Taylor University Broadcast & Production Facility

A relatively small liberal arts institution with an enormous reputation across America’s media landscape, Taylor University in Upland, Indiana produces many of the country’s most accomplished media and production professionals. Following a 14-year process of design and fund raising, Taylor chose Alpha to realize its vision for a state-of-the-art academic and production facility where students could train on Hollywood-caliber technology and continue a legacy of more than 1,100 industry awards. Alpha provided consultative expertise along with comprehensive design and integration for the 45,000-square-foot Horne Academic Center. “Our mandate was clear,” says Alpha Senior Account Executive Bryan Nelson. “Taylor University wanted a technology infrastructure that would attract the nation’s most promising students and graduate its best-equipped professionals.”

The Horne Academic Center provides a uniquely comprehensive and up-to-date educational experience for aspiring media and production professionals. Moreover, its facilities serve a variety of institutional purposes, including the production of chapel videos, live events, and client projects. Charged with creating a technology infrastructure with the breadth and flexibility to satisfy multiple stakeholders, Alpha worked closely with faculty, staff, and architectural/contracting teams first to map out Taylor’s strategic vision, then to bring it to life. The result includes a 2,500 sq ft. live broadcast production studio, 3,500 sq ft sound stage, editing suites, viewing auditoriums, classrooms, digital signage and LED displays. “We wanted to make sure Taylor University got its money’s worth,” says Bryan Nelson. “Fundraising is never easy for small educational institutions, so we needed to provide a cost-effective solution that maximized flexibility and scalability while fulfilling our primary mission of delivering a state-of-the-art technology experience.”

Shortly before the formal completion of Alpha’s work on the Horne Academic Center, client contact John Bruner, Professor and Director of Production at Taylor University, wrote to Alpha CEO Kevin Groves about the Alpha team: “They embody exactly the values your company lists on its website: steadfast collaboration, courageous accountability, relentless client focus and fierce integrity. These aren’t simply aspirations; they’re observable behaviors. And to those attributes I’d add a few more…notably ferocious intelligence, incredible patience, remarkable fortitude, sound judgment, and a sense of humor.” In closing, Bruner wrote, “The finish line for our project is approaching, and we certainly couldn’t get across it without Alpha.” Since project completion, Taylor University has reported high user satisfaction with the Horne Academic Center’s technology infrastructure and has already consulted with Alpha on creating even more robust facilities for future generations of media and production professionals.