by Nicole Crane - Pipeline Communications
When Faith Assembly Church moved from its main campus in Orlando, FL, to a nearby significantly larger 300,000sq-ft space, the organization had big plans of making its megachurch technically savvy on a tight budget. After two and a half years of construction, the first phase of the process is finished, and the church recently opened its doors for services.
Included in the list of new equipment installed and key to the church’s video production is a FOR-A HVS-350HS HD/SD 1.5 M/E video switcher, which is set in the video control room of the complex. The Encore Broadcast Solutions team, led by Jeff Cameron of the company’s Winter Springs, FL, office, provided systems integration services on this large-scale project. Encore was tasked with design, sales and installation of all audio, video and lighting systems in the entire complex.
FOR-A was the switcher of choice because of the flexibility it offers. The HVS-350HS brings powerful production value, and has the ability to easily accommodate all of Faith Assembly’s video production needs. FOR-A equipment is extremely reliable, and the HVS-350HS switcher prepares Faith Assembly for a long future of dependable video production.
Faith Assembly uses video in a variety of ways, including live streaming of church services to reach its audience in multiple continents, streaming of baptisms, concert production and production of wedding ceremonies.
The main campus includes six main venues, each with full audio, video and lighting capabilities. They are: the main sanctuary, the wedding chapel, two theaters for children, an atrium and a dining hall. The entire complex is completely integrated, with HD/SDI capability from one location to the next and a common intercom channel that runs throughout the entire campus. To simplify the learning curve for the church’s mix of paid employees and volunteer staff, all buildings on the property have the exact same video package.
The 2700-seat auditorium in the main sanctuary features a multiscreen configuration, including a 60ft wide main center screen and DPI Quad Projectors. Faith Assembly selected Hitachi HD cameras for their excellent high-definition quality and reasonable price tag. The cameras are equipped with Angenieux lenses and are set in the sound booth in the back of the auditorium. The church is also equipped with Turbo Sound speakers.
All design criteria within the new Faith Assembly campus pays strict attention to detail. For example, to streamline the process of checking people into the church for various activities, an automated system was installed to quickly sign family members into different venues. A 9 x 16 LED jumbo screen video wall was purchased from the Orlando Magic NBA team to provide digital signage in the church’s bookstore. Three of the venues have robotic camera systems, including the wedding chapel, which was custom-built to switch wedding ceremonies live, and then quickly render a DVD for viewing during the reception.
The church looked for ways to cut costs in the long-term, in addition to selecting cost-effective equipment. Faith Assembly purchased LED light fixtures for use on the main floor of its sanctuary, which cut tits electrical use down by 75 percent. With this lighting, the church continually saves money on both electricity and air conditioning, since the lighting fixtures use only a fraction of the heat as typical lighting solutions.
