3M Digital Signage Brings Productivity Improvements to
3M announced that its digital signage solutions have replaced conventional notice boards at four of its manufacturing and distribution facilities.
[UKPRwire, Mon Jun 18 2007] 3M, the diversified technology company, today announced that its digital signage solutions have replaced conventional notice boards at four of its manufacturing and distribution facilities. Plants at Aycliffe in County Durham, Gorseinon in South Wales and Clitheroe in Lancashire, as well as the 3M European Distribution Centre in Bedford, have adopted 3M Digital Signage technology to enhance the delivery of employee communications direct to the shop floor.
The company is using digital signage to increase efficiency, promote health and safety, and raise rates of employee satisfaction. “The system provides operational real-time information which is now easy for everyone to see, enabling us to react quickly to changing workload patterns within the Distribution Centre,” said Martin Gimson, Operations Manager at 3M Bedford. Operations staff at Bedford have noted improved levels of efficiency at the centre, which is responsible for shipping nearly five million cartons every year to over 8000 customers throughout Europe.
John Bayne, who commissioned the digital signage network at 3M Aycliffe, added, “The ability to communicate information in many forms, such as video tutorials explaining industrial safety guidelines, directly to a high proportion of our employees is already proving very effective.”
Each site now has installed 42-inch plasma displays, which are linked and controlled by 3M Digital Signage software to enable the display of multimedia files, including data feeds from 3M’s internal systems. The software allows each site manager to schedule information to be displayed at pre-defined times of the day, and for different information to be displayed on different screens. In practice, the system has proved easy to set up, requiring only straightforward activation of the software, installation of cabling, and physical mounting of the plasma screens. Operating the digital signage network is simple and nominated staff at each site have responsibility for managing and maintaining the data to be displayed.
At Aycliffe, four screens have been installed so far, including two located in manufacturing areas to communicate production and quality data, as well as site bulletins and safety briefings. A screen in the staff canteen presents social content and corporate employee communications material drawn from a central feed at the company’s UK headquarters in Bracknell, Berkshire. The fourth unit is stationed in the reception area and communicates corporate messages and videos to visitors, including background information about achievements at the Aycliffe site.
At Bedford, there are three screens located at strategic positions in each of the main warehouse areas. The 3M Digital Signage software distributes three channels of content enabling each screen to be defined and updated individually. The information shown is a mixture of space availability, outstanding picks for the day, safety information and claims data, extracted automatically from the Bedford warehouse management system. Showing timed data, including basic information such as when forklift trucks are re-charging, allows the workforce to focus their efforts on other tasks.
“Many enterprises regard employee communications as critical to achieving continuous business culture success,” said Simon Birkenhead, Sales & Marketing Manager for 3M’s Digital Signage and Optical Systems Division. “Digital signage delivers a powerful solution, supporting many types of media and content and enabling instantaneous communication.”
Concurring with this view, Martin Gimson concluded, “We see digital signage as a key communications tool for the business. It will continue to add value as we add more targeted data over the coming months and years.”
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3M is a registered trade mark of 3M Company
About 3M
3M is a $22.9 billion diversified technology company, creating innovative products that help make the world smarter, faster, healthier and safer. Well known 3M brands include Scotch, Post-it, Scotchgard, Thinsulate and Scotch-Brite.
3M has pioneered innovation since 1902 and, today, invests more than $1.5 billion a year in R&D. It has applied its expertise in RFID technology to deliver biometric passports; it is using its understanding of the healthcare industry to provide hospitals with infection prevention solutions; and its digital signage offerings are set to revolutionise the way businesses communicate with their customers, their employees and the general public.
3M employs 75,000 people worldwide to deliver more than 55,000 products to customers in some 200 countries. Its diverse technologies touch nearly every aspect of modern life, serving markets such as consumer and office, display and graphics, electronics and communications, safety, security and protection services, healthcare, industrial and transportation.
The UK and Ireland is home to one of the largest 3M subsidiaries outside the USA, employing 3800 people across 16 locations, including 11 manufacturing sites. Products manufactured in the UK include coated abrasives, respirators, adhesive tapes, industrial microbiology products, drug delivery systems, high-performance coatings and secure documents.
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