arrivals area of Singapore’s Changi Airport, where NanoLumens helped implement one of the largest indoor LED displays in the world. “We’ve had a lot of fun with the Changi Airport, helping them put together something that is just so unique and exciting, and the size of a football field, no less,” Lloyd said. “It’s a cultural example of what it means to be there in Singapore.” Lloyd explains why that project wouldn’t have had the impact it did if Singapore went for a cheap solution rather than a quality one.

This podcast originally aired on the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast.Digital signage in the sports market has reached ubiquity, meaning applications are getting more creative. Whether it’s for interactive stations to bring fans to the stadium, jumbotrons that display real-time social media feeds, or LED art displays that inspire and put local retailers in the eyes of fans, applications seems limitless. To get perspective on this market growth, we sat down with Patrick Jackson, Senior Business Development Specialist at NanoLumens. Patrick is a business development veteran in the audio-visual world and has helped bring visions and goals to life in the signage market. On this episode he’ll talk about how digital signage has changed arena design and construction, why it’s been so successful, how it can convert a “dead space,” and about some of his favorite digital signage solutions in different stadiums and arenas. “Once people really started seeing some of these dead spaces, these little utilized spaces, get turned into revenue generating spaces, it really started to take off,” Jackson said.

This podcast originally aired on the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast. With the ubiquity of digital signage on the rise, new frontiers like the convergence of AV and IT and the explosion of VoT are on the horizon. Larry O’Hagan, Inside Sales Associate for NanoLumens, joined us this episode to talk about why AV and IT need to learn from each other, why he thinks VoT devices are the future. “This makes a visual impact statement upon people,” O’Hagan said. He gives us some examples of how digital signage is evolving and innovating in different industries. In addition, Larry also opens up about why color spacing and flexibility are given such great focus at companies like NanoLumens. “Typically, it’s the first time they’ve seen something like this [and] they tend to remember the content that’s being displayed to them, simply because it’s on an unusual background, whether they consciously realize that or not,” O’Hagan said.

This podcast originally aired on the MarketScale Pro AV Podcast.University campuses are constantly looking for new and fresh ways to stimulate learning and encourage growth in their students. As the needs and expectations of students change, campuses have to adapt along with them. Increasingly, universities are turning to pro AV and LED screens to help create experiences that foster learning and community within their spaces. Bob Haefke, Senior Business Development Specialist at NanoLumens, joined the Pro AV Podcast to explain how they’re working to meet the AV needs of these institutions of higher learning. “Well we try to understand what the client wants…and what their vision is, and then try to interact with our technology to make sure we can bring it from a concept to a reality,” Haefke said. He says LED screens are frequently used as tools to communicate messages to students about events and other opportunities on campus. They’re also frequently used in the classrooms as tools to further learning and in common areas for gaming development. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Pro AV Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication. A new episode of the Pro AV Show drops every Thursday.