When it comes to sustainability, it’s important to start the conversation early and be aware of various approaches. During the Designing Sustainably educational session at InfoComm ’24, Jenn Steinhardt, CTS-D certified Associate for Shen Milsom & Wilke, provided insight on skills to better document project requirements for sustainability and assess client needs.

Let’s get into some takeaways from this session.

Start Planning Early

It’s optimal to begin the conversation as early as possible. Understanding what makes an audiovisual system sustainable and environmentally friendly, from design to product end of life, is imperative. Investigating whitepapers or case studies when they are available will help you begin that process. It can also be useful to collaborate across trades. And don’t be afraid to pose questions along the way by connecting with your community.

“With a lot of changes and updates going on, there’s a huge opportunity within AV to make a meaningful impact for companies whether you’re a consultant, integrator, or end user. Even if your client is not thinking about sustainability, it can be a great opportunity to guide,” Steinhardt said.

Steinhardt also added that “Every little thing is going to have an impact. It’s good to know what your goals are when you go to look at how you’re handling your life cycle. The ways in which you or your company can make an impact include getting involved with your local government, trade organizations, and programs like SAVe or AVIXA's Standards Committee."

To better understand how you can approach sustainable design, look at how other industries are doing it. Check out standards and guidelines to help direct you down the right path.

Use AVIXA’s Energy Management Standards

AVIXA’s Energy Management for Audiovisual Systems is an internationally applicable standard for the control, monitoring, and use of electric energy for audiovisual systems. The four components of the standard include documentation, automation, monitoring, and reporting. Utilizing AVIXA standards is a great option to increase your competitive advantage and take the environment more into consideration.

Energy conservation management of an AV system is accomplished through:

• Strategic design of the monitoring system, system automation, software, and components
• Accurate implementation of the design
• Testing procedures of installed systems
• Ongoing supervision and control of the system
• Creation and execution of an energy management plan
• Monitoring power
• Reporting and analysis of energy consumption
• Documentation of the AV energy management system

Resources for Designing a Sustainable AV System

Finally, here is a list of must-have resources that you can begin to learn and benefit from:

• https://www.avixa.org/standards/current-standards
• https://saveav.org/
• https://www.un.org/en/academic-impact/sustainability

Energy Management Systems:

• https://www.trane.com/commercial/north-america/us/en/about-us/newsroom/blogs/what-are-the-primary-objectives-of-an-energy-management-system.html

GRI Standards:

• https://www.globalreporting.org/media/wtaf14tw/a-short-introduction-to-the-gri-standards.pdf
• https://www.globalreporting.org/reporting-support/reporting-tools/content-index-template/

Are there any other resources you've found helpful? Share them in the comments!