Return to office mandates are popping up all over the economy, as organizations continue to ask people to come to an office that was built for ways of working that no longer apply to today’s workforce. As a result, people are resisting these mandates, not just because of the logistic hassles of commuting, but rather because the space that they have stifles their humanity/productivity. As organizations worldwide navigate the complexities of returning to the office post-pandemic, technology plays a pivotal role in ensuring a smooth transition.

As people yearn to reconnect with their colleagues in person, configuring the office space to support this desire for human connection becomes essential. Among the myriad of technological advancements, AI stands out as a game-changer in enabling teams to collaborate more effectively, create and manage their work products, and ultimately execute on the strategic goals. Fundamentally, the office space needs to be smarter and better suited to enabling human interaction—it’s time to build the spaces that people want to come to in order to feel like they are part of a team.

AI has and will continue to revolutionize the way teams communicate and manage their projects by making collaboration more efficient and less cumbersome. Through AI-powered communication tools, such as chatbots and virtual assistants, employees can streamline their workflows and eliminate repetitive tasks.

[Viewpoint: How Smart Is Your Office?]

By now, we are very familiar with the ability for AI to enhance individual productivity. Yet, we are in the early stages of learning how AI can be a functional agent for your team’s productivity. Project management software integrated with AI capabilities provides real-time insights into project progress, identifies potential bottlenecks, and offers solutions to mitigate them.

Plus, AI algorithms can analyze historical project data to predict future outcomes, enabling teams to make informed decisions. Moreover, AI-driven platforms facilitate seamless document sharing and version control, ensuring that all team members have access to the most up-to-date information.

That Human Touch

Great, so what does this have to do with the physical office space? Well, humans by and large want to be together, and we tend to do our best work when we are closer to our teammates. There is no technology that can replace the energy you feel and the creativity that is inspired by being close to another human.

While I do love being a full-time remote worker, my favorite moments throughout the year are the times that I get to leave my house and meet with partners and colleagues face-to-face. I look forward to those experiences, but I'm not interested in going to an office everyday just because somebody said so. There must be a purpose, and there must be something there that I can’t get at home.

Facilitating that desire to be connected to the group is the key to drawing humans to the space. One of the significant challenges of remote work has been maintaining this energy and effective collaboration among dispersed teams. AI-powered collaboration tools have bridged this gap by offering virtual environments that simulate the in-office experience.

Virtual meeting platforms, enhanced with AI features, can transcribe meetings, provide real-time translations, and identify key action items, ensuring that everyone is on the same page regardless of their location. AI-driven analytics can track team performance and engagement levels, offering insights into areas that need improvement. However, the true power of this technology is what it does to give you back your humanity and freedom to engage with your colleagues in ways that are deeper than executing tasks to meet a deadline.

Therefore, modern office design should focus on creating spaces that encourage collaboration and interaction. Open floor plans, communal areas, and dedicated collaboration zones can facilitate spontaneous discussions and idea-sharing. However, this space design needs to be flexible and nimble and allow all team members across the neurodiversity spectrum to feel comfortable and safe to be the best version of themselves.

By incorporating wayfinding, desk scheduling, and dynamic environmental control technologies into an employee app, it's possible to create these experiences that enable teams to work in the best ways to support the individuals on that team. Moreover, integrating natural elements, such as plants and natural light, can create a more inviting and relaxing space.

Leveraging AI and machine learning data from building management systems is a great way to analyze employee behavior to curate these environments for your team members and promote employee well-being. In addition, AI-driven scheduling tools can help manage office occupancy levels, ensuring that employees can work in the office on days when their presence is most beneficial.

[Integrators and AI]

In a sense, it makes it easier for team members to organize themselves around the time and space that fits that team best. These tools can also optimize the use of office space, reducing overhead costs while providing employees with the flexibility they need. When the physical space can support this, the humans will fill in the blanks necessary to come together on their own terms.

Challenges and Opportunities

By harnessing the power of AI, companies can enhance team collaboration, streamline the organization of work products, and create office environments that support human connection. Yes, AI-driven tools enable employees to work more efficiently, stay connected, and access the information they need to succeed. Yet the greatest benefit of these tools and technologies is the liberation they provide to be human again.

As we move forward, it is essential for organizations to embrace technological advancements and adopt flexible work models that cater to the diverse needs of their workforce. By doing so, they can create a more dynamic, innovative, and productive work environment that not only meets the demands of the present but also paves the way for future success.

[Product Review: Shokz OpenMeet UC Presents New Twist on Office Headset]

The lines between the physical and the virtual office space will continue to blur, but in order for the physical space to remain relevant, it has to elevate the human experience and be a place where team members want to be. More specifically, it needs to be a space where colleagues want to come together because it facilitates their humanity. As organizations mandate a return to the office, it is crucial that we take advantage of available data and technology and configure office spaces in a way that supports these desires for human connection.

Ultimately, the key to a successful return to the office lies in finding the right balance between leveraging technology and fostering human connections. By prioritizing both, organizations can create a thriving workspace where employees feel valued, engaged, and empowered to achieve their full potential.

The travel and hospitality industries have suffered mightily through the COVID-19 pandemic, with U.S. hotels posting their worst numbers on record in 2020. The industry closed out the year with an anemic occupancy rate of 44 percent and more than 1 billion unsold room nights for the first time ever, according to data from STR.

“The pandemic has ravaged the hospitality industry,” said David Schwartz, founder and CEO of Essential Communications. Schwartz has had a front-seat vantage of the situation in New York City, a perennial top destination for travelers.

“Sixty percent of NYC restaurants have permanently closed due to the pandemic, and data from Yelp suggests businesses are struggling to recover despite some reopening measures,” he said. “Existing hotels, which are reopening very slowly after two years of being dormant, are reluctant to spend money on either new systems or upgrades that may be necessary, especially for properties with aging AV systems.”

Nationwide, hotel chains are working to recover to pre-pandemic guest numbers, but with fewer hotel employees. As labor shortages continue, many properties are learning to do more with less—and that could mean a coming uptick in technology investment for hotel common areas. For example, Schwartz has seen steady growth in the construction of screening rooms that hold up to 100 people, which the hotels rent for presentations and private screenings. But lobbies remain the most popular hotel space for installations  of audio- and video-related technology.

“An experiential lobby, ambient music in the hallways, digital signage and wayfinding, and lounges and restaurants with screens are all part of an immersive AV experience,” said Matt Wilson, director of marketing at McCann Systems. “Making entranceways and lobbies areas that guests want to be in and feel connected to is pound-for-pound the best use of AV or LED displays in a hospitality situation.”

[ Integrating for the Hospitality Experience ] 

Pre-pandemic, the boutique hotel boom relegated many of those mass-communication tactics to the sidelines—instead of LEDs, display screens and wayfinding kiosks, these properties are more inclined to use concierge services to give guests a personal touch. The hospitality industry’s reemergence from a period of relative dormancy coincides with continued growth in personal technology, and has drawn attention away from common areas and toward the guest rooms.

“Where I have seen and provided AV improvements the most is in guest rooms,” said Schwartz. “This really is the place where hoteliers tend to spend the most money. It makes sense; options for AV have expanded exponentially. I’ve seen turntables in rooms, and you can get records from the front desk.”

The menu of options grows from there, from 80-inch TVs with soundbars to bedside alarm and entertainment sets with Bluetooth connectivity. Personalized experiences are where hospitality groups are investing, but not quickly enough, said Joe King, vice president of commercial displays at PPDS (formerly Philips Professional Display Solutions).

[ How Display Solutions Can Help the Hospitality Market Recover and Thrive ]

“I go back to the days when you would drive by the Holiday Inn on the interstate and [the sign] said ‘Free HBO’ or ‘Room Service,’” said King. “When you checked into a hotel, you got something that you didn’t get at home.”

Now, the tables have turned, he said. Guests have a nearly infinite number of entertainment options at home, while hotels are having to play catch-up. The majority of hotel brands still offer conventional set-top-box cable TV services, while nearly half of U.S. households have already cut the cable cord in favor of over-the-top streaming services like YouTube TV, Sling TV, and Netflix, as well as network-owned apps from ESPN, Disney, Paramount, and others. These apps make it easier for guests to watch programs that they would get in their home markets, such as sporting events.

“Next week when I’m in Dallas, the [Atlanta] Braves are going to play the [Philadelphia] Phillies, and what I typically end up doing is watching it on either my laptop or my tablet,” said King. “Wouldn’t it be great if I could watch it on the 50-inch in the hotel room? I think people are starting to wonder, ‘Why can’t I do what I can do at home in my hotel room?’ That’s where we’re starting to see some people look to invest.”

Smart TVs are one solution that major chains are implementing through AV integrators, and the growth potential appears significant. IHG, which owns Kimpton, Holiday Inn, and other hotel brands, currently provides smart TVs in less a quarter of their rooms, while half of Marriott rooms are equipped with smart TVs. But using the apps through a smart TV in a hotel room isn’t free; guests log in with their personal credentials, and both the guest and the hotel carry the burden of security risks.

[ How Outdoor AV Can Help Move the Hospitality Industry Forward ]

“The challenge for hotels is erasing all that data after a guest checks out,” said Schwartz. “It can get cumbersome, and there are also security concerns from both the guests’ credentials and personal data, and from the hotel side and their responsibility to maintain and secure guest and credit card information. Until it can be made both easy and secure, it will remain difficult.”

With the hotel experience increasingly relying on the guest’s own preferences and resources, though, how far down that road brands will go remains unclear. According to King, enthusiasm for voice activation, the next logical amenity for guest rooms, is currently low.

“There’s some skepticism about something that can hear you,” he said. “I think hotels have been somewhat reluctant to put those types of devices in their guest rooms for fear that the guest thinks someone’s always listening to them. ‘Even though it’s a remote control, and it can hear me and interpret what I’m saying, is it always listening to me?’”

Despite the catastrophic losses hotels have endured over the past 20 months, hotel brands have had ample time to retool and plan for renovations and upgrades to their properties.

“As hotels recover from the pandemic, you’re starting to see a lot of people look at technology maybe a little differently,” said King. “They’ve had time to study and look at different things during their downtime, so I think it has changed the outlook at the [hotel] brands as to how they have to address technology, and that’s for the better. I think as we go three or four years down the road, a lot of stuff that came out of the pandemic is going to be that hotels are going to invest more in technology.”

This article originally appeared in the November 2021 issue of SCN. Click here to read more stories from November 2021.

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Vegas’ Westgate Resort & Casino Overhauls AV Distribution • Las Vegas’ Westgate Resort & Casino, home to the “Super Book” 4K video wall, recently underwent a full AV system upgrade to achieve next-gen performance.

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In today’s digital world, information has never been more accessible online, whether on web sites or in social media feeds. Customers expect the same quantity of information to be available to them when they’re in physical public places, whether they’re attending an event or shopping for a new pair of jeans. Not only do customers want the same quantity of information, they want the same quality—that is, they expect that the information presented to them during in-person experiences will be just as interactive and engaging as when they’re online.

Digital signage, once a basic tool used by businesses to share static updates, has evolved to offer more complex content and real-time updates in any type of environment or in any form, from a video wall to a 4K touchscreen. Businesses can benefit from the integration of digital signage solutions to help them elevate the customer experience and build loyalty, while at the same time increasing operational efficiencies and generating additional revenue from advertising and upselling opportunities.

[ How Outdoor AV Can Help Move the Hospitality Industry Forward ]

Here’s how digital signage can advance different types of customer interactions and business scenarios.

For the quick-service restaurant: When entering a drive-thru, customers immediately look for information that’s easy to read and helps them decide what they’d like to eat. By integrating displays with crisp visuals that can be read even in direct sunlight, the restaurant can clearly present information about its dishes, including ingredients and nutritional facts, and assist the customer’s decision-making process. It’s also important to invest in software that helps to manage and update menu items in real time, accommodating seasonal specials or daily deals, which creates an opportunity to upsell and increase order sizes.

For the hotel or hospitality venue: During check-in, guests expect the lobby and public areas in the hotel to provide guidance about where to go for a smooth start to their stay, whether for work or vacation. Digital signage can be leveraged throughout the venue to assist with check-in (showing which counter is available, for example), while signage in hallways and meeting spaces can be used as wayfinding devices to help guests locate their room or meet up with colleagues. Digital signage can alert guests in real time in the event of an emergency, leading them to safety, or during construction, informing them that they need to find a different rendezvous location.

[ Integrating for the Hospitality Experience ]

For the museum: As guests wander through exhibits and galleries at a museum, they benefit from easily visible digital signage mounted on walls or ceilings that provides additional information about the artwork. Video tutorials or interviews about the creation of the art piece, for instance, or visual assets that show the historical context of the exhibit will enhance the experience and help to transport the guest into the stories behind each exhibit.

For the retail store: Retail can use digital signage to invite the customer into the design process and customize a product, whether it’s a new paint color for a living room or a custom shirt. Data collected about how the customer interacted with the content helps businesses understand their interests and needs, and ultimately improve store offerings to enhance future customer interactions.

There are many different applications of digital signage for public spaces in various markets, though all businesses can benefit from using this technology. By investing in these solutions, businesses can create a more informative and interactive experience that keeps customers coming back for more.

Click here to read more stories from the October 2021 issue of SCN.

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Modernization Brings Changes to Drive-Thrus • Digital signage innovations—like digital menu boards—are helping quick-serve restaurants operate in a way that is more efficient and user-friendly.

Technology Trends in Kiosk Design • In an ever-evolving consumer landscape, kiosks are helping to ensure efficiency, security, and even safety during the ongoing pandemic.

How Display Solutions Can Help the Hospitality Market Recover and Thrive • New technologies and connected TV platforms make visual communication an essential part of health safety for hotels and restaurants.

In an ever-evolving consumer landscape, kiosks are helping to ensure efficiency, security, and even safety during the ongoing pandemic. Kiosk offerings run the gamut to cover most use cases and settings, from all-in-one models to modular systems. Tech innovations include screens with antimicrobial coating and shatterproof film, contactless ordering, and improved payment capabilities.

“The pandemic has absolutely changed the use of digital signage, with the most significant change being the uptick in use of videoconferencing. With our inability to travel, network in person, and keep in contact with customers, peers, family, and friends, videoconferencing via FaceTime, Zoom, WebEx, and other platforms has become commonplace. Additionally, with organizations that are using digital signage, we have seen improved analytics that are allowing businesses to mine and evaluate historical customer data to deliver effective and targeted personalized content,” said Rob Meiner, CTS, technical sales engineer, Peerless-AV.

Changing Landscape

With pandemic considerations making users uncomfortable about using touch interactive displays, the industry is also becoming more reliant on autonomous AI to help with the execution of functions and tasks, noted Meiner.

“Retailers, QSRs [quick service restaurants], hospitality businesses, and others have integrated mobile connectivity into their signage solutions, allowing people to interact with the information and data displayed on a display” via their personal mobile device, Meiner explained.

Luke Westin, senior product manager at Chief, also has some thoughts on the pandemic’s impact and suggested it has only heightened the need for kiosks. “Digital signage is definitely expanding—both indoor and outdoor. The need to elegantly enclose display technology is only going to grow, whether it be advertising, menu boards, automation, virtual reception, or wayfinding. All these applications will grow to accommodate communities that are now more acutely aware of health, safety, and security in public spaces. Importantly, digital signage can help make these spaces comfortable and convenient for everyone to navigate again.”

Social distancing and changing levels of use are pushing some manufacturers to amplify the customer experience.

“Kiosks will continue to increase in popularity for a multitude of reasons, including ease of use, adaptability, and their role in perfecting the customer experience for various industries,” added Mark Quiroz, vice president of marketing, Display Division, Samsung Electronics America. “The challenges of a distanced world have certainly fueled our design efforts to introduce products that are safe, secure, and easy to use. The digitization of the retail world and other industries continues to inspire and motivate us to think outside the box and to explore not simply what kiosks should be but what they can do. Creativity in this sector will be the key to developing products that stand the test of time and pave the way for more inventive solutions.”

[ Touchless Systems: Manufacturers Discuss AV's Latest Trend ]

Growing Trends

Peerless-AV’s Meiner shared some recent observations and trends. One is the notable increase in self-service kiosks that allow customers to have one-on-one conversations with off-site customer care representatives.

“According to a recent study on checkout lines, 69 percent of shoppers said long lines were the most irritating part of shopping,” Meiner said. “That beat out high prices (66 percent) and inventory being out of stock (65 percent). Eighty-four percent of those customers said watching digital displays helped them pass the time while they waited. With self-service, businesses can offer lower perceived wait times. Long lines are enough reason to leave a business or establishment. Therefore, any businesses should be investing in points of sale or offering self-checkout—anything to keep long lines from chasing off customers. People have a much easier time waiting in line when there’s something to take their mind off the actual wait.”

Some airlines are already using this technology, giving travelers the option of videoconferencing with a representative rather than using chat, email, or a telephone call to solve a problem, Meiner noted.

“The best part of a solution like this is that it allows customers to help themselves. Studies of customer feedback show that customers prefer self-service over working with an employee. In addition, self-service is the fastest and most cost-effective way to customer support,” he said. “Digital signage engages customers without requiring employee interaction. As a result, customers get the information they need to make a purchasing decision,” and employees’ time is freed up to focus on helping in situations where a customer service agent can make the most impact.

AI continues to be another game-changer. “With the use of AI, display content can be changed at a moment’s notice, creating a completely new innovation for kiosk usage. With networked digital signage, content in numerous stores located throughout the country can all be changed at the same time from a single remote location,” he said. “If a business wants to advertise a new product or announce an upcoming sale, they can create an ad and deploy it across all locations at the same time. While one of the benefits of digital signage is the capability to quickly implement new sales, offers, and products, it’s also the best way to keep brand messaging consistent across locations. The concept works in reverse, too. Operators can quickly pull offers completely or retool their marketing efforts without going through the lengthy and costly process of removing printed material and creating new material to replace it.”

Meiner believes that analytics will continue to play a large role in kiosk innovation. For example, a display that allows shoppers to check inventory can increase engagement and deliver analytics about which products are searched for the most. If sales numbers aren’t consistent with this interest, it might be time to lower the price or otherwise improve a product’s perceived value. Without customer data gathered by kiosks or other interactive signage, interest in a product would not be apparent if customers left the store without buying it.

“Displays can now be outfitted with video cameras that report a whole host of metrics,” said Meiner. “These can include people count (or impressions), dwell time, interaction time, demographics such as gender and age, emotional sentiment, recurring visitors, content touches, football traffic, and heat maps.”

Meiner warns that even with increasing availability of self-service kiosks, there will always be a subset of customers who prefer to work directly, face-to-face, with a human. “This desire for human interaction will continue to exist, especially for small and medium-sized businesses,” he said.

Future Outlook

What does the future hold for kiosks? And how will they evolve over the next few years?

“Kiosks need to look great and seamlessly blend into a variety of environments. The ability to respond to customizations is key when it comes to aesthetics and other features,” said Chief’s Westin. “Beyond aesthetics, I see innovation from manufacturers that have thought through the installation and servicing process. Quick installation for large roll-outs, servicing or troubleshooting are important value-add features that continue to save time and money beyond the initial purchase. As far as outdoor goes, there will be major innovations taking place with displays and media players. We are also seeing outdoor displays migrating toward System on Chip [SoC] and Smart Signage Wi-Fi options, reducing the need for climate control of media players. As the need to support more signage outdoors increases, so too will the demand for outdoor-rated media player devices.”

As well as growing use in an increasing number of applications, especially in the outdoor space, Westin anticipates that display technology will become even less dependent on media players and expects to see further integration of accessories like cameras, card readers, speakers, and microphones.

“Technology will continue to advance in outdoor rating of kiosks,” he concluded. “Direct view LED is another technology that can be applied in kiosk and enclosure applications.”

Click here to read more stories from the August 2021 issue of SCN.

Kiosk Technology and Installations

Samsung Unveils Kiosk for Contactless Ordering and Payment • Samsung’s all-in-one Kiosk includes a 24-inch HD display, receipt printer, credit card terminal, scanner, and NFC tap pad, with self-ordering kiosk software from GRUBBRR.

Touchless Systems: Manufacturers Discuss AV's Latest Trend • In a flurry of innovation, industry leaders have been developing new products and solutions to help facilitate a healthy return to corporate and college campuses, hospitality, and more. We reached out to manufacturers to learn about the solutions they’re working on for this new, touch-free world.

Privacy and Digital Signage • With AI and data analytics at the heart of today’s digital signage platforms, maintaining consumer and visitor privacy is becoming an increasingly important issue.

Samsung, Partners Bring New Display Tech to D.C. Landmark • Samsung’s dynamic smart signage, coupled with content driven by New Tradition, provides commuters and visitors up-to-the-minute travel, weather and safety information at Washington, D.C.'s historic Union Station.

Why Digital Signage and Wayfinding Technology Are Critical in a Post-Pandemic World • 22Miles' Tomer Mann discusses the importance of digital signage technology in the era of COVID-19.

The What: 22Miles is releasing Digital Signage Ready (DSR), a portfolio of ready-built software and service bundles that allow for quick setup and deployment of the most popular digital signage experiences. DSR encompasses entry-level digital and interactive signage software and content management features that are ready-to-customize, ready-to-bundle, and ready-to-deploy.

[The Digital Signage Best Practices Guide]

The What Else: The DSR SaaS portfolio consists of a content management system with numerous application sets, widgets, stylish templates, and a white glove support service that is designed to set customers up for success. Customers can choose from a wide range of project examples for their respective industry and application; easily re-brand and edit the content; then drag-and-drop the content and widgets to customize to their liking. 

22Miles' DSR also includes white glove service to assist customers with project setup, training and deployment, content development, and data assistance. The DSR software bundles are installed on a growing list of DSR certified hardware and operating systems and includes tech support and cloud hosting for seamless operation. 22Miles partners with hardware manufacturer partners—like Intel, Crestron, LG, Samsung, Mimo, Iadea, and BrightSign—so adding DSR to existing and new systems alike is streamlined.

[22Miles' Tomer Mann Talks Turning Ideas into Realities]

The Bottom Line: With a robust range of applications that get customers up and running within minutes, 22Miles says DSR relieves integrators, AV/IT and facility managers, and decision-makers from the costs and complications associated with proprietary design and content management. Built on the 22Miles platform, DSR offers future-proof scalability and growth potential as building and customer needs change, according to the company

Visix continues its multiyear rollout of a digital signage network for the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), now serving five departments with an eclectic and engaging blend of custom interactive wayfinding systems, traditional digital signage, and meeting space solutions.

Visix has had a presence on the UNLV campus since 2013, alongside other digital signage systems that served specific departments. UNLV has worked closely with Visix on a consolidation strategy in recent years, with the goal of establishing a single-vendor network to serve multiple departments. This core consolidation strategy has been spearheaded through UNLV’s IT department, which now manages the entire network.

In addition to developing custom digital signage templates and layouts for all departments, the Visix Creative Services team has been focused on developing custom interactive wayfinding solutions. These systems are now found in five departments, with each including unique maps and directory data to serve specific buildings and floors.

Visix developed a common user interface in four departments to provide a familiar wayfinding experience for students and visitors moving between these buildings. These include the College of Education, William S. Boyd School of Law, and the Stan Fulton Building, which houses UNLV’s International Gaming Institute.

[ The Technology Manager’s Guide to the New Era of Digital Signage ]

Debut of AxisTV Signage Suite

The same interactive wayfinding design was most recently added to the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality, a newly constructed learning facility adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip. The latest building added to the network, the college is also the first to launch Visix’s new-generation AxisTV Signage Suite digital signage platform. The enterprise CMS delivers visual media and messaging to displays, supporting the college’s organizational communications strategy for faculty and more than 2,300 students. AxisTV Signage Suite also provides real-time conference and event schedules on Visix Connect and EPS E Ink room signs in front of classrooms and meeting spaces.

Visix has also created a unique interactive wayfinding design for the fifth building, the UNLV Lied Library. Here, students can pull event data from UNLV’s event management system, and display computer lab availability. Additionally, all interactive Lied Library content is responsive for mobile devices, allowing students to view maps and directories on their smartphones upon scanning a QR code. Visix wayfinding projects for UNLV have won four interactive design awards for both graphic and UI design.

Amy Buchanan, sales manager for Visix, adds that all departments are in the process of transitioning from previous-generation AxisTV digital signage software to the AxisTV Signage Suite platform.

“AxisTV Signage Suite software brings new benefits including robust video streaming support, improved content design tools, touch interactivity, and more efficient content creation workflows,” said Buchanan. “We are working closely with the IT team to migrate various departments to new hardware and software, including Visix e-paper room signs and multi-output digital signage players for video walls.”

UNLV’s IT department has added five new Visix digital signage players to its hosted server, with many more displays powered by AxisTV Signage Software expected to come online through 2021.

More on Digital Signage and Wayfinding

The State of Digital Signage in 2021 • The steady growth of capabilities and evolution of trends that defined digital signage for the past decade have taken an abrupt turn as our ways of life shifted dramatically.

Why Digital Signage and Wayfinding Technology Are Critical in a Post-Pandemic World • 22Miles’ Tomer Mann discusses the importance of digital signage technology in the era of COVID-19.

Reinventing and Reinvigorating Outdoor Signage in the World of COVID • There are ways outdoor signage—whether it be for wayfinding, menus, and beyond—can help corporations thrive in a COVID world.

Digital Signage Software: A New Foundation for Public Safety • Digital signage and robust content management are no longer just bells and whistles when it comes to running a business.

Privacy and Digital Signage • With AI and data analytics at the heart of today’s digital signage platforms, maintaining consumer and visitor privacy is becoming an increasingly important issue.

The term “media player” tends to inspire confusion in digital signage projects. The industry saying, “one size does not fit all,” only adds to the confusion by putting more options on the table. What should be prioritized as you sort through media player options? What should you know before you select a media player for your next job? The answers lie in the engineering services of your media services supplier. Here are the top 5 things to watch for:

1. A top-tier media services supplier starts with engineering design to the most demanding specs of new modular compute technology. The goal is to allow for easy maintenance, upgrade options, and the potential for custom I/O designed for demanding digital signage applications such as QSR, retail, and wayfinding.

2. A top-tier supplier gets products installation-ready before shipping them out.

3. Software should come loaded on media players, ready for the customer’s field installation and testing of the players to the highest levels of performance.

4. The media players are tested in a thermal chamber before shipping to make sure they perform in heat-intensive environments—so they’re sure to perform reliably, 24/7 in any field conditions.

5. The supplier itself should offer engineering services and support for multiple levels of integrator and end user.

Engineering Design to the Most Demanding Specs of Modular Computer Technology—and Fortune 500 Standards

• From an engineering perspective there is probably no more important Fortune 500 company than Intel. Seneca—the visual media/digital signage media player solutions arm of Arrow Electronics, Inc.—was recently selected was recently selected by Intel to design an enclosure for the new Intel Compute Card technology. Seneca was selected specifically to design a purpose-built solution for use in visual retail, including digital signage and kiosk. The Seneca XK-Dock was engineered as an ultra-small form factor enclosure for the Intel Compute Card, bringing tremendous value to designers, OEMs, channel partners, and AV end users. This design provides a new-generation media player based on a hardened form factor with industrial features, fanless design for rough environments, a simple installation protocol, the capacity to upgrade a system without removing the player enclosure, the ability to lock down a compute card for IT security, and a modular card and dock to allow multiple platforms on the same hardware. Bottom line: the modular compute technology allows for easy maintenance and upgrade path, and the design resists dirt, dust, grease, and grime (because there is no fan). This solution provides custom I/O designed for digital signage applications like QSR, retail, and wayfinding.

Engineering Services: Getting Products Installation-Ready Before Shipping Them Out

Media players are media players, and content and deployment issues are separate—or so some may think. They should think again. The best media player supplier does indeed get products installation-ready before shipping them out. How? The best media player supplier actually can load the software for media players before shipping, in preparation for the customer’s field installation, to test the real-world functionality of the players to their highest levels of performance and simulate real-world installation conditions.

“A major QSR chain came to us,” explains Jami McGraw, Global Product Manager, at Arrow Electronics and its Seneca media player line, “to replace media players from another provider that were failing in the field. As we would do for any customer, we actually ran the digital content in a test, in field conditions, and used custom firmware to control wattage to components, avoiding any problem that would arise in the field. So when installed, the Seneca media players performed flawlessly, over time.”

Trial by Heat—Testing at a Higher Level, in Preparation for the Toughest Conditions in the Field

“We have the most rigorous test labs in the industry,” says Seneca’s McGraw. “Whether for QSR environments, or kiosks, you need to know that the media players will perform at 100%. And it’s not just for heat-generating QSRs, restaurants, or outdoor environments. Yes, it’s crucial for those, but a lot of indoor environments are challenging, because heating in winter and AC in summer can play havoc with enclosed kiosks, for example. And in today’s smart city environments, there is more and more display activity everywhere. If you don’t test—as we do in thermal chambers—and spec for the toughest environment, you won’t get ROI in any environment.”

Beyond “Custom”: Engineering Confidence for Every AV Integrator, Not Just Fortune 500 Companies

So Arrow/Seneca’s advanced engineering services are not just about shipping out media players and AV integrators hoping for the best in the field. But is that kind of rigorous design and engineering affordable for all AV integrators?

“At Arrow/Seneca,” says McGraw, “there is no price added for this kind of custom testing and rigorous engineering. Because of our design and engineering processes, we have less than 1% failure rate on media players. How does that affect you? Because with those kinds of engineering/manufacturing efficiencies, we save on the front end, the manufacturing end, and that translates to savings to the AV integrator and end user. Our highest selling media player actually has just a .8% failure rate. The stats that are important to you? As a provider of media player solutions for the world’s top manufacturers, we bring the same level of rigorous testing and market preparation to each order that we offer Fortune 500 companies—and it is, in fact, the low-failure-rate savings, to us, that results from all our testing, that makes that kind of engineering service affordable to all AV integrators.”

Additional Resources

Seneca XK-Dock for Digital Signage and Kiosk

Seneca was selected by Intel to design an enclosure for the new Intel Compute Card technology, for use in Visual Retail including digital signage and kiosk.

Case Study: Big Sports and Big Streaming at Montreal’s Bell Centre Arena

Programmed content for a Major League Hockey team, including hockey player profiles and advertising, via a Seneca HD2.5 media player housing a quad-output graphics card on a multicast Avaya network.

Seneca XK-1.3 for Full-Motion Video Complex Database Feeds and HDCP Protected Content Playback

Seneca has redesigned and re-launched the Seneca XK-1.3–the purpose built media appliance that uses desktop class processors rather than mobile technology usually found in other small form factor computers– for dynamic full-motion video, complex database feeds and HDCP protected content playback.

22 Miles has released AR Plug-in, its feature release for mobile wayfinding applications, which it will demonstrate at DSE 2018 in booth 1543.

Visitors can now find any destination with a superimposed pathway app from their phone camera. 22 Miles designed this to make mobile wayfinding more intuitive and match the standards set out by the likes of Google Maps.

The 22 Miles mobile app capabilities support features such as 3D wayfinding for outdoor campus and interior floor maps; menus, product browsing, and search; smart search directory; meeting and event booking; emergency notifications; social media, surveys, forms and Google Maps for local amenities and offsite locations; indoor positioning support via Bluetooth beacons (BLE) and Wi-Fi access points; and of course, augmented reality route visualization (AR) plug-in.

To expand further on the AR Plug-in, users can get promotions in real time throughout their navigational experience, as notifications alert them of deals within their proximity. The plug-in can integrate with existing organizational apps, and 22 Miles offers app design services for end users.