Small offices can't stifle company's big plans

Quick thinkers: Smith Audio Visual works bugs out while installing electronic systems

Last Modified:
1:20 p.m. 2/23/2002

The Lyon County Courthouse opened on schedule in late January and there were no bugs in the bugging system. Smith Audio Visual, of Topeka, ensured that.

It is a state-of-the-art courthouse, but that statement doesn't do it justice.

"Some of our jobs get pretty elaborate, and this was one of them," said Larry Heilman, president of Smith Audio. "There was a lot of field engineering involved."

Field engineering, Heilman explained, is working out problems on the site that develop during installation of the equipment Smith Audio is installing.

Larry Heilman stood in the new Lyon County courtroom, where his company placed state-of-the-art electronic equipment.

Sometimes, the contractor is at fault, sometimes it is the architect, sometimes there is no explanation on why something doesn't work.

"We have four or five engineers in the field at all times, and they make things work," Heilman said.

What is making things work at the Lyon County Courthouse in Emporia is more than 100,000 feet of cable and 12,000 connections that Smith Audio put in during construction.

"It's a really amazing place," Heilman said. "Let me give you an example. In each of the courtrooms, there is the traditional jury bench. But in front of each juror is a video screen.

"Jurors will be able to examine each piece of evidence on the screen. They can view documents. It saves a lot of time. There are amplifiers that can project witness testimony."

There is also the security angle. In all, there are 26 cameras throughout the courthouse.

"There is a security room that monitors them all," Heilman said. "But the judge can also tap into his computer and view anyplace in the courthouse. For instance, if he wanted to see how things were going in the holding cells, he could do that."

There is also a media room with a projector and audio system.

"The judge, if he wants, could decide what to show the media," Heilman said. "That would save a lot of time in delays escorting people in and out of the court room."

The security kiosk controls the flow of electronic information from the courtroom or council chambers.

The firm is working projects at churches across the state, some financial institutions and another courthouse in Colby but they also do special projects.

Heilman and Co. were called in to help when first lady Laura Bush visited the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library in January.

"They knew the auditorium wouldn't hold all the people," Heilman said.

"We put screens and audio in all the rooms. In fact, people in the adjoining rooms had a better view of the proceedings than the people in the auditorium."

That is probably because Smith Audio Visual doesn't deal in small screens.

"We sell screens and projectors you can't buy at Circuit City or Best Buy," Heilman said. "Our smallest screen is 8 feet by 6 feet. We usually sell 9 feet by 12 feet or bigger."

The headquarters at 310 S.W. 6th is an unimposing structure from the outside but a bustle of activity inside.

"I just wish we had more room," Heilman said. "Our business has doubled and tripled in the last year. Our surveillance business is huge, and if we had room, I think we could do great business in the home entertainment sector.

"The screens we sell are affordable, but it's hard to show that in a limited space."

BACK
www.smithav.com