Commercial Integrator April 2023 - 12

PERFECTING YOUR CRAFT
Here Come the Suns
Leading integrator PIVIUM enables Footprint Center to deliver a VIP experience that basketball fans
won't soon forget. By Alesia Hendley
WHEN I WAS growing up as a kid,
basketball was my life. Before audio, all I
had was my grandmother's driveway and
a hoop. As I grew older, my love for the
game of basketball deepened. Unfortunately,
I was injured, and the game as I
knew it came to an end. But basketball
has always been, and will always be, a
part of my life. Now, in my off time -
and, when I write " off time, " I mean off
time from all things work - you can find
me posted up with my favorite beer,
watching basketball all year 'round. NBA,
WNBA, college...I love it all!
New Locations, New Builds
We've seen a lot of movement in basketball
arenas lately - new locations, new
builds in new cities and major renovations.
When I saw that Footprint Center, which
is home to the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix
Mercury, was about to undergo a major
renovation, I got excited. It doesn't feel all
that long ago that I was touring the brandnew
Chase Center, home of the Golden
State Warriors. The place was outfitted to
create one hell of a fan experience, and it
was laced with some top-notch AV.
But the Chase Center was a true new
build. Footprint Center was set to face
its own unique challenges, as the many
teams involved had to find a way to
completely flip an existing space and
create a new, fresh, epic fan experience.
The renovation of Footprint Center was
a huge undertaking, but never more so
than when project leaders started thinking
about how to create a VIP experience.
The Phoenix Suns organization wanted to
create something truly special.
The Vision
They say that success is where preparation
and opportunity meet. There's no
better reflection of that than PIVIUM,
a full-service design and integration
partner. When they were called upon,
12
Commercial Integrator APRIL 2023
PIVIUM leveraged all its strengths and expertise, which includes both AV design and
integration capabilities, to bring " a wow factor " to the Annexus Social Club. Now,
Footprint Center, home of the Phoenix Suns, is officially a top-10 NBA arena.
the PIVIUM team showed up, ready with
AV expertise and inspired to deliver an
undeniable human experience.
As noted, the Suns wanted to give their
VIP guests an exclusive, high-end experience.
" The space they chose was their
practice court, which was located adjacent
to the main court, " Will Gray, client engagement
leader at PIVIUM, describes. " They
moved their practice court offsite during
the renovation, and the Annexus Social
Club was born! " Gray continues, " PIVIUM's
goal was simple: Create a 'wow factor' in
the space. So, we did just that! " Indeed,
PIVIUM, along with manufacturer partner
WHITEBOX LED, designed a 19-foot-high
by 34-foot-wide 4K DVLED videowall. This
covered almost the entire wall opposite the
main entrance. In fact, it turned this multilevel
space into one big club! " Wow factor box
checked! " Gray enthuses.
And, yes, the wow factor box was
officially checked - but that didn't just
happen with the press of an easy button.
Instead, PIVIUM, whose expertise includes
both AV design and integration, had to
leverage all its strengths. I believe that's a
unique aspect of this story, and the company's
advantages were critical in bringing all
that " wow " to life. As Gray observes, " This
allows us to know exactly what the end
result will be, before it's installed and is a
reality. " Inevitably, obstacles and changes
arise during every project. " But we're able
to overcome those obstacles and adapt
to those changes on the fly, while keeping
the overall design in mind, " he says, underscoring
that PIVIUM is equally conversant
on the design and integration sides. " This
allows for the best experience for the client
and the best end result, " he declares.
The Solution of Choice
I've written a lot about DVLED in this
column, and the technology was top
choice in this application, as well. We
all know the benefits of DVLED - sizing
flexibility, seamless appearance, picture
quality, longer life span...and I could go
on. Even so, I have to ask: " Why DVLED for
this space? " Gray offers a quick answer,
saying, " We knew we could pull off an
amazing outcome. " He adds, " The overall
size of the wall, in a relatively small space
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