Dutch theatre upgrades public address and voice evacuation system

Bosch Praesensa replaces Theater & Concert Orpheus’ evacuation system which was ‘aging’, according to the vendor.

As one of the five largest theatres in the Netherlands, Orpheus has three halls with a reported capacity between 242 and 1286 seats as well as an affiliated restaurant.

Orpheus Theatre, The Netherlands

The requirement was to upgrade the current solution to meet the necessary regulatory requirements for public buildings and ensure it received the required EN certification.

The chosen IP-based system, featured a smart-power concept and integrated redundancy, designed to work for both centralised and decentralised network topologies, according to the vendor.

The aim was for a solution that would give the theatre complete control over all of its Dante-based audio facilities from one interface.

Praesensa’s OMNEO is an IP-based ‘architectural approach’ to connecting devices to exchange information such as audio content and device control.

Key challenge

One of the key parts to the project was ensuring the systems were integrated without infringing on the functions of the evacuation system. The integration of the house PA and background music system with the voice evacuation system was a main challenge according to the vendors, Bosch.

The evacuation system needed to be able to completely take over from the house PA and background music system in the event of an emergency, but also give sufficient flexibility on the background music channels when the system is in normal operation.

With the new facilitated audio, the result aimed to provide the user full flexibility on the various audio routings within the venue.

A 32-channel Dante matrix was put in place designed to allow the user to manage the entire house system without affecting the Praesensa public address and voice evacuation system.

“The main deciding factor in this project was the requirement for IP-based linking,” says Henry Bax from Connect AV. “The evacuation alarm system also had to meet high audio quality standards, because the different zones and loudspeakers are also used for various activities in the venue.”

To add an extra level of complexity to the project, the switchover needed to be done while the venue was operational. Connect AV BV – the systems integrator responsible for the project – was able install the new solution while also keeping the original solution working as a backup.

“Due to the very good cooperation between all involved parties, the migration went very well, without hiccups,” concludes Bax. “The goal of upgrading the evacuation alarm system to the latest regulations have been achieved, so that an inspection certificate could be issued.”

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