The First Facility Management Blog

InfoComm International, the trade association representing the professional audiovisual industry, announced the opening of its European headquarters in the United Kingdom. 

“InfoComm International is a global organization for the professional AV industry, with membership activities, tradeshows, and training opportunities worldwide,” said Terry Friesenborg, InfoComm senior vice president, international development. “With more than 17% of InfoComm members located outside of North America and the largest segment of that group working in Europe, establishing an office in the UK that can provide additional services and support to the greater European AV community is essential.”   

InfoComm has hired additional staff to meet the growing needs of the European membership. Christopher Lavelle, CTS, has been named UK Regional Manager. Lavelle studied sound engineering, computer networking, and web development in South Africa. He most recently worked for PSAV, serving as director of event technology for the Maybourne Hotel Group. This provided Lavelle with a broad spectrum of event technology experience, ranging from luxury brand product launches to press events for film releases. He started his career at PSAV Presentation Services London as an event technology specialist at the Sheraton Park Lane Hotel and also served as event technology operations manager at Claridge’s Hotel.

Sarah Carless has been named European programme coordinator. She comes from an extensive computer data networking background, working with leading manufacturers such as 3Com & Siemens Network Systems Ltd. Caress spent the past five years working for an interactive telephony company as a production executive, developing and implementing interactive telephony products. She gained a broad knowledge in sound assisting her father, an Emmy award winner and Bafta nominated location sound recordist.

In addition, Godwin Demicoli, CTS has been promoted to regional director, Europe. Demicoli has been a European representative with InfoComm since 2004. He is responsible for overseeing member activity throughout Europe. He will continue to work from an office in Germany.

InfoComm International’s European Headquarters is located at 2 Victoria Square, Victoria Street, St Albans, Herts, AL1 3TF United Kingdom. InfoComm will continue to maintain regional offices serving Asia, Australia, and Latin America. The international headquarters is located in the United States, in Fairfax, VA.

Established in 1939, InfoComm has 5,000 members, including manufacturers, systems integrators, dealers and distributors, independent consultants, programmers, rental and staging companies, end users, and multimedia professionals from more than 70 countries. InfoComm International is a resource for AV market research and news. InfoComm International is the founder of InfoComm, the largest annual conference and exhibition for AV buyers and sellers worldwide. InfoComm also produces trade shows in Europe, Asia, China, and India.

Chief, a leader in projector and flat panel mounting solutions, is dedicated to providing the best service to its clients through up-to-date CTS certification and training for employees. Chief is a certified InfoComm Certified AudioVisual Solutions Provider (CAVSP). Each member of the company’s inside sales technical support staff and Pro AV regional sales managers are certified, or on schedule, to be certified.

The CTS certification is highly regarded within the audiovisual industry. For more than 30 years, Infocomm has offered certification programs to establish and maintain widespread credibility for AV professionals. The CAVSP is based on the percentage of a company’s employees who have achieved CTS certification. Chief has achieved the basic CAVSP, meaning that 25% of the employees are CTS certified.

About Chief
Chief Manufacturing, a division of Milestone AV Technologies, has more than 30 years of proven product and service excellence. Committed to responding to industry needs in the Pro AV, Residential and Office markets, Chief offers a complete line of mounts, lifts and accessories for flat panel displays and projectors. Chief distribution centers are located in Minnesota and the Netherlands.

About InfoComm
InfoComm International® is the leading non-profit association serving the professional AV communications industry worldwide. Founded in 1939, the association offers industry expertise and market research serving press and others seeking information about the industry.

The association’s Certified Technology Specialist (CTS) and Certified Technology Specialist-Installation (CTS-I) credentials are now recognized under ISO/IEC 17024.

InfoComm International, the trade association representing the professional audiovisual industry, announced on March 18 that International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO) United States representative, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), has accredited its CTS and CTS-I credentials under ISO/IEC 17024.

ISO/IEC 17024 establishes a global benchmark for the certification of personnel. ANSI accredits standards developers, certification bodies, and technical advisory groups to both the ISO and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).

This accreditation meets the requirements by the U.S. DoD (Department of Defense) Directive 8570.1, which requires its information assurance workers to obtain a commercial certification that has been accredited by ANSI or equivalent authorized body under the global ISO/IEC 17024 standard. This DoD-wide policy was approved for implementation in December 2005.

“InfoComm is the only organization within the audiovisual industry to earn ANSI accreditation for its personnel certification program and we are pleased that InfoComm is continuing to set the industry standard for competency and quality in the AV industry,” said Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., executive director, InfoComm International.

“InfoComm is commended for completing this rigorous process and receiving ANSI accreditation,” said Dr. Roy Swift, program director for certification accreditation for ANSI. “ANSI/ISO/IEC 17024 was developed in response to businesses and governments seeking a valid benchmark for agencies who certify people.”

About the CTS and CTS-I Credentials
Certified Technology Specialists (CTS) serve clients by creating, operating, and servicing AV solutions. A Certified Technology Specialist - Installation (CTS-I) installs and maintains audiovisual systems by following specifications, schematics, codes, and safety protocols; administering installation process logistics; troubleshooting and problem solving systems; maintaining tools and equipment; and communicating with clients, designers, other trades, other installers and staff. Ongoing professional education is required to maintain the credentials. A certification is valid for three years and certified individuals must earn 30 renewal units (RUs) within each three-year period, remain in good standing, and abide by the CTS Code of Ethics and Conduct.

Currently, 9,500 people hold CTS credentials.

InfoComm also offers an advanced certification in Design. That program is currently being revised and InfoComm and the InfoComm independent certification committee are in the process of applying to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) for accreditation of this certification.