The Alpha Group has grown its business by 20% in the past year with expanded reach within the UK’s education sector.
The group specialises in workspace and educational furniture and has been operating for almost 50 years. It comprises of Ten Eighty, Alpha Scotland and Alpha Office Furniture. Alpha has been involved in a range of educational projects which spanning from special needs primary schools to university campuses. The company has recently delivered refurbishment projects at University of Glasgow, Queen’s University, University of West Scotland and Ulster University.
Alpha credits the surge in demand for “contemporary, multifunctional educational furniture and educational spaces to new trends emerging within the education environment.” The firm’s CEO Paul Black said:
“The present climate in the education sector is that of change and development, with the aim of producing a competitively skilled workforce for the 21st century. Children and young adults are being taught skills for jobs that have not yet been conceived, so this really is an exciting period for the education sector.
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“As teaching styles evolve, learning experiences are enhanced by classroom configuration and furniture design. Universities in particular are increasingly modernising their facilities to attract students outside of the UK and Alpha has identified this sectoral opportunity, investing in research and development to better understand the needs of the modern student.
“Universities and schools are essentially businesses - it is their job to attract and retain the best students and with our help they can provide modern, dynamic learning spaces to help achieve this.
“Thoughtfully designed learning spaces which include visual stimulation and flexible configurations are proven to improve student performance and teacher retention. Using an insight-led approach, we strive to create classrooms that encourage higher levels of engagement, improved attendance and better academic performance. We have a passion for understanding how learning best takes place and how smarter, active learning spaces can help.
“A perfect example of this is our ongoing work with Queen’s University Belfast. Over recent years we have designed and installed furniture for its Computer Science Building, Ashby Building, Whitla Building and the Medical Biology Centre. These key active learning environments are always designed with the student in mind creating inspiring spaces which fulfil the needs of students and educators.
“Digitalisation of traditional learning methods, and an increased emphasis on mobile technology also mean there is less need for static desks and rigid learning environments, so we opted for more informal, comfortable areas where students can use their laptops to study remotely.
“We have seen our business grow from strength to strength in this area and we will continue to strive to set ourselves apart as specialist furniture suppliers for the education sector.”
