In an interesting interview that they granted us, Matilde Bandini and Claudio Cerioni, founders of MeCtech, addressed the introduction of a new important brand in their company’s portfolio, which completes the Watchout offer
The name Watchout, in the experts of the sector, always makes the proverbial bell ring: well-known multi-display software, it stands out for its ease of use and integration with external controls and devices. Without placing limits on screens, video channels or resolutions, Watchout can be used in live events, 3D mapping projections, broadcast environments, digital signage, museums, planetariums, showrooms, theme parks and visitor centers, in short, wherever a multi-screen display is needed.
MeCtech, which has always marketed Dataton products and in particular Watchout, has recently expanded its horizons with Blocks. What is it? We asked the company founders, Claudio Cerioni and Matilde Bandini.
C – What is Blocks and why did you choose this product?
CC – Blocks is produced by Pixilab, with the idea of unifying the management and distribution of content and controls on industrial protocols in a single platform, therefore extendable to lights and other aspects. Finally, it is also possible to manage audio guides in a way that is synchronized with the video, without the need for visitors to download an app on their phones.
MB – Blocks is a powerful and evolving tool, also able to identify the most successful areas of a museum and provide information to managers. In streaming, many elements can be managed in real time; with a tablet, for example, an announcement on a monitor can be replaced in a second. The tool, integrated with the Watchout software, covers many needs.
CC – Let’s say that in a single immersive environment, our Watchout is more than enough, but when we move to larger environments such as museums, with different rooms and different needs, environments in which the visual element is not only represented by the large screen but also by many small monitors and other things, well, in these cases we need a tool that moves in a different way. Among other things, lights, in museum environments, are often fundamental, and a tool that controls everything easily can be ideal.
C – Does the product offer a connection with KNX?
CC – The management of external elements, such as lights, occurs not only on established protocols (DMX, ArtNet) but also with industrial protocols typical of public installations (i.e., in practice, KNX). Watchout would be able to manage many external elements by itself, but it does not use standard industrial protocols, only professional ones. Blocks, on the other hand, also uses industrial protocols in a widespread manner.
C – How is your work evolving with this new product?
CC – In truth, there is not a great detachment from the previous activity. Watchout was also developed in anticipation of a development of this type. For example, Watchnet was created, which aimed precisely at the functionality of Blocks. Watchnet was not produced in the end, and Pixilab took its place with Blocks. However, it is proof that there was already an orientation towards this extension of controls, we just created it with another tool. This product takes us into a different field of activity than our usual one, that is, in more museum-like and immersive contexts.
C – How do you see the development of your market?
CC – We don’t yet know exactly how our products and solutions will develop, we will propose them with conviction and we will try to increasingly better support the projects that come from our suppliers.
MB – Yes, let’s say we are trying to understand which area to push ourselves into, which applications could be the best for Blocks, which is in fact an “all-rounder” that can integrate many devices (even BrightSign, to be clear) to provide increasingly sophisticated and effective visual content.
C – Will you continue to provide training?
CC – Of course, we consider it fundamental, on the one hand because, for us, proximity to customers is very important, and offering refresher courses in this is a winning weapon. Secondly, sometimes the products seem inadequate to the needs of integrators and designers, when in reality the underlying skills are inadequate! This is why we do our courses, and we will insist on offering them.
