NEAT solution powers smart meeting spaces at landmark offices

Halkin, leaders in state-of-the-art co-working spaces and office rentals, recently opened new premises on King William Street, in the heart of the City of London’s financial district. Distributed across four floors, the landmark workspace required an extensive AV system that would fit the brand’s technology standard and enable collaboration and ease of use for clients. London-based AV and IT specialists, Tateside led the integration of a complete AV system across eight meeting rooms.

“We have worked with Halkin on several workspaces over the past couple of years,” reveals Jack Cornish, Technical Director at Tateside. “We started collaborating on smaller jobs such as upgrading existing meeting rooms. The complete integration of the new office spaces at King William Street is our largest project with Halkin.”

Halkin has established a technological standard across all their sites based on Neat brand meeting room solutions. “Halkin is a Zoom-room user, utilising Neat technology, including Neat Bars, Neat Boards and Neat Centers, across all their sites,” continues Cornish. “In collaboration with the team at Halkin, the project focused on using high-quality products and ‘doing meeting room technology properly’ without cutting corners and to the same standard across all their spaces.”

Collaborative AV system

Tateside was involved in the project from the early stages, working with the initial room designs and client requirements. With Halkin’s aspiration to provide a premium meeting and collaboration experience, Tateside designed a solution to ensure a user-friendly experience. Smooth connectivity and automation would streamline collaboration in communal meeting spaces for all users, even those with zero experience setting up hybrid meeting spaces. Bring-your-own-device (BYOD) capabilities were another critical requirement.

Neat Boards were integrated into almost all meeting rooms, providing a complete meeting and collaboration package within one device. Each Neat board comprises a 65-inch multi-touch screen, a built-in audio system and a wide-angle camera, taking care of the audio-visual needs of a modern meeting space within a single solution. Adding a Neat Pad in each room allows for seamless control of the Neat Board display. An additional Neat Bar is also installed in several rooms, providing further options and versatility for users. 

BYOD empowers meeting experience

Empowering BYOD capability, Tateside deployed four USB-C-powered Taurus UCX universal switchers from Lightware. “Taurus UCX offers something unique, with good built-in control and automation available, as well as the physical UI of the two USB-C inputs allowing for plug-and-play functionality, the latter being the key point we needed to achieve,” explains Cornish. “Through harnessing USB-C connectivity, Halkin’s clients can effortlessly connect their devices and enjoy a streamlined and efficient meeting experience with easy host-switching.”

An exception to the Neat standard can be seen in the 24-delegate boardroom space. In this larger space, immersive visuals are provided by integrating two 75-inch 4k Samsung displays and an 85-inch Samsung Flip 3 collaboration screen, allowing participants to interact with content via the touchscreen actively. For discreet yet effective audio coverage, eight Bose DM5C loudspeakers are deployed, whilst two Shure ceiling array microphones ensure delegates throughout the room can be heard clearly. 

Three Yealink PTZ cameras, including one tracking model, ensure a high-quality hybrid meeting experience and excellent visual pick-up. Integrating a Yealink MCore kit mini-PC and touchscreen makes user control simple and efficient, while device switching and network connectivity in the boardroom are handled by Blustream transmitters and receivers. 

Seamless integration of audio and video

In addition to meeting room solutions, Tateside also integrated digital signage and a background audio system on all four floors at King William Street. Bose DesignMax DM5C in-ceiling loudspeakers were chosen for their audio quality and were custom-sprayed, allowing for seamless integration with the décor of the office space. For digital signage in the reception area and throughout, Samsung Frame 4K HDR Smart TVs provide functionality in a design-led format. Some bespoke elements, such as custom brass finishes on Kramer Cable Cubby units, were also incorporated.

“As we’ve come to expect, working with Tateside has been an absolute delight,” says Benjamin Freedman, Director of IT at Halkin. “Despite the tight schedule, they always managed to fit us in and make things work. The quality of their work is second to none, and we’ve subsequently sold both their services and the kit we’ve installed in our meeting rooms to several of our clients.”

“Halkin workspaces represent an excellent example of a brand that is standardising its technology,” concludes Cornish. “The result is a coherent user experience and collaborative meeting rooms that function to a very high standard every time. Users want to be able to come in, plug in their laptops and start a meeting without jumping through hoops or navigating complex control systems. We have achieved this at King William Street and across other Halkin offices.”

Do you need to standardise your AV system across multiple sites? Look no further. Get in touch, and we can discuss your requirements and challenges.