“We have gained a two-year lead over the rest of the market.”

Better quality, longer-lasting durability and up to 60% savings on power consumption. ViewNet benefited greatly from developing the next generation of LED screens in an innovation project with Energy Cluster Denmark.

“We have gained a significant advantage over our competitors, and we have developed a product that sets the bar in many areas. We currently have a two-year lead over the rest of the market.”

They are the cold, hard facts as far as Lars Dalvig is concerned, CEO of Sønderborg company, ViewNet Systems, which develops LED screens for the public domain.

LED screens have a wealth of applications and an ever-increasing prevalence. ViewNet System has, among other things, supplied the Danish Parliament’s big LED screen that shows cast votes. They have also supplied advertising screens for City Hall Square in Copenhagen and advertising pylons for petrol stations across the country, displaying diesel and petrol prices.

And from now on, ViewNet has an even better product to hand:

“We saw an opportunity to differentiate ourselves with an LED screen that uses less power, and it has succeeded. We have developed both a new screen and a new algorithm, and overall, the gain is significant – you save up to 60% on energy consumption,” says Lars Dalvig.

Significant savings

ViewNet has developed the new generation of LED screens together with Sensade from Aalborg, Redia from Aarhus and the University of Southern Denmark and Energy Cluster Denmark. This has happened through the ‘eInfoSys – Energy-efficient systems of LED screens and digital signs’ innovation project, which has proven to hit the mark in many areas:

“We have sought to develop new technology on the screens and an innovative application of existing technology to the algorithm that runs the screens. This means both that we can update the existing screens with a new algorithm, which makes the screen more energy-efficient, and we have an entirely new LED technology that uses less energy,” says Lars Dalvig:

“Both gains are significant, and then there is even a bonus in the form of better image quality than before and significantly improved durability. That was not what we were aiming for, but they are definitely added bonuses that are not to be sniffed at,” he says.

They are savings that you can see – both in the green accounts and on the bottom line. For example, the energy consumption of the 158 pylons that ViewNet has supplied to UnoX will be reduced by more than half a million KW hours, and the two big screens, measuring just over 55 square metres, which ViewNet has on City Hall Square in Copenhagen, will each save 75W.

“The screens run around the clock all year round, and with the new system, we will be able to save over 700,000 kWh over the next ten years. If we say DKK 0.90 per kWh, it is a saving of DKK 650,000, which corresponds to about half the price of the screen,” says Lars Dalvig.

Believe in 2021

He is delighted to have developed a new screen and algorithm that has even been shown to have the market’s best image quality in sunlight.

“We have really gained a lot from collaborating on innovation. There is an increasing focus on energy optimisation from customers, and we now have both a more energy-friendly and better product, which differentiates us significantly from the competition. It’s an incredible result of an excellent process,” says Lars, and continues:

“The innovation project has given us everything we had hoped for – and more besides. We went into the process to investigate whether innovative product development could differentiate us, and it could. We have a better product, a finished solution, and we expect a larger and stronger market position, and at the same time, increased exports as a result of the product development we have gained through the innovation project. It gives me faith that 2021 will be an amazing year,” says Lars Dalvig.

Energy Cluster Denmark is also delighted with the result:

“ViewNet had grand ambitions in many areas with the project, and it is fantastic to note that the innovation project has both fulfilled and exceeded our expectations,” says Glenda Napier, CEO of Energy Cluster Denmark. “A more sustainable, energy-efficient product with longer-lasting durability that is in demand on the market must be said to be an extremely satisfactory outcome. The aim of our innovation projects is always to give the participating companies an advantage concerning green competitiveness”.