What does it take to get involved and be successful in this industry as a technical professional?

We hear frequently that professionals in Pro AV knew nothing of it during high school or college.  Most fell into the industry via some tangential crossover and found it to be an exciting option.  It seems to be a bit of a hidden secret.  Even trying to find Pro AV standard industrial classification (SIC) codes that are assigned by the Social Security Administration will not yield a number/description that fits accurately.

Organizations

We do exist, obviously. Organizations like the National Systems Contractors Association (NSCA), which "is the leading resource and advocate for the commercial integration industry", and AVIXA (formerly known as Infocomm which is also the name of their yearly conferences) who help "drive the market for audiovisual solutions and is the community for creative professionals who use technology to create integrated experiences" have a lot to say about that.

One small segment of the nearly $300B market is the design-build integration market (Where IGI focuses their efforts). In this niche, nearly 100% of the work done is custom based on the needs and workflow of the enterprise corporate environment's users and processes.

There are broad applications for professional audio-visual systems including commercial sharing, advertising, and marketing. In private and public facilities they are used in electronic systems to display videos, web content, graphics, and texts. The demand for lighting and sound devices, digital signage, video conferencing systems, companion whiteboard recording equipment, and projector systems or LED walls is directly proportional to the rising adoption of audio-video-based communications for better audience interactions.

Pro AV integrators design and then build a variety of innovative AV technologies from manufacturers like Barco, Biamp, Christie Digital, Crestron, Extron, Middle Atlantic, NVIDIA, Poly, Samsung, Shure, Sony and Microsoft into their sophisticated solutions.  In order to do this, the professionals at many levels of the AV integrator must stay on top of the constantly changing landscape and technological developments (think Moore's Law) to remain knowledgeable about the hardware they are using and required to stay certified by the manufacturers on.

Training & Certification

Just a sampling of the training, certifications and manufacturers requiring training/education include: AMX (ACE Installer, Essentials, Programmer), Avixa (CTS, CTS-D, CTS-I, Networking Technology), Barco,  Biamp (AudiaFlex Engineer, Tesiraforte, TesiraLUX), Cisco (Systems Engineer, Telepresence Field Engineer), Crestron (Commercial Systems Designer, DigitalMedia Designer, DigitalMedia Engineer, DigitalMedia NVX Networking, Level 1/2 Programming, Masters Technology Architect), Dante, Extron (AV Associate, Implementing Express TelePresence Video Solutions), Polycom (Realpresence Engineer, RealPresence Clariti Sales, RealPresence Clariti Technical, US Federal Compliance), Samsung (LED Specialist), Sony (Crystal LED Installation, Crystal LED Maintenance), Tanberg, Biamp, along with networking courses for CompTIA, Network +, CCNA, AVIXA as well as a host of audio skills needed for tuning, equalization, and  DSP Programming. Phew!

Look into audio visual integrators if you think you want to pursue a rewarding career in AV!

About IGI

Immersion Graphics, Inc. (IGI) provides audio visual design, engineering, consulting, product sales, control system programming, custom fabrication, installation, preventative maintenance, and extended support services out of its headquarters location in Detroit and west coast operation in Los Angeles. Additional offices are located in Indianapolis, and Grand Rapids.

Founded in 1998, IGI has installed numerous large-scale, ultra-high resolution systems throughout the U.S. in the automotive, higher education, medical, financial, and energy transmission markets, and for the United States military and other government agencies. Applications include industrial design, engineering and data visualization, mission-critical command & control room environments, presentation systems, video conferencing, digital signage, and a variety of commercial AV solutions for emerging markets where the simultaneous visualization of 3D models and complex data by a group is essential to effective decision making. To get an in depth look at what we do, see our website at www.werigi.com, we are IGI.

IGI is minority owned, veteran owned, and a small business and SBA 8(a) program graduate.