Cool to Dual: Dual-Monitor Desktop Trend Creating Greater Organizational Efficiency and Productivity

Business Wire, Dec 16, 2005

CHICAGO -- Lower Prices, Thinner Bezels and Compelling Productivity Gains Drive Businesses to Multiple Desktops Displays

With IT spending on the rise again, businesses looking for the best return on their IT investment needn't look any further than the screen in front of them. With the average price of a 19-inch LCD now below $500 and display bezel widths approaching the thickness of a pencil, the idea of creating twice the amount of available screen space to employees is more approachable than ever.

However, few IT managers will outfit an office environment with dual-monitors simply because they can. Return on investment, as with any IT expenditure, must drive the decision.

"Based on an extensive analysis of our environment and workflow, we found using dual-monitor and triple-monitor desktops could provide our Customer Care representatives with substantial productivity and efficiency gains," said Mark Kaplan, IT Director for Software Spectrum, a multi-national provider of business-to-business IT solutions and services. "Our CIO signed off on the proposal, and we've now supplied over 500 of our employees worldwide with two NEC LCD displays each."

Software Spectrum began seeing results almost immediately. Software Spectrum's Customer Care reps could now view several application windows simultaneously, minimizing the amount of scrolling, navigating and printing they had to do in order to access and view the information pertinent to the customer file they were working with.

"After the dual-monitor deployment, we noticed a significant decrease in customer hold times as well as expenses associated with extra printing," said Kaplan. "Because the Customer Care group experienced such a significant increase in productivity, the organization was able to maintain its customer service levels without incurring any additional labor costs."

A dual-monitor arrangement can provide benefits beyond increased efficiency and productivity.

Forbes.com, an internationally acclaimed business Web site, noticed a 50 percent reduction in its editorial production times after deploying dual monitors on the desks of their copy editors. But the benefits went beyond simple time savings.

"The added desktop space allowed the editors to increase the size of fonts and application windows, which our editors felt reduced their eye strain and fatigue," said Michael Smith, Forbes.com General Manager of Operations. "The dual NEC displays have really made an impact on our process and with our people."

In order to educate the market on the benefits of dual-display computing, NEC Display Solutions is rolling out a "Try and Buy" program in January that allows companies to experience for themselves the efficiency and productivity gains of dual monitor usage. Qualified companies will get 60 days to evaluate the impact dual-display computing can have on their businesses. A dedicated site, located at www.necdisplay.com/multiply, also is available as a resource for dual monitor case studies, set-up tips and other helpful information.

About NEC Display Solutions of America, Inc.

Headquartered in Itasca, Ill., NEC Display Solutions of America, Inc., is a leading provider of innovative LCD displays and integrated display solutions. NEC Display Solutions develops leading-edge visual technology and customer-focused solutions for the consumer, enterprise, professional, medical and digital signage markets. NEC Display Solutions ranked as the #1 best-selling stand-alone LCD monitor provider in the U.S. for all of CY2004, according to iSuppli's quarterly monitor reports. For more information, please call 1-866-NEC-MORE, or visit www.necdisplay.com.

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For additional information about NEC Display Solutions of America monitors, consumers can call (866) NEC-MORE, or visit the Web site at: www.necdisplay.com/protectyourimage/. For digital images, please visit www.necdisplay.com/mml.