29.03.2019 | ISSUE 02
In this month’s edition we look at the education sector, introduce the Education specialists at Scan and review how Scan is supporting education customers across our verticals. We also review the ISE event in Amsterdam which both our Digital Signage and Pro Gaming teams attended. And finally find out more about NVIDIA's mighty DGX-1.
An introduction to the Scan Business Education team
Whether you are looking for PCs for students or for the school office, at Scan Computers we understand that when you are looking for a solution to suit your needs this is sometimes difficult with a standard off the shelf PC. With a specialism in building our own bespoke 3XS systems, at Scan we have a dedicated Education sales team who are focused on working closely with our customers to find the right solution that fits within your budget.
Built to order solutions from Scan include deep learning and AI, servers, storage, digital signage and industrial PCs. Below is an introduction to our two main Education Business Account Managers Craig and Kerry who are focused on supporting their accounts by highlighting the best IT solutions for the different segments in Education – Primary, Secondary, College and University.
Craig Holliday
Sectors: Schools, Colleges, Charity & Communities, News & Media
Craig has been working at Scan Computers for over 5 years and during this time he has ensured the Scan 3XS philosophy is embedded into everything he does – Specification, Service and customer satisfaction. He has focused on building a strong portfolio of clients, all of which benefit from his knowledge and excellent customer service.
As well as other key verticals, within the Education sector, Craig specialises on School and Colleges, advising and supporting with the delivery of IT related products within this sector.
Here is a selection of systems recommended by Craig:
Good
This is a great office system for teachers and students to use as the base level, be this office work or in the class room.
Better
The next system would be used for higher spec applications with the ability to run multiple monitors as well.
Best
The final PC in our recommendations is a College system based off previous sales. It is a more up to date system which has the newer CPU and Graphics Card installed. This system can be used for multiple applications from rendering to VR
Kerry Ozard
Sectors: Universities, Further education
After working at Scan Computers for over 13 years, Kerry is an experienced Account Manager who has developed extensive sales and customer services knowledge. Highly motivated, Kerry provides excellent support on her accounts, a section of which are Universities, where like Craig, she advises and supports with the delivery of IT related products from our off the shelf PCs through to VR and audio studios
With the higher demand for graphics and performance at University, Scan recommend a minimum of an Intel Core i7 processor. Below are a selection of three PCs we recommend, starting with the 3XS WI4000:
Good
The first PC In our list is a baseline PC with specification including the newest tech. This system supports up to 4 monitors for CAD/rendering.
Better
Our second system is a powerful workstation used for VR. The WI4000 range is very popular within higher education from a price point when completing with the likes of Dell and HP.
Best
The WI6000 Range is the top range within the 3XS workstations. It supports multi-screen use for VR, CAD and rendering. It is installed with the latest components from Intel and NVidia.
Events – ISE 2019
Both the Pro Gaming and the Digital Signage teams attended the 2019 Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) exhibition in February. Running from the 5th to 8th February in Amsterdam the event is recognised as one of the world’s largest exhibitions for AV and systems integration.
Pro Gaming
The Pro Gaming team was invited by Optoma, a leading supplier of projection and LED solutions to demo our 3XS Systems in the gaming area. Within this area Optoma was demonstrating new low input lag projector technology, offering 100” ultrabright 4K visuals, designed to offer a gaming experience very close to that of gaming monitors. The first product to benefit from this is the Optoma HD29H which was released on the 12th February. Available to buy at Scan, this new projector offers full 1080p resolution combined with a 120Hz refresh rate, double that of other projectors and many TV’s, and can offer a screen size up to 300”. This offers far smoother gameplay in fast-paced games and combined with an input lag of just 8.4ms it is easily the fastest projector currently on the market.
There was also a full range of the latest laser based projectors for both business and education. Offering brighter projection and significantly longer life spans than traditional bulb based units these are sure to offer significant benefits over the life of the product with less maintenance and higher reliability.
Lastly this year Optoma has also launched a range of LED wall digital signage options. These range from a 130” standalone panel on wheels, the FHDQ130, right through to custom application video walls. Scan will soon be selling and installing both options so keep an eye on the website for more info.
View the summary video from Optoma of the gaming area of the stand:
Digital Signage
Returning again this year, the Digital Signage team was in attendance at the show supporting Scan’s long term partner Beabloo. Beabloo provides a system which integrates digital signage, analytics and automation in order to assist customers in maximising the use of their retail space. The main focus of the stand was to promote the three stages of the customer journey:
- Communicate – Customer communication
- Collect & Analyse – Customer data intelligence
- Automate & Boost – Customer data intelligence
Throughout 2018, the Digital Signage team installed a range of different digital signage solutions, some of which have also included the Beabloo solution:
- ITV Creative
- Westminster University
- The Fragrance Shop
- Indulge Beauty
- Avon Rubber PLC
- Caters News
With our long term relationship, the team continuously work closely with Beabloo to offer customers an all-encompassing solution that provides invaluable insights into customer behaviour. Call the team to discuss your needs further.
Tech Focus – DGX-1
Introduced at GPU Conference in April 2016, the NVIDIA® DGX-1™ Deep Learning System was the world’s first purpose-built system for deep learning. The DGX-1 is installed with fully integrated hardware and software that can be deployed quickly and easily and it has revolutionised deep learning across the globe. As an Elite solutions provider, Scan has been at the forefront of this launch in the UK and have successfully installed a host of DGX1 systems through the education, financial, automotive and healthcare industries.
The DGX-1 is much more than a GPU server, it is a deep learning solution comprising of a finely tuned combination of hardware and software. Running a GPU-optimised version of Ubuntu Server Linux, the software stack comprises drivers, the NVDocker container tool, deep learning SDK, NVIDIA Cloud Management Service plus NVIDIA DIGITS which is used to run deep learning frameworks such as Caffe, Torch, TensorFlow and many more.
Since launch, the higher education sector has been at the forefront of deep learning projects spanning such diverse areas as medical and clinical diagnosis, engineering innovation and agricultural output. Utilising the compute power of DGX-1 in combination with flash storage, fast connectivity and a host of software packages designed to enhance data science functions, Scan has been a key player in bringing this ecosystem together acting as a solution partner to many of the country’s foremost universities and medical schools.
Scan Computers and NVIDIA provide exclusive discounts on NVIDIA DGX-1 for higher education and research institutes. Secure your next purchase at an exclusive price. Simply send us your contact details and project information today to take advantage of this offer. Only available to verified higher education and research institutes.
For more information on the DGX1 and the support contract from NVIDIA visit the Scan contact the team today.
Industry Focus
Education is a vertical industry, which is continuously changing and evolving to the world around it, from breakthroughs in technology to changes in the market demands.
How has Scan worked in Education? Although Scan's historical background is in bespoke PC building, we have expanded our offering to support many areas including:
IT implementation – Using our strength in PC building, our 3XS team are experienced in all IT implementation projects in education from an entry level office PC through to a video content VR machines.
Digital Signage – Aside from a traditional store implementation, the Digital Signage team at Scan has installed a variety of solutions into education including entrance displays for student information though to lecture theatre communication systems. Customers include Westminster University, ITV Creative, Avon Rubber and The Fragrance Shop.
Server support – High performance server and storage systems need a high performance network and working with leading networking partners we ensure our systems get the infrastructure they deserve.
Commercial VR - Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) applied within an educational environment can create an immersive, virtual environment where its users can experience products, processes, and services at their own pace. At Scan we work with HTC to offer a professional system which is compatible with our 3XS VR ready systems.
Cloud Workstations – As an alternative or supporting network to the traditional PC hardware, cloud technology has become part of all industries. Within the education industry the emergence of virtual classrooms has become a standard part of day to day life at University and the 3XS cloud solution from Scan is cost effective, maintenance free and a scalable solution for educational institutes.
AI & Deep Learning – AI and deep learning is at the forefront of Universities’ with the emergence of research projects for medical or clinical diagnosis, engineering innovation or agricultural output. The Scan AI team can help guide you along your AI journey with support in your training, development or inferencing stage.
Pro Audio – At Scan we have a fully integrated Pro Audio team which are made up of music professionals, including producers, composer, DJ’s, instrumentalists and engineers. The Pro Audio team will advise and support any installation needed from a simple Pro Audio PC request, through to a full studio kit out.
Pro Video – The Pro Video team at Scan is dedicated to building solutions that provide a complete workflow for professional digital content. We work with key brands within the industry including Blackmagic, Adobe, DJI, DaVinci Resolve, Manfrotto and Panasonic.
For more information on how we can help with your requirements simply contact the team below.