Century College Orthotics

“There is a need for fuller awareness of the growing population of folks who need these devices to go on with their lives, so the Z-Cart is serving a real purpose in our society.”

Eric Klein

Instructional Technologist for Century College

The Challenge

Century College in White Bear Lake runs a nationally renowned Orthotics and Prosthetic program. It is one of the few two-year colleges in the country to offer an O & P program, and has even partnered with Concordia University to help students who are interested in moving forward into a Master’s program. The instructors knew they needed to significantly improve the quality of their educational videos, but had no idea how. That’s why they hired Z Systems to bring our expertise to design and build a custom mobile video production system.

The Solution

Century College needed a video solution that was robust, affordable, and easy to use. They were looking for an all-in-one system that could record, edit, and livestream a high quality video. So they came to Z System for help building a custom-made multimedia cart. We utilized a Vaddio PTZ camera mounted on an Ergotron flexible arm. This heavy duty hardware allows the camera to be placed in the optimal position for any shot. That video feeds a Blackmagic encoder that prepares it for livestreaming and video recording. A student can easily run this system with a remote, and a few clicks of the mouse. Being on a desk with wheels is a key feature of this portable system, and makes it easy to get the shot without obstructing the views of students in person.

“We wanted to have high quality video. We didn’t know what that looked like, which is why we came to Z Systems."

Stephen Kelly

Project Manager at Century College

The Outcome

The mobile recording system, said Stephen helped raise instruction to an unprecedented level. “The combination of quality instruction with Roger Wagner, combined with the crystal clear video – that combination is unique.” The new Z-Cart allows students to see in-depth tutorials on the intricacies of this nuanced profession. They’ve been using the Z Cart for a decade, and have enjoyed it’s portability and ease of use. It’s value-engineered components make it easy to repair the system should anything break.