Totty Building Services - Offices Development - Salford, The Think Laboratory

Date: 23 Mar 2006

Totty Building Services has successfully completed a unique project with the University of Salford to create the UK's very first Think Laboratory. The £700K project to create this state-of-the-art facility provides the University with an unparalleled resource, which is expected to attract researchers, academics and high profile industry and public figures to the region for top-level discussions and seminars.

The Think Laboratory occupies an area of former offices and laboratories on the seventh floor of the Maxwell Building, which Totty stripped out and converted during the fast track 14-week programme. New raised flooring and an innovative glass access floor was installed, alongside a highly sophisticated ventilation system and complex mechanical & electrical services.

At the heart of the Think Laboratory lies the debating chamber, a sound proof convex structure, which bristles with the very latest high technology equipment. The chamber possesses a WiFi network and is wired for virtual reality operations and video conferencing so that images can be broadcast around the world in real time to support virtual conferencing between distributed teams. Motion activated video cameras track users around the room and allow them to interact with stereoscopic virtual images on a large back projected powerwall driven by a top end PC graphics cluster. Images on the powerwall can then be sent to numerous plasma screens around the facility.

Within the chamber are 30 ergonomically designed work-stations with transparent lecterns for note taking or laptop computers, and a state-of-the-art lighting system features over 150 individual lights, controlled from a touch sensitive console. Totty has also installed two large convex optical mood walls within the laboratory itself, with computer-controlled programmes producing a myriad of stunning colour displays.

Philip Ryder, operations director for Totty Building Services, commented: "The complexity and use of innovative materials and techniques at the new Think Laboratory provided an excellent opportunity for the company to highlight its expertise of working on cutting-edge projects. The laboratory represents a world-class facility that will further enhance the reputation of the University of Salford across a global stage and we are delighted to have played an integral role in its development."

State-of-the-art interior at the University of Salford's new Think Laboratory

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