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Barco - Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority

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Barco - Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority
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Boston is not only the birthplace of democracy and freedom, but also the origin of America’s mass transportation system. The Hub’s transit system is the oldest and fourth largest in the nation, tracing its history from ferries and horse cars, to trolleys and North America’s fi rst subway. Always a champion of the latest mass transit technologies, it’s only fi tting that the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority chose to drive the next level of evolution with a new networked visualization solution from Barco implemented by Vistacom.

See more, more clearly


Upon receiving a $6 million grant from the Department of Homeland Security to renovate its Operations Control Center, MBTA honed in on its most critical need: display information from various networks and locations in a coherent, quickly actionable manner. “MBTA needed to harness many types of data, including news, weather and traffi c reports, in a meaningful way to make comprehensive assessments of unfolding situations,” explains Jim Ferlino, principal at Vistacom, the Allentown, PA-based AV systems integrator.

A multi-faceted, big picture


Vistacom created a +100-foot canvas comprising 60 Barco rear projection LED modules, creating a full-featured visual collaboration wall. Now, MBTA can display accurate, sharp imagery from up to 100 channels of streaming video, signifi cantly enhancing situational awareness of the transportation network.

Effortless collaboration


Barco’s TransForm N processing nodes and CMS-200 Control Room Management Suite software combine to facilitate organization, control and sharing of data and video among the team to enhance decision-making. The Sidebar application expedites searches and browsing, confi guring images via a drag-and-drop motion, while the Perspectives capability enables operators to build scenes featuring multiple sources simultaneously.

The wall is a mix of traditional rail control (SCADA) plus security feeds from fi ve network video recorder (NVR) platforms. The VidSys Physical Security Information Management (PSIM) software runs on top of other software and is integrated via the Barco CMS API plugin to control content on the wall.

The solution functions like a node on the control room LAN, connecting to other agencies and locations via a comprehensive WAN. “The Barco solution acts as a versatile switch so we can quickly and easily pull up 10,000 native camera feeds,” says Dan Gundry, Vistacom’s Control Room Team Specialist. The result: greater control, visibility, and smoother operations for MBTA and its customers.

Douglas Fearing- Co-Founder / President

A graduate of DeVry Institute of Technology, Doug has been in the Technology industry since 1976 and actively oversees Fearing’s daily operations. Along with his wife, Lois, and three others, Doug started Fearing’s in a 600 square-foot facility in Portage, Wisconsin. In the 25 years since, the company has grown to over 30 employees with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Doug likes to say he’s a “TV Technician with a dream� going back to his history with the family’s original business-Fearing’s TV and Appliance.

Doug values time with family, watersports, hiking, snowshoeing and skiing. In addition to being a devoted member of his church, Doug serves as Board President for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County, Board member of Schools for Haiti and Scripture Chair of the Gideons-Portage camp.

Lois Fearing- Co-Founder/Accounting, Human Resources

A graduate of MATC, Lois oversees Fearing’s daily book keeping along with various HR responsibilities.

Along with Doug, Lois is deeply connected to community outreach, serving as a Board member and Fundraising Committee Chairperson for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County. She also serves on the Schools for Haiti Fundraising committee. In addition, Lois’ ongoing passion and commitment to provide care for the elderly comes from her 10-year history of working in a Reedsburg, Wisconsin Nursing home.

Lois enjoys singing, hiking, sunny days on the pontoon, and spending time with her 4 grandchildren.

Ehren Tresner-VP of Technology and Innovation

Ehren drives Fearing’s technology by continually seeking out trends to enhance capabilities while supporting Sales, Engineering and Installation teams. Throughout his years with Fearing’s, Ehren’s talent and vision have joined forces to create a wide variety of projects and strategic solutions that exceed expectation.

Ehren loves music, family time, movies, nature, sustainability efforts and electric vehicles.

Ben Voeck-Director of Commercial AV

With 10 years with Fearing’s and over twice that long in the industry, Ben continues to lead, coordinate, and develop the Commercial AV team.

By consistently delivering an outstanding experience and outcome, Ben contributes to the Fearing’s legacy of long-lasting partnerships that truly make a difference. Whatever the Commercial AV need may be, Ben and team deliver at the highest level.

Ben is an avid fisherman and photographer. He enjoys coaching his sons and other youth.

Chris Matson-Senior VP of Sales

Chris has been with Fearing’s for 20 years and in the industry for over 2 decades. As a Certified leader in Sales Acceleration and trained in EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating Systems), Chris successfully utilizes his skills to lead the Fearing’s Salesforce. Chris and team are motivated and driven to develop new client partnerships while continuing to reinforce loyal long-term relationships with ongoing Service excellence.

Married for 19 years with 3 children, Chris enjoys skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, camping and golf. He’s also been actively involved as a Youth Football and Softball coach for his family and others.