The 2015 InAVation Awards will open for entries shortly. Here, we take a look back at last year’s winner of the award for the Most InAVative Public Sector Facility, which went to Vanti for its work at the Library of Birmingham in the UK.
On September 3, 2013 five years of work and investment to the tune of approximately £189 million (€228 million), culminated in the opening of the Library of Birmingham by Malala Yousafzai, the teenager shot in Pakistan by the Taliban.
Dutch architect Mecanoo designed the 11-storey building that comprises two floors below ground and is topped by a tower adorned with glittering metal hoops. The stunning structure has already made its mark on the busy Birmingham skyline.
If you don’t think it looks like a typical library from the outside then you’re right, it definitely isn’t. Inside is an even more dramatic departure from the hushed, traditional dusty stacks you might expect.
One of Birmingham City Council’s objectives was to ensure the new facility fused digital technologies with its collections, and in many cases used technology to access traditional resources.
Birmingham Council’s ICT technology partner, Service Birmingham, was responsible for appointing suppliers and project management of all ICT installations. UK integrator Vanti was brought into the project by contractor CDI Group.
The development teams have achieved a busy, in some cases noisy space that encourages action and interaction.
In the full case study, that can be accessed now via InAVate’s HTML5 edition, Raj Patel, founder of integrator Vanti, takes Anna Mitchell through the entire installation. If you are not already registered then follow the quick sign up for your free subscription and immediate access to this article and the InAVate archive.
Tech-Spec
Audio AKG wireless microphones
Cisco voice conferencing units
Crown amplifiers
JBL loudspeakers
Video AMX control processing, control panels
Barco ClickShare units
BrightSign signage players
B-Tech ceiling mounts
Chief mounts
Hitachi projectors
NEC 46â€, 55†and 65†LCD panels and projectors
Onelan digital signage network
Screen International projection screen
TeamMate trolleys
TV-One Corio-Master image processor