Creating a Fully Connected, Experience-First Workplace
Vitality partnered with New Era Technology to transform its new Stockport headquarters into a connected, experience-first workplace. Standardised Microsoft Teams Rooms, immersive event technology, workplace-wide digital signage, and a scalable AV-over-IP platform now support more consistent hybrid collaboration while creating a more engaging and sustainable workplace.
Challenges
- Relocate from an ageing office environment to a modern Grade A workplace
- Deliver a consistent Microsoft Teams experience across every space
- Support hybrid working while ensuring equitable experiences for remote and in-room participants
- Reuse existing technology where possible to improve sustainability and ROI
Solutions
- Experience-led AV and workplace design based on real employee behaviours and collaboration needs
- Enterprise-wide Microsoft Teams Rooms deployment across five floors
- Immersive corporate event space with LED videowall, AI-powered camera tracking and advanced audio
- AV-over-IP architecture providing a scalable, future-ready collaboration platform
- Workplace-wide digital signage and room scheduling ecosystem
Results
- Consistent, intuitive collaboration experiences across the entire workplace
- Improved hybrid meeting quality and engagement
- Reduced support requirements through standardisation
- Enhanced employee experience and workplace attractiveness
- Sustainable deployment through technology reuse and scalable infrastructure
For many organisations, workplace transformation starts with technology. For Vitality, it started with people.
When Vitality relocated from its former headquarters to 3 Stockport Exchange, a landmark Grade A office development adjacent to Stockport station, the goal was not simply to install new AV systems. The ambition was to create a workplace experience that encouraged collaboration, strengthened culture, and supported a workforce increasingly split between office and remote environments.
Building on a six-year partnership with New Era Technology, the project represented the latest stage in a workplace modernisation programme that had already delivered successful environments in London and Bournemouth. Each previous deployment provided valuable insight into how employees work, meet, communicate and collaborate, allowing the Stockport project to become the most advanced and refined implementation to date.
The result is a connected, experience-first workplace designed not only for how people work today, but how they will work tomorrow.
Designing a Workplace Around Experience, Not Technology
Vitality required a complete workplace transformation following its move to 3 Stockport Exchange.
The challenge extended far beyond delivering enterprise-scale audio visual technology. The organisation needed a workplace that could:
- Provide a consistent user experience across every room and collaboration space.
- Support hybrid working without disadvantaging remote participants.
- Encourage greater employee engagement and office attendance.
- Create flexible environments for learning, meetings, events and informal collaboration.
- Integrate existing technology investments where appropriate.
- Establish a scalable foundation capable of supporting future growth.
Like many organisations, Vitality recognised that poor meeting experiences can create friction, reduce productivity, and weaken engagement. The project therefore centred on creating environments where technology became almost invisible, allowing users to focus on communication, collaboration and outcomes.
The guiding principle was simple:
The technology is not the product. The experience is.
Building an Experience-First Digital Workplace
New Era Technology engaged with Vitality long before the final solution was specified.
Through stakeholder workshops, technology demonstrations and "art of the possible" sessions, the team focused on understanding user journeys, workplace behaviours and desired business outcomes before selecting any technology.
This approach informed the design of a fully integrated collaboration ecosystem spanning five floors.
Key Components Included
Immersive Corporate Event Space
A flagship multi-purpose venue featuring:
- 130-inch LED videowall
- Q-SYS control platform
- AI-powered camera tracking
- Networked microphones and speakers
- Hearing accessibility support
- Microsoft Teams integration
- Future-ready AI expansion capabilities
- 4 large Teams Rooms
- 10 medium Teams Rooms
- 4 learning and development spaces
- 6 collaboration booths
- Room scheduling technology throughout the office
- Real-time workplace communications
- Localised content
- Intranet feeds
- Wayfinding information
- Corporate messaging
- Simplified management
- Greater scalability
- Easier upgrades
- Reduced lifecycle costs
- Long-term future readiness
The space enables leadership communications, hybrid events, training sessions and company-wide engagement activities.
Microsoft Teams Collaboration Spaces
Vitality standardised on Microsoft Teams Rooms throughout the workplace, creating predictable and intuitive experiences for users.
The deployment included:
Regardless of room size, employees experience the same familiar workflows and controls.
Workplace Communication Network
A network of 27 digital signage displays distributes:
The result is a connected communication layer extending throughout the building.
Sustainable Platform Architecture
To reduce waste and maximise investment value, existing technology from previous offices was selectively repurposed and integrated into the new environment.
At the same time, an AV-over-IP architecture was adopted to provide:
Delivering a Better Workplace Experience
The completed project has transformed how Vitality employees connect, collaborate and engage.
Consistent Collaboration Across Every Space
Meeting rooms now deliver a standardised experience throughout the building.
Employees can move between spaces without needing to learn different systems, reducing user frustration and increasing adoption.
True Hybrid Working
Every environment was designed with both in-room and remote users in mind.
Advanced camera tracking, intelligent audio systems and Microsoft Teams integration ensure remote participants are clearly seen, heard and included, creating a genuinely equitable meeting experience.
Increased Employee Engagement
The workplace now supports more than productivity.
Flexible collaboration spaces, immersive event facilities and integrated communications help create an environment that promotes connection, culture and engagement.
The office becomes a destination employees actively choose to use.
Greater Operational Efficiency
Standardisation across the AV estate has simplified ongoing support and management.
Benefits include:
- Faster meeting starts
- Reduced user issues
- Lower support requirements
- Easier monitoring and maintenance
- Greater reliability across all environments
A Platform for Continuous Improvement
Rather than deploying static technology, Vitality has invested in a scalable collaboration platform capable of evolving alongside business requirements.
Future enhancements can be introduced without major infrastructure replacement, protecting investment while supporting long-term workplace innovation.
Sustainability
Reducing Environmental Impact Through Smarter Design
Sustainability was embedded throughout the project lifecycle.
New Era Technology helped Vitality minimise waste by selectively repurposing technology from previous office locations, extending hardware lifespan and reducing demand for new equipment.
The adoption of AV-over-IP architecture also supports a more sustainable operating model by enabling component-level upgrades rather than wholesale system replacement.
Additional sustainability benefits include:
- Reduced travel through enhanced hybrid collaboration
- Lower reliance on external event venues
- Replacement of printed communications with digital signage
- Future-ready infrastructure that reduces refresh cycles
The result is a workplace designed for both operational effectiveness and long-term environmental responsibility.
Head of Facilities Projects and Property Sustainability, Vitality
Collaboration and Communications Manager, Vitality
Vitality's move to 3 Stockport Exchange demonstrates how workplace technology can become a strategic enabler of employee experience, engagement and organisational performance.
By combining user-centred design, standardised collaboration technologies and a future-ready platform architecture, New Era Technology helped create a workplace where technology fades into the background and people remain at the centre.
The result is a scalable model for modern hybrid working—one that Vitality can continue to build upon for years to come.
Frequently Asked Questions
New Era Technology designed a fully integrated collaboration ecosystem around Vitality’s user journeys, workplace behaviors, and business objectives. Standardised meeting-room technology and familiar controls give employees a more consistent experience across the workplace.
The workplace uses Microsoft Teams Rooms across large and medium-sized meeting rooms, learning spaces, and the corporate event venue. These environments were designed for both in-room and remote users, helping provide a more equitable and intuitive meeting experience.
The deployment included an immersive corporate event space with a 130-inch LED videowall, Q-SYS control, AI-powered camera tracking, networked audio, and Microsoft Teams integration. It also included Microsoft Teams Rooms, 27 digital signage displays, and a scalable AV-over-IP architecture.
New Era Technology selectively repurposed technology from Vitality’s previous offices to extend hardware lifespans and reduce demand for new equipment. The AV-over-IP architecture also enables component-level upgrades rather than requiring a complete system replacement.
The scalable platform allows Vitality to introduce future enhancements without replacing the underlying infrastructure. This protects the organization’s investment while providing a foundation that can evolve with its workplace and collaboration requirements
Let’s Build What’s Next—Together
Today’s challenges don’t sit in one category. Neither should your solutions. When infrastructure, digital transformation, and security work together, complexity fades and progress accelerates.