An architect, an integrator and a consultant give their thoughts about what the next growth opportunities are in the Indian technology and build project verticals.
1) Silo busting
The nature of build projects is changing, and this is being driven by an evolution on the client side. The user’s approach to technology has shifted, with technology now being considered earlier in the process of conceiving and building spaces.
Architects, interior designers, workplace strategists, and even HR are taking an interest in the technology that is being selected and deployed in spaces. And this interest means that technology has become more important than ever.
Tech has become an accepted component of the experience, and these stakeholders are seeing it through a new lens. Reema Bhandari, director at M Moser Associates, says: “There’s been a fundamental shift. It’s no longer just about functionality; it’s about creating experiences that connect people. For this, everyone involved — from designers to tech specialists — needs to work cohesively, aligning their goals and speaking the same language.”
Technology is no longer an afterthought. Its intersection with furniture, design, aesthetics, culture, and community is being evaluated. Furthermore, this intersection is going to be nourished and enhanced in workplaces and learning spaces. It is a brave new world.
Change must be met with change. The new way of looking at technology must be adopted and incorporated into established views held by technology professionals. This necessitates a shift in how everyone operates within the confines of build projects. Moving away from the traditional approach, the established view of technology as a separate, standalone aspect is morphing. Build projects need to reflect this integrated outlook and put it into action.
Reema elaborates: “For too long, teams have worked independently and in silos. Each party — the designers, contractors, and technology specialists — often received different briefs from various client teams. These disconnected conversations happened in isolation, creating gaps and inconsistencies in the final outcome.”
And so ‘silo busting’ is the next big wave according to Reema. Barriers that hinder communication and dilute focus on creating impactful experiences need to be surmounted. Reema details: “At M Moser Associates, we’re bringing together a holistic umbrella of services. By collaborating with trusted partners and consultants and building our in-house capabilities, we aim to see the bigger picture and serve our clients’ evolving needs effectively.”
The benefits of eliminating silos are immense, and Reema notes: “We’re striving for cohesive client engagement. Ideally, there’s a single, unified brief from the client and a single response from the solution provider, covering all project aspects. This approach creates the most impactful and cohesive experiential design.”
These benefits are being recognised by the AV industry. Flip to page 18 of Inavate India Volume IV 2024 and discover Sigma AVIT’s efforts to deliver a turnkey solution for its client, the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services. What started as a conversation centred around technology and visualisation with minimal latencies evolved to encompass aspects of facilities and interior design. The client discovered that for its desired outcomes to be achieved, all components of its facility must gel together. Through the course of the project, the integrator found that by moving out of its own technology vertical and considering the bigger picture meant that it could deliver more value for the user. The story is an example of how silo busting in action can create excellent results.
But to achieve the advantages of silo busting across the board and make it commonplace, more work must be done. Harmony can only be created if all parties work together. Reema points a way forward: “We must all recognise the importance of breaking down these silos. Across the industry, I see a growing commitment to collaboration, both from clients and solution providers. It will take effort and patience, but if we can create a collaborative platform where everyone contributes and grows together, it will be worth it.”
Silo busting is hard but it can be an exciting prospect for technology professionals. Branching out into new avenues can be a risky prospect, but the risk comes with the promise of growth. By understanding the shared value of technology, all stakeholders can come together to deliver spaces that elevate user experience and achieve better project outcomes.
How AV can step up its game and take its place at the centre of build projects.
So, you want to build crossfunctional teams that bust down silos and work across operational verticals? When it comes to wires, connectors, and software, AV has the required technical expertise to lead the conversation. But can AV be part of the discourse with other stakeholders?
A great place to start would be understanding the roles and functions of other trades. Take architecture for example. They look at buildings as perhaps ‘formalist’, grade them A, B, or C based on quality, are concerned with ‘floor plates’ and how these intersect with user experience, along with a host of modern considerations such as biophilia and access to daylight. Similarly, interior designers, facilities managers, IT, and HR have their own unique perspective.
Speaking the language of other trades can only happen if AV starts interacting with them and technology professionals must make the effort to engage.
And if you are looking at silo busting directly, the challenges and answers lie primarily in the realm of business organisation. Enrolling for an MBA might be a commitment that many are unable to make, but learning does not just happen in classrooms.
We recommend The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni as a great place to start expanding your horizons. The book is considered by many as the best guide for the modern CEO and is required reading at many university programs. It provides a clear, actionable guide on how to break down barriers within teams and foster better collaboration. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team introduces a powerful framework for diagnosing and addressing team dysfunctions that can prevent effective teamwork and communication, something everyone can benefit from.
2) Owning content
The Indian market is performing at an extremely high level, and this fact cannot be argued. From Delhi to Mumbai, the country continues to grow at an accelerating rate and this is translating to build projects. Whether it be investment into workspaces from multinational corporations or the government looking to bring forward the stories of India in its efforts of nation-building, AV technology is being pressed into action.
Mradul Sharma, managing director at 3CDN, believes that that the push for growth will continue. And this means that projects will stream in from across verticals, such as enterprise, education, hospitality, to attractions, and entertainment. Now, and into the short-term future ahead, it seems like AV professionals have more than enough on their plate just trying to deliver on demand.
While this is a great problem to have, Mradul believes momentum must not be lost. It would be prudent for AV professionals to take stock and determine the best way forward. He says: “The market is growing and there are large projects to be delivered. But I believe we have an opportunity to look at the demand that is flowing in and see if there is a better way to do things. New technologies are finding purpose more in India than perhaps any other region, and as technology professionals I believe it is our job to deliver them.”
Mradul continues: “In my opinion, there is more to be done. As designers, we have to create, and we have to carry that mindset into our work. Corporate clients have event spaces, most commonly in the form of town halls or all-hand spaces, and there is a real demand from end users to have a flawless event. Long story short, broadcast technology is going to be the next big wave within the context of AV.”
The demand for broadcast solutions is being driven by the evolution of the enterprise sector. Businesses have realised that ‘content’ is crucial in connecting their workforce together and building a sense of community. It is no wonder that they now want to take ownership of it. Mradul highlights: “With conference spaces and the multicam setups that are now being deployed, mainly in boardrooms and large multipurpose spaces, the end user is getting familiarised with more technical and proficient technology production, and we expect this to have an effect on how they conceptualise their event spaces further.”
Mradul’s insight is borne out in how enterprise spaces are being designed and deployed. Everything from more PTZ cameras to XR studios and full-scale broadcast setups are being demanded by clients in their quest for becoming self-sufficient when it comes to content creation. However, meeting this demand is not straightforward for AV professionals to meet. Broadcast and AV might be similar when it comes to the broad strokes, but the two are separate industries for a reason.
Mradul believes that the opportunity presented by the inclusion of broadcast into enterprise requires a shift for AV. There are established best practices in the world of broadcast that cannot be completely ported over to the world of AV. He elaborates: “We are reinventing the wheel to a certain degree when it comes to broadcast. The choice of products on our side can be what the broadcast industry offers, but the workflows are not the same. We are trying to put together the same pieces, content creation, content ingestion, post production, but enterprise is doing these things in its own way. And we have to be mindful of how broadcast gels with AV systems.”
In his opinion however, upskilling and learning are the ways to capitalise. Understanding broadcast is the first step to comprehending how it fits with AV. Mradul believes that broadcast is the next big wave and concludes: “The thought process around creating broadcast spaces in corporate environments is to make sure that the user can create content that can then be disseminated. And from there, we are looking at this content being disseminated live as well. Events within the enterprise space are the next big thing. And how do you deliver flawless events? You leverage the expertise, capabilities, and technologies from broadcast.”
The core of broadcast
Creating and delivering content is most definitely the domain of broadcast. How do they do it?
Broadcast and AV share a similarity; both are primarily concerned with getting signals from point A to point B. They just differ in how they achieve this transmission.
In the world of broadcast, standards created by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) are used extensively. This makes the job of understanding how broadcast does what it does easier. Understanding technical standards and implementing them is right in the wheelhouse of AV professionals.
But standards are not the be all and end all, and the existence of SMPTE does not mean that there is no requirement for integration expertise. Comprehending the nuances of broadcast and specifically looking at how these intersect with AV is crucial.
A great place to start getting to grips with the world of broadcast is SDI, the most popular video interface in the sector. Most AV professionals, unless they have dabbled in delivering live events, would not be familiar with SDI and if they are to create broadcast environments for their clients this must change.
SDI is also an entry point into the content creation side of things. From cameras to the products that manage and switch these signals, SDI is used across the board. Understanding SDI will allow you to set up the equipment required for content creation. But it will not help you understand how to create effective content. brbr Thankfully, established practices around how to set up cameras and microphones, frame shots, and create content that looks good and is effective are not hard to find. If you are looking to expand into the realm of helping clients create content, you might want to start developing your artistic side!
Some things stay the same
AV possesses certain skills that are valued and welcomed by broadcast. Put them to use!
Influence goes both ways. Just like broadcast is changing the landscape of AV, AV is changing how broadcast operates. The biggest transformation is how signal transmission over IP is being employed by broadcast.
AV and IT have converged. A similar convergence is happening between broadcast and IT. AV professionals are adept at navigating the ins and outs of networks and making use of them to create scalable, effective technology systems. These skills can be ported over to the world of broadcast with ease.
Leading the charge for IP in broadcast is Network Device Interface (NDI). It is a protocol and not a standard, but NDI is looking to transmit high-quality video with low latency over Ethernet networks. Moving to IP with broadcast brings the same benefits as AV making the switch, it simplifies networks, reduces cabling, and allows for greater insight into and control of the devices being used.
However, there are challenges around the use of NDI that need to be solved. Backwards compatibility is an issue, with not every product in the world of broadcast supporting it. The issue is exacerbated as we take into account older products. Management of IP streams is also an issue, with broadcast deployments getting to a scale that requires more complex IP networks to make the whole thing work. And of course, there is the coming together of NDI and SDI that needs to be worked on.
These challenges provide an opportunity for AV professionals to step in and tackle them with a new perspective. And finding a solution will mean a competitive advantage in a field that is primed for growth.
3) AI, AV, & IT redux
AI is not something that is coming over the horizon. It is already here! Rhythm Arora, CEO at Qubix, says: “The companies on the cutting-edge of technology who are our clients have already adopted AI, and it is being integrated into their business and into their processes. Their employees are using AI left, right, and centre.”
But what is the impact of AI and how is it being leveraged? Rhythm provides answers: “AI is an excellent tool for productivity. From sitting in meetings, taking memos, coming up with action points to transcribing, it has the capabilities of freeing people by automating tasks and hence streamlining work.”
The development of AI is being helmed by technology giants such as Google, Meta, Microsoft, and OpenAI. They are helping AI become smarter and converse with users as language learning models (LLMs) become refined. They will be the ones that reap the rewards when it comes time to package AI as a product and put it in front of consumers.
Where is the opportunity for AV when it comes to AI? Is AV in danger of missing out? Rhythm elaborates: “The beauty of AI is that it is intelligent. It can learn and improve through iteration. But to do this it needs data, it needs information. In its present form, AI is just a brain. It needs eyes and ears to be able to collect data, and AV is going to be AI’s ears and eyes. That is the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity. If there are six people in a meeting room, AI in its current form cannot tell them apart from just their voice prints. It considers them one person and hence its value proposition of improving productivity falls apart. But if we can develop multicamera and multimicrophone systems that can help AI distinguish users who all happen to be sitting in the same space and joining a call through one VC licence, then AI gets back on track.”
Speaker tracking is in demand, and manufacturers are looking to create systems that meet the needs of users. The job of installing and serving these systems in the field will fall to AV integrators. Rhythm says: “As users start investing in these higher-end camera and speaker tracking systems there is an opportunity for integrators to grow. I also see the workplaces in India changing as the videoconferencing and telepresence quality increases as a result. We’re already beginning to see a shift from big workplace facilities towards decentralised, smaller workplaces spread out across a city. And this means there is an opportunity to engage with clients to deliver value across multiple sites.” brbr So, are we just looking at more of the same when it comes to integration? Rhythm answers: “We have to accept the new reality of technology: everything is becoming simpler and easier to use, and it is becoming simpler to install to boot. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It just means that we have to refine our skills further to continue to stay ahead of the curve. The next big wave is ‘being better’.”
Within his own business, Rhythm identifies areas and aspects that can be improved: “Qubix has been and will always be a technology company. But that doesn’t mean we don’t do anything else. Logistics is perhaps one of the most important aspects of our job, making sure products arrive on time, are properly warehoused, and then are delivered to the client.”
Refining business practices can also include expansion and Rhythm elaborates: “We need to see the convergence of AV and IT through the lens of AI. If AV is to provide data for AI and move even further into the world of IT, there is no reason we cannot look at installing network equipment like routers and more.”
Rhythm believes that further stepping into IT holds promise: “With platforms such as Cisco Meraki, you have an excellent route into providing managed services. Coupled with the strong and monetised software offering for IT products, we can achieve a lot of efficiency and a lot of growth as AV solution providers if we are just willing to look beyond our own backyard.”
Fragmented future?
Workplaces are changing as technology comes to the fore. How will AV fare?
Today’s workplace is unrecognisable from the one just a few years ago. As work from home became a staple and how many days a week someone went to the office became a part of people’s identity, offices morphed into the workplaces we find today.
There are more changes over the horizon. Flexible working schedules are making enterprise completely rethink their corporate real estate footprint. Average occupancy rates in general have fallen or remain constant. However, at the same time peak occupancy rates have risen. It seems that the proclamations about the death of the office are premature as focused, activity-based spaces are still relevant and will probably remain relevant taking into account human nature and behaviour.
The problem enterprise needs to solve is to account for the gap between the peak and average occupancy, and the answer seems to be decentralisation. Don’t get us wrong, we are seeing the mandates to return to the office five days a week which mean that the consolidated mega-facility will remain a part of the commercial fabric. But for those who are looking to be more flexible, splitting this mega-facility into interconnected spaces across a city makes more sense.
These ‘fragmented’ workplaces will require connective threads, and technology is able and willing to step into that role. We have already seen how videoconferencing saved the day and kept everyone productive when disruption hit. There should be no issues for videoconferencing to do what it does best when it comes to decentralised workplaces. Luckily for AV, they are dab hands at making UC&C deliver value for clients.