Multiple Purposes
The library’s auditorium features an impressive array of audio, video and lighting technology, all integrated together under an intuitive, easy to use control system. As a result, all elements can be quickly activated and mixed/matched to the degree desired by the user.

The auditorium, located on the basement level, offers seating for more than 100 people.

A large stage, spanning the entire front of the square-shaped room, can accommodate a single presenter at a podium or a rather sizable repertory company, and everything in between.

Open to the community, the auditorium is intended to host virtually any type of meeting, presentation or performance imaginable.

Aesthetics, as designed by Kruggel and Frye-Gillan-Molinaro Architects of Chicago, are pleasant, with an abundance of natural wood surfaces that offer a live acoustical characteristic tempered by careful placement.

Incandescent room lighting works in tandem with the surroundings to create a very comfortable environment.

Perspective of the auditorium, designed and outfitted with AV for jut about any type of use. (click to enlarge)

Carpeting covering the entire floor of the audience area helps keep reverberation to a respectable level, while the wood of the stage enhancing acoustics for smaller, spoken-word presentations.

“The idea was to create the room to meet as many needs as possible, with technology available as an option or as an accouterment to the particular needs of a group,” Kruggel explains. “So, a lecturer could bring in an overhead projector, plug it in and roll down the video screen, and be ready to go in a couple of minutes.

“Or, a musical combo can set up on stage, hit a couple of buttons to activate the sound system and adjust house lighting, plug in a couple of mics, and also be ready to go in a couple of minutes. This was the primary goal with respect to the functionality of the room.”

One of the keys to this quest was a Crestron STS wireless control system, outfitted with an ST-IO input/output module and a wireless Crestron touch panel.

The wireless Crestroin touch panel that makes for very convenient system operation. (click to enlarge)

Grabill programmed these elements to essentially provide one-button operation - he outlined presets covering virtually every scenario that could be desired, and then established custom control screens, viewed and accessed on the touch panel, to access these presets.

“The ‘wow’ factor on this project is the careful programming that Dan did to provide very smooth transition of all of the room’s elements,” Zandstra notes. “For example, if you want to play a movie on the VCR, you simply press the appropriate preset, with the lights dimming smoothly at a seven-second rate, the video screen lowering during this time, and video rolling just as the lights finish dimming and the screen is resting in place. It’s a very professional presentation. The point is that anyone can create a preset, but how does it look and feel while you’re sitting in the audience?”

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