It’s a lecture hall? No, a testing center? An assembly room? A special events space? Outfitted with some unique furniture from Computer Comforts, one oddly shaped and relatively small room at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ new medical school is all that and much more.
“Facing a tight budget, we had to get multiple uses out of this small space until the new medical school building is completed in 2021,” says Frank Alaimo, AV/IT systems specialist, classroom technology services, at UNLV. “Computer Comforts worked with us to design the furniture for maximum space and functionality.”
Hide-Away tables
The 30-by-48-foot multipurpose room with low ceilings includes 36 customized Hide-Away tables from Computer Comforts. Each two-person table has two laptops, USB charging ports, and a 28-inch 4K monitor on an ergonomic arm. Instructor station content is sent to the monitors so students can see with precision—whether they’re viewing an X-ray or a 3D model of arteries.
“The room is so narrow and long that it’s very hard to see anything in detail from the back,” Alaimo says. “With the 4K monitor, it looks like an actual body is in front of you when the instructor zooms in on the histology slides.”
Modular and detailed
The laptops are used solely for testing and are not connected to the audiovisual system. The large LCD is “hidden-away” into the table when not in use, leaving a flat surface. “The furniture is extremely modular and extremely detailed for what I need,” Alaimo says. “Computer Comforts custom made every piece of that work surface.”
“We basically accomplished in one space what most schools do in three different spaces.”
The versatile room has been a huge hit, and it’s occupied daily from about 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Alaimo says. It accommodates all 60 students at the medical school, which opened in Fall 2017. “When it’s not used for class, students use it for study hall because we are so limited with space. Then there are special events,” he says.
Easy access to cables
Computer Comforts installed the furniture. University staff did the rest. “It was easy with the Computer Comforts furniture. Everything runs through and within the bottom cable tray and feeds into monitors,” Alaimo says. “It’s easy to work on, and removable panels on the bottom provide easy access to the cables.”
Alaimo adds, “Computer Comforts made it possible to get 60 students in one room for lectures, testing and study hall, and still have room for special events. We basically accomplished in one space what most schools do in three different spaces.”
For more information, please visit computercomforts.com
