Large Touch Screen Monitor Modernises Church

Large Touch Screen Monitor Modernises Church

New Hope Baptist Church strives to bring religion and worship into the 21st century….…Having recently renovated the church building with a present-day feel, Church Minister Paul Westwood wanted to introduce technologies to streamline processes and empower people that attended the church’s charity courses to be able to collaborate and work together. Midshire’s consultative approach identified the church’s exact requirements, and upscaled engagement and quality, and increased uptime and functionality by installing a Sharp BIG PAD large touch screen monitor and Sharp multifunction photocopier.

The Problem: Lack of Interactive Technology

Problem 1: Wanted to attract more people to the church
Problem 2: Low quality prints from an unreliable printer
Problem 3: Making charity courses more engaging

Historically churches strive to operate using as little money as possible, which often results in self-managed cheap technology, cheap processes, and dated methods. Paul Westwood wanted to break that status quo and attract more people to the church by bringing a modern aesthetic. This included introducing the latest innovative interactive touch screens and multifunction print devices to elevate the church interior in-line with recent renovations.

A second issue was with print. Paul Westwood operates three courses through the church’s charity ‘The Hope Project’; each course caters for around twelve regular attendees that need to produce high quality colour coursework throughout the year. The church’s existing desktop printer could not keep up with demand or facilitate this need.

The final problem was inherited from the church’s previous ‘lowest cost as possible’ approach. During courses Paul was using a paper flipchart to provide a visual aid and keep people focussed. It’s tattered look and need for frequent refills was proving to do quite the opposite.

The Solution: An Innovative, Technologically Modern Environment

Solution 1: Technology facelift in-keeping with building renovation
Solution 2: Upgrading print functionality and quality
Solution 3: Large touch screen monitor for more engagement

With the New Hope Baptist Church’s recent renovation in mind, Midshire’s first solution was to select technology that would complement and elevate its appearance. The Sharp PN-65SC1 large touch screen monitor was proposed to impress churchgoers with its generous full HD 65” touch screen. The Sharp multifunction MX-2640s 10.1” LCD colour multi-touch control panel and sleek shape were also proposed to impress, and environmentally friendly functions would highlight that the church embraces technology in a bid to attract a younger demographic.

The interactive monitor would also fulfil another church need – engagement. Capable of fast and responsive infrared 10-point touch up to four users, the PN-65SC1 would encourage students to get out of their seats and collaborate, and two built-in stereo loudspeakers would clearly and effectively fill the large meeting space used by The Hope Project, keeping the charity’s beneficiaries engaged.

The proposed multifunction photocopier prints in crisp full colour, addressing the church’s need for improved print quality. The device would also be more than capable of keeping up with high-volume coursework printing, with a rapid warm-up time and output of 26ppm. Additionally, Midshire’s managed print service proactively prevents breakdowns, this would ensure that the machine was operational 24/7.

“New Hope Baptist Church has totally modernised with this new technology. They’re running more efficiently, they’re getting a much greater quality, they can print a lot quicker, and they don’t have to worry about paper jams when they hit print.

“Printing is pretty simple, and what the church was using prior to Midshire was making it difficult, now they can focus their time and efforts on what they need to be doing.” – Curtis Deakin, Account Manager, Midshire

The Outcome: Managed Services that Drive Engagement

Now that New Hope Baptist Church has integrated the latest innovative technology into the building, the church has a modern 21^stcentury feel, which has already helped to attract the next generation of church goers. Aside from the appearance of the devices, there has been a massive jump in practicality and functionality. Where the church would have previously outsourced more advanced or higher volume print jobs, an extra financial burden, the MX-2640 has conveniently brought those capabilities in house, consolidating costs.

The large touch screen monitor has also brought benefits. Engagement is up, students and course attendees are out of their seats, and the pen-on-paper experience of Sharp Pen Software means collaboration is fun, encouraged, and easier than ever. The interactive touch screen is being used to immaculately display both image and video content, which drives engagement by making courses more interesting. Freeze-frame functions are also allowing both Paul Westwood and course students to remain in complete control of visible content, making presentations more cohesive, less fragmented, and more engaging.

“The reason we chose Midshire, and would look no further if we needed additional equipment is because I like relationships with people. I like to be able to know the people that I’m dealing with and having that human contact. I know I have one place to call when I have a problem, and that really works for us. I know that Curtis is just a phone call away.” – Paul Westwood, Church Minister, New Hope Baptist Church