Belgrave Post Grad Centre Evolves with Teammate
Project:
Brief
Nottingham Trent University recently underwent a multi-million-pound refurbishment of the Belgrave Postgraduate Centre. Based in the heart of Nottingham City Centre, the aim was to create new study spaces, bookable meeting rooms & flexible active learning classrooms for postgraduate students and students from schools such as Nottingham Business School. We worked alongside long-time furniture partner Teammate on this refurbishment, having previously collaborated on other projects at the University.
The furniture brief for the project was to provide two key solutions: One was a teaching lectern with a small compact footprint but could also hold enough audio-visual equipment for wireless casting and control systems. Secondly, for the active learning rooms, there was a requirement for a flexible stand that would hold a screen but also could double up as a whiteboard. The key feature of this product was it had to be able to be movable in case the furniture needed to be re-configured for traditional teaching or be moved back to a more collaborative pedagogy.
Key Features
- A teaching lectern with a small compact footprint which could also hold enough AV equipment for wireless casting and control systems
- A flexible stand that would hold a display screen but also could double up as a whiteboard - this had to be moveable to allow for quick adjustments to room layout
Product Solution
Graeme Bagley, Teaching Space Designer and Product Owner at NTU was instrumental in ensuring the solution was in keeping with the initial design proposal, with all relevant parties up in the loop and was involved in deploying demonstration units as a mock-up of the space. Together with TeamMate we successfully put forward both the VariHite Lectern and Evolve Screen Divider as suitable solutions for all room types.
VariHite Lectern
For all teaching and seminar rooms the VariHite Lectern with a 4U rack was deployed. The worktop was a suitable size for an Ergotron Monitor arm with a Wacom 21″ touch display, a control panel housing for an Extron 7″ touch panel and a Power Puck. Available Panasonic displays in the room utilized a WolfVision Cynap Pure Mini wireless sharing device. A nice addition to the front shield of the VariHite Lectern is a magnetic logo that can be removed and changed depending on which of the eight NTU schools is using the room, for example, Nottingham Business School.
Shown with both NTU and NBS magnetic logos:
Evolve Divider
For the x3 technology-enriched teaching spaces, TeamMate Evolves were used in conjunction with flip-top tables to create a truly flexible & agile active learning space. In ‘collaboration mode’ the tables were butted up to the Evolve stand enabling users to work in groups and share content with the Pansonic TH55CQE1/2 displays and soundbar combination. Controlling the displays and fitted to the central connectivity module, along with power, USB fast charge and HDMI was an Extron NBP100. On the reverse of the Evolve’s is a ceramic writing surface with an integrated pen tray. With a range of fabric colour choices available, NTU decided on a Wish LTH67 from the Camira Blazer Lite range.
Partners
Result
In total eighteen VariHite lecterns and twenty four Evolve Screen Dividers were utilised across the project. We integrated both the VariHite Lecterns and the Evolves over a couple of weeks, the modularity and accessibility of the Evolves meant for a streamlined installation despite working to a deadline and the challenges of a refurbished building.
‘NTU has a long history of collaborating with TeamMate to provide our technical teaching furniture. TeamMate’s communication throughout the project and their support with evaluation units were invaluable, helping us plan effectively. Additionally, their organisation and delivery in collaboration with Roche AV ensured the project ran smoothly. As we advance towards Digital Sophistication, these furnishings and relationships are crucial in enabling our colleagues and students to seamlessly integrate digital technology into their teaching and learning experiences.’
- Graeme Bagley - Teaching Space Designer, Nottingham Trent University.
It was a pleasure to work alongside TeamMate on another flagship project at Nottingham Trent University. We are extremely proud of the finished installations throughout the Belgrave Postgrad Centre. The VariHite Lecterns met the client’s requirements perfectly and the Evolve units in particular look superb! It was a pleasure to work alongside TeamMate on another flagship project at Nottingham Trent University and we look forward to collaborating again on future projects.
- Craig Pickard - Director of Projects and Innovations, Roche AV.
“The Postgraduate Centre will be the home of NBS’ postgraduate and executive education for professionals and postgraduate students from across the world. It has been designed to bring state-of-the-art educational technology together with world class teaching and community space for all our postgraduate and exec ed students and staff, catering for our growing international student population and corporate clients at the heart of our campus and the city of Nottingham.”
— Professor Baback Yazdani, executive dean of NBS
