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VDC Helps Equip New Afghan Parliament Building
After three decades of Taliban rule, the people of Afghanistan marked an important milestone last December when 351 elected representatives took their seats in the new Afghan Parliament in Kabul.
With the date of the opening scheduled well in advance, the primary objective for contractors was to get the complex secure and ready in time - not an easy task given the general dilapidation of the site. Among those involved in this marathon task was Barry Pullen, project manager at UK company Westminster SONUS, which was responsible for installing microphones and camera systems in both Parliamentary chambers, plus a call system covering the six buildings in the complex and the outside areas and car parks.
UK cable specialist VDC Trading was one of a number of suppliers that helped Westminster SONUS meet its brief. Virtually every section of the VDC catalogue was scoured to fulfil orders for a variety of products, which included long runs of Van Damme audio cable, video and data cable, rack units, distribution amplifiers, mains power distribution units, audio and data connectors and cable management solutions such as zip ties and bases.
“Although we have accounts with several firms I used VDC because I had already used them on another project in Afghanistan,” Barry Pullen explains. “They were not the cheapest, but my account manager Tom Rann knew what he was talking about and made sure deliveries happened on time. Nothing we ordered was particularly special but some items were ordered by the kilometre and everything was needed yesterday. There was the occasional problem, but the mark of a good supplier is that when things go wrong they sort it out fast, which is what VDC did.”
The project involved the installation of 266 digital microphones in the lower house (Wolesi Jirga), all of which were connected to an automatic camera system with simultaneous interpretation. A PA system was also installed, together with two 4,500 lumen data projectors and a 60" plasma screen. An equipment rack containing control kit, computers, amplifiers etc was installed in the AV control booth. The upper house had a similar but smaller set up, 106 microphones and a 50" plasma screen, together with camera system.
“We also installed a call system using approx 150 loudspeakers,” Pullen adds. “Access to the system was via paging microphones, one for the president of each chamber to call members back to the chambers for votes, etc.”
Widely recognised throughout the industry as the UK's premier conference company, Westminster SONUS encompasses all the technical requirements sought by conference and meeting organisers, be it for a press conference, a small round table discussion or a large multi-national convention.
VDC Trading account manager Tom Rann says fulfilling Westminster SONUS’ orders was complex, not least because some of the products requested were very specific. “These needed to be supplied either "off the shelf" or in a very short time frame,” he says. “Quality was also important, especially as the systems Westminster SONUS installed might well be used to provide television or radio broadcasts in the future. We were also able to supply the rack units in flat pack format - they usually come fully assembled for installation - so they could be shipped to Afghanistan with Westminster SONUS’ equipment.”
20th January 2006
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