SUMMARY

Visiting ITOKI’s headquarters and showroom “ITOKI DESIGN HOUSE,” customers can experience next-generation workspace concepts that embody their mission statement: “Designing tomorrow’s way of working.” However, behind the scenes lies an essential technological operation: the network infrastructure that enables crystal-clear audio, high-definition video conferencing, and integrated control systems across their executive boardroom. NETGEAR M4350 AV switches ensure the smooth running of these critical systems. Since its installation, benefits include exceptional reliability, simplified management, and the ability to integrate multiple AV protocols on a single network, something previously considered impossible in the industry.

BACKGROUND

ITOKI has been a leader in office furniture manufacturing and workspace design for many years. However, their current business extends beyond furniture to encompass workspace design and construction, work style consulting, and the promotion of digital transformation through the latest ICT technologies.

ITOKI constantly renovates their headquarters and showroom “ITOKI DESIGN HOUSE.” This space serves as both a showcase where visitors can experience tomorrow’s way of working and a living laboratory where ITOKI employees can discover new challenges, develop solutions, and nurture seeds of innovation while working so their customers will receive a solution that’s been trialed and tested.

Within ITOKI DESIGN HOUSE, the executive boardroom was originally equipped with facilities suitable for hybrid meetings, combining in-person and online participation. As part of the renovation, it underwent significant upgrades to further optimize this hybrid experience. The NETGEAR M4350 series switches were chosen as the backbone for the audio/visual network in this critical space.

Yugo Shiino, who led the boardroom renovation at ITOKI, emphasizes: “Beyond spatial design, we created systems to make meetings more active from an AV/ICT perspective. The NETGEAR switches were essential for this.”

CHALLENGE

ITOKI faced several significant challenges in renovating their executive boardroom:

• Creating a space that facilitates rapid decision-making through active discussion among executives
• Improving the hybrid meeting experience for remote participants who often struggled to identify speakers and see facial expressions clearly
• Integrating multiple AV protocols (including video, audio, and control systems) on a single network when industry convention dictated keeping these systems separate
• Designing a flexible infrastructure that could adapt to future workspace changes, reflecting their concept of “continuously evolving offices”
• Enabling high-quality live broadcasts across multiple floors of their facility without quality degradationShiino, Manager of the System Design Department at ITOKI, explains: “In our industry, there was an unwritten rule that you should never mix different AV protocols on the same network. It was believed this would inevitably cause problems like audio dropouts. But we wanted to achieve a simpler configuration with a stable system.”

SOLUTION

After consulting with NETGEAR’s specialist engineers, who confidently assured them that video and audio can work on a single network without issues, ITOKI selected the NETGEAR M4350 series switches for their boardroom renovation.

The implementation included:

• A horseshoe-shaped seating arrangement to promote active discussion among executives, with curved desks and sofas following this layout
• Eight cameras (7 PTZ and 1 fixed) installed around the room to capture presenters’ and participants’ expressions clearly from all angles
• Ceiling microphones that analyze speaker location data for real-time camera tracking and close-ups
• A Conversation mode that displays two speakers simultaneously in split-screen for remote participants
• Most significantly, a unified IP network carrying multiple AV protocols through the M4350 switch:
  • Crestron 1 Beyond Cameras and Crestron DM NVX
  • Dante audio transmission
  • Microsoft Teams Rooms communication
  • Control system data

“The switch implementation was incredibly simple,” notes Shiino. “We just changed the IP address and set profiles for each port. That’s about it. We just connected the devices to the switch, and it was nearly complete. This helped with our tight project timeline.”
The M4350 switch connects to other floors via a 10G uplink, allowing direct video/audio broadcasts to large displays throughout the building, eliminating the lag and quality issues that occurred when Microsoft Teams was used to broadcast in-office events.
Interestingly, ITOKI deliberately installed the M4350 switch in a mobile rack in a common area outside the boardroom. This reflects their continuously evolving office philosophy, allowing for flexibility in future room relocations or layout changes.

RESULTS

The NETGEAR-based solution has delivered exceptional performance:

• Perfect reliability: “We’ve experienced no issues with the integrated network, despite conventional wisdom saying it shouldn’t work”
• Simplified management through the NETGEAR Engage controller and intuitive Web GUI
• Unified network carrying multiple AV protocols without conflicts
• Enhanced hybrid meeting experience with multi-camera views and intelligent tracking
• Ability to broadcast high-quality content across multiple floors without quality degradation
• Flexibility for future office reconfigurations

Shiino reflects on the changing perspective of office technology: “Recently, more executives are viewing office relocations and renovations as an investment rather than a cost. Future offices won’t be ‘built and complete’ but will continuously evolve based on data about their usage and contribution to results.”
With NETGEAR M4350 AV switches in place, ITOKI can confidently showcase and deliver next-generation workplace solutions that integrate cutting-edge AV technology with innovative spatial design, truly embodying their “TECH×DESIGN” strategy and their vision of “Office 3.0.”

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