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Home My WebLink AboutRESPONSE - RFP - 7334 DIGITAL DOME THEATER FOR DISCOVERY MUSEUMcommercial Copyright 2012 Global Immersion Ltd. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of Global Immersion Ltd Registered Address: The Barn, Hurstwood Grange, Hurstwood Lane, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH17 7QX, UK Technical and Commercial Proposal Digital Dome Theater For the attention of City of Fort Collins Fort Collins Discovery Museum Proposal No. 7334 Project ID 79337 Prepared by Steve Pushka steve.pushka@globalimmersion.com +1 801 438-6898 Revision 3.1 Issue date 23 February 2012 Validity 90 days from issue date 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 2 of 60 Introduction Dear Mr. Stephen, Global Immersion Ltd has pleasure in presenting to you a Proposal for the new Fort Collins Museum of Discovery Digital Dome. This proposal contains a description of our understanding of your requirements and our proposed solution. We have packaged everything into three buying phases, and have proposed many beneficial options to our base offerings. If you would like any further details please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours sincerely, Steve Pushka Steve Pushka Business Development Manager Global Immersion Ph: (801) 438-6898 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 3 of 60 Contents Executive Summary..............................................................................................................5 Our Understanding of Your Requirement .................................................................................6 Global Immersion.................................................................................................................7 Our Company....................................................................................................................7 Our Philosophy..................................................................................................................8 Notable Achievements........................................................................................................8 Our Organization...............................................................................................................9 Your Team........................................................................................................................9 Choose Global Immersion....................................................................................................12 Our Recommended Solution ................................................................................................15 High Level Solution Description .........................................................................................15 Full Dome Screen ............................................................................................................18 Projection.......................................................................................................................18 Playback Servers .............................................................................................................21 Audio.............................................................................................................................22 Theatre Control ...............................................................................................................23 Production Laptop............................................................................................................24 Real-Time Astronomical Education Software .......................................................................25 LED Cove Lighting ...........................................................................................................31 UPS and Power Management.............................................................................................31 Documentation and Training .............................................................................................32 Alternative Display Solutions ...............................................................................................34 Upgrade Options ................................................................................................................34 Audio.............................................................................................................................34 Production Suite..............................................................................................................34 Mini Dome ......................................................................................................................35 UPS ...............................................................................................................................35 LEED Considerations...........................................................................................................36 Project Management...........................................................................................................38 Dome Theatre Media Package ..............................................................................................39 Astronomy......................................................................................................................39 Evolution / Science ..........................................................................................................43 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 4 of 60 Music / Entertainment......................................................................................................45 Media Package Options ....................................................................................................47 Unique Content Programming ...........................................................................................49 Appendices........................................................................................................................51 Appendix 1 – Company Registration Certificate ...................................................................51 Appendix 2 – Health & Safety Policy ..................................................................................51 Appendix 3 – Site Risk Assessment....................................................................................51 Appendix 4 – Quality Assurance Plan .................................................................................51 Appendix 5 – Environmental Management Policy .................................................................51 Appendix 6 – DMNS / HP Case Study .................................................................................51 Appendix 7 – Engineering Drawing Pack .............................................................................51 Investment Budget.............................................................................................................52 Funding Management.......................................................................................................52 Summary .......................................................................................................................53 Phase 1..........................................................................................................................54 Phase 2..........................................................................................................................55 Phase 3..........................................................................................................................57 Upgrade Options .............................................................................................................58 General Exclusions ..........................................................................................................59 Standard Terms and Conditions ...........................................................................................60 Payment Terms ...............................................................................................................60 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 5 of 60 Executive Summary The City of Fort Collins and the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery would like to celebrate and inspire the community with a digital dome. To achieve this goal, we have offered a turn-key system packaged in three phases. Phase One includes the dome screen, which is the long lead item. Phase Two is the visual display system complete with installation and training. Finally, Phase Three includes a robust maintenance package as well as a pre-rendered content package. When forming these packages, we aimed to offer the best value for the City of Fort Collins. We believe that our offering is the best value because it contains the best hardware and software, free World Wide Telescope software, locally based support, and an opportunity to enter into a strategic partnership that includes the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, which is an internationally known innovator in the full dome market. In April 2010, we met with the Museum Leadership Team and your message was clear: “This will be a place that inspires inquisitive thinkers and encourages responsible stewardship of the past, present, and future”. While that objective is difficult to quantify in a RFP specification, we have not forgotten about your message. Our consulting and design services, as well as our knowledge of your project make us the ideal choice for this project. We’ve seen this project develop and come to fruition, and are eager to deliver the final product and celebrate the theater’s grand opening. Our approach consists of an engineered solution designed to optimize the dome screen to display amazing images that will help you inspire, engage, and entertain your audience. The proposed projection system offers a true 4K resolution (4.3K x 4.3K) that utilizes uncompressed 4:2:2 video. The LED cove lighting system offers a high level of customization so you can complement your 4K display with outstanding LED lighting. The UniView software package is used by many of the world’s premier science institutes for teaching astronomy and earth sciences, present live shows, and connect with other domes around the world. Additionally, we have given a lot of thought about your desire to obtain LEED Platinum Certification. The projectors in this proposal are LED projectors, which utilize low power and generate less heat than traditional UHP or Xenon lamp based projectors. We’ve also included Green options in the Power Distribution Units (PDU), UPS and servers that will help your LEED efforts. Global Immersion is perfectly located to support the project through its office located in Denver, so all three phases of our offering will utilize local resources and field engineers. The servers are built by a Denver based computer provider which is beneficial in service and use of local resources. The Denver Museum of Nature and Science in Denver is also a Global Immersion installation that uses our servers and software. We believe that this local relationship will help you utilize your system and give you a local partner to share ideas, preview your content on their dome, share UniView shows and vignettes, and learn valuable insights into UniView programming. This system and options in our offering will support, but is not limited to, Earth Science, Astronomy, Pre-Rendered content, and will compliment live lectures and presentations. The offerings were also designed to give you a lot of flexibility and room for future growth. For example, the base offering includes Enterprise hard drives. At the time of the proposal, Enterprise hard drives offer reliable, cost effective storage. We believe that some time in the near future 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 6 of 60 Solid State Storage will be available at a reasonable cost. We have engineered our equipment to accommodate future upgrades like this. Our Understanding of Your Requirement When the Fort Collins Museum and Discovery Science Center merged in 2005, the partnership aimed to “deliver an exceptional visitor experience while fulfilling the mission of each organization.” The digital dome theater will be a major feature of the Museum and will help achieve that mission. It will be a flexible space used for scientific learning about Astronomy and Earth Science, guest lecturers, musical programs, live presentations, and will enable the Museum to develop content in house. The possibilities of the dome are endless. We have developed the offerings in our response with your objectives in mind. Flexibility, ease of use, and ability for expansion are addressed in every facet of the proposal. We’ve also incorporated as many features as possible to help you in your efforts to obtain a LEED Platinum rating. We’ve noted that the projected annual visitation for the museum is 70,000 – 100,000 visitors a year, and that school groups make up about one-half of your annual attendance. These estimates have helped us develop and propose a show package that will help attract visitors into the dome theater. As a new build, your project will require careful attention to detail in many areas. Many of these areas have been covered in the theater design services that Global immersion provided. Our knowledge of your theater design will help ensure smooth project execution. Should you be fortunate enough to receive donations from Hewlett-Packard or nVidia, Global Immersion’s engineering team will provide hardware specifications and help you integrate these items into your system. Any cost savings from these donations will directly benefit the Museum of Discovery or the City of Fort Collins. Finally, we understand that this is a big purchase for the City of Fort Collins. Global immersion’s philosophy is based on two basic principles: communications and innovation. Throughout the process, we will listen to you, understand your messages, and communicate with you in an open environment. Together, with the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, we will innovate and maximize the potential of your digital dome theater. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 7 of 60 Global Immersion Our Company Global Immersion is an immersive theater organization operating on an international scale with offices in the UK, USA and Canada. We bring together exceptional theatre design, advanced projection technologies, content production, user-friendly controls and advanced audio and lighting – all on a digital infrastructure. Our organizational ethos is to focus on best image, best value, highest fidelity, and innovation through: Technology Commercial considerations.... Full cost of ownership Robustness Each and every immersive space is different – from small theatres to large planetariums. We understand this. So we tailor solutions to the unique needs of our clients, allowing them the best possible presentation of the chosen content. This is what we do:  Theatre & experience design  Fidelity™ theatre solutions  Intensity™ multi-dimensional theatres  Media storage and management  Content production & editing software  Custom show production  Fulldome & large-format show distribution  Screens, Seats, Lighting, Audio, Control & Automation  Display optimization tools  Project management & systems integration  Support, aftercare & maintenance  Financing options This is where we do it:  Digital Planetaria & fulldome theatres  Large-format theatres  Stereoscopic 3D theatres  Museums  Science Centers  Visitor Attractions  Educational Establishments  Research Institutes  Virtual Reality Centers and Cubic environments  Expositions  Exhibitions/tradeshows/events  Theme Parks 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 8 of 60 Our Philosophy We based our philosophy and organizational values on things that we feel are best suited to understanding and fulfilling your needs - broken down into six core areas, these are the values that we work to and regard with ongoing development:  Innovation  Global Partnerships  People  Communication  Integrity  Improvement Notable Achievements Our team of experienced industry professionals has been building immersive environments, digital fulldome, 3D and 4D theatre solutions for more than twenty years – enabling us to accumulate a portfolio of more than 200 fulldome, large-format, virtual reality, 3D and 4D displays and immersive environments. Our many years of experience has allowed us to fully understand the dynamics of immersive theatre; formulating strategic partnerships along the way with leading-edge technology manufacturers including Projectiondesign®, JVC® Christie®, and Digital Projection®, to deliver unique solutions that exceed audience expectations.  An extensive portfolio of more than 200 fulldome, large-format, virtual reality and 3D displays/environments spanning more than ten years.  Installed the UK’s largest digital Planetarium at INTECH Science Centre.  In 2005, the Global Immersion team built two of the world’s first uncompressed fulldome system at the Chabot Space & Science Center and the Hayden Planetarium.  Designed and supplied an innovative, budget-stretching solution to the Children’s City Planetarium in Dubai where the facility staff installed the entire solution themselves.  Designers and integrators of first ever 3D fulldome theatre (Tholos Dome) at the Foundation of the Hellenic World (FHW) in Greece. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 9 of 60  Awarded 2009 EMEA+ ‘Most InAVative Leisure Project’ for first ever combined digital 3D and fulldome theatre installation at Cosmonova, Swedish Museum of Natural History (Stockholm).  Global Immersion launched Fidelity Go - World's first all solid-state system in 2010.  Global introduced the world's first fully integrated telescope system in 2011. Our Organization Your Team We are providing a snap shot of our relevant staff for this project. Global Immersion is fortunate to have an extremely low staff turnover and our skill set was developed to allow us to be experts in design and implementation of multi-channel spherical displays. In addition to our staff, we do use contract personnel for project work, and in some cases we use consultants from a large network of connection where specific engineering expertise or project talent is required. Martin Howe – Chief Executive Officer Martin leads the business with over 30 years of experience in managing and directing at a senior level in high value technology markets. His impressive career record includes senior roles with Electrosonic and Barco. Martin has extensive experience in engineering design, international project management, customer service, operations, sales and marketing. Martin continues to engage a visionary and highly focused leadership strategy within the business. As the driving force behind new market entry, products, sales, team development, operational strategy and organizational structure, Martin’s ongoing dedication and commitment provides a solid path for continued success. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 10 of 60 Paul Isaacs – Head of Operations Paul directs the Global Immersion operations team from both a strategic, and a functional, level. With over thirty five years experience in engineering, program management, senior management and leadership, Paul also holds an MBA and joined Global Immersion in August 2011 from Rockwell Collins Simulation and Training Solutions where he held the position of Principal Manager of EuMEA Programs. Paul has previously served as Operations Director at Evans & Sutherland, General Manager at Alteon Training, and Program Manager at British Aerospace, having launched his career in the Royal Air Force. Paul is also a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management. Alan Caskey – Commercial & Accounts Manager Alan brings with him 26 years experience at senior executive and sales level within the electronics, manufacturing, system integration and service industries. He has a highly successful record of building and managing sales teams and facilitating business relationships at all levels. Nick Dodds – Technical Sales Manager Qualification: BSc Electronics and Computer Systems Design, University of Salford; DipBA Marketing, Manchester School of Business Nick has 25 years of experience in the creation and delivery of complex technical solutions for industries including banking, retail, logistics, and science and education. Nick has held senior positions in consulting, project management, operations and commercial management. Nick has worked for Global Immersion since it was founded in 2007 and has been responsible for the delivery of many of its major projects. Steve Pushka – Business Development Manager Qualifications: MBA, Arizona State University and BS Management/Finance, Purdue University Experience: Steve joined Global Immersion in the fall of 2011. His focus is on the Planetarium, Museum, and Science Center Market space. He has extensive experience in Sales, Marketing, and Service & Support in the immersive domes, planetariums, and flight simulators. He is also a believer in high customer satisfaction, and has a customer centric business philosophy that strives for high customer satisfaction on an ongoing basis. Andrew Zadarnowski - Senior Project Manager Qualifications: MBA, BSc in Electrical Engineering – University of Ottawa Experience: Andrew has worked with Global Immersion and SEOS VSD for 6 years. Andrew, as with all of our project managers, will liaise with architects, building contractors, sub-contractors (e.g. screen manufacturers), and be the main point of contact with the client, keeping the client informed as to project status on a agreed to frequency. Andrew is currently working on his PMP designation (Project Management Professional). Andrew maintains the project risk register (likelihood Vs impact) of risk, including assessment and mitigation. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 11 of 60 Mike Ross – Audio & Lighting Design Qualifications: BA in Technical Design and Production – Lighting Design. Experience: Mike is an engineering technician and has become integral in delivering our systems on time and on budget. He has been trained in both audio and lighting systems design. Mike can EQ a dome, and is our in-house expert. Matthew Fox – Chief Engineer Qualifications: BSc in Film Production Experience: 18 years experience in information technologies (advanced IP networks), audio/visual systems design, and spherical display system design. Matt is the lead engineer for the RH Fleet project, which includes the systems design to drive four digital cinema grade (4K) projectors, in a two channel array. The system requires a server cluster required to drive 4k projectors at 60fps. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 12 of 60 Choose Global Immersion Global Immersion has provided consulting and design services for the Discovery Museum Digital Dome project. We are a registered vendor with the City of Fort Collins under vendor 470563. We have worked closely with the Museum Staff to ensure that the theater design meets the organizational objectives of the Museum. We understand this project, and are well suited to deliver an offering specifically tailored to this theater design. Our Engineering team has engineered a solution designed to be flexible, easy to use, and will give you the ability to grow in the future. We have even inserted Green components and engineering into your solution to help you with your LEED certification. As a prime vendor, Global Immersion has extensive experience in coordinating dome installations, projection and server installations, and long-term support. We have over 200 installations throughout the world and have received excellent customer satisfaction ratings from these customers. Our customers appreciate our innovative ideas like system redundancies, open architecture, and our ability to generate and display true uncompressed video. Global Immersion also has a long history of innovation in digital display systems. Our experiences with these innovations have enabled us to design and engineer solutions like the ones proposed in this offering. Our innovation has also been exhibited in prestigious facilities such as the California Academy of Sciences, the Adler Planetarium, and the Hayden Planetarium at American Museum of Natural History. Global Immersion’s North American Office is located in Denver, just northwest of the downtown area. This office staffs several engineers that will be engaged in your project. Towards the beginning of your project, the system will be staged in our Denver office. This process includes building the server rack, installing, integrating, and testing software, and performing factory burn- in and inspection. After the initial staging and testing of the system, it will be delivered and installed at your facility. The installation Engineers are the same Denver based Engineers that staged the system, so they will be very familiar with the equipment. Finally, after installation and 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 13 of 60 system acceptance, you’ll feel comfortable with the fact they these engineers are only an hour away. The Denver Museum of Nature & Science is also located in Denver. This museum houses The Gates Planetarium, which is an innovator in the digital dome community. The Gates Planetarium currently uses a Global Immersion system that utilizes six DLP projectors and UniView Software. They use the dome to teach Earth Sciences, Astronomy, Astrobiology, Immersive Learning, and Planetarium technology. As the technology provider for the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, we have a unique relationship with the Gates Planetarium and a long history together. In the early days, before Global Immersion opened up our Denver office, we had our USA support team offices located in the Planetarium offices. Together, with Global Immersion, the Gates Planetarium was one of the early adopters of UniView software. They continue to help develop and enhance the UniView software. Dan Neafus, the Operations Manager at the Gates Planetarium has over 30 years experience in producing engaging audience experiences in the dome. Dan has been described as a “Real Guru” by fellow planetarians. He, along with Global Immersion CEO Martin Howe, helped form IMERSA (Immersive Media Entertainment, Research, Science & Arts). IMERSA is a professional association founded to advance and promote the science of large-scale digital immersive media, fulldome, and 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 14 of 60 immersive group experiences in digital planetariums, mobile domes, themed entertainment and giant screen theaters. This February, the annual IMERSA summit was held at the Gates Planetarium, and is expected to host it again next year. Dan is an acting Director of IMERSA and Martin is an Advisor. Because of the Gates Planetarium and Global Immersions location, Denver is viewed by many people as the international hub for the fulldome marketplace. The Staff at the Gates Planetarium will be an excellent resource to you to obtain ideas to help you maximize the use of the dome. Dr. Ka Chun Yu, PhD, is the Curator or Space Science at the Gates. Ka Chun leads a research program called ALIVE – Astronomy Learning in Immersive Virtual Environments. The ALIVE project is the first research attempt at determining how visualization tools, such as UniView, can be most effectively used to teach astronomy. The Gates Planetarium also has a team of experts that have helped create many pre-rendered shows including Black Holes: the Other Side of Infinity and Cosmic Journey: A Solar System Adventure. We would like the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery to join the Gates Planetarium and Global Immersion’s partnership and help strengthen our leadership in the full dome industry. The Gates Planetarium is unique because they use three server clusters that all tie into the projection system: 1) Main system using standard server rack, built by Global Immersion, running Windows and UniView Software, 2) LINIX based servers, built and donated by HP, running experimental software, and 3) And another HP-donated server running Windows and UniView as a staging environment for future software updates and experimentation. The main public shows are running through server cluster 1. They were fortunate to receive a donation from HP that consisted of two full server racks. A copy of HP’s case study has been attached to this proposal for your reference. The second server is an experimental LINUX based server that they use to develop open-source projects. The Planetarium uses the third server cluster to perform experiments and test new software. This allows them the luxury to push the envelope of creativity without jeopardizing public shows. Global Immersion helped integrate the three clusters into a switching system that allows each cluster to display images on the dome through the main projection system. Should you be fortunate enough to receive donations from HP or nVidia, Global Immersion can help you integrate that equipment into the digital dome theater system. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 15 of 60 Our Recommended Solution We have designed a system that we believe enables the City of Fort Collins to deliver its vision for the Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre. We have further developed our proposal beyond the previous advisory engagement and incorporated a number of features to meet the current and future needs of the Museum. High Level Solution Description Flexible and Adaptable We have designed the system to be:  Easy to use by providing single touch control interfaces, as well as comprehensive automation and more detailed interfaces for technical experts.  Flexible to be able to play many types of content, play content from external sources, and allow the theatre to be for different kinds of events.  Adaptable so that the systems can be extended and upgraded as the needs of the facility expand in the future. This includes a modular approach to the design and build of systems, and the use of infrastructure that has capacity for expansion. True 4K Resolution Our recommended solution provides a ‘True 4K’ solution. What does this mean? 1. We take rendered movie files in sequential frame, dome master format. These are uncompressed images in for example .png format. 2. These are ‘sliced’ into images for playback in each video channel. These images are in the native projector resolution, in this case 2560 x 1600 pixels. 3. These files are stored on our servers in either 4:4:4 uncompressed or 4:2:2 lossless compression formats. 4. The files are then played through our Media Player software where all the channels are frame synchronized to each other and to the audio soundtracks, and sent to the projectors for display. A Global Immersion True 4K solution does not use MPEG level compression to store the files which throws away video data, and does not scale up lower resolution images to ‘create’ pixels on the screen. From the source images to the screen True 4K delivers 4K resolution at every stage of the image preparation and playback. We believe that a True 4K solution provides the Discovery Museum with a high quality, high performance display that will remain the high resolution standard for several years. Environmentally Conscious We have proactively sought solutions that can add to the LEED goals of the Discovery Museum, in particular the use of selected technologies, as well as power management capabilities. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 16 of 60 Solution Summary Our recommended solution includes the following capability. The following high level schematic shows the architecture and integration of the component systems.  Perforated aluminum full dome screen, 36ft diameter, 162o vertical field of view, 20 o tilt, with trough for LED cove lighting and access ladder. We have included pricing for both Spitz NanoSeam and Astro-tec Ultimate Seam screens.  A 4.3k x 4.3K (True 4K) resolution display, using 5 x Projectiondesign FL35 LED WQXGA (2560 x 1600) projectors. Blending and distortion correction is Global Immersion patented DomePerfect infinitely variable optical blending solution and pixel management system.  Global Media Server cluster capable of playing uncompressed 4:4:4 or lossless 4:2:2 sequential frame files at native 2560 x 1600 resolution at 30 frames per second. Each of five servers has 8Tb of storage in RAID 5 configuration, providing 400 minutes of playback at 4:2:2. Video channels are frame synchronized using hardware.  Full dome capable real time capture and playback of video and audio from external devices such as laptops, DVD players and cameras. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 17 of 60  UniView real-time astronomical software for the display of earth-based astronomy, earth sciences data and to range through the cosmos. This can be used for educational presentations and lectures, and to create your own show material. We are also able to provide Microsoft WorldWide Telescope.  The Uniview Octopus technology allows multiple scientists to connect to the same dome, to do joint presentations to public audiences or even decision-support debates and discussions with policy and decision makers. We believe that the role of the dome as a scientific outreach tool is important, and that this networking technology is a key step in increasing the sense of realness and closeness to scientific data for dome audiences.  Audio server capable of playing up to 16 channels of audio synchronized to video. A professional level audio 5.1 surround audio system, with DSP, amplifiers, speakers, two wireless microphones, and professional DVD player.  LED cove lighting with fully programmable RGB capability using 16-bit definition for smooth fading and scrolling and integrated to the Theater Control.  Production laptop with UniView Producer and Adobe Creative Suite software with capability to create presentation, clips, trailers and small shows. Anhigh function Production Suite is offered as an upgrade.  Theatre control system, comprising a system administration server, a control PC, touch panel interface, control desk monitors / keyboard / mouse, and full network connectivity to all devices, UPS and the building management system. Remote access diagnostics and maintenance.  UPS system providing power conditioning and battery back up to allow the system to be safely shutdown in the event of a power failure. Enhanced options are also described.  We have created a set of three example media packages from our catalogue. Any actual media package can be discussed should we be awarded the contract. We provide a standard media pack with our system which comprises two free full dome shows and a selection of full dome clips and images.  Documentation and training are included. A full set of system and operator manuals will be provided. Our policy is to provide all manuals in softcopy form to prevent the use of large amounts of paper that are often required to reproduce them. We offer a comprehensive training syllabus, and your staff can either attend at our offices in Denver during factory acceptance test, or training can be held at your site. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 18 of 60 Full Dome Screen Global Immersion has successfully partnered with Astro-tec and Spitz on many dome theatre projects. We have given pricing for the highest quality screen from each manufacturer. The screen is 360o in plan and 162o in profile, 36 ft in diameter and tilted at 20o. The reflectivity of the screen will be determined as part of the final system design. Installation will be supervised by specialists from the screen manufacturer. Scaffolding is included in the price. The expected installation period would be circa 25-35 days at site. Projection The projection system comprises a number of elements that are described in the following sections. Projectors Optimised Fidelity Projector – Projectiondesign® FL35 Intelligence, performance and meticulous engineering built into every unit. The Projectiondesign F35 series of professional grade DLP® projectors is specifically designed for graphically challenging applications, such as multi channel seamless visualization walls, domes, and high resolution imaging. These LED projectors provide amazing color and brightness, combined with low power usage and heat output, quiet operation as there a fewer cooling fans, and low operating costs as there are no lamps to replace, no color wheels to replace, and they consume far less power than lamp based units. Resolution Contrast Technology Light source Lamp life WQXGA (2560 x 1600) per projector 8,000:1 Single chip DLP® projector LED No lamps. LED light engine life is 100,000 hours 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 18 of 60 Full Dome Screen Global Immersion has successfully partnered with Astro-tec and Spitz on many dome theatre projects. We have given pricing for the highest quality screen from each manufacturer. The screen is 360o in plan and 162o in profile, 36 ft in diameter and tilted at 20o. The reflectivity of the screen will be determined as part of the final system design. Installation will be supervised by specialists from the screen manufacturer. Scaffolding is included in the price. The expected installation period would be circa 25-35 days at site. Projection The projection system comprises a number of elements that are described in the following sections. Projectors Optimised Fidelity Projector – Projectiondesign® FL35 Intelligence, performance and meticulous engineering built into every unit. The Projectiondesign F35 series of professional grade DLP® projectors is specifically designed for graphically challenging applications, such as multi channel seamless visualization walls, domes, and high resolution imaging. These LED projectors provide amazing color and brightness, combined with low power usage and heat output, quiet operation as there a fewer cooling fans, and low operating costs as there are no lamps to replace, no color wheels to replace, and they consume far less power than lamp based units. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 19 of 60 Included with these customized Fidelity Projectors:  Wide angle lens  Full batch color matching for a display that is uniform in color and brightness. Projector Mounts In order to preserve the aesthetic design qualities of the theatre space we propose to design custom projector mounts that will be discreet whilst still providing the necessary rigidity. Blending Optical/mechanical blend masks are required with fixed matrix projectors in multi-channel projection displays whatever their lens or resolution capabilities. These digital, higher brightness projectors have an inherent light level, even when projecting full black field. Where two panels overlap this ‘lit’ black level doubles to a visible lighter grey. Global Immersion approaches this important area by taking a design-based approach and evaluating the technical requirements of each project individually. Many solutions use the ‘wiper blade’ approach, or glass plate, which can cause light dispersion and scattering - not permitting independent adjustment on all axes. We determine the best blend profile/edge detail to suit a given projector and lens, with consideration to its application. If necessary we can review whether any internal optics can bring any merit. Taking the best soft edge characteristic results we can then re-optimize the display layout in terms of overlaps, projector positions, panel optimization. The blend equipment is also configured and fine tuned to best suit its application. Global Immersion’s unique patented optical blending considers not only the projection technology but also the lens exit pupils. Display Layout Our projection system provides a continuous display covering the 220 degree projection surface. We use five projectors, each with a display resolution of 2560 pixels wide x 1600 pixels high. The images from each projector are blended together using Global Immersion’s patented blending system, to provide a continuous seamless canvass. Global Immersion is able to take your show content and re render it to be displayed as eight individual panels from the five projectors across the 220 degree canvass. It may seem obvious to have one projector per display area. However this reduces the height of the projected display. The following diagrams show the full 220 degree screen, which is approximately 70m in length. The first diagram shows the projection surface as covered by five projectors, and the second as covered by eight projectors (one per image). 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 19 of 60 Included with these customized Fidelity Projectors:  Wide angle lens  Full batch color matching for a display that is uniform in color and brightness. Projector Mounts In order to preserve the aesthetic design qualities of the theatre space we propose to design custom projector mounts that will be discreet whilst still providing the necessary rigidity. Blending Optical/mechanical blend masks are required with fixed matrix projectors in multi-channel projection displays whatever their lens or resolution capabilities. These digital, higher brightness projectors have an inherent light level, even when projecting full black field. Where two panels overlap this ‘lit’ black level doubles to a visible lighter grey. Global Immersion approaches this important area by taking a design-based approach and evaluating the technical requirements of each project individually. Many solutions use the ‘wiper blade’ approach, or glass plate, which can cause light dispersion and scattering - not permitting independent adjustment on all axes. We determine the best blend profile/edge detail to suit a given projector and lens, with consideration to its application. If necessary we can review whether any internal optics can bring any merit. Taking the best soft edge characteristic results we can then re-optimize the display layout in terms of overlaps, projector positions, panel optimization. The blend equipment 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 20 of 60 This projector layout provides a displayed image with the greatest height. It also reduces capital investment and operating costs by having fewer projectors. The following shows the proposed projector position and layouts. Full size drawings are supplied in the Engineering Drawing Pack. Display Performance The quality of the display is based on a number of technical performance parameters. These are resolution, brightness and contrast. We have sophisticated modeling software that allows us to accurately calculate the performance of a display system. System contrast 9.5 : 1 Average system luminance 0.6 ftL assuming 0.48 gain and 800 lumens per projector Average system resolution 2.2 arc minutes per pixel Pixels across the dome 4,363 Uniique pixels on the dome 14.9 million pixels 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 21 of 60 Playback Servers Servers Fidelity Play™ is Global Immersion’s comprehensive media solution for high performance, demanding immersive environments. Consisting of a custom media server solution, and a tailored software and control package, Fidelity Play™ has everything you need to control and manage your system, and prepare, stream and playback your wide selection of media. At the heart of Fidelity Play™, the Global Immersion Media Server is a multi-node graphics cluster, used to render high- resolution digital content in the form of pre-recorded movies (video stream) or from real-time applications. The server is designed specifically for digital immersive theatre applications providing a fully scalable solution for the future. The hardware consists of industrial grade (enterprise class) commodity industrial PC components to deliver high performance at a low cost. The cluster uses proven components in a system-level integrated package to create a cost effective yet robust platform, ideally suited to graphics rendering. The system uses NVIDIA Graphics cards, and the server graphics cards can be upgraded as future technology evolves. If the Museum receives an NVIDIA donation in the future, we can help specify the optimal graphic cards and help you integrate them into your system. The open architecture allows Global Immersion to exploit current technology to scale the delivery system to match the required theatre resolution, and to optimize the high performance display configuration. Playback Software Global Immersion Media Player is professional-grade playback software that gives the user full control of the show list and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use Graphical User Interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the show content. The system can take any electronic media, and then convert it into playable format. The easy to use (point and click) windows GUI allows the creator to drag and drop the media into any position on the media canvas. The software provides control of shows, and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the Dome content/movie. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 21 of 60 Playback Servers Servers Fidelity Play™ is Global Immersion’s comprehensive media solution for high performance, demanding immersive environments. Consisting of a custom media server solution, and a tailored software and control package, Fidelity Play™ has everything you need to control and manage your system, and prepare, stream and playback your wide selection of media. At the heart of Fidelity Play™, the Global Immersion Media Server is a multi-node graphics cluster, used to render high- resolution digital content in the form of pre-recorded movies (video stream) or from real-time applications. The server is designed specifically for digital immersive theatre applications providing a fully scalable solution for the future. The hardware consists of industrial grade (enterprise class) commodity industrial PC components to deliver high performance at a low cost. The cluster uses proven components in a system-level integrated package to create a cost effective yet robust platform, ideally suited to graphics rendering. The system uses NVIDIA Graphics cards, and the server graphics cards can be upgraded 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 22 of 60 The user interface is a timeline based GUI, similar to those used in video editing. Video clips and sequences are simply dragged onto the timeline, placed at the desired position. Multiple tracks allow content ‘z’ order layering to allow unique combinations of content. Audio tracks are treated likewise. The user interface allows fast scrubbing through the timeline, as well as the usual pause/stop/play-from-here functions. The movie frames are stored in a proprietary file format. Unlike other formats that use image compression techniques, such as MPEG, the file format can be made to be lossless. The user can now display all the (bits of) information the creator of the content, intended. Audio We have proposed a professional 5.1 surround sound audio system suitable for the 85 seat audience seating area. This includes interfaces to the Global Immersion Audio Server, programmable audio digital signal processor, amplifiers, and speaker cabinets. The audio system is synchronized to the video playback, and integrated to the Theatre Control system. The Audio System options are proven professional series Theatre Systems, which come fully designed and modeled for Immersive theatre applications. This includes audio mapping and appropriate algorithms for the size and characteristics of the Dome Theatre. The installation includes support structures and flying rigging. The Audio System links to the Global Immersion Theatre Control System to give a simple but extremely powerful theatre audio system that can cope comfortably for all types of multimedia applications, and accepts and controls for playback and synchronization of all popular formats such as mp3, WMA and Wav files. We have also provided a professional DVD player, 2 professional series microphones and mixer. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 22 of 60 The user interface is a timeline based GUI, similar to those used in video editing. Video clips and sequences are simply dragged onto the timeline, placed at the desired position. Multiple tracks allow content ‘z’ order layering to allow unique combinations of content. Audio tracks are treated likewise. The user interface allows fast scrubbing through the timeline, as well as the usual pause/stop/play-from-here functions. The movie frames are stored in a proprietary file format. Unlike other formats that use image compression techniques, such as MPEG, the file format can be made to be lossless. The user can now display all the (bits of) information the creator of the content, intended. Audio We have proposed a professional 5.1 surround sound audio system suitable for the 85 seat audience seating area. This includes interfaces to the Global Immersion Audio Server, programmable audio digital signal processor, amplifiers, and speaker cabinets. The audio system is synchronized to the video playback, and integrated to the Theatre Control system. The Audio System options are proven professional series Theatre Systems, which come fully designed and modeled for Immersive theatre applications. This includes audio mapping and appropriate algorithms for the size and characteristics of the Dome Theatre. The installation includes support structures and flying rigging. The Audio System links to the Global Immersion Theatre Control System to give a simple but extremely powerful theatre audio system that can cope comfortably for all types of multimedia applications, and accepts and controls for playback and synchronization of all popular formats such as mp3, WMA and Wav files. We have also provided a professional DVD player, 2 professional series microphones and mixer. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 22 of 60 The user interface is a timeline based GUI, similar to those used in video editing. Video clips and sequences are simply dragged onto the timeline, placed at the desired position. Multiple tracks allow content ‘z’ order layering to allow unique combinations of content. Audio tracks are treated likewise. The user interface allows fast scrubbing through the timeline, as well as the usual pause/stop/play-from-here functions. The movie frames are stored in a proprietary file format. Unlike other formats that use image compression techniques, such as MPEG, the file format can be made to be lossless. The user can now display all the (bits of) information the creator of the content, intended. Audio We have proposed a professional 5.1 surround sound audio system suitable for the 85 seat 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 23 of 60 Theatre Control To harmonize the various hardware and software components proposed and integrate them into a useable and user aware control system, Global Immersion has developed a control system architecture with a modular approach based upon popular and widely adopted hardware. This means that the system is extremely powerful yet cost effective, easy to program and most of all supportable. This core technology is ideal for theatre control, and is proven in the Immersive Theatre environment. We seamlessly tie in playback, lighting and audio, and can layer digital media, and video. It fully integrates all electronic media, lighting, security, doors, pre-show areas, and show management into seamless delivery systems. The user interface(s) defined for the Theatre are one touch screen panels at the operator’s desks with additional roving access throughout the auditorium. Typically the interface is password protected, and has different levels of access. This allows any number of users access and use of the system to the level they are capable or desirous of. The system also integrates to the building management system and can implement procedures in the event of an emergency such as stopping the show, and turning lights on. A central system status database keeps a watch on all these activities and provides the “rules engine” to ensure that the system behaves in a way that is expected. If a user does not have the necessary permission rights to perform a function, then that function is not represented on the iterface (it can be frustrating to have buttons to press but not be allowed to press them!). System status is presented back to the user so that it is clear what is going on, if anything is going wrong and what is available for use at that point in time. User Interface Examples The following user interface example illustrates many of the points discussed in the Theatre Control system section. The exact look and feel of the user interface can be tailored to the exact requirements of the Evolution of Man attraction including corporate logos, or watermarks. Global Immersion has custom designed many user interfaces to reflect the needs and workflow requirements of the individual clients and the needs of the individual user. This screen capture image illustrates a typical scenario where the show operator has selected existing pre-rendered content, or could have selected a real time option in advanced mode. The preset shows can be named, or numbered as required, and then the show operator can play, stop, pause and preview/monitor the playback. Manual options are also available. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 24 of 60 This image shows a screen allowing the selection of external sources for display on the dome and with external audio routed to the main audio system. Production Laptop We have specified a high performance graphics based laptop with Intel i7 quad core CPU and 8GB of Ram with nVidia Quadro GPU architecture. This will allow a flexible approach to show production and the architecture enables importing of rendering from real time applications. The laptop comes with UniView Producer, Adobe Creative Suite Master Edition 5.5, and Navegar dome plug in for Adobe. The following shows a simplified production workflow that can be easily achieved with the offered production capability. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 25 of 60 Real-Time Astronomical Education Software Microsoft World Wide Telescope Software Global Immersion is partnering with Microsoft to bring the WorldWide Telescope (WWT) into the dome. The Microsoft Research team had released WWT to the public as a free resource to the astronomy and education communities with the hope that it will inspire and empower people to explore and understand the universe like never before. WWT has already been installed in some Global Immersion system (Alder Planetarium, Morrison Planetarium and Hayden Planetarium). We are able to offer a WWT installation for the Discovery Museum Dome Theatre. The WWT is a Web 2.0 visualization software environment that enables your computer to function as a virtual telescope—bringing together imagery from the world’s best ground- and space-based telescopes for the exploration of the universe. WWT blends terabytes of images, information, and stories from multiple sources into a seamless, immersive, rich media experience delivered over the Internet. Students of all ages will feel empowered to explore and understand the cosmos using WWT’s simple and powerful user interface. A few of the key features of WWT are:  Access to hundreds of terabytes of sky, earth, and planet data  Ability to navigate seamlessly through 3D spherical environments  Real-time positions of planets and moons  View guided tours  3D Solar System View  View the orbits of hundreds of moons in the Solar System  View Asteroids and Minor planets in 3D  3D navigation of stars, Milky Way and cosmos  Add and view new Orbits, trajectories, and layer data  Connect your Telescope to WWT  Render discrete video frames (for input into a video editing system)  Render frames in dome master (up to 4K). 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 26 of 60 UniView Loaded with scientific content, UniView brings your audience to the science and makes your stories truly meaningful and engaging. While completely interactive, UniView is powered with technologies that make sure every presentation is smooth, intuitive and engaging to the audience. As the leading platform on the planet in recent years, UniView has been developed by industry leaders from museums, science centers and academia. Experiencing the size of the universe in the same context as familiar sites is an enthralling and immersive experience. UniView: Usability The standardized user interface – based on normal Windows components – makes UniView an easy to use and accessible tool for both experts and beginners, minimizing your initial and ongoing training costs. The smooth, cinematic motion, paired with the immersive nature of UniView, brings quality to your interactive presentations and ensures a highly satisfying visitor experience. The advanced computer graphics engine makes UniView as visually spectacular as any modern computer game, capturing the attention and meeting the demands of your visitors. UniView: Flexibility The highly evolved interactivity in UniView lets you do live presentations and virtually travel anywhere, at any time, in the universe; giving you control of your own show and allowing you to interact with your audience. UniView can record live interactive sessions and save to sequences for later playback, providing a simple yet powerful production tool that can reduce costs by orders of magnitude and allow you to update your linear programming more frequently. UniView can produce pre-rendered output in most standard formats, allowing you to produce linear shows and mix live footage with music, narration and post production effects for high end shows that makes your facility stand out. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 27 of 60 UniView: Scalability UniView visualizes science of vastly different scales – from Earth Science and regional GIS data to large scale structures and cosmology, increasing the usability of your display venue and multiplying your target groups. UniView scales to vastly different platforms; Windows PC laptops to large scale cluster installations in public venues, allowing you to use the same tool for all your visualization needs and reuse your knowledge throughout operations. UniView allows remote collaboration and shared experiences between display venues, schools and field experts, giving you the tool to integrate with your local or global community. The Digital Universe is the world's most extensive and accurate 3D atlas of the universe. The interactive database combines the latest astronomical data provided by scientists from around the globe. Developed at the American Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium in conjunction with NASA, the vast database includes stars, star clusters, star-forming regions, multi- wavelength views of the Milky Way, and the latest galaxy and quasar surveys, to name a few. In this vast atlas, these elements are combined to bring you a view of the observable universe, conveying the size and structure of our galaxy and the cosmic web of galaxies that surround us. The Digital Universe includes a comprehensive User's Guide and supplementary training materials consisting of flight paths and accompanying audio narrated by experts from the Hayden Planetarium and AMNH's Rose Center for Earth and Space. These training sessions demonstrate many of the underlying scientific concepts in our galaxy and the cosmos while taking you on an unparalleled journey from the Sun out to the edge of the observable universe. PlanetFX Clouds and atmospheric effects have been packaged into a subsystem called PlanetFX, which is among the most advanced graphical features in UniView. While the effect can be configured in a file, it controls multiple advanced shaders within the core of UniView. The atmosphere is rendered using two passes, first a shader pass that applies to the geometry of the planet in question and then a second pass with new geometry and another shader to render the sky as seen from within the atmosphere. Finally there is a third pass to create the cloud layer with a third shader responsible both for bump mapping and for the clouds casting shadows on the surface of the planet. These last effects are responsible for generating the 3D effect of the clouds, so their thickness and altitude look realistic. Users can control almost all aspects of the atmosphere and cloud rendering. It is possible not only to change all the textures involved or to update the cloud layer or the night side city lights, but also to configure the thickness and other properties of the atmosphere. This flexibility allows the presenter to drive home different points by emphasizing different aspect of the visualization. Astronomy Visualization Visualizing the astronomical and cosmological sciences that modern planetariums are striving to explain to their audiences is what UniView was initially written to do. In particular, UniView was 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 28 of 60 written around the Digital Universe database from the American Museum of Natural History. The feature set has evolved since release 1.0 and has now improved even further in UniView 1.4. THE SCALEGRAPH The Scalegraph was the first ever innovation in UniView It was originally conceived as early as in the fall of 2002 and is a truly elegant solution to some serious visualization obstacles. One of the first challenges faced when integrating a cohesive visualization of the solar system and planets with deep space surveys is dealing with the enormous range of scales present, over 30 orders of magnitude. If you want to go into the micro-cosmos, there are 30 more orders of magnitude in the scientific areas humans have been able to observe. On computers with limited precision in their graphics and CPU pipelines, this poses a challenge. The Scalegraph is a mathematical algorithm that increases the numerical precision and overcomes the challenges involved. Other benefits of the Scalegraph are that it provides a method for nesting coordinate systems. Positions in space are always expressed in relation to some other object, and in a homogenous simulation like UniView, these other objects are also positioned in relation to yet other objects. The Scalegraph is the way for the system to keep track of all these coordinate systems in a structured and efficient way, so the simulation is accurate. Digital Universe Visualization The Digital Universe is the world’s most extensive and accurate 3D atlas of the universe. The database combines the latest astronomical data provided by scientists from around the globe. Developed at the American Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium in conjunction with NASA, the vast database includes stars, star clusters, star-forming regions, multi-wavelength views of the Milky Way and the latest galaxy and quasar surveys, to name a few. In this vast atlas, these elements are combined to bring you a view of the observable universe, conveying the size and structure of our galaxy and the cosmic web of galaxies that surround us. UniView has been equipped with a vast feature set to support visualization of the Digital Universe. Among the features are meshes and point visualization, supported by optimized vertex buffers and shaders. Specific shaders for astronomical objects have been developed, as well as for all-sky surveys and various deep sky objects. All points have motion vectors and the proper motion of stars can be fully simulated. Other astronomical motions are also supported, but as daily and 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 28 of 60 written around the Digital Universe database from the American Museum of Natural History. The feature set has evolved since release 1.0 and has now improved even further in UniView 1.4. THE SCALEGRAPH The Scalegraph was the first ever innovation in UniView It was originally conceived as early as in the fall of 2002 and is a truly elegant solution to some serious visualization obstacles. One of the first challenges faced when integrating a cohesive visualization of the solar system and planets with deep space surveys is dealing with the enormous range of scales present, over 30 orders of magnitude. If you want to go into the micro-cosmos, there are 30 more orders of magnitude in the scientific areas humans have been able to observe. On computers with limited precision in their graphics and CPU pipelines, this poses a challenge. The Scalegraph is a mathematical algorithm that increases the numerical precision and overcomes the challenges involved. Other benefits of the Scalegraph are that it provides a method for nesting coordinate systems. Positions in space are always expressed in relation to some other object, and in a homogenous simulation like UniView, these other objects are also positioned in relation to yet other objects. The Scalegraph is the way for the system to keep track of all these coordinate systems in a structured and efficient way, so the simulation is accurate. Digital Universe Visualization The Digital Universe is the world’s most extensive and accurate 3D atlas of the universe. The database combines the latest astronomical data provided by scientists from around the globe. Developed at the American Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium in conjunction with NASA, the vast database includes stars, star clusters, star-forming regions, multi-wavelength views of the Milky Way and the latest galaxy and quasar surveys, to name a few. In this vast atlas, these elements are combined to bring you a view of the observable universe, conveying the size and structure of our galaxy and the cosmic web of galaxies that surround us. UniView has been equipped with a vast feature set to support visualization of the Digital Universe. Among the features are meshes and point visualization, supported by optimized vertex buffers and shaders. Specific shaders for astronomical objects have been developed, as well as for all-sky 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 29 of 60 precession motion are related more to the movement and simulation of planets they are also described in the planet visualization section. Planet Visualization The beauty of our home planet is a powerful visual impression. When we first saw the Earth up on a dome, we realized we had to how important it was to visualize the earth and many, many datasets in addition to astronomy-related content. Importing Planet Data Sets – What is WMS? WMS is a standardized protocol for feeding image tiles from a server to applications. It is maintained by an organization called the Open Geospatial Consortium, or OGC. This means it is, as far as anything can be, future-proofed. Contrary to other proprietary technologies available for desktop systems, WMS is a collaborative effort from all the member universities, companies and organizations of OGC. There are numerous open source WMS servers that companies can help set up and configure to make your geo-referenced image data available to the public. There are of course also many WMS servers operational already, hosted by organizations such as NASA, NOAA and USGS. Solar Insolation, imagery courtesy of NASA Earth Observatory 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 30 of 60 Media and Information Visualization Ever since UniView 1.0 many features for enhancing and augmenting the information in the realistic visualization of the actual datasets have been developed. We call this set of features ‘information visualization’. To it belong all kinds of grids or markers that give us information that is hidden in the visualization. Equally important is the ability to import media such as text, audio and images, to your system to enhance key points. Media Layers UniView 1.4 offers a feature called media layers. A media layer is an object just like you’re used to, in the object tree, but has the capacity to display 2D media on top of the 3D visualization anywhere on the dome. Users can have multiple media layers at the same time, and sort them between each other, change position, scale and orientation and much more. Spatial Audio UniView 1.4 supports spatial audio, meaning that audio media files can be inserted not only into the system but into any specific spatial location inside the system. This means users can tie an audio stream to for example a planet, and have it start playing when the user comes up close to the planet. Orbit Lines The most fundamental information visualization feature is orbit lines. All planets and moons can be drawn with lines representing their orbits over time. An orbit line can be rendered representing a full period of the astronomical body in question, or rendered to represent a certain span of time. The first is of course useful for the textbook representation of solar and planetary systems, while the latter is useful for example when comparing orbital motions and velocities. A user-controllable feature is included to render periodical orbit lines not as solid lines but as trails with the “current” location of the astronomical body in bright color and the orbit line gradually fading away to full transparency one period back in time. With this feature, UniView lets you visualize not only the textbook representation of a system but also its current state, for example where celestial bodies are located at any given point in time, such as the vernal equinox. The trail feature can of course be disabled and saved that way, as the user wishes. Colors and Effects Colors and effects of orbit lines serve two purposes. First, they make the information visualization more pleasing. Secondly, color and effect can be utilized as a glyph to represent information, which tends to be appreciated at more education oriented customers. For example, it is quite common to color the planet’s orbit lines differently to separate them from each other. For orbits with a fixed starting and ending point, like 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 31 of 60 spacecraft orbits, it is also possible to color different parts of the orbit in different colors. This is good for example to show different phases of a mission in different colors. Octopus Octopus is a feature that enables users to control UniView from another UniView installation. Two or more users connect with each other and one drives the presentation of the others. Octopus has been a great success, for example enabling some portable planetariums to reach out with quality presentations to more remote areas. It also allows experts to visualize data without physically travel to the presentation site. We would like to point out that while Octopus in itself is a fully functioning feature, it does not have any advanced technology to punch through many of the hundreds of firewalls and other security measures that exist on networks around the world. Therefore, users are always advised to test their connection in advance of running an Octopus session in front of an audience. LED Cove Lighting Global Immersion will integrate a comprehensive lighting solution, to include dome theatre LED cove lighting – a fully programmable and controllable system that will enable your staff to instantly change the color, patterning and ambient feel of the theatre. The LED lighting systems will be integrated into the Theatre Control system for quick and easy management of the extensive functionality of the LED lighting in the dome. An example of the Colour touch screen is shown, which interfaces with the DMX lighting controller. Pre-programmed lighting effects, and advanced scene presets are possible along with “on the fly” control and mixing of the primary colours as illustrated. UPS and Power Management UPS We are recommending a UPS system that provides protection of the Dome Theatre equipment by offering power conditioning, surge protection and battery backup. The standard level of UPS 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 32 of 60 offering provides battery back sufficient to allow the safe shut done of all the systems and cooling of the projectors. An enhanced solution is also offered as an upgrade. We recommend APC Smart-UPS systems as they can be easily integrated into the Theatre Control system, and they provide functionality that we feel enhances your endeavour for LEED certification. APC’s PowerChute Business Edition 9.0, which provides safe system shutdown and UPS management, now enables customers to understand their power consumption by reporting on the energy being consumed, cost of the energy and CO2 emissions produced. The latest PowerChute Business Edition calculates the cost of a Smart-UPS’ power draw in kWh using the appropriate local currency, showing how the energy use of protected equipment impacts the bottom line. These devices include an intuitive LCD user interface, high-efficiency ‘green’ mode, a unique projected battery replacement date indicator and switched outlet groups. By using APC Smart-UPS with switched outlet groups and PowerChute, users can configure the exact sequence that equipment shuts down and restarts so that more critical servers stay online longer. Turning off unessential servers outside business hours using the scheduled shutdown and reboot capability in the new software could cover the cost of purchasing an APC Smart-UPS product in about two years, says APC. In addition to energy savings, other potential benefits of DC power distribution in computing environments include improved power quality, reduced cooling needs, higher equipment densities, reduced heat-related failures, improved reliability and simplified, more efficient integration of on- site renewable energy generation. Power Management To compliment the UPS we have incorporated TCP/IP controllable power distribution for the system so that power can be controlled to individual servers and groups of equipment. Documentation and Training Documentation Materials for the manuals will be compiled during site visits, design, build and test of the systems, and during installation and commissioning. Draft manuals will be produced prior to installation. Final ‘as built’ manuals will be produced after final commissioning. Due to the time schedules, final manuals will not be available until after the public opening of the ride. CFL will be invited to review and comment on the manuals to ensure the final versions fully meet your needs and standards. Training Plan A training program will be agreed with Discovery Museum with the aim of the technical team being as self sufficient as possible. Training will be in two stages. The majority of training will be done prior to installation. We invite Discovery Museum staff to Global Immersion premises to view the 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 33 of 60 system under test and to undergo training then. Alternatively training can be done on site at prior to installation. This training covers:  System design and components  System configuration  System operating procedures  Preventative maintenance procedures  Fault diagnosis  Fault fixing The second stage of training takes place as part of system commissioning to familiarise Discovery Museum staff with the actual installed systems and local operational procedures. Training updates and training for new staff will be performed as part of routine maintenance visits. Maintenance and Support We have included our standard Support Agreement as an attachment to this proposal. A spares list has also been provided in the Support Agreement. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 34 of 60 Alternative Display Solutions We have presented our recommended solution which we say will remain the standard for high performance, high resolution displays for the foreseeable future. The tender refers to SXGA+ channel resolution and we would like to address this. A standard display solution using SXGA+ server and projector resolution requires 6 channels and results in a resolution of 2.9K x 2.9K. To achieve a 4K x 4K resolution display using SXGA+ would require 8/9 channels. Such a system would have many operational and cost disadvantages. An alternative display system that we offer would be a Fidelity Bright 3K system. This uses Projection design F32 WUXGA UHP Lamp projectors, and gives a resolution of 3.3K x 3.3K. This is standard Global Immersion product offering installed in many dome theatres and offers a high performance display at a lower cost. The disadvantages over the recommended 4K solution are:  Lower resolution  UHP lamps which increase power usage, noise, and cost of ownership Upgrade Options The following briefly explains some upgrade options that may of value. Audio The audio system included in the recommended theater system is a high quality professional 5.1 surround system that recognizes the relationship of Fort Collins with music. If a high quality sound system is felt more appropriate a desirable then we can offer a range of high end audio systems up to full 3D spatial sound reproduction. Production Suite The production workstation offered in the recommended solution is a starting point for production of custom presentations and small shows, particularly based around content from UniView as the Fort Collins team develops in size and expertise a production suite with more function may become of interest. A high performance workstation:  Dual quad core CPU  16Gb fast RAM  High performance nVidia GTX580 GPU  480GB SSD  2Tb storage drive  Eizo ColorEdge 22” color matched production monitors  Audio system Additional production software and tools 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 35 of 60  3d Studio Max  Maya 3D animation  Premium media pack Racking and connectivity to the main theater systems Mini Dome Global Immersion has developed a number on innovative products that add value as production tools or exhibits. One example is a 1.5m mini dome that can be used as a production preview tool for show production, or in a slightly different format an innovative interactive exhibit. UPS The UPS system offered in the recommended solution provides enough battery back up to safely shut down the system and cool the projectors. If the Discovery Museum would like to have the security that any current show would be completed in the event of a power failure, then we can offer larger UPS systems that would run the entire Digital Dome Theatre System for the length of a show, 30-40 minutes. We have suggested a possible upgrade in the Investment Budget section of this proposal. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 36 of 60 LEED Considerations The Fort Collins Museum of Discovery has indicated that it seeks to obtain Platinum LEED Certification, and that the components of the digital dome theater should take LEED guidelines into consideration. We have engineered our deliverables to consider LEED guidelines and feel that we can help your certification in the following areas. Energy and Atmosphere LED projectors are the most Green projectors available on the market today. Using LED lights as a light source consumes less energy than traditional UHP or Xenon lamps. The LED projectors proposed use 2nd generation solid state LED’s as a light source. These LED lamps are designed to achieve up to 100,000 hours service life. The LED illumination systems do not feature color wheels, which is further energy and cost savings versus UHP or Xenon lamp based projectors. The following chart provides a comparison of the proposed LED projectors to other projectors commonly used in the industry. Projector Power Consumption Comparison Proposed FL35 LED Alternate JVC DLA-SH7 Alternate DLP UHP Lamp Lamp specifications 2nd Generation Solid State LED 330 Watt UHP Lamps x 2 300 Watt UHP Lamps x 2 Power consumption (W) 325 1,230 1,050 Number of projectors 5 2 6 Total power consumption (W) 1,625 2,460 6,300 Estimated annual usage (hrs) 3,000 3,000 3,000 Annual power consumption (kW) 4,875 7,380 18,900 LED projectors consume far less power than any other projector solution available today. The LED illumination also generates a lot less heat than traditional lamp based projectors. Our proposed LED based projectors generate 1,100 BTU/hour, compared to 2,750 BTU/hour for standard UHP lamped DLP projectors. JVC does not publish their projectors specifications, but our engineers have estimated 3,200 BTU/hour for these projectors. The LED projector’s efficiency saves energy, generates less heat, and should help you gain LEED points in the Energy and Atmosphere category. The LED illuminated projectors that we are proposing will also make a significant savings in cost of ownership compared to UHP or Xenon lamp projectors. Since the LED projectors do not have lamps, and the LED light sources are designed to last for 100,000 hours, you will avoid the cost of lamps. Assuming that the projectors are turned on 3,000 hours per year, the following chart demonstrates the cost savings: 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 37 of 60 Cost of Lamp Ownership Proposed FL35 LED Alternate JVC DLA-SH7 Alternate DLP UHP Lamp Lamp specifications 2nd Generation Solid State LED 330 Watt UHP Lamps x 2 300 Watt UHP Lamps x 2 Estimated lamp life 100,000 hours 2,000 hours 2,000 hours Number of lamps per projector 0 2 2 Number of projectors 5 2 6 Number of lamps required annually* 0 6 18 Cost of Lamp (per unit) 0 $1,250 $825 Annual cost of lamps 0 $7,500 $14,850 * Assumes that the theater will be on 3,000 hours per year Regional Priority By utilizing Global Immersions Denver office and personnel, your facility can demonstrate its commitment to utilize local resources. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 38 of 60 Project Management The Global Immersion Project delivery model is based on the Prince 2 2009 process model. This model is specifically oriented to the size and complexity of projects such as CFL. All of our Project Managers are Prince 2 accredited and have a wealth of experience delivering complex projects worldwide to exacting specifications and schedules. Resourcing and Management Every Global Immersion project has a dedicated, experienced Project Manager, who manages the project from start to finish. Project Managers and Project Engineers are also involved in the Bid stage prior to contract award and have had technical, schedule and resource input the project. Our operations Team have a manager responsible for all resourcing allocation. The Resource Manager works closely with all project managers to allocate the required skills at the required time for all projects. We perform forward load planning based on sales activities to ensure that there are sufficient resources and the required skills and experience available to undertake projects for which we are bidding. The requirement to open the refurbished motion ride in time for summer half term which starts on 2 June 2012 is within our resource plan, and we can commit to install and commission the ride to meet these dates. All engineering works requested and managed using Work Package Controls. Each subset of work has a detailed specification, schedule, skill set, and quality criteria to ensure that the work is carried out to fulfil the project requirement. The resourcing of projects is managed as a total program of all projects and internal activities. Conflicts are managed by changing the order of activities within the total delivery program, whilst maintaining commitment to delivery of key project dates. Monitoring and Reporting The project manager holds regular internal project reviews with the project team. CFL are part of the project team and will be asked to provide input at appropriate stages regarding progress of activities on site. Global Immersion’s Head of Operations runs a weekly internal project review with all project managers. These reviews track progress of project activity compared to the base plan, track spending in line with budgets, identify and mitigate risks, determine and approve variations. This allows issues to be highlighted and rapid remedial actions to be taken. It also performs review and approval of reports issued to clients. Our clients often have individual needs for reporting. As part of the project planning stage we will agree with you the information you would like to be reported and the regularity of the reporting. Typically this varies according to the stage of the project. In general terms reporting takes the form of brief documented reports, regular conference calls, photographs, and site visits at appropriate times. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 39 of 60 Dome Theatre Media Package Global Immersion presents three examples of media package based on a select range of digital fulldome media. These packages and media lists are not exhaustive and are purely illustrative of the license fees and durations applicable to your theater. Within each package, a balance of astronomy, science and entertainment media has been proposed with varying license terms, each selected to target a range of audience demographics. Global Immersion can offer/price for shows beyond those offered within this document from its extensive media catalog, however for this purpose, the stated shows have been selected based upon their high quality visual, narration and story, and their relevance to today’s curriculum and science-related topics. We can also work with you to let you pick and choose programs to make your own custom show package. Astronomy Wildest Weather in the Solar System Join National Geographic on a spectacular journey to witness the most beautiful, powerful, and mysterious weather phenomena in the solar system. From a storm the size of a 100-megaton hydrogen bomb, to a 400-year-old hurricane, to a dust tempest that could engulf entire planets, you'll be glad you live on Earth! Audiences will fly through the thick atmosphere of Venus, magnetic storms on the sun, liquid methane showers on Titan, and anticyclones whirling at hundreds of miles per hour on Jupiter. Packed with eye-popping visuals, high-end CGI, and cutting-edge science, Wildest Weather in the Solar System is now available for your digital fulldome theater! Produced by National Geographic Running time: 24 minutes Available in both 2D and 3D Suitable for family audiences and school groups We are Astronomers Do you know what an astronomer does? Today’s astronomer is not the lone observer of past centuries. We Are Astronomers reveals the global collaboration, technology and dedication required to answer the unresolved questions of the Universe. We Are Astronomers narrated by David Tennant is an exciting new 360° fulldome digital planetarium show produced by NSC Creative with input from UK astronomers. Produced by NSC Creative Approximate running time: 20 minutes Suitable for family audiences and school groups 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 40 of 60 Astronaut The exploration of space is the greatest endeavor that humankind has ever undertaken. What does it take to be part of this incredible journey? What does it take to become an astronaut? Astronaut, the latest immersive planetarium show created by the National Space Centre, takes you from Earth into space…and beyond. Experience a rocket launch from inside the body of an astronaut. Explore the amazing worlds of inner and outer space, from floating around the International Space Station to maneuvering through microscopic regions of the human body. Discover the perils that lurk in space as we subject “Chad,” our test astronaut, to everything that space has to throw at him. Presented in stunning high-definition 360-degree fulldome video and explosive surround sound, Astronaut is an experience like nothing on Earth. Produced by NSC Creative Approximate running time: 20 minutes Suitable for family audiences and school groups Big Birds Adventure Elmo and Big Bird live in the United States and Hu Hu Zhu lives far away in China, but they discovered that they still see the same stars at night! Produced by Sesame Workshop, the Beijing Planetarium, Adler Planetarium, and Liberty Science Center with major funding provided by the National Science Foundation. Approximate running time: 27 minutes IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System Designed for visitors with an appreciation for the challenges of space science and a desire to learn more about science research, IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System follows the creation of NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX). Audiences will get an in-depth look at the mission and how IBEX is collecting high-speed atoms to create a map of our Solar System's boundary. Narrated by two inquisitive teenagers, audiences will hear from the scientists and engineers that developed the IBEX mission and created the spacecraft, and get the latest updates on the mission's discoveries IBEX is the most recently-launched mission of NASA's series of low-cost, rapidly developed Small Explorers spacecraft. The Southwest Research Institute, led by Principal Investigator David McComas, Ph.D., leads the IBEX mission that includes a team of national and international partners. The IBEX’s Education and Public Outreach efforts are led by the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, IL. The Adler worked with NASA and SwRI to produce the space show IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System with visualizations from the National Center for 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 41 of 60 Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System has been funded by NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission. Appropriate for: Advanced Interest Length: 28 minutes Two Small Pieces of Glass While attending a local star party, two students learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and how the telescopes continue to expand our understanding of the Universe. Their conversation with a local astronomer enlightens them on the history of the telescope and the discoveries these wonderful tools have made. The students see how telescopes work and hw the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the mysteries of the universe. While looking through the astronomer’s telescope, the students, along with the planetarium audience, explore the Galilean Moons, Saturn’s rings, and the spiral structure of galaxies. During their conversation with the astronomer, the also learn about the discoveries of Galileo, Huygens, Newton, Hubble and many others. Engaging and appealing to audiences of all ages, Two Small Pieces of Glass traces the history of the telescope from Galileo’s modifications to a child’s spyglass-using two small pieces of glass – to the launch of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the future of astronomy. It explores the wonder and discovery made by astronomers throughout the last 400 years. Run time: 30 minutes Perfect Little Planet After more than a year in the making, Clark Planetarium Productions has unveiled its most innovative show since 'The Secret of the Cardboard Rocket'. The show is revolutionary on a number of fronts: 4K resolution that utilizes detailed assets to take full advantage of the 4K environment; a frame rate of 60 frames per second to provide smoother motion, sharper definition, and clearer colors. (The show is also available in 30fps for those theaters who do not yet have systems to support the higher frame rate). So what is the theme of the show? Imagine the ultimate space vacation! What if you could travel the galaxy to find that ideal place? Discover our solar system through a new set of eyes - a family from another star system seeking the perfect vacation spot. Fly over the surface of Pluto, our best known Dwarf Planet. Dive over the ice cliffs of Miranda. Sail through the rings of Saturn. Feel the lightning storms at Jupiter. And walk on the surface of Mars. Which destination would you choose? This is the solar system journey for travelers of all ages. 'Perfect Little Planet' serves the same ages and covers the same curriculum as the popular 'Secret of the Cardboard Rocket' show. AVAILABLE MARCH 2012 Produced by Clark Planetarium Productions Approximate run time: 35 minutes 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 41 of 60 Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System has been funded by NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission. Appropriate for: Advanced Interest Length: 28 minutes Two Small Pieces of Glass While attending a local star party, two students learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and how the telescopes continue to expand our understanding of the Universe. Their conversation with a local astronomer enlightens them on the history of the telescope and the discoveries these wonderful tools have made. The students see how telescopes work and hw the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the mysteries of the universe. While looking through the astronomer’s telescope, the students, along with the planetarium audience, explore the Galilean Moons, Saturn’s rings, and the spiral structure of galaxies. During their conversation with the astronomer, the also learn about 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 42 of 60 Suitable for younger/general audiences and school groups Life: A Cosmic Story Life takes audiences on an immersive, all-digital journey, featuring visualizations based on the latest scientific data. “The show’s core concept is that all life on Earth is related, having evolved from a common ancestor,” says Ryan Wyatt, Director of Morrison Planetarium and Science Visualization. “Taking an even longer view, we see that life’s origins begin with dark matter and the first stars — our pedigree is actually 13.7 billion years in the making.” Narrated by two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster, Life begins in a grove of towering redwoods, majestic emblems of Northern California. From there, the audience “shrinks” dramatically as it enters a single redwood leaf and then a redwood cell, learning that despite their unique appearance, redwoods are composed of the same basic molecules as all other organisms on Earth. After this opening statement of shared ancestry, the audience launches on a journey through time, witnessing key events since the Big Bang that set the stage for life. The first stars ignite, galaxies coalesce, and entire worlds take shape. On the early Earth, two scenarios for the dawn of life are presented — one near a turbulent, deep-sea hydrothermal vent, and the other in a primordial “hot puddle” on a volcanic island. From these microscopic beginnings, life transformed the entire Earth as it evolved and diversified: filling the atmosphere with oxygen, turning the continents green, and altering global climate patterns. The 25- minute show ends with a review of geological evidence and the connectedness of all living things on Earth. To ensure that the show is as scientifically accurate and up-to-date as possible, the Academy drew on the expertise of several advisers who are leaders in their fields: Dr. Jill Tarter, Director of the Center for SETI Research at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, consulted on the show with her extensive knowledge of astrobiology and the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life. Tarter provided the real-life inspiration for Jodie Foster’s character in the 1997 film Contact, and she is also a Fellow and Trustee of the California Academy of Sciences. Three scientists from the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) in Mountain View provided expertise as well: Dr. Carl Pilcher, Director of NAI; Dr. David Des Marais, Principal Investigator of NAI’s Ames Research Center team; and Dr. Tori Hoehler, Research Scientist with the NAI Ames team. Their collective research efforts focus on the origins, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the Universe. Des Marais, who is heavily involved in the current Mars missions, gave insight into the possibility of life on Earth’s next-door neighbor. Pilcher, Des Marais, and Hoehler are all Fellows of the Academy. Dr. David Deamer of the University of California, Santa Cruz, consulted on the chemical origins of life, especially for the “hot puddle” scenario depicted in the show. The Academy also drew on its own scientists to ensure that even the tiniest details were accurate: botanically sound depictions of the redwood leaf and leaf interior; a realistic computer-generated ant along with its zig-zag walking pattern; and an appropriate selection of birdsongs for the redwood grove, taken from recordings made by former 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 42 of 60 Suitable for younger/general audiences and school groups Life: A Cosmic Story Life takes audiences on an immersive, all-digital journey, featuring visualizations based on the latest scientific data. “The show’s core concept is that all life on Earth is related, having evolved from a common ancestor,” says Ryan Wyatt, Director of Morrison Planetarium and Science Visualization. “Taking an even longer view, we see that life’s origins begin with dark matter and the first stars — our pedigree is actually 13.7 billion years in the making.” Narrated by two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster, Life begins in a grove of towering redwoods, majestic emblems of Northern California. From there, the audience “shrinks” dramatically as it enters a single redwood leaf and then a redwood cell, learning that despite their unique appearance, redwoods are composed of the same basic molecules as all other organisms on Earth. After this opening statement of shared ancestry, the audience launches on a journey through time, witnessing key events since 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 43 of 60 Academy curator Luis Baptista. To produce the show’s complex imagery, the Academy’s Visualization Studio collaborated with Stanford University and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. In May 2010, the Academy’s Visualization Studio was one of four recipients of the international FullDome Award of Excellence for its inaugural production Fragile Planet. The collective experience of its staff in the visual effects industry totals more than 120 years, including work at Industrial Light & Magic, Pixar, and Lucasfilm Animation. Produced by the California Academy of Sciences Visualization Studio Narrated by Sigourney Weaver Running time: 25 minutes Evolution / Science Natural Selection Join the young Charles Darwin on an adventurous voyage of exploration circumnavigating the world with the HMS Beagle. In Victorian times many physical phenomena were already discovered and described by natural laws, but life’s most eloquent mechanism was still unknown: How could new species arise to replace those lost in extinction? It was time for someone to stand up and come forth with a naturalist explanation of this mystery of mysteries. Witness the thrill of scientific discovery by seeing the world through Darwin’s eyes, make observations of the most beautiful natural scenery and let the pieces of the scientific puzzle slowly but surely fall into place. Allow Darwin himself to reveal this simple and most beautiful mechanism that explains the evolution of all life on Earth: natural selection, the single most wonderful idea anyone has ever had. Produced by Mirage3D Running time: 40 minutes Suitable for family audiences and school groups Available in both 2D and 3D stereo Origins of Life Origins of Life deals with some of the most profound questions of life science: the origin of life and the human search for life beyond Earth. Starting with the Big Bang, in chronological order, the show deals with prebiotic chemistry in the universe, the formation of stars, formation of solar systems, and the first life on Earth. Furthermore, Origins of Life covers the great extinctions as well as our search for (primitive) life beyond planet Earth. Origins of Life is a motivational journey through time and a celebration of life on Earth. It features many recent discoveries related to life science, demonstrating to the youth that if there was ever a time that science made it greatest advances, it would be right now! Narrated by Lord Robert Winston. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 44 of 60 Produced by Mirage3D Running time: 24 minutes Suitable for family audiences and school groups Kaluoka’hina: Enchanted Reef The vastness of our planet’s oceans guards unimaginable secrets. One of its most precious is Kaluoka’hina, the enchanted reef whose magic protects it against humans finding it. Kaluoka’hina’s colorful inhabitants have thus always lived in peace…until the volcano erupts, and the spell is broken. Now it’s up to the young sawfish Jake and his paranoid pal Shorty to restore the magic of Kaluoka’hina. Their only lead: the ancient legend that tells of touching the moon… But how is a fish supposed to touch the moon? This is just one of the intriguing puzzles that Jake and Shorty have to solve on their most exciting adventure ever: the quest to save their beloved reef. See what many are hailing as “the most ambitious and professional production for the dome to date.” In a production that sets a new standard for fulldome shows, Kaluoka’hina is all that and more. As much a technological marvel as it is a wonderfully entertaining and visually captivating show. Produced by Softmachine Running time: 32 minutes Suitable for family audiences Nanocam: A Trip into Biodiversity The show that shrinks you down to the size of an insect and flies you through the eye of a needle Nanocam is a microscopic joyride into the five kingdoms of living things. With the latest 3D animation technology it offers a unique, motivating, didactic and funny approach to living things that has never been seen like this before. The perfect show to celebrate United Nations Decade on Biodiversity, stimulate interest into science and evoke an investigative spirit among young people. Nanocam is an invitation to think about what life is. Produced by El Exilio Approximate running time: 27 minutes Suitable for school groups and family audiences 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 45 of 60 Music / Entertainment Rock on Demand This is a visual library used for choreography with classical rock music, The title reflects the way Clark Planetarium presents the show letting the audience choose from an ever- expanding library of great rock classics and original imagery. But it doesn’t have to be used that way! The selections can be mixed up or changed however your producers and presenters see fit. The show also provides several opportunities for the infusion of auxiliary effects for live performance elements. These are not required to make the show ‘work’ but they will help offer variety and change for your audiences. Music performance licenses (ASCAP and BMI) are the responsibility of the performing institution Produced by Clark Planetarium Run time: 80 minutes to choose from Voices in the Dark Enter a magical world. Dare to believe your eyes. Nothing here is just what it seems at first glance: a postcard as a portal to a lost city, tarot cards which come to life or floating ballet dancers in virtual worlds. A symphony of sounds, pictures and emotions takes you away to a mysterious universe. Produced by Dramatico and Mindgames Productions Approximate running time 43 minutes SpacePark360 Welcome to SpacePark360, a modular fulldome feature experience! This state-of-the-art fulldome program combines entertainment with an out-of-this-world immersive experience. Viewers will be transported to surreal vistas and experience the most thrilling amusement park rides the solar system has to offer. Seen from the rider’s perspective, SpacePark360 takes the state-of-the-art technologies of fulldome systems and combines them with heart pounding thrill rides to create a unique entertainment show never seen before on the dome. From the tops of Jupiter’s clouds to the icy depths of Neptune’s moon Triton, each location serves to heighten the thrilling experience. Mastered at 4K, SpacePark360 is a revolutionary approach to fulldome entertainment, in that the show can be modular. Theaters can purchase the entire SpacePark360 show (consisting of nine rides, interstitial scenes, sound effects, and programming) or elect to purchase individual rides. If individual rides are purchased, the full purchase price of the rides may be applied to the cost of the full show. Additional options include the Geodesium Edition featuring a custom 5.1 score by Geodesium. SpacePark360 and SpacePark360: Geodesium Edition are available. SpacePark360 allows theaters to select or produce their own sound tracks to accompany the visuals*. SpacePark360: Geodesium Editionconsists of an accompanying sound track 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 46 of 60 with all performance rights included. * For SpacePark360, music purchase and performance license (eg. ASCAP/BMI) are the responsibility of the performing institution; images only supplied. Geodesium Edition includes licensed music. Produced by Dome3D LLC. Approximate running time: 38 minutes for the full show / or 9 minutes per individual show 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 47 of 60 Media Package Options Option 1 Theme Target Show Duration License Fee $$ Astronomy Advanced interest / older audiences IBEX 28 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Two Small Pieces of Glass 30 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Wildest Weather in the Solar System 24 min 1 yr $12,000 Astronomy General audiences with focus on school groups and younger audiences We are Astronomers 20 min 5 yrs $13,000 Astronomy General audiences with focus on younger audiences Big Bird’s Adventure 27 min 5 yrs $15,000 Astronomy/ Underwater General audiences with focus on younger audiences Kaluoka’hina: Enchanted Reef 32 min 5 yrs $9,000 Bioscience General audiences and school groups Nanocam: A Trip into Biodiversity 27 min 50 yrs $10,000 Astronomy/ Music/ Entertainment All audiences – good for younger SpacePark360 (one show/ride) 9 min perpetual $5,120 Music All audiences Rock on Demand 80 min to choose from perpetual $13,500 Music Older audiences Voices in the Dark 43 min 1 yr $8,000 $85,620 Option 2 Theme Target Show Duration License Fee $$ Astronomy Advanced interest / older audiences IBEX 28 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Two Small Pieces of Glass 30 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Wildest Weather in the Solar System 24 min 3 yrs $17,500 Astronomy/ 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 48 of 60 Option 3 Theme Target Show Duration License Fee$$ Astronomy Advanced interest / older audiences IBEX 28 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Two Small Pieces of Glass 30 min 50 yrs FREE Astronomy General audiences and school groups Wildest Weather in the Solar System 24 min 1 yr $17,500 Astronomy/ Evolution General audiences and school groups Life: A Cosmic Story 3 yrs $12,000 Astronomy General audiences with focus on school groups and younger audiences Astronaut 1 yr $12,500 Astronomy General audiences with focus on school groups and younger audiences We are Astronomers 20 min 5 yrs $13,000 Astronomy General audiences with focus on younger audiences Big Bird’s Adventure 27 min 1 yr $11,250 Music All audiences Rock on Demand 80 min to choose from 1 yr $8,000 Bioscience General audiences and school groups Nanocam: A Trip into Biodiversity 27 min 50 yrs $10,000 $78,750 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 49 of 60 Unique Content Programming Global Immersion has also partnered with Boston Productions Inc. to offer a separately priced unique, customized show experience designed specifically for your new digital dome. Our technical know-how, combined with our creative experience would produce an engaging, inventive and imaginative program that acts as orientation, inspiration and enrichment for the Fort Collins Discovery Center. There are endless possibilities for an effort like this, so the scope of effort is very broad and will have to be defined in order to accurately provide a cost. However, we have given this idea a lot of thought and would like to give you an example of what can be done. As starting point, we have envisioned a 5 to 7 minute completely original program that would feature all of the major gallery themes that are in the current schematic design. These themes would be displayed on the dome and bound together with Music. We choose music because live music and entertainment are a big piece of the local culture of the City of Fort Collins. Throughout the year, music is celebrated throughout the historic downtown, and bringing it into the dome would add to the City’s rich history of music. First, imagine an original music score played by an ensemble of musical groups, using members of the Fort Collins Symphony, the Youth Orchestra of the Rockies, and the Foothills Pops Band. Now break down the music to specific instruments and musicians: strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion, keyboards, and others. The players with their instruments would appear around the Dome. (It’s a big dome.) They would surround the visitors with chords of energy. Each ensemble would have an exhibit gallery theme associated with its musical composition. By matching complementary visuals to the musical composition, we would tell the stories of the galleries visitors are about to experience. There would be no narration, just music. (And maybe a few choice text graphics.) Imagine the stories unfolding like this… Off to the right side of the dome, string players would mellifluously fly us through the natural beauty of Fort Collins, which is nestled on the Front Range of the Rockies, along the Cache la Poudre and Poudre Canyon, over the Horsetooth Reservoir, and past Horsetooth Mountain. With the crash of percussion players, to the left side of the dome, the bucolic scenes of nature would be shattered with the fury of massive thunderstorms. Lightning bolts and thunder would roar overhead and guests would be treated to images of the devastating floods that have been a fixture in Fort Collins’ history. Woodwinds and their players would rise up in front of the dome and visitors would be treated to a brief and energetic overview of Fort Collins’ history through the lens of local transportation. This 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 50 of 60 would scale from the wagons plying the Overland and Cherokee Trails to trains, the historic trolley Car 21 and finally to the love of the area by contemporary cyclists as people “Bike Fort Collins.” Brass players would interrupt our walk down memory lane and take us through the fossil record before bringing us forward to today’s bio-diverse region. Imagine here images of fossils, the archaeological record, and the variety of plants and animals that visitors will find both inside the center’s walls and beyond in the city’s natural areas. As the tempo builds to a climax, the music and musicians would literally converge from the various quadrants of the dome into a full orchestra, centered in the dome, with the full range of exhibit themes/visuals, water, local history, music, and energy, swirling around the periphery of the visitor’s gaze. We see this show as an aural and visual celebration of all that is Fort Collins. The above example is just one idea. We’d like to explore these possibilities with you. If you would like to pursue this path, then we can coordinate a separate meeting between the Museum Staff, Global Immersion, and Boston Productions with the goal of defining a scope and cost for this effort. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 51 of 60 Appendices Appendix 1 – Company Registration Certificate Appendix 2 – Health & Safety Policy Appendix 3 – Site Risk Assessment Appendix 4 – Quality Assurance Plan Appendix 5 – Environmental Management Policy Appendix 6 – DMNS / HP Case Study Appendix 7 – Engineering Drawing Pack 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 52 of 60 Investment Budget The following describes the pricing and options of the Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre project. The following applies to the prices quoted:  All prices are firm fixed and quoted in US Dollars  Shipping is DDP, Discovery Museum, Fort Collins, CO, USA  Price includes scaffolding used for the dome installation  Local, state and federal taxes are not included in the quotation. Funding Management We are aware that fundraising for the project is still ongoing and that there is likely to be a need to phase the expenditure of the Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre. We are able to offer you two suggestions that may be of assistance and interest. 1. As an example we would offer to install Microsoft WorldWide Telescope initially then upgrade to UniView when funding is available. The hardware will be fully configured ready for the UniView installation which is a straightforward process. There may be other options to unbundle the solution to assist with staged funding that we could explore with you. 2. A range of project financing options are available through a UK Government initiative to provide UK manufacturing exporters with the ability to offer a medium-term finance option to overseas buyers in support of the sale of capital goods and services. Global Immersion is able to take advantage of this program and if it was of interest to you would be happy to explore the possibilities of this scheme with the City of Fort Collins to accelerate the implementation of the Digital Dome Theatre. 3. The Unique Content Programming can be added to any of the Project Phases, or can be developed some time in the future. The scope and timing of this type of effort can be tailored to suit your needs and budget. There are some options and upgrades included in this offer. Once the City of Fort Collins has decided what full package it prefers we will be able to review pricing on a full package basis. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 53 of 60 Summary The following shows the summary investment for our recommended solution across the 3 phases of implementation. Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Total Full dome screen Astro-tec 36ft screen 179,950 179,950 Main theatre system True 4K LED 574,000 574,000 UniView Theater license 51,000 51,000 UPS Standard protection 19,000 19,000 Production Standard workstation 21,000 21,000 Shows Option 1 85,620 85,620 Maintenance 2 year premium support 50,285 50,285 Total $179,950 $644,000 $156,905 $980,855 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 54 of 60 Phase 1 (choose one Dome option) Astro-tec Ultimate Seam $179,950 Spitz NanoSeam $214,395 Full dome screen Aluminum perforated screen 36ft diameter, 162o vertical field of view, 20 o tilt Cove trough, 360o For LED cove lighting Ladder For access to the rear and top of the dome Shipping Delivery to site DDP, Incoterms 2000 Installation Installation and scaffolding 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 55 of 60 Phase 2 Recommended Main Theatre system (choose one Display option) Fidelity Bright™ 4k $574,000 Projection 5 x Projectiondesign FL35 DLP LED projectors Global Immersion DomePerfect blending system True 4K resolution (4.3K x 4.3K) Video Fidelity PlayTM 5 x Global Immersion Media Server 1 x Global Immersion Audio Server Remote capture Real time video and audio capture from external devices Full dome display capable Software Microsoft WorldWide Telescope Global Media Director Audio Professional 5.1 audio system 3 x LCR cabinets 2 x surround cabinets 2 x subwoofer cabinets 3 x amplifiers 1 x sub amplifier Digital signal processor 2 x professional wireless microphones and mixer Professional DVD player Audio cabling Flying rigs and mounts for speakers Integration to Theatre Control System LED cove lighting LED cove lighting Red, green, blue addressable segments 16-bit precision Integration to Theatre Control System Control Global Immersion Theatre Control iPad touch panel interface Monitors and keyboard TCP/IP and DMX control Media pack Global Immersion Standard Media Pack Infrastructure Racks, digital video cabling, network and control cabling, projector mounts 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 56 of 60 Optional Main Theatre system Fidelity Bright™ 3k $398,000 Projection 5 x Projectiondesign F32 DLP projectors Global Immersion DomePerfect blending system 3k resolution (3.3k x 3.3k) Video FidelityTM Play 3 x Global Immersion Media Server 1 x Global Immersion Audio Server Remote capture Real time video and audio capture from external devices Full dome display capable Software Microsoft WorldWide Telescope Global Media Director Audio Professional 5.1 audio system 3 x LCR cabinets 2 x surround cabinets 2 x subwoofer cabinets 3 x amplifiers 1 x sub amplifier Digital signal processor 2 x professional wireless microphones and mixer Professional DVD player Audio cabling Flying rigs and mounts for speakers Integration to Theatre Control System LED cove lighting LED cove lighting Red, green, blue addressable segments 16-bit precision Integration to Theatre Control System Control Global Immersion Theatre Control iPad touch panel interface TCP/IP and DMX control Media pack Global Immersion Standard Media Pack Infrastructure Racks, digital video cabling, network and control cabling, projector mounts Services – For Either Display Option Included Project management Shipping Delivery to site DDP, Incoterms 2000 Installation Commissioning Training Standard onsite training syllabus Documentation Systems manuals, as built engineering schematics 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 57 of 60 Additional Systems UniView UniView Real-time Application, theater license $51,000 UPS APC Smart-UPS PowerChute Business Edition Sufficient battery time to enable safe shutdown of the system and projectors Integration to the Theatre Control System $19,000 Phase 3 Production Workstation $21,000 Laptop i7 quad core CPU; 8GB of Ram; nVidia Quadro GPU UniView UniView Producer Production Software Adobe CS Master Collection 5.5 Navegar full dome plug-in for Adobe Shipping Delivery to site DDP, Incoterms 2000 Shows See “Dome Theatre Media Package” Option 1 An example of a possible media package $85,620 Option 2 An example of a possible media package $91,000 Option 3 An example of a possible media package $78,750 Shipping Included Installation Included Maintenance 2 year support Refer to separate Support Agreement Support $40,785 Onsite spares $9,500 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 58 of 60 Upgrade Options Production Workstation Audio Upgrade from $34,000 Production suite Upgrade price $37,000 Mini dome $56,960 UPS Full show protection, upgrade price $17,000 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 59 of 60 General Exclusions The following are not included in this proposal, need to be considered or will be provided by others:  Supply and installation, containment and termination of all high voltage cables. This should be carried out by the site electrical contractor installed in accordance under local regulations  Cable containment for low voltage and fiber cables  Local power  Air conditioning  Structural fixtures  Site storage and security of equipment during installation 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 60 of 60 Standard Terms and Conditions In order to submit this offer we make a number of assumptions. Some of the key assumptions are listed below. A copy of the Full Global Immersion Terms & Conditions is available upon request.  A Construction Site Readiness Certificate is required to formally indicate the clients site preparation is ready for the installation process to commence.  Compliance with European Union Health and Safety and Manual Handling Directive regulations or similar International Regulations is required by all parties, and the mutual creation of a suitable working environment for these directives to apply within.  Delivery of the equipment priced is based normally on 14-26 weeks from contract award. But is subject to the individual project requirements as discussed, or specified by the client.  Installation of the equipment is to Fort Collins, Colorado, USA. Payment Terms The following are Global Immersion’s suggested payment terms and are subject to negotiation should we be awarded the contract. These payment terms would apply to each of the three phases independently. # Milestone Description % 1 Advance payment 30.0% 2 System design acceptance 30.0% 3 Equipment delivered 25.0% 4 System acceptance 10.0% 5 Final completion (all documentation, training complete) 5.0% Ownership of design and equipment will pass to the Client when all milestone payments have been paid and received by the Supplier. Health & Safety Information and Responsibilities Contents 1. Introduction and policy. 2. Health and safety responsibilities 3. Risk assessments 4. Information, instruction, training & supervision 5. Monitoring health and safety 6. Safety signs & notices 7. Fire drills 8. First aid 9. Reporting incidents 10. Guidance on office health and safety 11. Work outside normal hours 12. Electrical equipment 13. Display Screen Equipment - DSE 14. Manual handling 15. Use of ladders 16. Personal Protective Equipment - PPE 17. On Site work 18. Vehicle Use 19. Consultation with staff 20. Further information, help and advice Appendix 1: Types of fire extinguishers & their safe use Appendix 2: Guidance on office health and safety Dec 2010 - 2 - Dec 2010 1. Introduction The Health & Safety Policy, which is reviewed at least annually, is written for the staff of Global Immersion Ltd. It is the intention of Global Immersion Ltd to provide safe and healthy working conditions for staff and we will take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure such conditions are achieved and maintained. In addition, we will endeavour to ensure that our work activities do not adversely affect the health and safety of anyone else, such as other staff members, suppliers, visitors and contractors. Further detailed information on control measures in place to minimise specific risks can be found in risk assessment Section 3 below. 2. Health and Safety Responsibilities i) Manager Day-to-day responsibility for health and safety is delegated to David Lewis, whose duties and responsibilities are:  To identify health and safety hazards, assess risks and devise appropriate control measures to protect staff and others.  To maintain appropriate records relating to health and safety management (i.e. risk assessments, maintenance registers, accident books, workplace inspections etc.);  To ensure staff are provided with adequate information, instruction and training on risks to their health and safety and safe working procedures they must follow (see Section 4);  To ensure appropriate health and safety equipment is provided and used by staff;  To follow the accident and incident reporting procedure, including formal reporting to the Health and Safety Executive, and to investigate all accidents and incidents to identify appropriate preventive measures;  To regularly monitor and review risk assessments and health and safety procedures and performance (see Section 5);  To consult with employees on matters affecting their health and safety.  To develop a positive health and safety culture within the team and lead by example. ii) Employees Every employee has a responsibility to ensure their own health and safety, and to ensure others are not put at risk by their acts or omissions at work. In particular, employees’ duties and responsibilities are:  To understand and comply with the organisation’s health and safety policies and procedures and those specific to their role.  To always act in a manner so as to ensure their own health and safety at work and that of others who may be affected by their work activities.  To report accidents, symptoms of work-related ill health, damage to the building or equipment, near misses (that might have resulted in injury or damage), and other health and safety hazards, promptly. - 3 - Dec 2010 3. Risk assessments The H&S Manager will ensure that all significant health and safety risk (to both employees and non-employees) arising from the work activities of the team are assessed to a suitable and sufficient standard, as required by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations. A Register of Risk Assessments will be maintained by the H&S Manager. Copies of the Register and individual risk assessments will be available to all staff. Risk assessment will be used to identify priorities and set objectives for eliminating hazards and reducing risks. Wherever possible, risks will be avoided or eliminated through the appropriate selection and design of facilities, equipment and processes. If risks cannot be eliminated, they will be reduced, as far as is reasonably practicable, by the provision of physical controls, training and systems of work or, as a last resort, personal protective equipment. Risk assessments will be reviewed every 12 months, or sooner in the event of significant legislative changes or changes to the work or workplace to which an assessment relates, or following any accidents or near misses which highlight deficiencies in existing control measures. 4. Information, instruction, training and supervision Staff will be provided with sufficient health and safety information, instruction and training to ensure they are aware of the hazards in the workplace and know what safe working procedures to follow to reduce the risk of injury or work-related ill health, to themselves and others. Training will take the form of (a) induction training on recruitment; (b) training when new tasks and equipment are introduced and (c) refresher training where necessary to update skills and knowledge. A Health & Safety Notice board is provided in the main office. It displays as a minimum:  The Health & Safety Policy  “Fire - What you should do” notice;  List of First Appointed Persons;  Health and Safety Law poster; 5. Monitoring health and safety Health and safety performance will be monitored on an ongoing basis and reviewed at least annually, through the review of risk assessments, accident, ill health and incident records, and the results of workplace and equipment inspections. Any necessary action will then be taken so as to improve our overall health and safety performance, 6. Safety signs and notices Information on safety signs is available on www.hse.gov.uk website. Suitable signs are displayed around the premises. eg:  To indicate type and location of fire extinguishers  To indicate fire escape route and fire exits  Where Personal Protective Equipment should be worn.  Where access is restricted to authorised persons only  To denote the presence of specific hazards. - 4 - Dec 2010 7. Fire Drills Full evacuation fire drills are held at least once per year. Fire alarm testing will be carried out (denoted by a short ring of the alarm at predetermined time). Procedure in the event of a fire or other emergency The full fire alarm is a continuous tone. If a fire should occur in the building sound the fire alarm (at one of the nearest fire alarm call points located in the office by the fire exits, stairs or entrance hall. The fire alarm automatically connects through to the fire brigade office. Then leave the building and assemble outside following the evacuation procedure outlined below: Emergency Evacuation Procedure:  Switch off machinery if practicable, but don’t waste time shutting down your computer etc.  Leave the building by the nearest fire escape route in a calm manner, closing doors and windows behind you. Follow the green Fire Exit/running man signs. DO NOT RUN.  Do not delay by collecting your possessions.  Follow the instructions of your Fire Warden if you are unsure of what to do.  Proceed to the fire assembly point at the front of the Building in the car park at the signed Muster Point and report to your nominated person and await further instructions.  If you have to go through a smoke filled room, keep low to avoid inhaling smoke (smoke inhalation is the main cause of death during a fire).  If you suspect there is a fire the other side of a door (i.e. if it is warm to touch), do not open it unless you have to.  If someone’s clothes are on fire, wrap them in the blanket (or anything else you can find that is similar) and get them to drop to the ground and roll to extinguish the fire and prevent flames reaching their head. Do not:  leave the assembly area - if you are not seen leaving the building you may be regarded as missing in the fire and be the cause of an unnecessary building search;  attempt to re-enter the building until you have been given the all-clear by the Fire Brigade Incident Officer-in-charge. If the fire is small and you are competent to extinguish it - without putting yourself at risk please do so using the appropriate fire extinguisher or fire blanket – see Appendix 1 for further guidance on using fire extinguishers. 8. First aid A first aid kit is kept in the office by Marketings Desk. Please see an appointed person. Any usage must be reported so that the kit can be re-stocked if necessary. First Aiders in the building are listed on the Health & Safety Notice board. More serious injuries should be dealt with by calling an ambulance 9. Reporting Incidents All injuries, work-related ill health, near miss incidents and fires - no matter how minor or apparently trivial - must be noted in the Accident Book that it is kept in the kitchen first aid cupboard and bought to the attention of the H&S Manager. Details of all injuries and work-related ill health that leads to time off work or requires more than local first aid treatment or treatment by your General Practitioner (GP), etc, must also be reported. If you are unable to return to work after an accident please telephone report details as soon as possible. Enlist the help of a relative or friend if you are unable to do this yourself due to incapacitation. - 5 - Dec 2010 10. Guidance on office health and safety Staff are expected to follow the general guidance on office health and safety and fire safety contained in Appendix 2. Other Office Rules  Building faults Any building or services faults should be reported to the H&S Manager or landlord. Urgent faults, e.g. a suspected gas leak, should be immediately reported by telephone to the appropriate utility provider.  Cleaning - any problems should be reported to H&S Manager or Sussex Cleaning and Care Ltd on 01444 872187  Leaving the Office Carefully check before going home, or leaving your office for long periods, that everything is safe and secure, i.e. electrical equipment turned off, the telephone answering machine is set to receive calls, laptop and other valuable and attractive items hidden, doors locked, and windows closed, etc.  Smoking - smoking is forbidden in the building.  Alcohol, drugs and illness affecting safe work performance Staff must not attend for work whilst suffering from the adverse effects of alcohol or drugs; or any illness that may affect safe work performance or the safety of others. 11. Work Outside Normal Hours Normal office hours in the building are Monday - Friday 0900-17.30 hours excluding Bank Holidays Other times are “outside” normal hours. Staff are permitted to work in the Office outside normal hours periods if necessary on low risk work (reading, writing, PC work). If high risk work is contemplated then it must not be conducted alone. The minimum acceptable requirement is that a risk assessment is conducted prior to the work, and during the work someone known to you is within immediate calling distance, in case of an emergency. Outside normal hours, do not admit anyone into the building that you do not personally know to be an employee. Try to park as close to one of the building entrances when you arrive so that you do not have to walk unnecessarily long distances back to your car when you finish work by which time it may be dark. Be very careful to secure the building and when you leave. Report any signs of suspicious behaviour, attempted break-ins etc to the Police. - 6 - Dec 2010 12. Electrical equipment All Office mains powered portable electrical equipment is inspected and tested at regular intervals by a competent contractor. Equipment that is not within test date - see label on equipment - must not be used. Any faults with electrical equipment should be reported to the H&S Manager as soon as they are noticed. Before using electrical appliances, staff should carry out a visual inspection to identify any obvious deficiencies. Visual inspection by users. The User Check should form a “common sense” check that the appliance is safe to use. (Make sure that the appliance is unplugged from the electrical supply before checking any flexes, plugs or the appliance casings etc)  Inspection of Flex – is it in good condition? Is it free from any damage i.e. cuts, fraying, melting? Is it too long or short?  The Plug – Is it free from cracks or damage? Are there any signs of overheating? Is the cable securely fixed?  The Socket Outlet – are there any signs of overheating? Is it securely fixed? Is it free from cracks or damage?  The Portable Appliance – does it actually work as it should? Is there any damage to the appliance that may expose live parts? Are there strange noises or smells coming from the appliance?  Environment – is the appliance suitable for its purpose i.e. can it be used outdoors or in damp conditions etc?  Suitability – is the appliance suitable for the work for which it is required – is it powerful enough or too powerful or is it just designed for occasional use? If an appliance is found to be faulty then:  Make sure the appliance is switched off and unplugged from the power supply  Clearly label the appliance to identify that it must not be used and report the fault to the Management team  Equipment which exhibits intermittent faults must be taken out of service and not used again until thoroughly checked out by a competent person and the source of the fault identified and rectified. Good Housekeeping practices  Cables should be located where that they cannot be damaged – i.e. caught in doors or trapped under appliances / furnishings.  Unprotected cables should not be run under carpets.  Appliances should be able to be easily and quickly disconnected / isolated from the power supply. These points should be accessible to users  Appliances should have sufficient space to allow ventilation i.e. fridges, microwaves  Appliances should be protected from potential water spillages.  Use of extension leads should be kept to a minimum. Where necessary, they should be the correct length and rating for the job and switched off after use.  Always use an RCD unit with an extension lead outside. Under no circumstances should equipment be used if there are any doubts regarding its electrical safety. - 7 - Dec 2010 13. Display screen equipment (DSE) All employees of Global Immersion are regarded as DSE “Users” as defined by the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992. The system for obtaining DSE eyesight tests is under review. Appropriate Display screen equipment will be provided to minimise the risks associated with prolonged DSE work. DSE workstation assessments will be undertaken. The assessments will be reviewed annually or if any significant changes occur. Any member of staff experiencing health problems that may be due to their DSE work should report the matter to the H&S Manager as soon as possible. Staff should always adjust any workstation they are using to suit their particular seating and comfort requirements, and not work for excessive periods without a change in work activity or appropriate rest period. Guidance on setting up your DSE workstation is available 14. Manual handling Staff should take great care when lifting, lowering, pushing or pulling objects. Try to have goods delivered to the point of use and whenever practicable left at “work surface height” - not on the floor which will entail bending down to re-lift the object. Trolleys are available to move heavy or unwieldy items. If items have to be moved physically consider ‘TILE ‘: the Task, in relation to your Individual physical capabilities and health, weight of the Load and Environment. Always:  examine the object to ascertain its weight and check for stability (centre of gravity), sharp edges, etc;  use any mechanical aids provided (or obtain aids if indicated by the assessment);  plan the move checking that the:  route is free from tripping and slipping hazards and well lit, and  the load does not block your vision;  wear overalls, gloves and foot protection when required;  get a good grip and hold the load as close as possible to the body;  lift with your legs whilst:  keeping your back as straight as possible,  checking that you will not crush your fingers whilst lifting (eg against door frames),  keeping your arms tucked in, and  avoiding movements that twist your body, and  take rest stops along the way if necessary; If in doubt obtain help and perform a two (or more) person lift. When team lifting, it is important that one person co-ordinates the operations involved. Only lightweight items should be stored above shoulder height, and then only when absolutely necessary. If the manual handling of any heavy or particularly awkward loads is contemplated a formal manual handling operations assessment must be carried out. Guidance on safe lifting is available. Staff who regularly undertake lifting and carrying must attend the relevant training session on safe lifting techniques. - 8 - Dec 2010 15. Use of ladders Experience shows that falls from height usually occur as a result of poor management control rather than because of equipment failure. Common factors include:  Failure to recognise a problem.  Failure to provide safe systems of work or that they are followed.  Inadequate information, instruction, training or supervision provided.  Failure to use appropriate equipment or to provide safe plant/equipment. Ladders are often used for tasks which could be done more safely and more quickly from equipment such as a cherry picker or a scaffold. The HSE state that the use of ladders should be for low risk, short duration tasks or where the existing features of the site cannot be altered. The key points to achieving increased ladder safety are:  Using a risk assessment to establish what is the most suitable work equipment when people have to work at height, taking into account the conditions and type of work to be done.  Knowing the limitations of the ladder to be used.  Ensuring users are competent in the safe use of ladders, including any accessories.  Ensuring ladders are maintained in safe working order. In particular, missing ladder feet will increase the risk of a ladder slipping or stepladder wobbling. When using ladders;  If a ladder is to be used make sure that it is secure and cannot slip by placing the ladder on a firm, stable surface which is of suitable strength to keep the rungs horizontal.  Consider using attachments such as an adjustable ladder leveller, or a 'stand' spreader.  Set the ladder at the correct angle. It should be angled out one measure for every four up.  Use a ladder that is, or can be, extended to the correct length - don't work from the top three rungs of the ladder.  Make sure the ladder protrudes sufficiently above the place of landing to which it provides access - three rungs or 1 m should be enough.  Tie it at the top, request someone hold it at the base, or use a suitable stability device to prevent it from slipping. (If the ladder is more than 5 m long, a person at the base is unlikely to be able to stop it from slipping).  Check the ladder for defects, and make sure that it is only used by people who know how to use it correctly. What does the law say? The Work at Height Regulations introduce a hierarchy for use when planning and risk assessing work at height. Employees must:  avoid work at height where they can and use work equipment or other measurers to prevent falls where they cannot avoid work at height;  make sure all work at height is planned, risk assessed, organised and carried out by competent persons;  where risk assessment cannot eliminate the risk of a fall, work equipment or other measures should be used to minimise the distance and consequences of a fall should one occur. - 9 - Dec 2010 A ladder should only be used where an assessment demonstrates that the risk is low and of short duration, or where there are existing features on site that cannot be altered and the use of other equipment is not practical. 16. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Appropriate staff have been individually issued with foot protection and overalls as appropriate. Additional PPE, such as gloves, goggles is available. Any defects in PPE must be reported to the H&S Manager so that repair or replacement can be arranged. 17. On site Work Much of the work of Global Immersion involves visiting other countries and customers buildings, etc. Some visits may involve relatively isolated areas, or potentially hazardous sites, e.g. construction areas. All staff must:  tell the office their intended whereabouts and envisaged duration of their visit before departure;  leave a contact telephone numbers whenever possible Also follow local health and safety rules and policies in the country you are visiting and try to arrange to be accompanied by a customers member of staff whenever possible. See the Risk assessment for ‘site visits’. 18. Vehicle Use & Driver Safety Global Immersion staff who use their private vehicles on company business must:  ensure they have a full, valid driving licence  follow the requirements of the Highway Code and Road Traffic Act;  ensure their vehicle is appropriately taxed, insured, has a current MOT certificate where applicable and is maintained in a safe and roadworthy condition;  ensure that their insurance policy covers use “in connection with his/her business or profession excluding commercial travelling;  not use hand-held mobile phones while driving on business (see below). The Government introduced new legislation relating to the use of mobile phones while driving in December 2003. It is now illegal to use a hand-held phone, or similar device, when driving. Hands-free phone equipment is not prohibited by the new regulation, but these are still distracting and drivers still risk prosecution under existing legislation (for failure to have proper control) if they use hands-free phones when driving. If your mobile phone rings when you are driving you should let it ring and return the call when safely parked - better still, switch to voicemail before starting your journey. There is an exemption for calls to 999 (or 112) in genuine emergencies when it is unsafe or impractical to stop. . 20. Consultation with employees The company recognises that employee involvement is essential to successfully managing health and safety at work and as such will actively encourage employee participation in health and safety matters and will consult staff fully on all health and safety issues as required by law, through regular staff meetings as well as through day to day involvement. ‘Health and safety’ is a standing item on the agenda of the board and for staff meetings. 21. Further Information & advice - 10 - Dec 2010 Guidance on specific health and safety risks is available from www.hse.gov.uk website or from the H&S Manager. David Lewis Oct 2008 - 11 - Dec 2010 APPENDIX 1: TYPES OF FIRE EXTINGUISHERS & THEIR SAFE USE How to use a fire extinguisher: Instructions for use should be clearly marked on each extinguisher, but in general:  remove the safety pin from the handle  keep the extinguisher upright, (place it on the ground if it is heavy)  aim the nozzle or horn at the base of the fire  squeeze the handles together  sweep the jet across the area of the fire, keep it moving away from you  do not get trapped between the fire and the exit, plan your escape in advance! When to use an extinguisher:  Only tackle a fire after the alarm has been raised and it is safe to do so  Ensure you are accompanied when you fight a fire or go to investigate, don’t do it alone  Only tackle a fire in it’s very early stages  Put your safety and that of others first, no heroics!  Only use an extinguisher if you are sure of how to use it correctly.  Do not hold the horn on a CO2 extinguisher – it will be very cold  If the fire is still burning after discharging one extinguisher do not continue to fight the fire but proceed to the assembly area immediately.  If electrical appliances are involved, switch off the power before dealing with the fire.  Do not fight any fire involving hazardous materials for example oxidising agents, pesticides, fuels or gas containers. - 12 - Dec 2010 APPENDIX 2: GUIDANCE ON OFFICE HEALTH AND SAFETY Some of the most common types of workplace accidents are trips, slips and falls; these are also the easiest to prevent, through maintaining good housekeeping standards. Staff are expected to observe the following basic rules:  Adequate floor space and storage space should be maintained to enable staff to move around their work areas and access stored materials, easily and safely. Floor areas, especially pedestrian routes, fire escape routes and areas around machinery and equipment must be kept clear of obstructions and tripping hazards, including employee’s own bags and coats. Fire doors and fire exits must not be propped open.  Staff should keep the area around their own desks clear and are encouraged to have a 'clear out' on a regular basis to prevent the build up of papers, files etc.  Floors and traffic routes should be of sound construction and free of hazards like holes, frayed carpets or damaged and loose tiles. Spilt liquids should be cleared up immediately.  Adequate lighting and ventilation must be maintained at all times.  All waste must be cleared away regularly, and disposed of appropriately; waste materials should not be allowed to accumulate. Broken glass or other sharp objects must be disposed of carefully and not placed exposed in waste bins.  Care should be taken not to overload cupboards, cabinets or shelves. Where necessary, units must be fixed securely to the wall: there should always be enough weight at the bottom to minimise any tendency for the unit to overbalance. To gain access to high shelves use a ‘kick stool’ or secure stepladder, never climb on boxes and chairs. Never store heavy items above shoulder height. Materials should not be stacked on the floor where people may fall over them.  Only one drawer in a filing cabinet should be open at any one time, whether or not a safety interlock is fitted. Cupboard doors and drawers which have been left open can easily cause injury, when not in use they should be kept shut.  Care should be taken in lifting and moving materials and equipment. Where the handling operation is other than trivial, a job appraisal and where necessary, a risk assessment, must be performed first. It is especially important to obtain help when heavy or bulky objects, which may restrict vision are to be moved.  Office machinery must be operated according to the manufacturer's instructions, and guards and covers must be kept in position unless removed by authorised personnel carrying out essential maintenance. Hair, clothing, jewellery etc must be kept clear of moving machinery, even when guards or interlocks are in use. Never start a machine unless you know how to stop it in an emergency.  The potential risks associated with electrical equipment in use in offices etc. should be appreciated. Electrical circuits should not be overloaded by the use of adapters to serve a number of appliances. Plugs must be correctly fused for the power rating of the appliance, and plug cables should be securely fixed by cable clamps. Amateur repairs on electrical equipment should on no account be attempted and only maintenance engineers should remove service panels from such equipment.  All items of portable electrical equipment must be regularly inspected and tested for electrical safety in order to comply with the Electricity At Work Regulations, 1989. Such inspection and testing is carried out by a competent electrician.  Appliances should be switched off and unplugged after use and at night (unless the equipment concerned is designed to run continuously). Electrical and telephone leads must be protected - 13 - Dec 2010 from heat and abrasion. Avoid placing trailing cables in a walkway or access route. Where this unavoidable, cable protectors should be used.  Heaters and hot-running equipment must be kept clear of combustible materials. The use of open bar radiant fires is not permitted.  Kettles must never be placed on the floor or in precarious positions on shelves or desks.  Any unsafe conditions, e.g. faulty lifts, faulty fire doors, missing fire extinguishers, missing Fire Notices, defective equipment, poor lighting, damaged floor coverings, unsafe furniture and so on, should be reported at once so that remedial action can be taken. General rules for preventing fires at work All staff are responsible for fire safety. These notes are designed to raise your awareness of the causes of fire at work and provide guidance on what we can do to prevent a fire from starting and spreading.  Ensure equipment and machinery is regularly inspected and maintained.  Report faulty electrical equipment and wiring to the manager  Do not overload electrical sockets or extension leads  Avoid using portable heaters of any kind, if at all possible  Use, store and dispose of flammable liquids and LPG cylinders safely  Follow the ‘no smoking’ policy  Do not place liquids on electrical equipment  Switch off equipment at the end of the day  Do not obstruct ventilation outlets, keep ducts and flues clean  Take precautions to minimise the risk of arson  Monitor the work of contractors on site  Carry out regular inspections of the workplace to check for fire hazards Good standards of housekeeping should be observed by all staff. Waste materials should not be allowed to accumulate. The amount of paper, boxes etc. stored should be kept to a minimum unless these can be stored in metal cabinets or similar which provide a degree of fire protection. 1 of 2 SITE RISK ASSESMENT CHECKLIST This checklist is to verify that the site is suitably ready for an installation and of a safe standard compliant with European Council Directives, UK HSE and US Occupational Safety and Health Association regulations and legislation. Please complete and return both pages to your Project Manager by email or fax or ring to discuss any particular details with either your PM or our Health & Safety Manager. Project Reference City, Country Customer Contact Email Global Immersion Project Manager Email Hazard Yes No If No give further details Falls from Height All building handrails are fitted All scaffold supplied and erected is built in accordance with manufacturers instructions and safety legislation All flooring is complete and secure Any trip hazards clearly marked and made safe All ladders are secure and positioned safely in accordance with regulations. Injury from lifting/handling Any specifed forklift or crane is to correct spec and with certified driver. Electricity All Electrical works complete Cable trays/routing accessible Lighting complete and working Power working must include plugs and sockets for Global equipment rack(s) and tools Fire Fire detection system is fitted and working Fire alarm system is fitted and working Fire exits are clear and can be shown Welfare Secure area available (tooling/equipment) Telephone and Internet access available in the facility Clean toilets & washing facilities with hot and cold running water available Air conditioning complete, working and stable Health and Safety Any H&S induction for Global site personnel is organised inc first aid, fire, contacts, security Other Hazards Other building work is finished (no dust, welding, grinding etc) No lone working, point of contact available. Customer Equipment Any computer required to interface to: ready and working SITE READINESS CONFIRMATION 2 of 2 The Site Readiness checklist has been successfully completed with [ ] noted discrepancies. For and on behalf of (Customer Name) Name: Position: Signature: Date: For and on behalf of Global Immersion Ltd. Name: Position: Signature: Date: Note: Please do not sign this form in anticipation of work being completed by Global Immersion if site requirements are not met. If it is found that the site is not suitable and Global Immersion has to return to complete the installation, then the return visit and additional costs will be invoiced. Further Comments Quality Assurance Plan Global Immersion Quality Policy Global Immersions’ Quality Policy describes how Global Immersion delivers quality of product and service that meets or exceeds our customer’s evolving needs and aspirations. Global Immersion provides system design, integration, installation and support services to the immersive education and entertainment markets and planetaria throughout the world. The company has developed its expertise since its establishment and its aim is to achieve a high standard of service to its customers. It is the policy of Global Immersion to provide the customer with goods and services to the agreed requirements in accordance with the technical specifications and price. Global Immersion works within the conceptual framework of ISO 9001, but has not yet sought accreditation. As our business grows, we recognise that we will need to introduce more fully documented processes, methods for identifying and monitoring our quality performance, specific targets to improve that performance, quality awareness training for all our staff and review processes as part of a formal Quality Management System (QMS). This recognition forms part of our road map to gain certification to ISO 9001 in the future, and we are committed to the future achievement of customer satisfaction by the use of processes and procedures which will be operated to meet or exceed the requirements of ISO 9001. Person Responsible The Chief Executive Officer has responsibility for the QMS at Global Immersion. The senior leadership team has significant experience in the introduction and sustainment of quality management systems and lean manufacturing process (kaizen) across both small and large scale businesses. This experience will be brought to bear as Global Immersion develop their systems and processes. Our commitment Global Immersion is committed to the design, implementation and continuous improvement of a Quality Management System which will comply with the requirements of ISO9001 through the commitment of our leadership team to monitor, control and improve quality, focusing on constantly improving and refreshing our customers’ experiences of our products and services. In addition, we commit to: Innovation - We will constantly bring new ideas to our existing solutions and offer the best possible experience to our customers and their customers. Communication - We will listen to our customers and ensure their needs are communicated and understood throughout our organisation. Global Partnerships - We will build lasting and mutually beneficial partnerships with our customers and suppliers. Integrity - We will behave responsibly as an organisation towards the environment, to the community and to the wider society. People - We will create a stimulating and challenging workplace that develops and sustains talent, and encourages excellence. Improvement - We will continuously improve our systems and solutions, through effective feedback, communication and innovation, and making use of Lean methodologies and techniques. Global Immersion Quality System Methodology The following methods are used to continuously verify and validate that performance of processes/services within the organisation meets the needs and requirements of customers: - Management Review – this is conducted operationally through regular monthly management meetings, with a summary annual review. Quality Audits – the audit programme is in development and will cover the entire business operation. Employee feedback – an annual employee survey is conducted. All employees share knowledge and learning from operational activities undertaken through project and team reviews. Process performance and product conformity – project and product ‘lessons learnt’ are reviewed by management on a regular cycle. Preventive and Corrective Action – several approaches are taken:  Containment of known issues, leading to PDCA action to develop corrective action plans and preventative action measures  Prevention of occurrence through project risk management, requirements and design reviews; design verification and testing; configuration management; system validation (acceptance testing); purchased goods specification and verification; appropriate resource allocation and training  Correction of problems; corrective action tracking, change control, rework, repair and testing Continuous improvement – Global Immersion are working through a series of process value stream mapping events with the aim of improving productivity and performance, eliminating waste and improving the work life balance of our team. Employees at all levels will be engaged in this process. Quality Assurance of Sub-Contractors & Suppliers As a small business, Global Immersion reaches outside of its employee base to provide specialist skills through subcontractors and suppliers. Ongoing quality assurance of subcontractors and suppliers is therefore important to us, and is achieved through:  Flow down of customer contractual requirements through purchasing process (quality planning)  Regular communication, review and approval of subcontractor and supplier production or service delivery plans  Design Reviews  In process inspection Global Immersion Quality System Methodology The following methods are used to continuously verify and validate that performance of processes/services within the organisation meets the needs and requirements of customers: - Management Review – this is conducted operationally through regular monthly management meetings, with a summary annual review. Quality Audits – the audit programme is in development and will cover the entire business operation. Employee feedback – an annual employee survey is conducted. All employees share knowledge and learning from operational activities undertaken through project and team reviews. Process performance and product conformity – project and product ‘lessons learnt’ are reviewed by management on a regular cycle. Preventive and Corrective Action – several approaches are taken:  Containment of known issues, leading to PDCA action to develop corrective action plans and preventative action measures  Prevention of occurrence through project risk management, requirements and design reviews; design verification and testing; configuration management; system validation (acceptance  Acceptance testing and review  Release, test and inspection records  Receiving inspection and testing  Fault Reporting and corrective/preventive action Verification that subcontractor service delivery is in accordance with Global Immersion quality policy and requirements is by:  Regular communication, review and approval of subcontractor service delivery plans and associated documentation  Evidence of approval of equipment and qualification of personnel  Review and approval of any specific methods and procedures  Evidence of control of monitoring and measurement equipment  Review of any required records  Site supervision and management as required Quality assurance of new subcontractors is ensured through our subcontractor and supplier approval process  Demonstrated ability to perform (experience and competence)  Evidence of system for quality management  Customer references  Due diligence checks Environmental Management Policy Environmental Management Policy This Environmental Management Policy describes the processes which Global Immersion uses to manage the company’s environmental performance and responsibilities. The document identifies our aims and objectives in minimising the environmental impact of our business. As our business grows, we recognise that we will need to introduce more fully documented processes, methods for identifying and monitoring our environmental impacts, specific targets to improve environmental performance, environmental awareness training for all our staff and review processes as part of a formal Environmental Management System (EMS). We anticipate that by completing an EMS with its associated reviews and Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, our environmental liabilities will be minimised, we will use resources more efficiently with a positive impact on business results and waste will be reduced. In addition, we are able to demonstrate a “green” corporate image and help to build awareness of environmental issues among our employees, suppliers and customers. Today we are at the “Plan-Do” phase as a growing enterprise. Global Immersion recognises that the ISO 14001 “Environmental Management Systems – specifications and guidance for use” should be the standard to attain in the future. We are conscious of our impact on the environment and the steps we need to take in order to both reduce and mitigate this. We aim to meet the requirements of the IEMA (Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment) Acorn scheme, leading to eventual certification at ISO 14001. Person Responsible The Chief Executive Officer has responsibility for the EMS at Global Immersion. Our commitment In line with the core values of Global Immersion, the company is committed to the design, implementation and continual improvement of an Environmental Management System which will comply with the requirements of ISO14001. Our goal We aim to operate as a carbon neutral business. Our policy  We will review our office and our operations facility from an environmental perspective and identify those aspects which can impact on the environment and, where possible, we will quantify that impact  We aim to design products and systems which minimise environmental impact throughout their life cycle: o Extending product life o Reducing energy consumption o Avoiding environmentally sensitive materials o Using components which can be recycled  We will design and implement management programmes in order to prevent pollution, and for the control and reduction of our most significant impacts: o Use of natural resources including paper, water, wood and energy from non- renewable sources o Construction, use and disposal of packaging materials o Management and control of product life cycle o Minimisation of controlled wastes by reduction, recycling and re-use  We will set objectives and targets for the operation of such programmes, review policy and progress, regularly report on performance and strive to improve the performance of our Environmental Management System  We will provide training and awareness programmes for all our staff and encourage a culture of environmental responsibility  We will comply with all relevant environmental legislation  We will communicate this policy to all persons working for or on behalf of Global Immersion and make it available to external parties and the public on request Our aims and objectives Green facility To improve the sustainability of both our own and our customer’s work environments, we encourage architects and facility managers to propose and fit out office and dark rooms in line with best practise for energy conservation and re-use. Environmental Management Policy Green travel To minimise the impact of our employees on the environment, we encourage everyone to consider how they work and how and when they travel to work. Our employees are enabled to work from home as appropriate, and encouraged to make best use of shared facilities and public transport where practicable. Green buying Where possible, and as appropriate to ours and our customer’s needs, we aim to select sustainably manufactured products which meet the best possible standards of energy efficiency. When disposing of used items, we aim to ensure that they are recycled as appropriate or otherwise disposed of safely and properly. Green resources We encourage our team to think about what they are using and why, ranging from only boiling what you need for a cup of tea, through to reducing the need for air conditioning or heating by strategic planning of office space to printing on both sides of the paper – minimal waste, maximum re-use and recycling are key. Green carbon footprint We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint in our worldwide business. We accept that our carbon emissions cannot be eradicated, but our travel and day-to-day operations are designed to minimise our impact on the environment. We will contract local resources where possible. When this is neither feasible nor practical, we travel on direct flights if available to minimise consumption. When on site, we encourage our team to use local public transport where practical and protect local environments by ensuring that all waste materials and packaging are either recycled or disposed of correctly. case study | denver museum of nature & science “digital planetarium soars to new heights with HP” Visitors to the Charles C. Gates Planetarium in Denver, Colorado have never been wowed like this. Three-dimensional exhibits and short films, such as Black Holes: The Other Side of Infinity, transport visitors to new and unseen places, enabling them to experience and virtually touch the universe in ways they never could before. Creating these remarkable images is no easy task. It requires hundreds and even thousands of hours of programming and editing to produce the sensation of soaring through space, with planets and solar sys- tems all around. It also requires the highest-performance computer hardware to render and power these exhibits. "The quality of visual effects in our planetar- ium is absolutely crucial to the overall visitor experience," says Dan Neafus, operations manager, Gates Planetarium. "With multi- core technology running on HP worksta- tions, we can reach new heights in visualiza- tion, making the planetarium a true launch pad for visitors to gain new vistas and per- spectives about the universe." Industry: Non-profit Objective: Gates Planetarium needed pow- erful computers capable of efficiently run- ning complex three-dimensional displays Approach: HP workstations installed Benefits: “The quality of visual effects in our planetar- ium is absolutely crucial to the overall visitor experience. With Intel multi-core technology running on HP workstations, we can reach new heights in visualization, making the planetarium a true launch pad for visitors to gain new vistas and perspectives about the universe.” — Dan Neafus, Operations Manager, Gates Planetarium • Workstations efficiently run complex, computing-intensive operations • Attractive, 3D displays draw more visi- tors • Reduction in time-intensive display sup- port • Increased efficiency — less time to ren- der and edit images, more time spent enhancing innovative displays • Reliable, high-performance hardware leads to reduced service and support issues HP Workstations power visually intensive 3D displays at Gates Planetarium +44 (0) 845 0 456225 +1 720 259 1639 info@globalimmersion.com www.globalimmersion.com the challenges of 3D exhibits As Zachary Zager, the planetarium's system administrator notes, the Gates Planetarium no longer produces just dots on an overhead screen. "We can have you fly anywhere in outer space and the solar system, have you floating with the planets and observing the universe from any point," he says. "We can even turn 180 degrees and dive to the micro-organic level, and show cells and organisms in three dimensions. Our only limit is our imagination." The planetarium opened four years ago, and its design made use of a very large supercom- puter that, at the time, was the only technology capable of rendering exhibit-class visualiza- tion, according to Neafus. "What we realized very quickly is that sustaining supercomputer architecture is expensive, time-consuming and painstaking," says Neafus. "Even more trou- bling was the fact that it required an extremely high-level skill set for both operators and computer scientists to manage the architecture. It was extremely complex and challenging, just too rigid and demanding to work realistically as a long-term solution." Neafus met with administrators at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, the planetar- ium's parent body, and laid out a plan for preserving long-term quality and improving effi- ciency by looking at emerging technologies in computer hardware and software that could make life easier at the planetarium. "We needed a more flexible and sustainable platform, pure and simple," says Neafus. "In terms of software we recognized that a dual approach was needed — Linux for research-based and specialized scientific applications, and Win- dows to port to our system for digital rendering and image-based tasks. "In terms of hardware, we needed to identify and build a relationship that could help sustain our operations long-term by supporting an ongoing update of capabilities, hardware and software. HP proved to be the right solution." building a 3D experience with HP Equipped with Quad-Core Intel Xeon® processors and the new Intel Core 2 Extreme® QX6700 quad-core processors running on the new Intel 5000P chipset, HP xw8400 Work- stations offer benchmark computing power and speed. The 5000P chipset provides 33-67 percent improvement in throughput over previous Intel chipset technology. As the planetarium's programmers quickly discovered, these workstations, when processing in tandem, can deliver visual output to rival and surpass even the most robust supercomput- ing platforms. The planetarium linked its HP workstations with digital projectors across the interior of the domed viewing room to create a region of virtual space, enabling visitors to explore the uni- verse in a seamless, real-time environment that looks and feels like a real nighttime sky, with perspectives from the earth, from various stars and other fixed points across a virtual uni- verse. "Each HP workstation is dedicated to a different projector inside the planetarium," Zager explains. "Working together, they create a seamless image across the dome." The planetar- ium has a core workstation that serves as the "master unit," creating the sense of space and processing images within the 3D software. It then sends images to the other computers, which in turn relay the data to the projectors, creating a real-time image of the universe from a specific point at a specific time. As Neafus points out, the robust capabilities of the HP workstations help support the plane- tarium's technology and scientific learning goals. "Staying ahead of the audience, per se, is not a competition. It's not about trying to outdo someone else. When we do our job by stay- ing ahead of the technology curve, the cool factor is more than enough to get our audience excited about coming to the planetarium," says Neafus. "Our goal is to improve scientific literacy, to maintain programming that gets our audience motivated to learn more, to experi- ence more. HP xw8400 Workstation, with an HP LP2465 LCD monitor, plus a mouse and keyboard. Planetarium exhibits offer breathtak- ing views faster image development, better displays The HP workstations aren't used just for showcasing 3D displays. They are also used to develop and edit images for each exhibit. As media systems developer Matt Brownell notes, the horsepower needed to render com- plex 3D images for the planetarium's displays is comparable to what's seen with cutting- edge computer games, where the finished products inch ever closer to the look and feel of real-life experiences. "The way our real-time systems work is very similar to the gaming industry," says Brownell. "Our texture mapping and post-editing are very similar. We use a lot of the same technolo- gies and the same three-dimensional libraries that high-end game developers use." The planetarium's programmers and developers turn to HP workstations to accelerate the development process. The most dramatic improvement is in rendering time. According to Neafus, using its previous hardware the planetarium's staff would require up to 60 hours of editing and rendering with Adobe® After Effects® imaging software in order to develop a 10- second scene. Using HP Workstations, which are developed and tested with multiple soft- ware vendors including Adobe, this has been reduced to just a few hours. "With the new equipment, it feels like we're about 50 times faster," Brownell comments. "It's so much easier to see frame rates and properties in real-time. We can access frames in about ten seconds. It used to take more than 60 seconds for them to load, and we could never really observe the frames in a real-time scenario." The planetarium's on-site show development team includes only two developers, placing great emphasis on fast, efficient work. If projects fall behind or the team encounters unex- pected complications, the results can force exhibits to be postponed and overextend project budgets and timelines. "HP workstations have allowed us to process all of our imagery much, much faster, with a far quicker turnaround. We can do our work in much more timely fashion. It's a great relief," says Brownell. Case Study © 2007 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein. This customer's results depended upon its unique business and IT environment, the way it used HP products and services and other factors. These results may not be typical; your results may vary. Intel, Intel Xeon and Intel Core 2 Extreme are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corpora- tion in the U.S. and other countries. Adobe and After Effects are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated. FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REQUEST A MEETING sales@globalimmersion.com commercial Copyright 2012 Global Immersion Ltd. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of Global Immersion Ltd Registered Address: The Barn, Hurstwood Grange, Hurstwood Lane, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH17 7QX, UK Support Agreement Digital Dome Theater For the attention of City of Fort Collins Fort Collins Discovery Museum Proposal No. 7334 Project ID 79337 Prepared by Steve Pushka steve.pushka@globalimmersion.com +1 801 438-6898 Revision 1.1 Issue date 23 February 2012 Validity 90 days from issue date 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 2 of 11 Contents Contents .............................................................................................................................2 Global Immersion Support.....................................................................................................3 Key Elements....................................................................................................................3 Overview..........................................................................................................................3 Three Month Post Acceptance Support and Warranty Package .................................................4 Technical Support..............................................................................................................4 Extended Warranty............................................................................................................5 Scheduled Maintenance Visits - Option .................................................................................5 Software Maintenance........................................................................................................6 Emergency Callout - Option ................................................................................................6 Advance Replacement and Repairs ......................................................................................6 Long term maintainability and supportability planning............................................................7 Consumables - Options .........................................................................................................7 User Replaceable Spares - Option...........................................................................................7 Training Options...................................................................................................................7 Documentation ....................................................................................................................8 Payment Terms and Schedule................................................................................................9 Appendix A - Global Immersion Initial Training Syllabus..........................................................10 Training Pre-Requisites ....................................................................................................10 Included Modules ............................................................................................................10 Exclusions ......................................................................................................................11 Certification....................................................................................................................11 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 3 of 11 Global Immersion Support Global Immersion Limited has pleasure in presenting this Proposal for an optional Support Agreement. Key Elements The support package includes the following elements:  Single point of contact for all issues and situations  Local support (Denver based) providing rapid response and resolution  On site user replaceable spares pack  Inclusive emergency call outs  Inclusive 3 month post acceptance support and warranty package prior to commencement of contractual Support package.  Optional site visits  Long term maintainability and supportability planning  Renewable year on year For further details please contact our Customer Support Manager: Graham Hodgson Customer Service Manager Global Immersion Ltd. Graham.hodgson@globalimmersion.com Overview Global Immersion Support is a comprehensive solution providing reliable, full-service maintenance for all equipment supplied to Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, providing a single Customer Service interface for the system). The support package described in this proposal is tailored specifically to the system, and takes account of the complexity of the system and the business critical nature of the assets that have been installed. This support offering is positioned as a preventative maintenance program, with the objectives of:  Maximising attraction availability  Maximising equipment reliability  Increasing operational lifetime  Minimising operational costs  Rapidly fixing problems Unscheduled downtime is disruptive and has significant impact on your operations and your visitors. The key objective of the proposed program is to reduce the number of equipment failures 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 4 of 11 to a point where equipment and processes are being maintained, as much as possible, by scheduled work. This allows the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery to focus on the visitor experience, content production, new projects and enhancements. This proposed program provides for expert staff dedicated to maintaining your facility, using our International Service Centres for quick response times, and ensuring that your systems operate at optimum levels of performance. This is achieved by:  Reviewing systems in light of your issues and experiences  Cleaning of equipment  Providing software updates  Managing system alignment and calibration  Monitoring of need dates for replacement parts as necessary  Remote monitoring of networks, servers, drives, and projectors Information and expertise gathered from large number of sites operating similar equipment and operations helps us to predict and therefore to act on typical failure rates of certain equipment. Three Month Post Acceptance Support and Warranty Package Global Immersion is pleased to provide an initial care package for three months following System Acceptance. This free of charge package provides all the benefits described and offered in the Contractual Support package, and is additional to the standard warranty. This allows the new owner of the system to become fully acquainted with its use and care whilst assured of ‘full service’ support from Global Immersion during this critical phase. Global Immersion will make three monthly visits (1 day duration) to the site post acceptance to ensure that the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery team are entirely satisfied both with the performance of the system and their understanding of how to get the best from it, whilst ensuring that the system remains at acceptance standard through system health checks. Technical Support The following services are included in our baseline system offering:  24x7 phone support  24x7 email support  Remote diagnostics and service  System back up  Global Support service ticketing system We aim to meet the following response times:  Acknowledge a call within 30 minutes during normal business hours. Normal business hours are 0400 – 2030 ET (9:00 – 01:30 GMT) covered by our worldwide support centre staff. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 5 of 11  Out of hours support including public holidays is covered by our 24x7 response service for which we expect to respond to a call within 4 hours.  We will also provide specific support for special events if requested by the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery. We can offer an online calendar to publish these events in advance to our support team. A key feature of Global Support is our ability to remotely access the installation at the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery. This allows us to monitor the systems, receive alerts from some systems, and access the system remotely allowing our technicians to rapidly diagnose problems and in many cases resolve them straight away. Extended Warranty Initial Warranty is included in the main contract for equipment provided to the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, starting at the conclusion of the three month post acceptance package (see section 1.3) and lasting for two years. This warranty is a return to base warranty (where base is the local Global Immersion office). Global Immersion would be pleased to provide optional extension of the Warranty of the supplied equipment for subsequent years. Please note that projector lamps have a limited warranty depending on the hours used. Scheduled Maintenance Visits - Option Included in this proposal are optional scheduled maintenance visits. Each visit comprises:  Specialists on site for 1 day  Night work if necessary to minimise impact to the operational systems  Travel and subsistence The following will be carried out during each maintenance visit: Activities General  Site health and safety review and risk assessment  Review status of site tools and maintenance equipment  Review all technical areas for cleanliness User Group Clinic  Discussion and feedback  Needs and wants  Informal training review Client Review  Review status of consumables and spares  Review issue logs and client concerns 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 6 of 11  Review priority of scheduled activities  Assess performance of all display and server systems Software Upgrades  Apply available software upgrades to all systems as detailed in Section 1.4 Dome alignment  Full dome alignment and calibration Software Maintenance Upgrade and maintenance of system firmware and application software as follows. Note that UniView UCare is an additional cost option. Software Maintenance Basis UniView Ucare Silver yearly subscription; remote session hosting; Member Zone access; software updates on all licensed products – included for 2 years in system supply Media Server Perpetual license O&O Defragmentation Yearly upgrade Windows and Server Standard Windows license terms – as required Theatre Management System Yearly maintenance and upgrade Emergency Callout - Option Included in this proposal is the provision for emergency callout visits providing one full day onsite. Emergency call out visits requiring more than one day on site will be charged at the prevailing daily call out rate for any additional days on site. Advance Replacement and Repairs Global Immersion offers a full repair service on all our solutions and products in addition to repairing systems installed by other vendors. Details of this service will be provided upon request. Where necessary, and possible, we will supply a temporary replacement for any major item that fails within the system. Most of the major components are held as stock items either at our offices in the UK or USA. We may ask that you sign a loan agreement to make use of this facility. The shipping of loan items to and from Customer sites will be at Global Immersion cost. Shipping failed parts to Global Immersion is the responsibility of the customer. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 7 of 11 Long term maintainability and supportability planning Global Immersion offers a range of options enabling the successful support of systems in the long term. Failure analysis can be used to help manage spares holdings; obsolescence issues are reviewed regularly ensuring that appropriate last time buys of critical equipment are planned. In the longer term Global Immersion’s unique system design capabilities ensure that we are able help our customers successfully run their systems for the long term through technology insertion, improving both performance as well as cost effectiveness. The funding of technology insertion can be developed either as capital purchase at the time of need, or more popularly funded annually through our support program over an extended period and as part of our innovative extended warranty scheme, allowing for smoothing of cash flows and controllable budgeting. Consumables - Options The following consumables are included as priced options. Additional units can be supplied on an as required basis at the prevailing catalogue price, subject to a purchase order. Preferential pricing may be available for advance purchase. Equipment Yearly Quantity No consumables (LED projectors) None User Replaceable Spares - Option Global Immersion optionally provides a cost effective suite of minimum spares, located on site at the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery. Item Part Quantity Image servers Raid controller 1 PSUs with chassis 1 Spindle disk 2 Fan 1 Control system Processor 1 Training Options Maintenance training will be provided to allow the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery technical and user community to effectively carry out primary maintenance tasks including lamp replacement, routine procedures, and replacement of user replaceable spare components. A tailored syllabus will be agreed with the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery after award of contract. A typical initial syllabus is attached at Appendix A. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 8 of 11 Users and presenters are also trained in how to gain most effective use from the system’s advanced facilities and performance. Refresher training for both users and maintainers is available upon request, and may be built into a structured support plan at customer option. Documentation System manuals, operator manuals and training guides are provided at system delivery. Price This Support Proposal documents the complete range of maintenance services currently offered by Global Immersion, at 2012 catalogue prices. This represents our best estimate of your service needs, but may be tailored to your requirements. Support Agreement – 2 Year Price USD Item 1.3: Three Month Post Acceptance Support & Warranty Package Included Item1.4: Support – Year 1 and 2 8,260 Item 1.6: Site Visit – 2 per year 11,912 Item 1.7 UniView UCare Gold support service1 16,160 Item 1.8a: Optional Emergency Call Out Visit – per visit (1 day on site) 2,498 Item 1.8b: Optional Emergency Call Out added days – per day 1,955 Item 3: User Replaceable Spares 9,500 Item 4: Initial Training Included Item 5: Documentation Included Total $50,285 Notes: 1. UniView UCare is available in SILVER, GOLD and PLATINUM levels. Global Immersion recommendation is GOLD service. Other options are available upon request. 2. The support agreement including extended warranty may be extended for years 3-5. We would be pleased to offer an inclusive price for years 3, 4 and 5, providing the same Support package as described for year 1. Global Immersion is pleased to offer a discount to pricing based upon payment of the full 3 year fee at contract award. 3. All pricing is 2012 catalogue 4. First and second year parts Warranty is included in the main supply contract. 5. Vendor warranties transferred where available. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 9 of 11 Payment Terms and Schedule Extract from Terms and Conditions  Compliance with European Union Health and Safety and Manual Handling Directive regulations or similar International Regulations is required by all parties, and the mutual creation of a suitable working environment for these directives to apply within. Global Immersion’s compliance with European Union directives exceeds OSHA requirements. Global Immersion on- site staff will be OSHA 10 Certified.  Price does not include any construction, electrical, or similar work.  A copy of the full Global Immersion Terms & Conditions is available upon request. Pricing The prices quoted are fixed and firm and are in USD. Payment The prices quoted are subject to acceptance by the Buyer of the following invoice plan and “15 days after invoice” payment terms. Invoice Plan  Items 1.8 and 3 50% with order; 50% upon completion of service 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 10 of 11 Appendix A - Global Immersion Initial Training Syllabus Duration and Agenda Three (3) Days, Maximum of Eight (8) Hours per Day Day 1 – System Overview, Troubleshooting, Common Faults At the End of the Day delegates should successfully be able to identify possible faults and understand principles of troubleshooting of system. Delegate will be able to work through a set of tests planned by the instructor in order to show comprehension of material. Day 2 – Basic System Maintenance, System Warping At the End of the Day delegates should successfully be able to work through standard maintenance procedures including projector maintenance. Delegates will need to demonstrate via hands on exercises and tests planned by the instructor an understanding of the material Day 3 –Review of past 2 days Day 3 will be used to review and answer any questions delegates may have from the previous two sessions. Instructor will have delegates review and show comprehension of all included modules using tests planned by the instructor Delegates Maximum Six (6) Delegates Total per Training Course Training Pre-Requisites  Theatre Pre-Requisites  Full System Availability throughout duration of training  Safe and Clean Site/Access Conditions  Technician Pre-Requisites for Training  English speaking Experienced AV or IT Engineer with relevant qualifications Included Modules Technician Level Training 1. Technical System Overview 2. Technician-Level Troubleshooting a. Common Media Server Issues b. Common Uniview Issues c. Common System Issues 3. Common Faults a. Drive Failures 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 11 of 11 b. Lamps Failures c. Raid Rebuilding – discussion only d. Network Mapping 4. Basic System Maintenance a. Defragmentation of System b. Projector Lamp Replacement c. Touch up of blends and geometry d. Replacement of Projectors 5. Media Integration a. Show carving b. Show creation Exclusions  Component-Level Training  IT and/or AV Engineering Skills  Advanced Software Features  Projector Maintenance Certification Certificates of Attendance will be awarded to all delegates who attend the complete training and successfully demonstrate their understanding of the course material and demonstrations. testing); purchased goods specification and verification; appropriate resource allocation and training  Correction of problems; corrective action tracking, change control, rework, repair and testing Continuous improvement – Global Immersion are working through a series of process value stream mapping events with the aim of improving productivity and performance, eliminating waste and improving the work life balance of our team. Employees at all levels will be engaged in this process. Quality Assurance of Sub-Contractors & Suppliers As a small business, Global Immersion reaches outside of its employee base to provide specialist skills through subcontractors and suppliers. Ongoing quality assurance of subcontractors and suppliers is therefore important to us, and is achieved through:  Flow down of customer contractual requirements through purchasing process (quality planning)  Regular communication, review and approval of subcontractor and supplier production or service delivery plans  Design Reviews  In process inspection Global Immersion Quality System Methodology The following methods are used to continuously verify and validate that performance of processes/services within the organisation meets the needs and requirements of customers: - Management Review – this is conducted operationally through regular monthly management meetings, with a summary annual review. Quality Audits – the audit programme is in development and will cover the entire business operation. Employee feedback – an annual employee survey is conducted. All employees share knowledge and learning from operational activities undertaken through project and team reviews. Process performance and product conformity – project and product ‘lessons learnt’ are reviewed by management on a regular cycle. Preventive and Corrective Action – several approaches are taken:  Containment of known issues, leading to PDCA action to develop corrective action plans and preventative action measures  Prevention of occurrence through project risk management, requirements and design reviews; design verification and testing; configuration management; system validation (acceptance testing); purchased goods specification and verification; appropriate resource allocation and training  Correction of problems; corrective action tracking, change control, rework, repair and testing Continuous improvement – Global Immersion are working through a series of process value stream mapping events with the aim of improving productivity and performance, eliminating waste and improving the work life balance of our team. Employees at all levels will be engaged in this process. Quality Assurance of Sub-Contractors & Suppliers As a small business, Global Immersion reaches outside of its employee base to provide specialist skills through subcontractors and suppliers. Ongoing quality assurance of subcontractors and suppliers is therefore important to us, and is achieved through:  Flow down of customer contractual requirements through purchasing process (quality planning)  Regular communication, review and approval of subcontractor and supplier production or service delivery plans  Design Reviews  In process inspection Evolution General audiences and school groups Life: A Cosmic Story 3 yrs $12,000 Astronomy General audiences with focus on school groups and younger audiences Perfect Little Planet Perpetual $13,500 Astronomy/ Evolution General audiences and school groups Origins of Life 50 yrs $11,500 Evolution General audiences and school groups Natural Selection 50 yrs $23,000 Music All audiences Rock on Demand 80 min to choose from perpetual $13,500 $91,000 the Big Bang that set the stage for life. The first stars ignite, galaxies coalesce, and entire worlds take shape. On the early Earth, two scenarios for the dawn of life are presented — one near a turbulent, deep-sea hydrothermal vent, and the other in a primordial “hot puddle” on a volcanic island. From these microscopic beginnings, life transformed the entire Earth as it evolved and diversified: filling the atmosphere with oxygen, turning the continents green, and altering global climate patterns. The 25- minute show ends with a review of geological evidence and the connectedness of all living things on Earth. To ensure that the show is as scientifically accurate and up-to-date as possible, the Academy drew on the expertise of several advisers who are leaders in their fields: Dr. Jill Tarter, Director of the Center for SETI Research at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, consulted on the show with her extensive knowledge of astrobiology and the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life. Tarter provided the real-life inspiration for Jodie Foster’s character in the 1997 film Contact, and she is also a Fellow and Trustee of the California Academy of Sciences. Three scientists from the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) in Mountain View provided expertise as well: Dr. Carl Pilcher, Director of NAI; Dr. David Des Marais, Principal Investigator of NAI’s Ames Research Center team; and Dr. Tori Hoehler, Research Scientist with the NAI Ames team. Their collective research efforts focus on the origins, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the Universe. Des Marais, who is heavily involved in the current Mars missions, gave insight into the possibility of life on Earth’s next-door neighbor. Pilcher, Des Marais, and Hoehler are all Fellows of the Academy. Dr. David Deamer of the University of California, Santa Cruz, consulted on the chemical origins of life, especially for the “hot puddle” scenario depicted in the show. The Academy also drew on its own scientists to ensure that even the tiniest details were accurate: botanically sound depictions of the redwood leaf and leaf interior; a realistic computer-generated ant along with its zig-zag walking pattern; and an appropriate selection of birdsongs for the redwood grove, taken from recordings made by former 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 42 of 60 Suitable for younger/general audiences and school groups Life: A Cosmic Story Life takes audiences on an immersive, all-digital journey, featuring visualizations based on the latest scientific data. “The show’s core concept is that all life on Earth is related, having evolved from a common ancestor,” says Ryan Wyatt, Director of Morrison Planetarium and Science Visualization. “Taking an even longer view, we see that life’s origins begin with dark matter and the first stars — our pedigree is actually 13.7 billion years in the making.” Narrated by two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster, Life begins in a grove of towering redwoods, majestic emblems of Northern California. From there, the audience “shrinks” dramatically as it enters a single redwood leaf and then a redwood cell, learning that despite their unique appearance, redwoods are composed of the same basic molecules as all other organisms on Earth. After this opening statement of shared ancestry, the audience launches on a journey through time, witnessing key events since the Big Bang that set the stage for life. The first stars ignite, galaxies coalesce, and entire worlds take shape. On the early Earth, two scenarios for the dawn of life are presented — one near a turbulent, deep-sea hydrothermal vent, and the other in a primordial “hot puddle” on a volcanic island. From these microscopic beginnings, life transformed the entire Earth as it evolved and diversified: filling the atmosphere with oxygen, turning the continents green, and altering global climate patterns. The 25- minute show ends with a review of geological evidence and the connectedness of all living things on Earth. To ensure that the show is as scientifically accurate and up-to-date as possible, the Academy drew on the expertise of several advisers who are leaders in their fields: Dr. Jill Tarter, Director of the Center for SETI Research at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, consulted on the show with her extensive knowledge of astrobiology and the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life. Tarter provided the real-life inspiration for Jodie Foster’s character in the 1997 film Contact, and she is also a Fellow and Trustee of the California Academy of Sciences. Three scientists from the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) in Mountain View provided expertise as well: Dr. Carl Pilcher, Director of NAI; Dr. David Des Marais, Principal Investigator of NAI’s Ames Research Center team; and Dr. Tori Hoehler, Research Scientist with the NAI Ames team. Their collective research efforts focus on the origins, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the Universe. Des Marais, who is heavily involved in the current Mars missions, gave insight into the possibility of life on Earth’s next-door neighbor. Pilcher, Des Marais, and Hoehler are all Fellows of the Academy. Dr. David Deamer of the University of California, Santa Cruz, consulted on the chemical origins of life, especially for the “hot puddle” scenario depicted in the show. The Academy also drew on its own scientists to ensure that even the tiniest details were accurate: botanically sound depictions of the redwood leaf and leaf interior; a realistic computer-generated ant along with its zig-zag walking pattern; and an appropriate selection of birdsongs for the redwood grove, taken from recordings made by former the discoveries of Galileo, Huygens, Newton, Hubble and many others. Engaging and appealing to audiences of all ages, Two Small Pieces of Glass traces the history of the telescope from Galileo’s modifications to a child’s spyglass-using two small pieces of glass – to the launch of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the future of astronomy. It explores the wonder and discovery made by astronomers throughout the last 400 years. Run time: 30 minutes Perfect Little Planet After more than a year in the making, Clark Planetarium Productions has unveiled its most innovative show since 'The Secret of the Cardboard Rocket'. The show is revolutionary on a number of fronts: 4K resolution that utilizes detailed assets to take full advantage of the 4K environment; a frame rate of 60 frames per second to provide smoother motion, sharper definition, and clearer colors. (The show is also available in 30fps for those theaters who do not yet have systems to support the higher frame rate). So what is the theme of the show? Imagine the ultimate space vacation! What if you could travel the galaxy to find that ideal place? Discover our solar system through a new set of eyes - a family from another star system seeking the perfect vacation spot. Fly over the surface of Pluto, our best known Dwarf Planet. Dive over the ice cliffs of Miranda. Sail through the rings of Saturn. Feel the lightning storms at Jupiter. And walk on the surface of Mars. Which destination would you choose? This is the solar system journey for travelers of all ages. 'Perfect Little Planet' serves the same ages and covers the same curriculum as the popular 'Secret of the Cardboard Rocket' show. AVAILABLE MARCH 2012 Produced by Clark Planetarium Productions Approximate run time: 35 minutes 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 41 of 60 Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System has been funded by NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission. Appropriate for: Advanced Interest Length: 28 minutes Two Small Pieces of Glass While attending a local star party, two students learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and how the telescopes continue to expand our understanding of the Universe. Their conversation with a local astronomer enlightens them on the history of the telescope and the discoveries these wonderful tools have made. The students see how telescopes work and hw the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the mysteries of the universe. While looking through the astronomer’s telescope, the students, along with the planetarium audience, explore the Galilean Moons, Saturn’s rings, and the spiral structure of galaxies. During their conversation with the astronomer, the also learn about the discoveries of Galileo, Huygens, Newton, Hubble and many others. Engaging and appealing to audiences of all ages, Two Small Pieces of Glass traces the history of the telescope from Galileo’s modifications to a child’s spyglass-using two small pieces of glass – to the launch of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the future of astronomy. It explores the wonder and discovery made by astronomers throughout the last 400 years. Run time: 30 minutes Perfect Little Planet After more than a year in the making, Clark Planetarium Productions has unveiled its most innovative show since 'The Secret of the Cardboard Rocket'. The show is revolutionary on a number of fronts: 4K resolution that utilizes detailed assets to take full advantage of the 4K environment; a frame rate of 60 frames per second to provide smoother motion, sharper definition, and clearer colors. (The show is also available in 30fps for those theaters who do not yet have systems to support the higher frame rate). So what is the theme of the show? Imagine the ultimate space vacation! What if you could travel the galaxy to find that ideal place? Discover our solar system through a new set of eyes - a family from another star system seeking the perfect vacation spot. Fly over the surface of Pluto, our best known Dwarf Planet. Dive over the ice cliffs of Miranda. Sail through the rings of Saturn. Feel the lightning storms at Jupiter. And walk on the surface of Mars. Which destination would you choose? This is the solar system journey for travelers of all ages. 'Perfect Little Planet' serves the same ages and covers the same curriculum as the popular 'Secret of the Cardboard Rocket' show. AVAILABLE MARCH 2012 Produced by Clark Planetarium Productions Approximate run time: 35 minutes surveys and various deep sky objects. All points have motion vectors and the proper motion of stars can be fully simulated. Other astronomical motions are also supported, but as daily and 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 28 of 60 written around the Digital Universe database from the American Museum of Natural History. The feature set has evolved since release 1.0 and has now improved even further in UniView 1.4. THE SCALEGRAPH The Scalegraph was the first ever innovation in UniView It was originally conceived as early as in the fall of 2002 and is a truly elegant solution to some serious visualization obstacles. One of the first challenges faced when integrating a cohesive visualization of the solar system and planets with deep space surveys is dealing with the enormous range of scales present, over 30 orders of magnitude. If you want to go into the micro-cosmos, there are 30 more orders of magnitude in the scientific areas humans have been able to observe. On computers with limited precision in their graphics and CPU pipelines, this poses a challenge. The Scalegraph is a mathematical algorithm that increases the numerical precision and overcomes the challenges involved. Other benefits of the Scalegraph are that it provides a method for nesting coordinate systems. Positions in space are always expressed in relation to some other object, and in a homogenous simulation like UniView, these other objects are also positioned in relation to yet other objects. The Scalegraph is the way for the system to keep track of all these coordinate systems in a structured and efficient way, so the simulation is accurate. Digital Universe Visualization The Digital Universe is the world’s most extensive and accurate 3D atlas of the universe. The database combines the latest astronomical data provided by scientists from around the globe. Developed at the American Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium in conjunction with NASA, the vast database includes stars, star clusters, star-forming regions, multi-wavelength views of the Milky Way and the latest galaxy and quasar surveys, to name a few. In this vast atlas, these elements are combined to bring you a view of the observable universe, conveying the size and structure of our galaxy and the cosmic web of galaxies that surround us. UniView has been equipped with a vast feature set to support visualization of the Digital Universe. Among the features are meshes and point visualization, supported by optimized vertex buffers and shaders. Specific shaders for astronomical objects have been developed, as well as for all-sky surveys and various deep sky objects. All points have motion vectors and the proper motion of stars can be fully simulated. Other astronomical motions are also supported, but as daily and audience seating area. This includes interfaces to the Global Immersion Audio Server, programmable audio digital signal processor, amplifiers, and speaker cabinets. The audio system is synchronized to the video playback, and integrated to the Theatre Control system. The Audio System options are proven professional series Theatre Systems, which come fully designed and modeled for Immersive theatre applications. This includes audio mapping and appropriate algorithms for the size and characteristics of the Dome Theatre. The installation includes support structures and flying rigging. The Audio System links to the Global Immersion Theatre Control System to give a simple but extremely powerful theatre audio system that can cope comfortably for all types of multimedia applications, and accepts and controls for playback and synchronization of all popular formats such as mp3, WMA and Wav files. We have also provided a professional DVD player, 2 professional series microphones and mixer. as future technology evolves. If the Museum receives an NVIDIA donation in the future, we can help specify the optimal graphic cards and help you integrate them into your system. The open architecture allows Global Immersion to exploit current technology to scale the delivery system to match the required theatre resolution, and to optimize the high performance display configuration. Playback Software Global Immersion Media Player is professional-grade playback software that gives the user full control of the show list and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use Graphical User Interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the show content. The system can take any electronic media, and then convert it into playable format. The easy to use (point and click) windows GUI allows the creator to drag and drop the media into any position on the media canvas. The software provides control of shows, and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the Dome content/movie. 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 21 of 60 Playback Servers Servers Fidelity Play™ is Global Immersion’s comprehensive media solution for high performance, demanding immersive environments. Consisting of a custom media server solution, and a tailored software and control package, Fidelity Play™ has everything you need to control and manage your system, and prepare, stream and playback your wide selection of media. At the heart of Fidelity Play™, the Global Immersion Media Server is a multi-node graphics cluster, used to render high- resolution digital content in the form of pre-recorded movies (video stream) or from real-time applications. The server is designed specifically for digital immersive theatre applications providing a fully scalable solution for the future. The hardware consists of industrial grade (enterprise class) commodity industrial PC components to deliver high performance at a low cost. The cluster uses proven components in a system-level integrated package to create a cost effective yet robust platform, ideally suited to graphics rendering. The system uses NVIDIA Graphics cards, and the server graphics cards can be upgraded as future technology evolves. If the Museum receives an NVIDIA donation in the future, we can help specify the optimal graphic cards and help you integrate them into your system. The open architecture allows Global Immersion to exploit current technology to scale the delivery system to match the required theatre resolution, and to optimize the high performance display configuration. Playback Software Global Immersion Media Player is professional-grade playback software that gives the user full control of the show list and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use Graphical User Interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the show content. The system can take any electronic media, and then convert it into playable format. The easy to use (point and click) windows GUI allows the creator to drag and drop the media into any position on the media canvas. The software provides control of shows, and synchronizes video frames along with accompanying multi-channel audio. The very easy to use interface (GUI) allows the user to play, pause, stop, rewind, or randomly access any point in the Dome content/movie. is also configured and fine tuned to best suit its application. Global Immersion’s unique patented optical blending considers not only the projection technology but also the lens exit pupils. Display Layout Our projection system provides a continuous display covering the 220 degree projection surface. We use five projectors, each with a display resolution of 2560 pixels wide x 1600 pixels high. The images from each projector are blended together using Global Immersion’s patented blending system, to provide a continuous seamless canvass. Global Immersion is able to take your show content and re render it to be displayed as eight individual panels from the five projectors across the 220 degree canvass. It may seem obvious to have one projector per display area. However this reduces the height of the projected display. The following diagrams show the full 220 degree screen, which is approximately 70m in length. The first diagram shows the projection surface as covered by five projectors, and the second as covered by eight projectors (one per image). 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 19 of 60 Included with these customized Fidelity Projectors:  Wide angle lens  Full batch color matching for a display that is uniform in color and brightness. Projector Mounts In order to preserve the aesthetic design qualities of the theatre space we propose to design custom projector mounts that will be discreet whilst still providing the necessary rigidity. Blending Optical/mechanical blend masks are required with fixed matrix projectors in multi-channel projection displays whatever their lens or resolution capabilities. These digital, higher brightness projectors have an inherent light level, even when projecting full black field. Where two panels overlap this ‘lit’ black level doubles to a visible lighter grey. Global Immersion approaches this important area by taking a design-based approach and evaluating the technical requirements of each project individually. Many solutions use the ‘wiper blade’ approach, or glass plate, which can cause light dispersion and scattering - not permitting independent adjustment on all axes. We determine the best blend profile/edge detail to suit a given projector and lens, with consideration to its application. If necessary we can review whether any internal optics can bring any merit. Taking the best soft edge characteristic results we can then re-optimize the display layout in terms of overlaps, projector positions, panel optimization. The blend equipment is also configured and fine tuned to best suit its application. Global Immersion’s unique patented optical blending considers not only the projection technology but also the lens exit pupils. Display Layout Our projection system provides a continuous display covering the 220 degree projection surface. We use five projectors, each with a display resolution of 2560 pixels wide x 1600 pixels high. The images from each projector are blended together using Global Immersion’s patented blending system, to provide a continuous seamless canvass. Global Immersion is able to take your show content and re render it to be displayed as eight individual panels from the five projectors across the 220 degree canvass. It may seem obvious to have one projector per display area. However this reduces the height of the projected display. The following diagrams show the full 220 degree screen, which is approximately 70m in length. The first diagram shows the projection surface as covered by five projectors, and the second as covered by eight projectors (one per image). Resolution Contrast Technology Light source Lamp life WQXGA (2560 x 1600) per projector 8,000:1 Single chip DLP® projector LED No lamps. LED light engine life is 100,000 hours 79337 – Discovery Museum Digital Dome Theatre 18 of 60 Full Dome Screen Global Immersion has successfully partnered with Astro-tec and Spitz on many dome theatre projects. We have given pricing for the highest quality screen from each manufacturer. The screen is 360o in plan and 162o in profile, 36 ft in diameter and tilted at 20o. The reflectivity of the screen will be determined as part of the final system design. Installation will be supervised by specialists from the screen manufacturer. Scaffolding is included in the price. The expected installation period would be circa 25-35 days at site. Projection The projection system comprises a number of elements that are described in the following sections. Projectors Optimised Fidelity Projector – Projectiondesign® FL35 Intelligence, performance and meticulous engineering built into every unit. The Projectiondesign F35 series of professional grade DLP® projectors is specifically designed for graphically challenging applications, such as multi channel seamless visualization walls, domes, and high resolution imaging. These LED projectors provide amazing color and brightness, combined with low power usage and heat output, quiet operation as there a fewer cooling fans, and low operating costs as there are no lamps to replace, no color wheels to replace, and they consume far less power than lamp based units. Resolution Contrast Technology Light source Lamp life WQXGA (2560 x 1600) per projector 8,000:1 Single chip DLP® projector LED No lamps. LED light engine life is 100,000 hours