Building an Immersive Technology Lab: The iTLAB Model

STAFF

XR technology has improved dramatically over the past ten years. With that said, the barriers to entry are not trivial, which is why an expert staff is at the top of the needs hierarchy. I can assume those reading are interested in the potential to launch an immersive lab within an academic institution, and if yours is anything like NYU, you may expect some pushback when requesting headcount. Because of this, it might be tempting to assign the management of your lab to current staff, your IT group, or graduate students. We advise against this. Running a successful XR lab requires a specific combination of skills ranging from software/hardware management to communication skills for in-person, web-based, and media-drive instruction, not to mention a good "bedside manner" for clients new to immersive technology. To make the case to those approving your expenses, you'll see later in this article that the hardware/software overhead might be lower than expected, allowing more funds for investing in expert staff. 

To provide a sense of the type of role XR lab's need, here is an excerpt from an iTLAB job description: 

This role focuses on virtual reality, augmented reality, and other immersive technology platforms. The position is responsible for translating experiential (AR/VR/XR) needs to support immersive learning experiences. Skill with web XR, 3D modeling tools, Unity 3D, C#, AR/VR hardware, and relevant programming languages and development software is essential. Must be fluent in various development support tools (such as Unity Collab, Github, etc.) and software frameworks, including familiarity with cloud services like Amazon Web Services, Adobe Creative Suite, photogrammetry, and 3D scanning. This position regularly meets with faculty, instructional technologists, and other collaborators to identify the requirements needs, such as acquiring and/or creating 3D content (objects, avatars, environments) and special functionality for use in immersive experiences. Also, optimizing assets to maximize performance and user comfort in immersive experiences. Additionally, special pilot projects require custom software design and development. The ability to adapt to changing business needs and environments while managing multiple projects concurrently is vital.

DIGITAL

This is a catch-all term for the resources and services an XR lab provides without the need for a brick-and-mortar facility.  Continuing to understand the potential of remote workflows is important in a post-pandemic world on the cusp of the broad adoption of immersive cloud computing.  The easiest way to expound on this is by describing the digital resources currently provided by the iTLAB:

• Remote Workshops & Training: We offer introductory and advanced VR workshops and training in software applications for creating immersive content.  These sessions not only happen over Zoom/Google Meet, but in virtual reality when merited. All of these sessions have been designed and tested by the iTLAB staff, and are regularly assessed and updated to improve the value they can provide.

• Application Curation: There are hundreds of existing tools and applications that can be leveraged in a variety of ways for teaching and learning. Assessing the potential is a large job that the iTLAB handles on behalf of our clients.  We distill our results via the iTLAB website, in categories derived from NYU's areas of study.

• 3D Content: spatial computing and immersive applications leverage 3D content to deliver impactful experiences. The iTLAB helps determine the best methods for acquiring and/or creating content for immersive lessons, XR experiences, and research projects while providing best practices for creation and optimization. 

Additional digital resources we offer are provided via this website (you're reading one) and include a range of things from hardware assessment guides to software tutorials and use cases illustrating VR as educational support. On the operational side, we have forms for clients to request service and provide feedback, an internal wiki for the iTLAB staff,  and a Google Team Drive for hosting the range of resources we use and offer our clients and the community.

FACILITY

A brick-and-mortar facility can provide a lot of value, especially when well-equipped, actively managed, and promoted as an environment for faculty to conduct research, develop projects, and run small classes. The word "small" is used to preface remarks about the scale of your lab and its services, which we suggest launch small with plans for gradual expansion. 

So, what exactly is a small immersive tech lab? 

Small is best defined by how many simultaneous VR users it can comfortably support. In the case of the iTLAB,  our two-person team can comfortably support up to 8 simultaneous seated VR users, while one of us can manage up to 5. If you envisioned a lecture hall of 200 VR-equipped students, well, we're far from being able to manage this kind of scope. There are too many variables (technical or otherwise) to cover here, so I will attempt brevity by showing a picture of typical VR interface devices:

Imagine trying to instruct 200 users on the function of the buttons, each of which may change depending on the VR application. Imagine being one of the users,  trying to negotiate the array of buttons on the controllers (one in each hand), with a headset replacing your vision with simulated visuals, in a room of 200 others in the same situation, being led by a single instructor.  Imagine being the IT guy that gets called in to troubleshoot that situation during an active class. 

I hope you get the idea.

This won't be the case indefinitely (controller-less hand-tracking is improving), but at the time of this writing, it is too much to expect new users to blindly learn these systems, or for faculty trying to teach a class to also troubleshoot confusion using these devices. 

Now, even though there are 200 users in the lecture hall example, this dilemma can be identical with even 15 users if your lab does not have adequate staff.  And the common impression a bad VR experience leaves is, "Well, I won't be doing that again." If this happens repeatedly, your lab will gain a reputation of being difficult and fall into disuse until your senior leadership determines it was a waste of resources that should be sunset.

So, how do you determine the size of your facility? One way is to set the maximum number of simultaneous VR users your team can support. At the iTLAB, our team of two can comfortably have 8 simultaneous users in our 450-square-foot VR studio, and 10 simultaneous users in our larger (but less optimized) multi-purpose room. We have on occasion accommodated larger groups through various methods, including dividing a class into smaller groups, and rotating them through VR experiences while other students do an activity awaiting their turn. Generally speaking, this is the ratio we intend to follow:

• Team of one = up to 5 

• Team of two = up to 10 

• Team of three = up to 15 

• etc.

Now, how does this small lab translate into hardware, software, and other operational needs? Starting with the foundational assumption that you would like your lab to provide VR access to groups, you will need a "fleet" of headsets. Your fleet should match your maximum number of simultaneous users, plus backup units. You’ll have to determine how many based on your budget, your storage capacity, and other factors. It’s also advisable to have units reserved for staff, who will often need to enter VR alongside your guests. This, of course, will inform your overall financial situation, which we'll cover next.

This spreadsheet is a pretty fair breakdown of the launch expenses of the iTLAB (minus staff expenses and the brick-and-mortar facility costs for the University).  So, about $20k. Post-launch, our projected continuing expenses annually include a $10k hardware refresh, $2k for our 3D asset library, and about $6k for software which includes everything from continuous subscriptions and one-off purchases.  Keep in mind that your expenses could be higher or lower, depending on what you plan to offer and at what scope. For example, if you plan to just have a small fleet of Quest 2 headsets, with no plans to offer content creation services, you could get by with less computer support and save money. Conversely, you may want a larger scope for your lab, like our colleagues from the NYU School of Professional Studies are launching. However, you decide to proceed, the iTLAB is available to offer feedback on how best to proceed. We believe in the potential of this technology to serve students in entirely new ways and want those using it to set themselves up for success.

Conclusion

Building the iTLAB was not just about adopting new technology; it was about future-proofing an institution's capacity to evolve alongside it. The challenges were predictable: organizational inertia, the need for specialized staff, and the complexity of standing up both digital and physical infrastructure simultaneously. What the iTLAB demonstrates is that these challenges are surmountable at modest cost, with the right people, a clear service model, and a willingness to start small.

The three-pillar model ( Staff, Digital, Facility) is a replicable framework for any institution serious about making immersive technology a sustained part of how it teaches, researches, and engages. The journey is ongoing, but the foundation is set.