Aethra Electra Brochure

HD rollabout for telepresence Top of the line for Aethra, it has been designed by Michele De Lucchi, leading Italian designer. Cutting-edge technology without compromising on elegance, for the new generation of integrated videocommunication systems. When technology meets design electra 1

market, Aethra develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of systems and solutions in more than 65 countries. Thanks to its innovation-based strategy and the know how gained from 35 years in the telecommunication market, today Aethra is one of the main international players in the videocommunication market, providing its systems to companies, banks and multinational corporations all over the world. Aethra received the international award “Videoconferencing Company of the Year 2006” (from Videoconferencing Insight, January 2007). Aethra’s growth is due to strong investment in R&D, to an accurate selection of its partners and to a continuous expansion on the international market, combined with the development of high quality and innovation- based technology. 2

Aethra designs, develops and manufactures products and solutions of excellence and professional services for telecommunications and videocommunication. Excellence represents the heart of what Aethra is and does both now and in the future: • in technology, with ever-continuing innovation and undisputed quality; • in Italian design, with an internationally recognisable style; • in partner and client relations based on maximum transparency, communication and responsibility; • in the people who work towards the company’s evolution day by day, who contribute to its successes and grow with it professionally. Research and Development The internal R&D department is the heart of Aethra’s philosophy. The company invests every year around 12% of revenues in research and participation in international projects. The role of development is to create high quality cutting-edge products, compliant to international standards. Aethra is active member and partner of: IMTC, ITU, ETSI, IEEE, DSL Forum, GIIF. Design Harmonious elegance and style emphasize the functional simplicity of innovative technology. Detail and essential design underline a cutting- edge product and its high technological content. The new rollabouts designed by Michele De Lucchi with Angelo Micheli and Philippe Nigro testify to Aethra’s choice of excellence in design, with an internationally renowed style.

* Courtesy of aMDL 4 Who is Michele De Lucchi* Michele De Lucchi was born in 1951 in Ferrara and graduated in architecture in Florence. His professional work has always gone side-by-side with a personal exploration of architecture, design, technology and crafts. During the period of radical and experimental architecture he was a prominent figure in movements like Cavart, Alchymia and Memphis. De Lucchi has designed lamps and furniture for the most well-known Italian and European companies. For Olivetti he was Director of Design from 1992 to 2002 and he has elaborated various personal theories on the evolution of the workplace. He has developed experimental projects for Compaq Computers, Philips, Siemens and Vitra. His architectural designs have mainly been for office buildings, in Japan for NTT, in Germany for Deutsche Bank, in Switzerland for Novartis, and in Italy for Enel, Olivetti, Piaggio, Poste Italiane, Telecom Italia. In 1999 he was appointed to renovate some of ENEL’s (the Italian Electricity Company) power plants. For Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Bundesbahn, Enel, Poste Italiane, Telecom Italia, Banca Popolare di Lodi, Banca Intesa, Intesa Sanpaolo and other Italian and foreign banks he has collaborated on the evolution of the corporate image, introducing technical and aesthetic innovation into the working environments. He has taken care of numerous art and design exhibitions and has planned buildings for museums such as Triennale di Milano, Palazzo delle Esposizioni di Roma and Neues Museum Berlin. Selections of his products are exhibited in the most important design Museums in Europe, the United States and Japan. In 2000 he was appointed Officer of the Italian Republic by President Ciampi, for services to design and architecture. His Studio, aMDL s.r.l., has its offices in Milan and Rome. The aMDL office: experience, philosophy, and the approach to the project The aMDL office was set up many years ago, thanks to the fusion of many different kinds of expertise; first mine, then subsequently the singular skills of my colleagues in the areas of design, architecture, graphics, and communication. This reflects my general philosophy: to enable the aMDL office to meet the requirements of a world in evolution, in all its many aspects. Undoubtedly, the most important professional experience, which helped to form my way of thinking, was in Olivetti. The architect at Olivetti was responsible for the overall “value” of the company’s image, and it was there that I learned to take an interest in everything. Today in the aMDL offices, we work mainly on planning professional spaces, offices, and all areas where productivity is of the utmost importance.

specialization, I would say that there are many recurrent themes within our work that remain constant. One of these is certainly mankind, and the life of mankind that is constantly transforming itself: it is impossible to create a table or a computer or a printer if you don’t know how it will be used, or when and why. In addition, there are also more simple themes; for example technology and craft, represented by the industrial and the manual, repetitiveness and uniqueness. We always see the same themes slowly evolving as mankind’s sensibility evolves; and today we are being steered towards a new view of nature and the environment. This is what makes our work interesting; having to think about real, concrete objects, while at the same time having to reflect on how the air and space that we live in is evolving, and what changes the future may bring. This is the job of design: to make technology look beautiful, human, useful, practical, necessary and fundamental for mankind and today’s lifestyle - to solve the great problems of our era. The Aethra rollabout is a perfect project for us, with its combination of technology and the environment. This is the really stimulating part: the possibility to work on technology surrounded by “air”, which is of course the most precious of materials. The challenge is to eliminate the clutter and to make the space appear as pure, beautiful and airy as possible. Aethra is very involved in this process: in communication for example, it has eliminated the encumbrance of the means of transport, thereby generating the ideal working conditions. (Michele De Lucchi, 2007) aMDL office Milan

auditoriums, show rooms and meeting rooms, it is becoming an increasingly indispensable work tool. Communicate and cooperate with colleagues, customers and partners, overcoming distances, for strategic meetings or operative working sessions, for distance learning and quality control. For every multimedia communication requirement, in your company or organization, for groups of people. Ideal for meetings and conferences, to add value to your events and remote locations. The system can be placed wherever you may need to collaborate in an simple and effective way. The small wheels on which it is mounted allow it to be moved easily and to be adapted to different environments - thanks to the rubber wheels, movement is smooth and noiseless. Besides flexibility, Electra stands out for the modularity and the integration of an optimised solution. It is a complete system, integrating in a single cabinet a plasma screen, a High Definition camera, a HD codec, and multiple interfaces, allowing addition of further peripherals. Thanks to an integrated MCU, it allows other participants on different networks to connect in multipoint videoconference, with the highest versatility and interoperability. The distinguished and elegant design, together with the selected materials and the ergonomic lines, enrich the cutting-edge technology. Amplified speakerphones integrated in the system provide a superior class audio, while thanks to the powerful HD video every What is a rollabout? An elegant and professional solution for videocommunication 6

the plasma screen. You can appreciate the real performance of this next generation videocommunication system by taking a look at the expressions and gestures of the person you are speaking to or the smallest parts of a project or a product transmitted by camera. The eye for detail regards not just the video display, but also the location where the videoconference takes place. The Electra structure has been designed to hide the unsightly cables connecting different interfaces. The new elegant graphic interface makes the system easy to configure and manage, by overcoming technological barriers and creating a technology that is user-friendly, immediate and intuitive. electra 7

the new Aethra rollabout: Electra Objects made from a combination of technology and furnishings are perfect for creating elements of design and architecture, and unite the skills and the expertise of industry with mankind’s desire to consume space. The principles of the ‘Electra’ project are fundamentally the elimination of clutter and the creation of an object with a strong personality. The elimination of clutter can be achieved in two ways: firstly through minimalism, i.e. the creation of an object which is as volumetrically pure, simple and geometrically identifiable as possible. And secondly through agility, flexibility, mobility and practicality, i.e. an object in which the function of all the components is clear. Our aim was to create an object, which is totally familiar, and which belongs to a world of things we already know, because familiarity with technology makes everything easier to understand, more normal and more endearing. (Michele De Lucchi, 2007)

on an attractive rollabout stand for meeting rooms of any size. Multiple network connectivity Supports 768 kbps over ISDN BRI and 4 Mbps over IP, as well as connections up to 2 Mbps over ISDN PRI, or over leased lines (X.21, V.35, RS449, G.703). Multipoint conferencing The built-in mixed mode MCU, with its Continuous Presence feature, can connect up to 9 sites with video or audio-only in mixed mode. Convenient dial-out and dial-in (Meet Me) configuration, easily enables participants to join conferences in progress. Wideband audio The first system to support both 14-kHz (ITU and ISO) wideband audio codecs adopted in videoconferencing.

On our web site www.aethra.com we offer a dedicated area, where a variety of simulations allow you to enjoy the pleasures of our stylish design. Change the point of view, choose the right colour for your location and magnify the details to truly appreciate the attention to materials and ergonomy. Sorrento Lime White Ivory Grey Pearl 6 off-the-rack colours

(that are not a detail) Electra is entirely assembled in Italy, almost hand-crafted, to ensure attention to details. A minimal and essential design, drawing pure and ergonomic lines, highlights the simplicity of shapes.An all-in-one system, with a flexible configuration but without additional external modules, simplifies and clears spaces. When your location is neat and stylish, it’s easier to work better and focus on what is essential, your business. The next generation technology is both user friendly and working environment friendly. more optional colours

The precious coverings in coloured leather add elegance and prestige to your offices and meeting rooms. You can choose between 6 basic colours, but you have also an unlimited choice based on your requirements: just ask for your customized colour, and your Electra will perfectly fit to your location. Furthermore, if you want to give a fresher or just a different image to your offices and meeting rooms, you can replace the leather cover. Covers can be easily changed in just 10 minutes.

• High Definition is not just technology, it’s a concept embracing Video, Voice and Content aimed at evolving the way we communicate while making videoconferencing a true real- life experience. • HD Videoconferencing is the perfect solution in many fields: it cuts decisions-time and involves your partners quickly and effectively. HD offers a high-quality system with a very rapid ROI (Return On Investment), while greatly increasing productivity. On average, it can take as few as 4 videoconferencing sessions for the equipment to pay for itself in terms of costs saved on travel expenses. You can benefit even more from improved efficiency investing in HD systems. • Reduce costs and increase productivity, speed up decision-making and shorten time to market, improve one-to-one relations with customers and partners. Find effective ways to achieve these goals and you’ve met one of the most important challenges facing businesses today. To keep costs low and customer satisfaction high, companies are increasingly employing staff in loco to coordinate major markets located far from the company base. As a result, businesses often find themselves juggling a network of remote workers and struggling to communicate and collaborate effectively. With High Definition videoconferencing technology, it appears the solution to remote face-to-face communication has arrived. • HD videocommunication allows the creation of a professional communication network, globally integrating audio, video and data. Thanks to a telepresence effect, HD videoconferencing is the ideal solution for those meetings that can be an issue in terms of time and costs. High Definition makes remote meetings involving and engaging. Thanks to high fidelity audio and video resolution, you can view images without loosing any detail, improving visual and acoustic perception as if you were in the same room. • HD broadens the traditional applications of videocommunication: view graphs, documents, projects and products in every tiny detail, and benefit from non-verbal communication, capturing every expression and reaction, for the highest quality communication. 14

It is the natural evolution of traditional videoconferencing systems: from 352 x 288 pixels (standard CIF format) to 1280 x720 pixels. In terms of mega pixels per image that’s a shift from 0.101 in CIF to 0.922 in HDTV: more than 9 times better! Truly appreciate the difference at the optimal 1 Mbps, and see a significant improvement in quality even at lower bandwidths. • HD is the new generation video technology. HD resolution is 9 times (9xCIF) the quality of traditional videoconferencing systems. True-to-size and high performance, it offers high fidelity, clarity and efficiency, making it an invaluable alternative to face-to-face meetings. Thanks to wideband audio and the life-like quality of High-Definition video, participants can appreciate the true value of body language and other forms of non-verbal communication. Welcome to the new era of High Definition videocommunication EXPERIENCE TELEPRESENCE EFFECT FOR AUDIO AND VIDEO Lights, shades, depth of images amplified by real sound effect High Definition conferencing introduces the “human factor” into videoconferencing sessions and creates a more natural environment, perfect for improving interpersonal relations and increasing productivity. • To keep up with HD image processing, very powerful and efficient codecs are required. The latest widely adopted video codec is the H.264, which is also known as MPEG-4 part 10 and AVC (Advanced Video Codec). To give an overall feeling of “quality”, wideband audio codecs (14kHz) have also been coupled with HD images: (ISO) Low Delay Advanced Audio Coding (MPEG-4 AAC-LD) (ITU) G.722.1 Annex C 15

Superior level performance image capture. Great for all the applications where detail is not a detail. From a non verbal gesture to the smallest object, experience the life-like resolution. Quality of communication enhancing the quality of collaboration and interaction. An exclusive product On the left side of the rollabout is a small card: the Electra card, signed by “Michele De Lucchi design” and numbered. Tell everybody that your Electra is an unique piece of art and design. The back side of the rollabout The box has been designed to include and hide all cables, while supporting the structure. The empty spaces allow insertion of new modules (DVD recorder, Hard disk,... ) for new functionalities, thus improving the flexibility and the scalability of the system.

Miami, FL 33130 USA Tel.: +1.305.375.0010 Fax: +1.305.375.0655 Video ISDN: +1.305.577.3524 Video IP: 66.243.113.80 Email: [email protected] Aethra México Paseo de la Reforma 76, Despacho 701- C Colonia Juárez, Delegación Cuauhtémoc, C. P. 06600, México D. F. Tel: + 52 55 5705 5574 Fax:+ 52 55 5546 5133 Email: [email protected] Aethra Ameris Telecomunicações Ltda. Avenida Paulista, 807 - 17° Andar - cj-1714 Cerqueira César 01311-915 São Paulo - SP BRAZIL Tel./Fax: +55 11 3251 2565 Video: +55 11 3266 7969, +55 11 3284 7103, +55 11 3284 4942 Email [email protected] Aethra Technology Co. Ltd 1F, A Block, Tsinghua Hi-Tech Park Shenzhen Hi-Tech Industrial North Area 518057 Nanshan District, Shenzhen CHINA Tel.: +86.755.26.03.00.01-6 Fax: +86.755.26.03.03.66 Video ISDN: +86.755.26.03.01.18 Email: [email protected] Aethra Offices Aethra - France 20, rue Jean Rostand 91893 Orsay Cedex FRANCE Tel.: +33 1 69 33 10 79 Fax: +33 1 69 35 09 73 Video ISDN: +33 1 69 33 17 24 Video IP: 82.232.89.32 Email: [email protected] Aethra - China Beijing Global Trade Center Tower B 2101, 36 North Third Ring East, Dongcheng District, Beijing, 100013 CHINA Tel.: +86.58.25.65.35/36/37/38 Fax: +86.58.25.65.39 Video ISDN: +86.58.25.65.86/87 Video IP: 218.247.167.194 Email: [email protected] Aethra - Shanghai 10H, Kaili Mansion No. 432 HuaiHai (W) Road Shanghai, 200052 CHINA Tel.: +86 (21) 52.58.71.77 Fax: +86 (21) 52.54.00.96 Video ISDN: +86 (21) 52.54.00.25 Video IP: 220.248.32.254 Headquarters Aethra S.p.A. via Matteo Ricci, 10 60126 Ancona ITALY Tel.: +39.071.2189.81 Fax: +39.071.88.70.77 Video ISDN: +39.071.2189.704/701 Video IP: 213.26.189.5 Email: [email protected]