As Berkeley Lab continues operating in hybrid work mode, the IT Division’s Audio Visual (AV) team remains focused on assembling the best technology available to bridge gaps between hybrid team members. IT’s AV team staff includes Audio Visual Specialists, Darrin Chavarria and Miles Green, and Luis Corrales, IT Collaboration Services manager.
Shelter-in-place protocols were initiated at Berkeley Lab in March 2020. Since then, the AV team has met with all Areas of the Lab to rapidly address emergent challenges in the new work environment. It is a top priority for IT to ensure team science continues to excel through flexible solutions, expert recommendations, robust testing, and agile deployment of the latest advancements in technologies.
The IT AV team offers services essential to supporting small to Lab-wide virtual events, such as AV editing, publishing, training workshops, and upgrades to conference room technology for day-to-day meetings. Consult with AV for recommendations and installation of equipment to best fit mission critical needs. With the help of Darrin, Miles, and Luis, hybrid teams are better enabled to continue scientific collaboration and productive discussions. Beginning with the Molecular Foundry, this series highlights recent AV upgrades in conference rooms across the Lab.
Molecular Foundry
Recently, the AV team completed major upgrades to 067-3204, a popular conference room in frequent rotation at the Molecular Foundry. Issues included aging equipment, poor audio, low image quality, and occasional lag. The Foundry Division office met with the IT AV team for an initial consultation and review of options and goals. The AV team worked closely with Foundry staff to select and install the new equipment. Following completion of the project, reported impacts include noticeable improvements in sound and video quality, and increased engagement from remote participants.
“As a collaborative user facility, the Molecular Foundry is particularly reliant on our full community — research and operations staff, as well as users from around the world — to be able to effectively and efficiently share ideas. This has been especially difficult during the pandemic when remote work has taken a toll on the engaging environment that the Foundry is known for. That is why we enthusiastically jumped at the chance to partner with our colleagues in the IT Division to enhance our hybrid meeting infrastructure across the center.
For the last month, hybrid meetings have become the norm and once again, we are benefiting from the free flow of ideas, not to mention the building of interpersonal connections. It is amazing how far the technology has come in just the last few years, especially in the quality of audio that can now capture voices from across the room. It was great having IT guide us through the many options and features that would work best for our spaces and needs. While there is no perfect substitute for being in the same room, I rarely worry about people being left out of the conversation because of their location, which is one very important step to getting back to normal.”
Branden Brough, Ph.D., Deputy Director, Molecular Foundry
Current Services
AV Showroom – go.lbl.gov/avshowroom
Visit the showroom site to view Lab recommended technologies for conference room upgrades.
- View product descriptions of current hardware available in the showroom.
- View recommendations based on room size, ranging from huddle to large rooms.
- If you are interested in converting a conference room into a Zoom Room, initiate the process with the AV using this form: go.lbl.gov/zoomroom
- Virtual Tour of the showroom.
Audio Visual Services Request Form – go.lbl.gov/avsupport
Use this form to request support for the following services:
- Support for Virtual Events
- Audio/Video Editing and Publishing
- Group Audio Visual Training Workshops
- Audio Visual Equipment Upgrades
- Digital Signage Solutions
AV Service Rates
- Berkeley Lab’s IT Audio Visual (AV) services are recharged to a department Project and Activity ID at a flat rate of $100/hour. The hourly rate applies to ALL support services.
- Staffing for the duration of any event requires a minimum recharge of 4 hours.
Quick Links
- Visit the IT FAQ page on Video Conferencing.
- See tips on How to Improve Your Network Connection at Home.
- For general questions or technical support, email help@lbl.gov or visit help.lbl.gov.
- Contact IT Communications at itcomms@lbl.gov for corrections, feedback, or suggestions for future topics.