The project took place at the new Leicestershire offices of rg+p, an architectural design, project management and quantity surveying practice. Having moved to new premises, rg+p wanted to work more effectively as a team and adopt technology to facilitate easy connection with clients, partners and remote colleagues.
To ensure a seamless transition from a paper-based workplace to a digital one, the solution needed to be easy to use, even to those unfamiliar with technology. Cinos turned to Crestron for a system that could provide the simplicity and intuitive functionalities required for this project, specifying Crestron Mercury to deliver the complete package of conferencing and collaboration tools in one device that the client required.
The new office space features a 20-seat auditorium style workspace which is used for team briefings and group collaborations on architectural designs and schematics. There are also a further five meeting spaces: the boardroom, a main meeting room and three smaller break-out areas designed for less formal, one-to-one meetings.
Crestron Mercury was chosen due to its flexibility to connect employees across these workspaces or remotely with colleagues and clients in other locations, as well as providing a secure network connection. Mercury also has built-in AirMedia which allows for wireless presentations, files and videos to be shared from a laptop, smartphone, or tablet, without the need for endless cables and wires.
“When we moved to our new office, we wanted a core conferencing solution that worked with the environment and could grow with the company for years to come,” said Rob Woolston, architectural director at rg+p. “The Crestron Mercury conferencing solution has provided a state-of-the-art system, which is easy to use and allows the company to work together efficiently and effortlessly. Not only have we reduced our carbon footprint by moving away from paper-based conferencing, our teams can work together more freely with smarter and faster collaboration tools.”
rg+p, like many companies, uses Skype for Business as its preferred conferencing and communication platform. Although Mercury has been configured for Skype for Business, it’s also the only solution to support any video conferencing service. If a client or partner is using a different system such as WebEx or GotoMeeting, employees can still connect their device to Mercury, which will allow for a seamless video conference.
The flexibility and adaptability of Crestron Mercury was essential to ensure the new office spaces work as designed. The video version of Mercury, along with a 55in LG display for presentations, designs and schematics was installed in the main meeting room. However, as the three smaller break-out areas were restricted on space, audio conferences only take place, so the audio version of Crestron Mercury was installed together with a 32in LG display for local desktop sharing and collaboration. Due to the exceptional microphone and speaker quality, employees can rest assured that they’ll now experience extraordinary audio in any meeting space. Onscreen room availability and meeting details can also be viewed on Mercury’s 7in HD colour touch screen, and the system offers the ability to book and alter the status of meeting rooms.
“The introduction of Mercury gives us a great option for projects such as this – it is easy to use and simple to deploy, making it a versatile solution for evolving workspaces,” concluded Adam Lillystone, technical pre-sales consultant at Cinos. “We’ve been very pleased with the feedback from rg+p, with Mercury having a positive impact on client and team collaboration.”