These are some of the exhibits recently installed in a new ‘Science Park’ in Chicago, USA. Garoon’s Gateway to Science is a new outdoor centre with an aim to promote science by engaging visitors with an interactive experience.
We installed a suite of large mechanical interactive exhibits which include some of our classic designs such as the Water Circuit and Archimedes Screw.
The beginning of 2010 has been busy so far with projects in Singapore, Scandinavia and in the UK.
We went out to Singapore again in early April, this time installing exhibits for a new Fire exhibition and a semi-outdoor hot air balloon for the Singapore Science Centre.
More recently, we have been building the exhibits for a new water area at leading science centre Phaeno in Germany. Working directly with the client, we focused on designing a highly interactive and engaging suite of inter-related exhibits with multiple points of interaction. The new water exhibition for Phaeno, Wolfsburg will be installed in May.
Science Projects has created a new exhibit for Muslim Heritage using technology that enables a futuristic ‘Minority Report’ style interaction where users engage simply with hand and arm movements.
The interface has been incorporated into an astronomy exhibit for the exhibition ‘1001 Inventions – Discover the Muslim Heritage in Our World’. Interpreting the constellations, visitors point to mythical characters and drag them to the correct position in the sky.
This style of interface is a major step forward in the scope of exhibit design. Immersive, interactive and different, it provides a totally new visitor experience in the world of museum and science centre interactives. The computer interface and software has been written and created in-house making it easily adaptable to a whole range of subjects.
The exhibition is currently at the Science Museum in London.
For more information:
‘utterly absorbing fun.’, A review from the Observer newspaper.
A video with an overview of the exhibition including interviews. (The constellation exhibit features 57 seconds into the video). Or please contact us.
The Recycling Machine is an iconic a four-station installation, guiding users through the process of creating new materials from post-consumer waste. Recycling in Belgium is widespread, but what is lesser known is what happens after the jars and cans are collected.
4 screens take the players through the various stages where mechanical interactives ensure the hands-on involvement remains high. Overhead, a complex network of pneumatic and mechanical systems deliver the scores for each player following each challenge. When a player completes all four challenges, a mechanical scoreboard reveals the total.
The state of the art visitor and learning centre is located at Whitelee Windfarm (near Glasgow), overlooking the majority of its 140 turbines which are capable of producing up to 322MW of electricity – enough to power over 180,000 homes and the equivalent of displacing 500,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.
The new facility will encourage visitors to learn more about renewable energy in a unique interactive hands–on learning zone which caters for all ages.
We worked closely with the centre’s design team, creating exhibits that would grab the attention of the visitors as well as make them think about renewable energy and the greater issues of climate change.
The centre will be managed by Glasgow Science Centre and was opened by Jim Murphy MP, Secretary of State for Scotland.
Municipal wastewater treatment and purification is something we don’t really think about in our day-to-day lives, even though it provides an essential service in treating our waste and providing clean water.
We’ve certainly had to think about it in the last few months as we have been creating an exhibition in collaboration with Vitenfabrikken (The Science Factory) in Norway on this very subject. With the assistance of IVAR: the Intermunicipal Water, Sewerage and Waste Association, we have designed an irresistible, interactive, fun exhibition exploring our relationship with the modern-day water treatment system and water usage in Norway.
The exhibition was installed and opened last week.
We have just installed a Vacuum Bell Jar and Hot Air Organ at The Singapore Science Centre for a new area with exhibits dedicated to sound.
The giant Hot Air Organ is an iconic interactive exhibit designed and built in-house in our London workshop. The exhibit uses six gas burners to heat metal gauzes. When hot, these gauzes can be lifted into brass tubes by the user. The resulting air currents resonate within the tubes, playing musical notes. Harmony and Dissonance are both explored.
On July 26th 1609, several months before Galileo, an English scientist Thomas Harriot carried out the first observations and drawings of the Moon made using a telescope. His drawings are the oldest known depiction of a celestial object as seen through a telescope.
Four hundred years later on 26th July 2009, several hundred people came together at Syon Park to celebrate this historical anniversary at the Telescope400 event. The event took place on the very place where Harriot first made his observations – in the Grounds of Syon house in London where he lived at the time.
There were many events, observations and activities on the day and thankfully the rain stayed away. Our science centre (The Observatory Science Centre) was there with information and family activities including the popular Rocket Launcher. We also took along one of our travelling interactive exhibitions which was housed in the Great Conservatory, one of the most unusual but beautiful sites the exhibition has toured!
Science Projects has relocated to a new purpose-built site in London with a larger workshop and three floors of office space.
The move will benefit all aspects of the company. Production capacity has increased and the new workshop layout provides a more efficient workflow. Office space has been significantly expanded to accommodate a meeting room and space for in-house CAD, design and graphics facilities as well as the present administration requirements.
The location is near to the current west London address but has improved transport links and accessibility, plus the benefit of being closer to suppliers.
Next to the exhibits workshop is an adjoining area for our travelling exhibitions operations with dedicated storage and maintenance facilities. This forms the central hub for our 10 Exploring Science exhibitions and 6 ScienceWorks exhibitions which tour across the UK and abroad.
Science Projects were at their previous address for over 20 years, which oversaw hundreds of interactive exhibits go through its doors destined for all manner of venues all around the world. In that time, the company expanded from creating and touring its own hands-on exhibitions to being a global player in the supply of interactive exhibits and exhibitions.
The new building facilitates an even more streamlined design/build process. This approach, where design is integrated with prototyping, development, production and practical testing has been key to Science Projects' enviable reputation of quality.
Come and see The Observatory Science Centre at Syon Park on the 26th July to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the first recorded use of a telescope. The team will be there helping you build and launch water rockets. For further details of the day's activities visit www.telescope400.org.uk
Science Projects will at Ecsite again this year. You will find Steve, Tim, Ian, Sheila and Jenny on stands 1 & 2 where there will be interactive exhibits from our new travelling exhibitions. Come along and say hello!
Steve will be on the panel of the following sessions:
Thursday 4th, 11.30 – 13.00
USING THE PAST TO REFLECT ON THE PRESENT AND INFORM THE FUTURE
When London’s Science Museum re–opened the new Launchpad gallery, the star of the show was an iconic, multi–user exhibit called the Big Machine. A reinvention of the classic Grain Pit exhibit, Big Machine uses five simple machines: lever, wedge, screw, pulley and wheel; to move a store of small grain-like pellets.
The Big Machine is an exclusive collaboration between Science Projects and the Science Museum in London. The result is an exhibit with the guarantee of top quality, interactivity and durability.
London Zoo have opened a new feature designed for especially children called Animal Adventure. The attractions include some fascinating animal inhabitants whose new homes are interwoven with secret tunnels and observation domes for human visitors to explore.
Science Projects were contracted to produce the Splash Zone; a meandering brook surrounded by different model animals from otters to dragonflies. The irresistibly coloured floor surface is embedded with animal footsteps and swimming stainless steel fish. Along the way are water jets which fire randomly at adventurers who try to dodge them or, catch them as the case may be.
Animal Adventure, a place for discovery, learning and fun is open now. Another outdoor interactive playground project was produced for the London Wetlands Centre. Science Projects has a wealth of experience in designing and creating water interactives – please get in touch for more information or visit our portfolio.
A new exhibition has opened in London’s Science Museum which takes visitors on a tour of Wallace and Gromit’s home from the kitchen to the garden shed, taking in objects from the Science Museum’s collections alongside Wallace and Gromit’s own ‘cracking contraptions’.
These include three large interactive exhibits produced by Science Projects: The Blend-o-Matic, Karaoke Shower and Read-o-Matic. We were delighted to have the opportunity to develop Wallace and Gromit’s ’cracking conceptions‘ into real physical objects, which include an Art Machine that has been given a Wallace and Gromit make-over.
The exhibition inspires children to get their thinking caps on, innovate, invent and the make their own creations, which is what we at Science Projects are lucky enough to do every day.
The London workshops are filled with giant exhibits destined for a new exhibition at Denmark‘s Danfoss Universe.
The new energy exhibition has been designed for both children and adults and takes an innovative approach to the subject of energy resources and how they are used.
Users can generate their own energy on the giant exhibits and collect ’energy points‘ along the way, which can be redeemed at the end.
Above, exhibits in production. Generate power on the giant hamster wheel.
In 2008, as well as producing exhibitions for others we have also created three new travelling exhibitions for ourselves. The design and build of these exhibitions has involved the whole team at Science Projects, bringing together years of combined experience, skills and knowledge in the field of educational interactives.
Like previous Science Projects exhibitions, they encourage exploration, interaction and intrigue with mechanical exhibitory. A lot of work has been put into the ’look and feel‘; of each exhibition including hand-forged metal detailing and bespoke wooden frames.
Ancient Wisdom
Catapulting visitors into the ancient world and discovering the inventions and technological advancements of the time. The exhibition was a popular choice in our survey, which is unsurprising given the huge success of our Medieval Machines exhibition which is similar in subject.
Shocking Electricity!
This exhibition is composed of experiment-led exhibits that unravel the workings of electricity. Victoriana styling using forged aluminium and antique-look wood give this exhibition a dark, ’mad scientist‘ feel, which will be hard to resist.
The Arts of Art
Reveals the techniques, tricks and trade of the art world from perspective to lighting, to composition. It looks into some of the major developments in the art world and how they shaped what people painted, how they painted it and what they painted with.
All exhibitions have been designed to be highly interactive, providing an informal educational experience suitable for all ages and backgrounds.
More information soon available. For rental enquiries, contact Sheila Snowden. For copies of traveling exhibitions, please contact Tim Holdsworth.
