When Brookfield Properties, a commercial real estate corporation that owns, develops and operates premier assets in downtown cores of high-growth North American cities, devised plans for its new flagship marketing suite in Manhattan's Grace Building the company approached Big Show Construction Management (BSCM) to create the sleek, contemporary interactive space.
Although Brookfield had previously been told that some of its plans were not feasible with current technology and needed to be scaled back, BSCM was confident that it could deliver the suite as designed. Brookfield envisioned the suite outfitted with multi-screen presentations, custom interactive architectural models and seamlessly-integrated technology that fit the design of the room.
The centerpiece of the marketing suite -- a large-scale architectural model of Brookfield's latest New York City project -- posed the main challenge for BSCM. With no off-the-shelf solution available, BSCM designed a custom 13x40-inch touchscreen housed in the model base which controlled the lighting on the 1:100-scale model and triggered the presentation on the project. "Every bit of it is custom," says Billy Kneissl who served as project manager and systems engineer on the Brookfield job. "We had to coordinate with the model builder, content provider and cabinet builder and select components to fit."
To accommodate rear projection in such a small space Kneissl chose a pair of Dell 5100MP video projectors, which provided the desired resolution at a very short throw. He also selected VIP interactive foil which played two roles: acting as the trigger surface to control the model's lighting and presentation and, laminated to 3/8-inch thick glass, serving as the projection surface itself.
BSCM also furnished the marketing suite with a total of 11 Sharp LCD monitors recessed into acoustic panels in the walls. A horizontal ribbon of six 46-inch screens displays an interactive WATCHOUT presentation spotlighting Brookfield Properties' holdings around the world. Two 52-inch LCDs form part of a 7.1 Surround Sound entertainment and presentation system in the lounge area; the system is also outfitted with a dedicated PC, Blu-ray DVD, HD cable TV and an iPod dock.
A conference room houses two additional 46-inch LCDs that display different presentations, and a stand-alone 46-inch unit greets visitors in the reception/lobby area. All of the systems in the marketing suite can be controlled from a wireless Aurora Multimedia WACI wireless touchscreen or be remotely controlled through any PC on the inhouse Brookfield Network.
To meet the green goals of the Grace Building, BSCM made several eco-friendly choices to achieve lower power consumption in the marketing suite: selecting all LCD screens, using the standby mode for the entire system when they're not in use, and opting for small, fanless PCs where possible.
About Big Show Construction Management
Specializing in managing the creation of themed and interactive spaces, Big Show Construction Management (BSCM) has expertise in the design, integration and installation of multimedia environments. The company coordinates the desires of clients and architects with the practical concerns of the general contractor. BSCM's clients include Audi; Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas; Madame Tussaud's, New York City; Sony Wonder Technology Lab, New York City; Thomas Keller's Per Se restaurant in New York City; and Toys 'R Us, New York City. For more information on BSCM call 212-206-6443 or visit www.bigshowcm.com.