Hurrairah bin Sohail speaks with Jeffrey Lee from 3S Communication about how Agile at Ngee Ann Polytechnic reflects the trends shaping the education sector.
Covid-19 has had a transformative effect on the education sector and a study of ‘Agile’ at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore reveals how learning spaces have changed. Jeffrey Lee, business director at 3S Communication, offers details: “Agile is a space at Ngee Ann Polytechnic that is a collaborative meeting area where students can come for events and also to relax and to enjoy. It is really meant to be a flexible space that can be used for a whole range of functions. It is called ‘Agile’ after all which means that the AV systems also had to be agile to match.”
3S Communication was appointed as the integrator responsible for fitting out Agile with the required AV systems. Lee details: “There were broader renovations underway at Ngee Ann Polytechnic and we were involved with the AV side of the project. All the AV systems were designed by us, we proposed the solutions from the videowall to the audio system and the wireless presentation for connectivity.”
Lee continues: “Ngee Ann Polytechnic is a long-time customer of ours and they engaged us once again because we had done well for the previous projects. Ngee Ann Polytechnic has a very large campus and that means there are a lot of different users with different profiles and they came to us to recognise the needs of the users and advise them on the best solutions for an event space. We followed up with our ideas and suggested solutions that would fit their budget.”
Ngee Ann Polytechnic communicated its requirements to 3S Communication, and Lee says: “There was a clear concept driving the project. They wanted the focus to be on the engagement between the speakers and the students. So, the AV systems could not be intrusive, and that was what we followed when we were designing the audio, video and control systems. You can see that we selected the products with that in mind.”
A 3 x 3 videowall is the centrepiece of the video system at Agile. The videowall comprises Samsung 55-in flat panels mounted with B-Tech mounts. The Samsung panels were chosen specifically for their 1.8mm bezel in order to achieve a seamless look for the display. The videowall is driven by an Aten videowall switcher.
Lee says: “The integration and deployment of the AV systems was quite straightforward. The only challenges we faced were with the videowall. Sometimes there is a clash between the firmware versions of the displays and the system, and it is just a matter of making sure all the firmware versions are correct.”
It is interesting to note that there are no floorplates or wired connectivity options at Agile and this is by design following the directive of Ngee Ann Polytechnic. Wireless connectivity is made possible with Simply AV wireless presentation.
The Simply AV dongle connects via USB and HDMI to the source device and was chosen specifically because its operation does not require the download of an app.
Regarding the control system Lee says: “We’re using Kramer control for turning the systems on and off and managing the audio volume. We chose it because it is very user friendly and the user interface is very intuitive. The end user can just come in and use it without any issues.”
The audio system comprises an Extron DSP at the heart with Mipro digital wireless microphones provided for audio pickup and Bose satellite speakers with a subwoofer delivering sound output.
Agile is not a small space. What made the integrator select Bose satellite speakers for audio output? Lee says: “As a flexible space, the selection of the speaker was important. The end user told us that they wanted the space to have great audio for speeches but also that they might be using the space for movie nights or entertainment events. We chose the Bose speakers because they provide great audio no matter what the usage scenario.”
He continues: “In addition, we had to take into account what kind of engagement Ngee Ann Polytechnic wanted. They wanted the sessions between speakers and students to almost feel like one-on-one sessions and we could not have big black speaker boxes intrude on proceedings. So, the satellite speakers were the perfect solution. We could place them across the space and create a wide soundstage without them really being visible.”
Regarding the selection of Mipro for the microphones Lee details: “Ngee Ann Polytechnic had a set of audio requirements and for us the first thing was to meet these requirements. Of course, there were budget considerations after that. We chose Mipro microphones because they checked the box for both of these factors. And we chose this particular model because it is a DECT microphone. Running on 2.4GHz means that there are less chances of interference as long as you place the receivers properly.”
Examining Agile, the space has a lot of similarities with corporate engagement spaces. Lee says: “One of the key aims of any education institute is to get the students ready for the real world. In some respects, Agile resembles a small town hall that you might find in a corporate office so the space can actually get the students familiar with how communication and engagement work in a corporate setting.”
For 3S Communication, the actual execution of the project was not a challenge. However, Covid-19 disruption made getting to the execution stage a drawn-out affair. Lee explains: “We won the contract for the project before Covid-19 and we just finished this project in 2021. The work itself took a month. The timelines for the project were really disrupted by the pandemic. We had the lockdown when no work could be done on site and then as Singapore began to open up, we still had very limited access to the site. There were restrictions on the number of people that could be present at any given time. The main contractor wanted to ensure that the numbers were not too high and that they were in line with the regulations set forth by the Singapore government. So, our work was delayed.”
Covid-19 disruption is also changing how such education spaces are conceptualised. Lee provides some closing remarks while looking ahead to the future: “Covid-19 had had some impact on our proposal for the project. As you can see, we have wireless microphones for audio pickup but seeing that we now have to minimise the number of surfaces different users come into contact with it is not the optimal solution. We are exploring the option of ceiling microphones and there are a number of options available on the market. Manufacturers are coming out with ceiling microphones not just for the education sector but for corporate as well. We are waiting to see which would best fit the needs of Ngee Ann Polytechnic. There is also a trend now to equip such spaces with LED videowalls and moving forward this might be something that we would like to explore the feasibility of.”