Latin America. To simplify the company's complex communication needs, TS Tech Americas recently deployed Audio-Technica's ATUC-50 digital conferencing system. The configuration combines 32 ATUC-50DU conference units and an equivalent number of Audio-Technica ATUC-M58H flexo microphones. The integrated system was installed and designed by VST Productions and acquired through Truth Seeker Productions.
TS Tech is a Japanese manufacturer of car seating and interior systems from major car brands around the world, such as Honda Motors, has operations in 72 centers located in 14 countries. The headquarters of the company's American division, located in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, employs more than 9,000 workers spread across Ohio, Alabama, Nebraska, Texas and Indiana, as well as Canada, Brazil and Mexico.
"TS Tech is committed to improving communications between its management team, which is made up of people from diverse cultural backgrounds," explained Ryuhei Shimizu, translator and interpreter at TS Tech Americas and project manager for the company (along with his colleague Brian Baker) for the integration of the ATUC-50 system. "That's precisely what the ATUC-50 digital conferencing system is capable of."
Considering the enormous importance of the system's mission at TS Tech, it's incredibly simple. It has plug-and-play functionality, is easy to use and has intuitive operation, as well as automated features (such as a 12-band feedback suppressor that allows high volume levels), which make its use completely transparent. In addition, uncompressed 24-bit/48 kHz digital audio maintains a completely natural sound.
In the words of Caleb Purvis, principal integrator at VST Productions (the AV system integrator company that installed the ATUC-50 system), that made the integration process easier. "Communication at the level that TS Tech wants to achieve is complicated, so having a simple and intuitive system like the ATUC-50 really makes all the difference when it comes to integration," he added.
Shimizu said the ATUC-50 system has met each and every one of their needs. "I was looking for a system that reproduced absolutely all the words spoken by the participants in the meetings and that offered an audio of the original crystal clear language to the interpreters, without unwanted noise. This was the top priority for me as an interpreter as it does not distract performers with poor audio quality and allows them to fully concentrate on discussions and their own performance as well as work as a team. It considers that the set of functions of the ATUC-50 system intuitively meets the particular challenges of the interpreter's work."
Brian Baker corroborated those comments and remarked, "From my point of view as a performer, the system is excellent. I get a crystal clear sound in the cabin, which makes it much easier to interpret than in the past. Before having the ATUC-50 system, if the interpreters didn't hear well, the only option was to approach the person who was speaking. Then we divided the interpreting work into sections, and each interpreter was solely responsible for certain sections; the interpreter was isolated."
He added that "The ATUC-50 system allows us to create an interpretation booth properly, which allows us to start working collaboratively as interpreters. Now, with a dedicated booth thanks to the conferencing system, we can help each other when an interpreter doesn't understand a crucial word or phrase, and we can change more frequently to avoid fatigue." TS Tech can use the system in a portable way, stored in four cases, allowing you to go from one conference room to another in the main office, and outside the manufacturing centers.
In addition to the ATUC-50 system and the ATUC-M58H flexo microphones, specifically designed for the system, TS Tech also uses a System 10 PRO wireless microphone system from Audio-Technica for conference use. "The System 10 PRO system is perfect when someone submits a report, stands up and moves around the room," Baker explains.
Shimizu adds that the quality of the elements of the microphones of the System 10 PRO system is "excellent", and "although it is a digital system, I do not perceive any latency caused by the digital-analog conversion, and these microphones combine perfectly with the audio captured by the ATUC-50 conference units".
Added to all this is a satisfied AV integration customer: "It's a fantastic system no matter where you look," says Purvis. "It's flexible, affordable, scalable and extremely easy to use. For a company like TS Tech, which needs to manage a large number of languages in many meetings and locations, there is simply no better solution."
