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Today’s modern students are learning with technology as their foundation. With laptops, smartphones, tablets and other classroom equipment, every higher education campus needs reliable power and charging in each classroom. But that power and charging can’t be fixed only in the wall or floor. Students need outlets and USB charging ports right on their desks, and they need plenty available for use.
As one of the nation’s leading private research universities, Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania needed to outfit its campus with enough power and charging to satisfy the requirements of their student population and their academic work. They wanted a slim, unobtrusive unit that could easily attach to desks and tables. It was also incredibly important that the units could be moved without hassle, as desks were constantly being reshuffled and reorganized.
“We were trying to find something that provided ultimate flexibility and could attach to the desk, wasn’t intrusive and allowed for multiple devices to be plugged in," says Erin Liston, director of planning, design and construction at Lehigh University. "It was also key that we could easily relocate desks from time to time by simply unplugging and moving them.”
Fortunately, the university’s main electrician had heard of a code compliant solution from Legrand called the ModPower System. The electrician presented the flexible power and charging unit to the school, and it was approved. Of all the solutions presented, the ModPower System was by far the favorite. The ModPower System is the very first furniture power solution to be compliant with the new UL Supplement SD under UL 962A. This meant that the electricians could feel confident that they were not breaking code across campus as is common with ad hoc “daisy chain” solutions.
For Lehigh University educators, the ModPower System was remarkable in its wide range of options for power and charging. By connecting up to six units together, they could set up a row of desks that were each equipped with traditional power outlets and USB charging ports. Both of these power options are in high demand by tech-savvy students who use both charging adapters and USB cables for their devices.
Even better, installation was a breeze. Only two electricians were needed to outfit 110 desks with units. They did so quickly, getting the classrooms up and running for students returning to campus. This low-effort installation was critical, and electricians were pleased at how easily they could detach and reattach the units if they needed to relocate desks.
"It's going to be a great addition for us and I definitely recommend using it in other locations on campus," says Liston. "We're always looking for innovative products that look great, and we'd definitely look to Legrand for future products. We're very happy."
