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Meeting Planners Technology Checklist 
 ©2001 Corbin Ball Associates

Hotel Web Site:

  • Informative and useful website with floor plans and pictures of meeting space, exterior and public space
  • Has on-line menus
  • Has on-line meeting policies
  • Accepts on-line RFP’s
  • Accepts on-line registrations through a secure server
  • Accepts on-line group registrations
  • Has floor plans which can be downloaded for use with room diagramming software. What format? MeetingMatrix, Optimum Settings or other?

Hotel Sales:

  • Is Sales representative on-line?
  • Do he/she check email regularly?
  • Can hotel sales accept attached documents? What format?
  • Can hotel sales send initial contract offers electronically?

Convention Services:

  • Is Convention Services Manager contact on-line?
  • Do CSM check email regularly?
  • Can CSM accept attached documents? What format?
  • Can the accept electronic rooming lists electronically? What format?
  • Does CSM use PlanSoft Ajenis or other form of standardized meeting planning software?
  • Do CSM use meeting diagramming software? What format?

Sleeping Rooms:

  • Desk with space and comfortable height using a laptop
  • Ergonomic adjustable chair
  • Easily accessible outlet for laptop (preferably at the table top)
  • Easily accessible data port (at the desk)
  • Multiple phones and dual phone lines
  • High speed digital data line to guest room (this is coming)
  • In-room voice messaging with customizable guest greeting and remote access
  • In-room safe large enough for a laptop
  • In-room fax machine and printer
  • In-room computer
  • In-room web access
  • Closed circuit television broadcast capabilities to sleeping rooms
  • Wireless phones available for rent?

Meeting Rooms:

Telecommunication/Internet capabilities:

  • POTS (plain old telephone system) lines: number, access, direct dial capabilities, lead time required, cost
  • ISDN lines (lead time required, cost)
  • T1 lines (lead time required, cost)
  • Cable internet access
  • ADSL (asynchronous digital subscriber line) access
  • High-speed DS3 Internet access with full redundancy
  • LAN, WAN and shared or dedicated Ethernet services? half or full duplex? swtiched Ethernet ports? auto-negotiation for all connections? connections speeds?
  • wireless access and where
  • in-house Internet service provider
  • Interactive kiosks
  • virtual private data networks
  • fiber optic and CAT 5 cabling? High-density fiber-optic cabling? 72 strands?
  • is the building fully wired requiring no additional cabling for Internet access?
  • wireless phone services?
  • Press rooms with global links
  • Presentation theater
  • Voice-over IP availability?
  • TDD equipment on site?
  • Micro-cell sites within facility?  For what cellular services?

Lighting controls

  • location
  • programmable controls
  • good darkening capabilities
  • can lights above screens be turned off
  • windows in room

Sound system:

  • PA system quality
  • input capabilities – microphones jacks? accessory inputs? locations?
  • in-room dedicated mixer
  • multiple mic regulations (union facilities will often require an operator for multiple mics)
  • patch fees (if any) for outside suppliers
  • sound isolation from adjacent rooms

True ceiling height – for proper screen sizing and placement.

Ergonomic (16 hour) chairs

Electronic audience polling capabilities

Simultaneous translation capabilities

Distributed floor outlets for computer labs

Simultaneous interpretation rooms

Designated boxes every 30 feet at ground level in exhibition hall providing fiber-optic and electrical connectivity.

Video conference:

  • Dedicated room? Capacity? Number of channels? Connectivity speed?
  • Portable system
  • Cabling -- is coaxial cable for video connects available in the meeting rooms?
  • Document camera
  • Computer input
  • Electronic slide projector
  • Video data projector
  • TV Monitors
  • Roof pads for satellite links available for customer-supplied equipment
  • Audio and video recording capabilities
  • Costs

Equipment available

  • satellite dish or high speed phone line (i.e. ISDN) system such as as PictureTel
  • Standard used (i.e. H.320 or other)
  • Ku-/C band and other transmissions?
  • HDTV connections and other high-performance private networks?

Registration/Public Space:

  • Room for networked registration computers and printers
  • Secure lockable storage area
  • Availability of temporary staff with keyboarding and computer skills
  • Data ports and space for laptops at public telephones
  • Electronic message boards
  • Digital signage networks
  • Payphone data ports
  • Public access Internet payphones
  • ATM machine
  • Lead retrieval systems

AV/Computer supplier:

  • Desk top computers (quantity, processor type, storage, memory, cost)
  • Laptop computers (quantity, processor type, storage, memory, cost)
  • Printers (quantity, type, cost)
  • Fax machines (quantity, type, cost)

Data projection capabilities

  • LCD projectors (do not accept LCD panels)
  • DLP (digital light processing) projector
  • high end data projectors

Modems (speed, type)

  • 33.6K
  • 56K (flex or X2)
  • ISDN converter
  • cable modems

Software available

Technician capabilities, experience and labor rate (computers, networking, telephony, internet)

References

Off-site backup? Length of time for equipment replacement if needed.

Business Office:

  • Computers (number, processor, memory)
  • Software loaded
  • Scanners
  • Printers
  • Internet accessibility
  • Hours open
  • Charges
  • Location, turnaround time, pricing, delivery policies of local high-volume photocopy supplier.

Photocopying capabilities

  • speed and throughput
  • quality
  • collating
  • stapling
  • binding
  • DocuTech
  • lead time required
  • cost
  • discount for volume copying

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