Video: 10 Minute IT Jams - Who is Barco?

Barco is on a mission to change how the world visualises and collaborates. The Belgian-headquartered technology company has been quietly powering major events, boardrooms, classrooms, and hospitals across Australia and New Zealand for more than two decades, with solutions designed for industries as diverse as healthcare, education and the corporate sector.

"We develop a lot of visualisation solutions, but our focus is seeing beyond the image," explained Claudio Cargill, Managing Director for Barco ANZ and Pacific Islands. "Our visualisation solutions incorporate collaboration to really drive people working together, sharing insights and wowing audiences around the globe."

A long-standing player in the technology field with an 85-year legacy, Barco has developed an enviable product range. "We have a focus on three core markets: enterprise, healthcare and entertainment," Cargill said. "We offer one of the leading display solutions across the cinema projector range, whether it's in a corporate summit or a concert tour. Our solutions are about creating experiences and events for audiences."

Barco's technology has featured at high-profile events such as Sydney's annual Vivid festival and the recent Sony PlayStation 5 launch, where Barco projectors lit up Auckland's Sky Tower. The company's versatile offering extends from large video wall solutions for control and emergency rooms, disaster recovery operations and power utilities, to the innovative ClickShare line allowing wireless collaboration in corporate meeting rooms.

Barco's commitment to enabling seamless collaboration took on new significance as the COVID-19 pandemic forced a dramatic reconsideration of how – and where – work gets done. "There's no doubt COVID-19 has impacted many organisations globally," Cargill said. "But it's been a great catalyst in terms of accelerating innovation and digital transformation."

He explained that, while there had initially been resistance and apprehension to remote working, video meetings and collaborations have quickly become the norm. "There's greater levels of comfort, efficiency and collaboration now with these technologies. Without a doubt, we are seeing a paradigm shift," he added.

Company research found that more than 60 percent of Australian employees now think companies should be preparing for hybrid work, while over 80 percent believe that easy-to-use technology can deliver markedly better meeting outcomes. This shift has companies rethinking both their digital strategy and their expectations around workplace flexibility. "The future of work is certainly hybrid," Cargill said. "It's a new way of working, a new way of collaborating, and certainly a greater level of diversity as more remote workers become part of the workforce."

Barco has responded with tangible innovations. Recent upgrades to the ClickShare meeting experience included two new products, released just last week, designed to support effortless content sharing and co-creation. "ClickShare C5 and C10 allow you to present and co-create in existing Microsoft, Zoom or Webex platforms with simple one-click wireless content sharing," Cargill said. He described the C5 as "a great solution for huddle spaces and small meeting rooms, offering wireless and 4K content sharing", while the higher-end C10 is "a great companion for interactive collaborations in any meeting room space", featuring touchback support, blackboarding and on-screen annotation.

These launches come alongside the introduction of the next generation Barco UniSee LCD video wall displays. "It optimises state-of-the-art image quality for use in many applications, from front lobby to control rooms and retail," said Cargill. "When we develop solutions, we consider not only how the customer will use it, but also the after-sales and support experience."

Barco's vision extends beyond the boardroom to the classroom. The company's WeConnect platform aims to replicate the highly engaging in-room experience of physical lectures and training for remote learners. "It's a cloud-based solution that can accommodate over 100 students at any given time, allowing for interactive features to ensure a dynamic learning experience remotely," he explained. Tools include polls, screen splitting, silent questions and an interactive whiteboard that all virtual students can use. "The great piece about WeConnect is that it's accommodating to both virtual and in-situ students. It's about engagement and making it as close to a life-like scenario as possible."

Barco has maintained a strong local presence in Australia and New Zealand since 1997, with head offices, service centres and warehouse facilities in Melbourne and a sales-focused office in Sydney. "We have local services covering sales, marketing, technical service and support," Cargill said.

Supporting high-profile sites such as Federation Square and Vivid Sydney, Barco has built robust alliances with local distributors and AV specialists to ensure customers benefit from a comprehensive range of solutions. "We have a long-term relationship with some key audiovisual distributors for our corporate AV portfolio. And as the shift to hybrid meetings becomes the new normal, our partnerships have expanded into unified communications channels," he said.

Recent strategic moves include an expanded distribution agreement with Dicker Data to bolster Barco's unified communications offering, and new partnerships with peripheral providers such as Logitech, Yamaha, Bose, and Sennheiser. "More recently we announced the tie-up with Jabra as part of a solution bundle for the Asia Pacific market to enable easy adoption of integrated solutions with our ClickShare conference range," Cargill added.

Barco's dedication to channel partnerships means enterprise customers have multiple ways to access support and expertise. "Partners can channel their enquiries through one of our distributors or get in contact with us directly," Cargill explained.

Despite the dramatic upheavals of recent years, Cargill said Barco's future in ANZ is bright. "A lot of changes for us, but very positive," he said, reflecting on both global and local expansion and the rapid adoption of hybrid technologies. "The Australian market has welcomed those changes. Our alliance partners are very important to us as we deliver solutions in partnership to channel partners and, importantly, our own customers."

He concluded, "It's all about engagement. It's about getting interactive and making the experience as close to life-like as possible."