The rapid evolution of AV in the event industry – a conversation with Creative Technology

The Beurs van Berlage is the setting for hundreds of events every year, in all shapes and sizes. An important collaborator to the success of these events is our permanent AV partner Creative Technology (formerly Faber AV). We spoke with commercial director Arjen Kijk in de Vegte about our collaboration and the rapid development of technology at business events.

Nice to speak to you Arjen. Can you explain what Creative Technology does?

“We deliver audiovisual technology for large-scale events. Sports events for example, such as a World Tennis Tournament or Formula 1, but also music events like concerts and festivals. We also support a substantial part of the Dutch television productions. And then of course we deliver creative and technical services for business events, such as product launches, conferences, trade fairs or gala dinners. The latter mainly take place at the Beurs van Berlage.

What sets you apart from other AV companies?

“Creative Technology is much more than a party that rents out equipment. We are truly a service provider. We work with the client towards achieving their goals and we often support them by designing and visualising their plans. We also create various media productions, if necessary. Many large corporates such as YouTube, Cisco and Salesforce, really want that 360-degree approach. And we are very good at that. We truly go the extra mile.”

Can you tell us a bit more about your collaboration with the Beurs van Berlage?

“We’ve been working with the Beurs for a decade already. It’s a beautiful building to work in, with great clients. Our collaboration is much more than a client-supplier relationship, it’s really a partnership. We join in on meetings, speak to clients, give workshops, we work together very closely. We do about 75 projects a year together.”

So what are the most important technologies that you provide at those events?

“The main presentation technology, rigging and room lighting, is a fixed installation at the Beurs, which is managed by their in-house AV team. We focus on where that needs to be expanded. We do everything that has to do with large video screens and cameras, as well as streaming, LED and presentation technology. And we closely work together with Ampco Flashlight for the large audio, specific rigging and lighting needs.”

How has AV technology within events developed recently?

“The pandemic in particular has led to a lot of innovation. All events had to become virtual, we had to come up with creative solutions. We’re part of a global organisation, so luckily we had a lot of knowledge in-house. At the Beurs van Berlage for example, we built a ‘state of the art’ hybrid studio, from which we streamed live content to online platforms. As a result, we still had a lot of exposure with the Beurs during that difficult time. Fortunately, people now go to events in person again. But the technologies that took flight then are still widely used today.”

What other developments do you expect?

“I think that there will be an increasing focus on sustainability. At Creative Technology, we developed our own remote monitoring platform, which gives us the opportunity to monitor signals and power consumption at larger events. After the event, we analyse the power consumption with a view to saving. I also see that there is an increasing focus on limiting transport movements. For example, in the future, not all equipment will be taken to foreign productions. The directing part will simply remain here, in one of our centralised event control rooms.”

What are the most important trends in event technology at the moment?

“We are increasingly combining technology, design and content. Customers really like that full-service approach. We are also seeing augmented reality taking off. In the use of augmented sets for instance, which allow you to see completely different environments in a live stream than in the room and give you the opportunity to present in ways you were never able to before.”

How are you responding to these trends as a company?

“We have a Creative Services department, which exclusively deals with interactive content, AI-driven content, 3D designs and augmented reality. We’re now working on a project for an African event, at which we will present an AI co-host, for example Also, we recently created an interactive demo table for a German car brand, with a 3D-printed landscape. The audience was, as it were, inside of the augmented presentation. People saw objects emerge from the ground, which they could then move around. We are going to see a lot more of that kind of technology in the future. A lot more engaging than a PowerPoint, right?”

Certainly! Thanks for your time Arjen, we are looking forward to seeing Creative Technology in action in 2025!