N&M for Volkswagen, Procter&Gamble and Samsung in the Sochi Olympic Park
Volkswagen, Procter&Gamble and Samsung all presented their companies in the Sochi Olympic Park during the Winter Olympics and Paralympics. From the beginning of February, the three corporations presented their products and services in their pavilions. Neumann&Müller Veranstaltungstechnik was engaged by Nüssli Schweiz AG to plan and realise the technical side of things, with Wolfram Kolb taking overall charge.
In its role as a national sponsor, the Volkswagen Group Russia had an ensemble of 60 dancers present the medal table in a daily performance as part of the company's interactive pavilion. In front of a 260-square-meter LED facade, the dancers gave an artistic show on five levels, which quickly became one of the Olympic Park's main attractions.
Just like the numerous displays in the pavilion itself, the media content was provided centrally using Watchout presentation software. The Medialon system served as a control unit. The latest results from the various competitions were accessed with the aid of the Ventuz real-time program and incorporated into the show. Three cameras positioned around the park supplied further live pictures. Achim Eckerth and Pasquale Zuppa – two specialists from the N&M studio in Munich – were responsible for the creative use of technology.
The N&M team equipped the entire pavilion with fibre optic technology. Jan Deventer, the N&M project manager on site in Sochi: "We created a redundant infrastructure by means of a fibre optic ring thus providing each subsystem with its own autonomous network." N&M also set up the complete IT infrastructure. The telephone system, TV stream and the monitoring system were all integrated into the extensive network, which also allowed both VW staff and their visitors access to a high-performance WLAN.
The Fohhn "Focus Modular" was used to provide the sound for the "Living Medal Count" show. "We installed these electronically controlled line array speakers beside the LED wall so that, on the one hand, they were barely visible and, on the other hand, they had a strong acoustic presence while providing a balanced sound," Deventer explains. A Dante network allowed a free choice of digital output nodes both throughout the pavilion as well as in the grandstand: a digital intercom link ensured trouble-free wireless communication among the crew during the show.
The N&M technicians brought the pavilion's presentation and hospitality levels to life with top-quality light equipment. Light and video were combined by means of a time code to create one overall effect. N&M installed a specially developed 2000-amp distribution system to supply power for the light, sound and video equipment as well as for other essential facilities such as air-conditioning and catering.
For Procter & Gamble, N&M provided the media technology behind the firm's corporate presentation. Project manager Michael Würschinger and his team set up the control system for the diverse range of displays and they also made sure that the technical systems for presentations and shows on the stage - as well as for the lighting and sound in the whole pavilion - worked without a hitch.
Manuel Gayer from N&M's "Event-IT" department designed the power supply system for Samsung's exhibition room. Four separate WLANs were installed for around 500 terminal devices – with an eight-port wireless access point and two further base stations for the breakout areas. During the set-up operation and the Winter Olympics themselves, our technicians were able to carry out any required maintenance work via remote access from the N&M branch office in Munich.