The University of Technology Sydney had a special purpose complex designed and built over the course of almost 3 years between 2016 and 2018. It was built for the Faculty of Engineering and IT (FEIT) and is located in Botany. It houses an impressive variety of specialist areas dedicated to specific research. These include an Emissions Test Cell, a Suspension Lab, a Large Engine Test Cell, a Geotechnology Lab, an Antenna Chamber, Laser Rooms, a Reverberation Room, and a Hemi Anechoic Room just to name a few.

Burtenshaw Scoufis Architects have designed a unique and colourful interior to the building in the areas that are not dedicated to the serious research and experiments. There are a series of neighbourhoods set up for activity-based working that support the other spaces. They include various meeting spaces, collaboration pods, project rooms, and a large seminar space. They are highly functional, practical, and the AV technology in these areas matches the standards the university has in place across its other buildings and campuses. This keeps things simple and easy to use and maintain.

One might say the AV technology pales in comparison to the other exciting technologies in the FEIT Botany building. An exciting aspect of this project was having the opportunity to meet some truly brilliant scientists and researchers. It was a pleasure to collaborate with them and design spaces with AV technology systems that enable them to work more efficiently.

The “Playground” is a flagship technology space in this building. It features a large 12 x 55inch LCD interactive video wall with video conferencing and premium sound system. It is used for group presentations with people in a space at the UTS Broadway campus built with the same AV technology and specifications.