Altro Limited

Altro Limited have been at the forefront of innovation for almost 100 years. Today, working closely with architects, end customers, engineers, designers and contractors around the world, their insight and expertise have helped transform everyday spaces into environments that can improve the wellbeing of everyone that uses them. Trading since 1919, Altro is a family owned business based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire with offices across Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. ​

The challenge: Adapting for growth

Following rapid acceleration, Altro commissioned a multi-site, audio visual refresh across its key customer facing and employee spaces including their training rooms, meeting rooms, reception areas and conference areas. One of the principal objectives of the upgrade was to remove the current barriers that faced employees with the existing meeting space hardware, as the myriad of legacy technology had led to many different communication protocols, making the technology challenging to use.

Gideon Tester, Business Digital Systems Manager and project lead:

“We needed to standardise on a technology platform which delivered a consistent user experience and made the technology accessible for all. We wanted to deploy a solution which was easy to use for all levels of user and could facilitate simple wireless connectivity between meeting room screens and any device, whether that be iOS, Android, Windows OS or Mac OSX. We were also keen to enable screen sharing from any device.”

Choosing the right solution

Gideon started a full evaluation of available, collaborative, meeting space technology and was immediately impressed with the Avocor F series. One of the benefits to the solution that he identified was that it was platform agnostic, and as such, enabled Altro to build their ideal, perfect environment, tailored to their specific needs and requirements.

“One of the key reasons we decided to standardise on the Avocor solution was its simplicity. When we saw the display and that it was built on a Windows 10 platform, we immediately felt that all of our employees would be able to embrace the technology which in turn would maximise our investment. With just one click, our staff can control everything in the meeting room directly from the display. The Windows 10 operating platform means that we can take advantage of all-in-one video conferencing with Skype for Business as well as the full Microsoft Office Suite.”

Gideon explains “We recognised that we could create a bespoke solution with the Avocor F series at the hub. The range of sizes meant we could choose a screen size that fitted the space the display was deployed within whilst still standardising on the manufacturer to deliver the same experience for all employees.”

Altro and their system integrator partner, DWM, were then able to add in other elements appropriate to the environment. In larger areas, audio was provided using state-of-the-art Bose sound systems, whilst smaller rooms utilised the Avocor soundbar, providing crystal clear sound throughout. This approach has meant that Altro weren’t faced with additional costs for elements in the solution would remain redundant in certain spaces.

Increasing productivity through technology

Altro has witnessed immediate benefits in deploying the Avocor solution, making the business more productive and efficient. “We don’t conduct a workshop anymore and then have to wait weeks for output or follow up, instead we are able to participate in a meeting and then have meeting notes shared immediately. Screen share across multiple locations has had a positive impact, with all meeting delegates feeling more engaged and included in the meeting topic. The support that we have had from Avocor has been exceptional, they have worked tirelessly to ensure we get the very best out of our technology investment and when there have been any technical obstacles, their customer service team have identified issues efficiently and responsibly.”

Continued support

Gideon has been delighted with the transformational impact that the Avocor displays have made within Altro. “With the Avocor display solution, the transition from ideation to tangible outcome has made us take decisions quicker and more efficiently, making our business more productive as a result.”