MARKET REPORT Smart Offi ces
New opportunities
In the age of Covid, there is
a new market for partners to
sell temperature monitoring
devices and other safety
equipment. Jabra’s Dunn
believes Covid has changed the
type of equipment and products
o ces are purchasing. “Niche
products and services have been
catapulted into the mainstream
due to the pandemic. O ce
safety equipment, which was
normally reserved for specialist
working environments, is
quickly becoming the norm
and is being purchased in large
quantities.
“It’s allowed resellers the
ability to sell ‘social distancingfriendly’
hardware and software,
such as AV equipment, that
allows for social distancing in
meeting rooms, at desks and in
collaboration spaces.”
Comms365’s Sacke said,
“Covid-19 has acted as a catalyst
for this market by accelerating
the need for safety technologies
and equipment, including
temperature monitoring
devices, sensors and tracking
technology.
“Smart technology can also
be used to safely monitor and
alarm the mandatory two-metre
di erence between people via
infrared beams on walkways.
It can also analyse movement
around the o ce in recreational
areas using thermal imaging
camera systems. Using AI
algorithms, the technology can
alert when gatherings of too
many people are occurring in
one place, enabling measures
to be taken earlier to restrict
numbers and disperse groups.”
CCTV in focus
As Britain continues to plot
a path forward, CCTV
technology is playing a pivotal
role, according to Camilla
Kirkham, director of sales
(CCTV and AV) at Nimans.
“Almost half of all employees
were working from home
during lockdown, with video
conferencing and other forms of
uni ed communications such as
Microsoft Teams taking centre
stage.
“Here at Nimans we launched
a series of hi-tech solutions
from Hikvision that boast fever
screening and even face mask
detection technologies – and
they are proving extremely
popular. It’s not just about
general safety, but protection
and compliance. Employers
have a duty of care.
“I really love the way our
industry continues to evolve
and create solutions. For
example, cameras can help
ensure social distancing is
maintained. ere’s no silver
bullet but, when combined with
common sense, there’s some
really credible software-driven
solutions being developed to
protect sta and the livelihoods
of companies.
“ ere’s going to be
increased uptake especially of
Bi-Spectrum solutions which
combine video and thermal
cameras side-by-side. is is
utopia in a way. Technology
will continue to develop and
prices will come down as
demand increases. In the future,
continued advances in thermal
technology will enable the
detection of hidden weapons
and items of theft concealed
under clothing. ere are so
many applications to make the
world a safer place.”
A trusted advisor
According to Sacke, from
Comms365, the channel is
uniquely positioned to act as
a trusted advisor. He said,
“Speci c opportunities include
security for company networks,
collaborative software,
collaboration tools, and IoT
network solution provisions.”
But the market must react
to the ever-changing situation,
said Jabra’s Dunn. “Vendors
must keep innovating and
developing hardware and
software that incorporates the
requirements for the o ce of
the future. Customers want and
need future-proofed hardware
that delivers value in multiple
scenarios. is can be achieved
by software licence upgrades or
resellers providing added value
with hardware o erings that
provide rmware upgrades.”
Arrow’s Waters said with
unprecedented demand for
remote working technologies
over the last few months,
the need for technologies
that facilitate safe and secure
workplaces has now become
just as important. is is likely
to result in a hybrid of remote
and o ce-based working for
many organisations. He added,
“ is creates a multitude
of opportunities across the
channel, from consulting,
to implementing software,
hardware and IoT technologies
that will help to create safe
workplaces, whether that’s
an o ce block, factory, retail
outlet, or hospital.”
Dunne, from Poly, feels
2020 has been the catalyst
to radically accelerate hybrid
working, where employees have
the exibility and choice over
when, where and how they
work. He said, “Organisations
need to expand their technology
investment beyond the central
o ce to create consistent,
enterprise-grade experiences
whether the employee is at
home, in a co-working location
or in a company o ce.”
He emphasised, “ e
Gary Harrold, Swiss Post
Solutions’ UK CEO
expansion of technology and
increased investment o ers
a great opportunity for the
channel to ensure that, no
matter where employees work,
they’re equipped with optimal
technology and communication
solutions that drive productivity
and collaboration.”
Are you prepared?
With winter looming and fears
of a second wave of cases, just
how prepared are businesses to
handle another crisis? Research
from Swiss Post Solutions and
NelsonHall highlights the
need for document digitisation
for remote and Covid-secure
workplaces. e research found
just 16% of organisations
perceive their operations as
highly resilient to another crisis.
e shift in working patterns
has hampered access to data and
documents – severely impacting
the customer experience.
Gary Harrold, Swiss Post
Solutions’ UK CEO, explained,
“In light of this, document
processing of electronic and
physical documents are vital
to establishing operational
resilience. 92% of organisations
are looking to increase
automation while 80% are
looking to digitise mailrooms,
with over 70% seeking to
digitalise document processes.
We may be on the way to the
paperless o ce but until then,
the workplace of our near future
will still rely on paper mail.
e di erence is that it will be
delivered to nal recipients in a
Above: a Nimans fever detection solution wholly digital way.”
26 | Comms Business Magazine | October 2020 www.commsbusiness.co.uk
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