The greatest fear among those implementing new hi-tech classrooms is of becoming outdated too soon.  Here is the secret to ultimate classroom flexibility.  And it has nothing to do with buying the right equipment!

Everywhere across the country new classroom facilities are being designed and implemented with sophisticated presentation technology.  If the there is one commonality among all of these projects, it's the fear among those involved, of either making a mistake, choosing the wrong technology, or leaving out some capability that will become necessary in the future.

Most academic facilities planners address the issue of flexibility in terms of trying to choose the right equipment.  Unfortunately, they are looking in the wrong place for the solution.  Equipment, by and large, does not provide much real flexibility.  And, over time, at least some of the equipment will need to be replaced.

The trick is to infuse flexibility into the fabric of the building, by designing and implementing the right infrastructure into the bricks and mortar.

Infrastructure can be thought of as part of the overall building design.  It includes basic room geometry and physical space, conduit, floor boxes, power receptacles, lighting, intra and inter room wiring (twisted pair or coax), etc.  We often refer to infrastructure as technology related plumbing.

For example: If current budget constraints force the use of portable equipment that must be shared among multiple classroom, make sure when designing new classrooms that appropriate infrastructure for ceiling mounted projectors is provided.  In this case, these provisions would include conduit or a pathway to allow for video connectivity to computers within the room, as well as power and data outlets, and of course, structural support.

Want to preserve the ability to add distance learning to a classroom when future funds become available, provide infrastructure  to mount cameras at the front and the rear of the room, and install blank wall plates to cover the unused future provision.  Also provide the ability to house additional equipment by making sure there is sufficient space for a new equipment rack.  Better yet, consider a portion of the room's millwork (cabinetry) as the future home for additional equipment.

Infrastructure, for the most part is cheap.  And, it has the added bonus of being funded as part of the building's overall construction budget, not the technology equipment budget. 

A classroom design process which begins with choosing equipment is both short sighted and ultimately, counter productive.  This becomes quite obvious, when you consider that a building will stand for decades, while equipment, especially projectors and control systems will be periodically replaced, often in less than 10 years.

The focus on determining the long term usability of a meeting or classroom that will drive infrastructure is a challenge in and of it self, and we'll examine that process in a future article.