PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Martin Kent, Territory Manager at HANNspree UK considers displays as a key enabler to the human machine interface
Digital display with user interaction has become extremely commonplace in recent years and continues to replace existing, alternative methods, which are now considered outdated. The exponential uptake of digital display in a vast number of commercial and industrial sectors, such as retail, hospitality and production line, has created a huge ‘hardware integration’ market for display manufacturers and the possible applications are ever emerging. The sheer size of this market makes it an extremely lucrative business to have a foot in.
It can sometimes be taken for granted just how far touch technology application reaches. Touch control has been applied to hardware in a vast amount of business sectors. The Human Machine Interface has become a normal occurrence in our everyday lives. Hospitality, education, medical, industrial, retail and many more all employ touchscreen technology one way or another, from cash points and airport check-in, to vending machines, gaming machines and restaurant ordering systems, and the scope for further application is considerable.
Companies across the globe are producing innovative products featuring interactive user interfaces, some of which are on an industrial scale. These products are being designed for countless purposes, primarily to improve productivity or increase the satisfaction of customers. Touchscreen technology is of course at the heart of these devices, which has created an opportunity for display manufacturers to diverge and indeed prosper in vertical markets.
HANNspree has become a champion for the Human Machine Interface application, providing companies with fully embedded solutions to help them realise their designs. We have worked with a variety of companies across Europe to fulfil a number of large project orders as well as helped small entrepreneurs to develop ideas for radical inventions. Our sizeable portfolio of open frame solutions has been designed specifically to enable hardware integration to be simple and affordable, while our ability to customise solutions enables us to problem solve and fulfil precise requirements.
Of course, this considerable and growing market also presents new opportunities for display manufacturer channel partners to benefit too. Hardware integrators are looking to form relationships with suppliers. Their requirements can be a steady stream of business and often increase as their businesses grow. These accounts certainly provide the potential for the channel to reap substantial new revenue. With the demand for open frame solutions as it stands, especially touchscreen options, and the highly likely upsurge in the coming years, now is the ideal time to tap into the rapidly growing new avenue for display sales.
HANNspree’s flexibility versus larger manufacturers has already allowed us to support a variety of reseller projects whereby the reseller is offering ‘bespoke’ solutions to their end client with built-to-order hardware and software. Because HANNspree can tap into the economies of scale enjoyed by parent company HannStar to ensure price competitiveness and couple it with a localised UK service for all technical and development needs, we are in the perfect position to serve and support the channel.
E-tailers too could serve this intriguing market, with off-the-shelf open frame solutions providing a simple and hassle-free new dimension to display business as more and more interactive product designers emerge. Raspberry Pi is certainly having an impact on the potential of touch screen display integration into new hardware, giving a generation of emerging inventors the means to explore and realise their ideas for possible touch-enabled application. As these possibilities snowball, as new technology ideas tend to do, a stream of new buyers will be looking for suppliers to provide them with the hardware they require, so it is extremely feasible to consider that open frame display solutions have a place in the consumer market space. And it is these new inventors that will one day be the large-scale producers of the ‘next big thing’ in interactive digital display, creating yet another opportunity to increase sales, raise revenue and profit on the whole.
In the grand scheme, the channel for open frame displays is relatively young. We are certain that this market will grow, and grow quickly, presenting a fantastic opportunity for any business looking to branch out to diversify and indeed create new, sizeable sales opportunities.
Read the latest edition of PCR’s monthly magazine below:
Like this content? Sign up for the free PCR Daily Digest email service to get the latest tech news straight to your inbox. You can also follow PCR on Twitter and Facebook.
