- Monash University is a dynamic, internationally recognized institution of higher education with a long-established tradition of excellence. The university has eight campuses – six in Australia, one in Malaysia and one in South Africa, as well as centers in London and Italy.
Using AMX ClassroomManager to manage and monitor the equipment on its AMX control network has saved Monash valuable time and money.
- Monash is committed to providing state-of-the-art teaching facilities that allow students to graduate with many if not all of the technology skills required in their chosen profession. With this in mind, the university's Caulfield, Australia campus wanted to ensure its newest facility – Building H – included the most advanced audio/video (A/V) technologies available, while at the same time providing an intuitive, simple user experience for faculty, staff and students.
The Vision
- Monash's vision for Building H was to create a teaching environment that would greatly enhance the learning process. To achieve this, it designed a hi-tech facility with a wide variety of classroom configurations – including lecture halls, boardrooms and seminar rooms – each integrating various types of A/V equipment, such as speakers, lecterns, DVD/VCR players, microphones, projectors, projector walls, HVAC and video conferencing. The university also recognized that to achieve maximum return on its financial investment, these technologies needed to be intuitive, reliable and offer a consistent and uniform user experience from room to room.
- With this vision in mind, B&H Australia, Monash's A/V integrator for this project, recommended that the university incorporate AMX control and automation into its plans, as the company's control systems would enable users to centrally manage and control all of the A/V, environmental and communication technologies in a room via one, easy-to-use touch panel.
Why AMX?
- B&H Australia recommended AMX to Monash for a number of reasons. The ability to provide lecturers with a centralized way to easily operate the technology in a room was a key factor, as was the proven reliability of the AMX product. Equally important, B&H knew that AMX would be able to deliver the uniformity and ease of use that Monash required throughout its campuses.
- In the end, Monash concluded that AMX was the only control system manufacturer that could deliver the features and functionality required for this complex installation.
The Vision Becomes Reality
- The typical classroom control system in Building H consists of an AMX NI-700 NetLinx Integrated Controller and 4" Touch Panel. The graphical user interface designed by B&H for the touch panels is intuitive so that anyone can operate the technology in any classroom without any prior training or technology experience. After all, AMX technology is used to simplify the educator's life – not further complicate it.
- Further, Monash uses AMX's ClassroomManager software to remotely manage and monitor its AMX Control Systems and the equipment they integrate. Using ClassroomManager, the university's A/V staff can perform system updates over the network, track individual device usage and receive instant notifications when a device malfunctions. The software also provides a real-time interactive help desk, which allows users to send help or maintenance messages to A/V support staff directly from the touch panel in any classroom.
- Today, Monash's vision for Building H has been realized. The technology integrated into this impressive facility is easy for anyone use – including those with little or no technology background, and the additional value provided by ClassroomManager has already saved the university valuable time and money.
AMX Equipment Makes It Happen
- With AMX's ClassroomManager software, IT and AV managers can centrally manage and monitor their AMX systems and associated devices, as well as schedule and reserve classrooms and auditoriums.
- The AMX NI-700 is engineered specifically to meet the control and automation needs of a single-room. It integrates up to 10 distinct control ports plus Ethernet, AxLink and ICSNet.
