Complete IT Systems opens new office in Leicester

Complete IT Systems have opened our new office in Leicester. The launch of the Leicester office comes at a time of unprecedented growth for the business and will create a number of new jobs in the city.

Founded in 2007 by Paul Spence and Ben Gregg, Complete IT Systems grew to a £16.6 million turnover in 2017 and currently employs 54 staff. Its people continue to be the engine of its growth, and in recognition of this our profit share scheme has returned 10% of all net profits to our staff.

The company is also well known for building strong relations with the local community having sponsored Bradford City FC, been crowned the Fastest growing Midsize Business in Yorkshire, playing a local role in Chamber of Commerce activities and supporting a number of local charities and educational initiatives.

On a national level it has also been recognised by the London Stock Exchange Group as one of the 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain. This award took into account Complete IT Systems’ role in generating net new employment and in making a dynamic contribution to the overall positive influence of SMEs on the country’s economy.

The business model is built on strong vendor relationships and technical skills that have been cultivated over the past 10 years, with over 20 strategic partnerships and numerous other alliances being skilfully supported by our professional services and technical teams. The commitment to achieving formal accreditations for the likes of Microsoft, Sophos, Datto, Blackberry, Lenovo, Canon, Scale Computing and many others underline Complete’s commitment to obtaining the very best expertise for its customers.

2013 saw the business expand further, with a new Glasgow office opening its doors to focus on the vibrant Scottish market, and to replicate what the company has achieved in Bradford. Four years on from its opening the office continues to go from strength to strength.

“Leicester represents a logical growth opportunity for us, and the city’s strong commitment to local business will fit perfectly with our ethos and the trusted relationships we build with our customers” said Ben Gregg, Sales Director and co-owner of Complete IT Systems. “I’m very much looking forward to this opportunity, and working with local companies to add value and efficiency to their IT and business operations”.

Our Leicester office address is:

Complete IT Systems Ltd,
1st Floor Gateway House,
Grove Business Park,
Enderby,
Leicester,
Leicestershire,
LE19 1SY

Interactive projector vs interactive display – we put them to the test!

Interactive projector vs interactive display – which is better? This is a question many schools and education providers are asking when considering interactive technologies for the classroom.

Both devices have pros and cons, education providers must weigh up functionality, price, maintenance costs and the types of interactive learning that the devices will be used for. It can be tricky to decide whether a touch screen display or interactive projector is the best option, so let’s take a look first at the differences between the two.

What is an interactive projector?

An interactive projector is comprised of two parts; a whiteboard and projector which features a lens to project images. The projector is usually mounted to the ceiling or to the wall above the whiteboard and is the source of the content being displayed. The whiteboard acts as a plain screen to display the projected content.

Interactive projectors enable interaction by tracking movements, either by infrared or DLP technology.

Here’s how infrared works:

– A camera on the projector tracks the movement of an interactive pen

– The pen transmits infrared light to the camera when it makes contact with the whiteboard

– This movement is recorded and reflected in the projection itself

– Similar to how the movements of a wireless computer mouse are reflected on the PC screen.

Here’s how DLP works:

– The projector emits patterns on top of the projected image

– Patterns occur quickly enough that they’re not detected by the human eye

– Interactive pen provided picks up on this pattern and relays it back to the projector

– Projector reflects the movements back to the whiteboard.

Some interactive projects enable wireless projecting by connecting remotely to laptops, PCs or tablets. Others require wired connections. Essentially, however, they simply project what is on the connected computer.

What is an interactive touchscreen display?

Interactive displays are wall-mounted screens which display images while enabling touchscreen interaction. They are comprised of only the display screen itself – and usually a remote control – and in many ways, they can be compared to tablets, only much, much larger.

Unlike interactive projectors, interactive panels don’t always require a pen for writing on the display image because they can respond to fingertip touch or palm touch. However, they often feature stylus pens to enable a natural writing experience that is similar to writing on a traditional whiteboard with a dry erase marker.

A huge benefit of interactive touch screens is that they don’t rely on the input of other laptops, PCs or tablets. Avocor displays use a Windows 10 interface and can be used just like any other Windows computer or tablet.

When additional sources are required, they can be connected to a USB port, or documents can simply be uploaded via a USB memory stick.

In part 2 of this blog, we’ll compare functionality, visuals and costs of the two.

This content is provided from the ever-excellent Avocor blog.

Want to learn more?

Complete IT Systems have a team of Avocor specialists on hand to demo the solution, discuss business benefits and help you understand how the technology works for your organisation. There’s also a great range of resources available on the Avocor blog.

Give us a call on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form to discuss your requirements with us.

 

Top 5 benefits of cloud computing for business

We’ve all heard the buzzword, but what are the real benefits of cloud computing on a day-to-day basis for businesses?

Cloud has been around for some years now, initially as a somewhat hazy concept to describe the move from on-premise to off-premise IT, and in more recent times, as a more defined hosted seBenefits of cloud computing illustrationrvice delivery model. Greater numbers of businesses – both large and small – are now choosing to embrace the cloud, eager to make the most of their IT budgets and maximise return on investment.

While some have committed to a full-scale overhaul of their IT setup from the outset, others have dipped their toes in the water by testing cloud services for non-critical functions. Having experienced success with their initial deployment, many have embarked on a wider rollout of hosted services – to either complement or replace their existing infrastructure. And the positive reports have not gone unnoticed by other companies, who – conscious of the success their rivals have experienced in the cloud – have recognised the potential value in their own upgrade.

Cloud computing can benefit companies in a number of ways, depending upon their size, scale, sector and strategic goals. Here are five of the top advantages of sourcing IT services in the cloud:

Lower capital expenditure

The ability to source IT services on-demand – as and when they are required – allows businesses to move to an investment model based on operational expenditure. No longer are they required to commit to large-scale capital projects, spending thousands on servers and software licences which may only have a limited lifespan. When businesses source IT services in the cloud, it is the vendor that takes responsibility for the majority of the infrastructure. Businesses simply become consumers of IT services rather than the owners of the hardware.

Easier maintenance and upgrades

Cloud computing provider is responsible for server, software and network management, in-house IT professionals can be allocated other work. No longer do they need to spend all day simply keeping the company’s PC fleet working properly. Cloud vendors employ dedicated teams of experts whose sole responsibility is ensuring continuity of service. In terms of upgrades, these are provided at the vendor-end, rather than in-house, which saves both time and money for cloud users. When the cloud provider invests in new solutions, these are made available to customers, enabling them to access advanced tools and applications at no extra cost.

Greater flexibility and mobility

With cloud services at their fingertips, employees can work from almost any location. They can access important files, data, documents and IT tools from a range of devices from almost any connected location. Providing they have the required bandwidth, it is possible to work online, replicating the office environment and ensuring employees can work as productively as possible.

Last year, a study conducted by IDG highlighted the range of services utilised by business employees in the cloud. These included work email (94 per cent), office apps (76 per cent) virtual private network server (75 per cent), databases (72 per cent), archives (55 per cent), production systems (55 per cent), CRM (47 per cent) and video conferencing (25 per cent).

Continuity of business

An associated benefit of remote working capability is the fact that, in the event of a disaster, the continuity of operations should never be in doubt. Should there be a fire, flood, theft, technology outage, or snow and ice prevent people from making it into the office, they have the option of working from a different location. Employees can simply log on as normal, access their work desktop, and continue as they would have done on any normal working day. All documents, files and data are hosted in the cloud, meaning they are accessible from almost any system, providing the user has the necessary access codes.

Improved IT security

In the early days of the cloud, concerns over the security of data hosted off-site were seen as a notable inhibitor to service adoption. However, as cloud computing has matured, and businesspeople have gained more of an understanding as to how it works, many of these fears have been allayed.

Rather than weakening IT security, there is a case for saying that cloud computing improves companies’ defences. This is because of the huge amount of money cloud providers spend on securing their data centre infrastructure, and keeping their customers’ data safe. Vendors benefit from economies of scale – they can afford to invest in the latest solutions and preventative approaches, whereas relatively few individual businesses can to the same degree.

Want to find out more?

As Microsoft Gold Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.