15+ Hours
of usage per week
<5 seconds
to start a presentation
80%
adoption rate
(& climbling)
About Innovative Steam Technologies
In the late 1980s, Tom Duffy developed the core technology of Once Through Heat Recovery Steam Generators (OTSGs), a specialized type of heat recovery steam generator that doesn’t require boiler drums. The technology was acquired in 1992 by IST, who have gone on to sell over 190 generators in 19 countries.
Industry
Oil & Energy
Company Count
200
Problems:
Relying on cables to connect user’s laptops to the conference room TV added an extra 10 minutes to every meeting. Other wireless presentation solutions overheated and didn’t work in larger rooms.
Solution:
Deploying Ubiq in the IST conference rooms provided end users with a simple and reliable way to instantly connect their laptops to the conference room TV.
Result:
Since 2015, 80% of IST end users rely on Ubiq for presentations, and the figure keeps climbing as word of mouth spreads.
Until recently, IST produced steam exclusively through their Once Through Heat Recovery Steam Generators, the most significant advancement in steam generation in over a century. That changed recently when the company discovered that they were also producing large volumes of steam in their conference rooms, mostly from the ears of frustrated end users who wanted to connect their laptops to the TV but couldn’t find the right cable or adapter to do so.
Chris Ritchie, IST’s CFO, quickly recognized that this new source of steam was more trouble than it was worth and began exploring wireless alternatives that would make life easier for his end users.
"We attempted some consumer devices like Logitech, but they all had line of sight issues; they restricted where you had to stand in order to connect," says Chris. "They also overheated and weren’t as reliable as we’d hoped. Ubiq solved a lot of those issues, particularly in our larger rooms."
Not only did Ubiq prove to be more reliable than its competitors, it also proved to be more intuitive and easier to use. "It’s great. The user just has to walk in, turn it on, and select the room. They don’t have to worry about software or loading things or configuring. That sort of stuff is all done in the background," says Chris. "When you’re preparing for a meeting, you want to concentrate on the content, not on loading and configuring."
IST’s end users were so taken in with the new device that it soon became a staple of every IST conference room. "It doesn't matter which meeting room they go to," says Chris. "They don’t have multiple solutions. They have one solution. They don’t have to worry about learning to use multiple solutions."
Although he was initially drawn to Ubiq as a wireless presentation solution, Chris began exploring the device’s other features, and was equally impressed. “I think the digital signage is great,” says Chris. “A lot of the digital signage we use is just photos of our equipment, so if supplies or customers are in the room, it adds another display. It’s like having an extra picture on the wall. It gives a frame of reference.”
Working with a company that works closely with its customers was also a plus, says Chris. “The best thing about Ubiq is the fact that they’re in touch with how their customers are using their product and are making updates based on their feedback and recommendations. We’re part of a community that knows it’s being taken care of. We’re asked for input. You don’t get that with any other solution.”
But perhaps the most useful aspect of Ubiq is that, unlike cabled solutions, you don’t have to hire an AV company to install it everytime your company moves to a new location. “We can change rooms or locations and not have to re-wire,” says Chris. “We’ve done that over the last year, just moving people and meeting rooms and equipment around.”
Chris estimates that 80% of IST end users rely on Ubiq, and the number of converts keeps climbing. “It’s what everyone has wanted to do with video but has never been able to find the solution for,” Chris says. “So when I’m talking to a friend or colleague, I start out by saying, ‘You know how you wish you could send video to your screen without a wire? I have that installed in my office.’ They immediately go, ‘Tell me more about it.’ It’s everyone’s dream to lose the cords.”