A Step Up

Text:/ Derek Powell
Photos:/ Jason Smith Photography

InDesign Technologies: 1300 468 478 or www.indesigntechnologies.com.au

LECTERN & AUDIO

The lectern is fully equipped with a fixed PC and laptop inputs; an Elmo document camera and a Samsung Blu-ray/DVD player. A Crestron TPMCV15 15-inch touch panel provides preview as well as plenty of space for an elegant and intuitive control surface. Though there are more facilities than a typical USC teaching space, care was taken to keep the control layout to the same style as other rooms, making it easier for the academics to find the functions they need.

Scene-based lighting control is available at the touch panel and this is supplemented by simple push button lighting control panels at each entrance door.  

To ensure effective audio recording of sessions in the room, and to enable real-time interactions, each student desk is equipped with an Electrovoice PC Desktop-18 gooseneck microphone featuring a push-to-talk switch. Incidentally, the ‘PC’ designation refers to ‘polar choice’ as this versatile unit can be switched between omni, cardioid, supercardioid, or hypercardioid patterns. At the lectern, there’s another EV gooseneck, plus Shure ULX-D handheld and lapel radio microphones and a desktop charger. 

An Electrovoice NetMax 8000 takes care of mixing, distribution and DSP duties with its 24×8 configuration allowing capacity for future expansion of the system. A pair of Bose FreeSpace DS100SE speakers take on front of house duties, fed by a Crestron power amplifier. Hearing assistance is capably provided by a Williams Sound TX-75 infrared transmitter. 

SALT ’N’ PATCHBAY

InDesign’s Peter Coman emphasises that the technical design evolved as a collaboration with C-SALT and the University’s IT department. “We worked hand in glove with USC to ensure they were involved in every step of the process; including equipment evaluations and regular design meetings,” he stated. “We wanted USC to be absolutely comfortable and certain about the equipment specified and to have the peace of mind that it would meet their performance expectations.”

As with other spaces in the Learning & Teaching Hub, Peter included extensive patch panels in his design for the equipment room. These serve a couple of functions: first, they allow ready access to both the inputs and outputs of the matrix switchers so that tie lines can be used to link rooms in the Learning Hub together.  Virtually any source in the building can be patched to a display in any room.  Secondly, they allow easy replacement of equipment in the future. While input devices and even matrix switchers may change and evolve, it is likely the structured cabling backbone of the installation will serve several generations of hardware.

Speaking of cabling, the rack wiring, installed by Programmed Electrical Technologies, has been beautifully executed with impeccable looms that are a joy to behold.

COLLABORATIVE HABIT

While thoughtful design and careful installation are crucial, the real measure of a project’s success has to be how well it is received by the users. C-SALT’s Dr Ruth Greenaway participated in the development process and is now involved in a research project, which is examining just how the facilities impact the student learning experience. She is enthusiastic about how well the new space has been received by both students and academics. “Students just love it,” she said. “At the moment we have academics jostling to be the ones using it!”  

Dr Greenaway has used the ‘photovoice’ approach to collecting feedback from both students and academics. She has encouraged them to take a photo of aspects of the room they find helpful in their learning or teaching and add a brief reflection describing how each aspect helped (or didn’t help) the learning process. Using the feedback, she has put together some guidelines for how academics and students can get the most from the new facility.  

From the overwhelmingly positive feedback, Dr Greenaway is confident about the prospect for more spaces of this kind, pointing out that the University has just agreed to develop a new campus in the growing shire of Moreton on Brisbane’s northern outskirts. She expects many of the learning spaces in the new campus to draw from the experience at the Learning Hub.

She summed up the value of the project very succinctly: “We just need more of these rooms — we need more collaboration opportunities for students… That’s the way students learn these days.”